\"Original essays by the people of Haichuan – The Autumn Scenery of Quehua\"

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This post was last edited by Benpeng Guo Jibo45 on 2017-9-8 at 14:09. Due to work and personal reasons, I need to travel frequently between Beijing and Shandong. To be honest, Jinan is a city that I don’t really like. There are many reasons, perhaps it’s because I don’t like the weather in Jinan, I don’t like its climate, and I don’t like its architecture. . . Perhaps it’s because I happened to be in Jinan when I was in a bad mood or facing difficulties at work, and that’s why I attributed my negative feelings to Jinan. But there are so many memories, many, many of them. . . In the past, due to work, I often went to Jinan for work and sightseeing, and even stayed there regularly. But it has been a year since I left Jinan. Jinan is very large, with many people, things, and events to remember. Let’s start with a landscape painting by Zhao Mengfu, a master of his generation. This painting is by Zhao Mengfu, a great literary figure, calligrapher, and painter from the Yuan dynasty – as well as my favorite calligrapher (I bought a print of his calligraphy not long ago). It depicts the scenery of Jinan, created to relieve a friend who was originally from Jinan from his homesickness. Later generations gave it a very elegant and beautiful name: \"Painting of the Autumn Scenery at Quehua.\" The flat-topped peak depicted is called Que Mountain, while the peak with a sharp top is called Hua Bu Zhu Mountain. When talking about Huabuzhu, I have to digress again. Huabuzhu Mountain is a small hill with an elevation of 197 meters, located on the south bank of the Yellow River, to the northeast of Jinan. It is said that the name Huabuzhu is a homophone for \"bud\", as the mountain’s shape resembles that of an unopened lotus flower. But as someone from Shandong, I’m not aware of what this term means in local dialects; it might be an ancient pronunciation. Its rocks are bluish-gray, which is completely different from the geological structure of the Tai Shan mountain range in the southern suburbs of Jinan. Li Daoyuan described Mount Hua Bu Zhu in his \"Commentary on the Waterways Classic\" as follows: \"Its peaks are steep and majestic, standing tall without being connected to any surrounding hills.\" ； The tiger’s teeth stand out sharply; a solitary peak rises tall, piercing the sky. Green cliffs and dark hair, appearing as if painted with kohl. ”Zhao Mengfu, a famous painter and calligrapher of the Yuan dynasty, depicted the scenery around Que Mountain and Huabuzhu Mountain in his painting \"Autumn Scenery of Quehua\". According to the Zuo Zhuan, in the second year of Duke Cheng’s reign (589 BC), Duke Qing of Qi fought against the Jin army at Jinan; he was defeated due to his arrogance and underestimation of the enemy. Pursued by the Jin forces, he circled around Huabuzhu three times. Fortunately, his subordinate Chou Fu exchanged places with him and ordered him to go to Huaquan to fetch water, which allowed Duke Qing of Qi to escape. In the poem \"Ascending Huashan\" by the Song Dynasty literati Zeng Gong, there are lines that read: \"Where can one seek the loyalty of that ugly old man? All that remains is a handful of sweet spring water.\" Li Bai, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, wrote in his work \"Ancient Styles\": Once I traveled to the capital of Qi and climbed Mount Hua Bu Zhu. This mountain is so steep and beautiful, its greenery as lovely as that of lotuses. The ancient immortal Xiao Sa knew that it was Chi Song. Lend a white deer, carrying two green dragons with me. Smiling, Ling faces the reflected scene; gladly, she wishes to follow. First and foremost, we must pay our deepest respects to this ancestor of the Pang family, one of the founders of the Pang surname – Pang Choufu. Kneel first before writing. He’s 20,000 times more handsome than me, I guess. Speaking of \"Autumn Scenery at Quehua,\" it reminds me of a bridge in Daming Lake. In order to carry forward the culture of old Jinan, people named that bridge Quehua Bridge. Actually, this photo wasn’t taken by me; it’s not as good as those I took. A beautiful woman once said that my angle and color choices are excellent, but they still can’t capture the mood I had while walking on the bridge. Jinan is a place with a rich cultural heritage, and it has a renowned destination for the cultural market – the Yingxiongshan Cultural Market. It is known as one of the four major cultural markets in the country. The other locations are probably Panjiayuan, Confucius Temple, and the like. In short, I go there every weekend. I didn’t go by myself; I took others with me as well. I don’t know whether other people like that atmosphere or something else, but in any case I went there. There are cultural artifacts, jades, woodcrafts, and paintings and calligraphy – it’s one of the places that left a deep impression on me; it’s one of them, but not the only one. Jinan also has underdeveloped industry and a harsh climate. It is said to be related to the terrain – the banks of the Yellow River are covered with yellow sand, and when the north wind blows, the city gets enveloped in that yellow sand. With mountains on all three other sides, it has no choice but to settle in a basin. I remember visiting the vicinity of that nationally renowned, uniquely Chinese, mysterious, and highly prominent top-tier educational institution – Lanxiang Technical School (it seems that this school’s advertisements can be found all over the country). It was impossible to drive on those roads, so I had to go to a pharmacy first to buy a medical mask. Vehicles and the sand and dust carried by the north wind had left a thick layer on the leaves along the roadsides. I got off-topic again just now. The scenery on Daming Lake is beautiful; in addition to the Quehua Bridge built by modern people, there are also many ancient relics. Jinan is known as a place where \"lotuses surround it on all sides and willows on three sides; the city is filled with spring beauty, with lakes covering half of it\" – this description truly captures the essence of old Jinan. At that time, Jinan was developed around the area of Daming Lake. There are also the famous lotus flowers by Daming Lake, as well as those toads that hop around. Going around the lake, especially in light rain, with that little umbrella from my memories – it was very pleasant. If I had the talent of famous scholars from Jinan such as Li Qingzhao and Xin Qiji, I would surely have written a poem that would be remembered for years to come. Unfortunately, I am just who I am. After a brief mention of Daming Lake, we move on to the other two of Jinan’s three famous attractions. Qianfoshan is likely the highest peak in the urban area of Jinan. It’s really tiring to climb up – many kids have already gotten ahead of me. I didn’t see much scenery either; I just moved my lazy body around on the mountain path to experience the comfort of nature. Baotu Spring is a great place to visit. As General Zhang Zongchang wrote in his poems, Baotu Spring – its water gushes out in three streams, with a constant bubbling sound, bubbling, bubbling non-stop! Such beautiful verses fully display before us the magnificent and graceful scene of three springs gushing forth. The water there is so clear that one can see the aquatic plants on the bottom of the lake, as well as the scales of the schools of goldfish. As the writers say, as clear as a maiden’s eyes. . . It has been a year since I left Jinan; in my free time, I can no longer visit the cultural markets, tea markets, or Quancheng Square. There are many more things to recall about Jinan. Perhaps, all that’s left are memories.