There are springs in Lanzhou. Not only are there, but they are concentrated, the Five-Eyed Spring is distributed in an arc shape on the same mountain. The spring is not big, but the name is not small. It is related to a powerful young general in the Han Dynasty, and a mountain can be named after the spring. This shows how important the spring is in the hearts of Lanzhou people.
Lanzhou is located in the hinterland of the Loess Plateau, a city that suffers from drought and drought all year round. Because a river runs through the city and the Five Eyes Spring is located next to the city, it is a little less bitter and vicissitudes of life. , a little more moist and aura. Lanzhou also adds a bit of history and rich cultural atmosphere because of these springs. "Wuquan Mountain", named after the spring, unceremoniously took a share of Gaolan Mountain and took the northern foot of Gaolan Mountain under its control. The "Wuquan Mountain Park" derived from the spring has lush forests and numerous ancient temples, forming a religious pattern in which Confucianism is the sect, Buddhism and Taoism are compatible, and Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism are harmonious. Wuquan Mountain, where "water surrounds the Zen forest and stretches to the left and right, and the rustling ancient trees carry the cold smoke" has become a good place for people to make pilgrimages to worship Buddha, practice Zen and enlightenment, exercise and relax, and explore ancient times.
And the hero who found the spring water for Lanzhou was shaped into a statue several meters high by the sculptor's dexterous hands. He was dressed in armor, with a sword hanging from his waist, a war horse under his crotch, and his hands clasped in fists, looking majestic. Standing solemnly on the square at the entrance of Wuquanshan Park, it seems to be greeting tourists and guarding all living beings in Lanzhou City. He is Huo Qubing, the famous hussar general of the Western Han Dynasty. Legend has it that Huo Qubing led his troops to conquer the Xiongnu in the west and passed through Lanzhou. The hungry and thirsty soldiers rested at the foot of Gaolan Mountain after a long journey, but they could not find drinking water. The water from the Yellow River was not drinkable directly. When everyone was looking for water but could not find it, Huo Qubing used it. The horse whip was poked on the ground five times, and a miracle happened. Five clear springs soon appeared in the ground, solving the drinking water problem for the soldiers. Huo Qubing's army recharged its strength and marched westward, but the five-eye spring water stayed, nourishing the land of Lanzhou and benefiting the people of Lanzhou.
But there is always a certain distance between legend and truth. Some people say that Huo Qubing has never been to Lanzhou, and they quote scriptures and conclusively say that in 121 BC, when Huo Qubing went on an expedition against the Xiongnu, he set out from Lintao, Gansu Province today, crossed Yanzhi Mountain, and fought fiercely with the Xiongnu army at Gaotai in Zhangye area, Gansu Province today. Heli Mountain in the north of the county. Heli Mountain was called Gaolan Mountain in ancient times, and it is hundreds of kilometers away from Gaolan Mountain in Lanzhou! Moreover, Gaolan Mountain in Lanzhou was called this way around the Northern Dynasties, and has nothing to do with Huo Qubing. After hearing this, the Lanzhou people always felt a little uncomfortable, as if their clothes had been suddenly stripped off. But the truth is often like this, sometimes it is plain, sometimes it is cold. That is, the Gaolan Mountain in Lanzhou indeed follows the place name of Gaolan Mountain in Zhangye, and even Huo Qubing's whipping of the spring is grafted from the story of Liang Hui in "Shui Jing Zhu". Of course, Liang Hui's story is just a legend and cannot be taken as true. This is completely different from the reality of history. So we would rather believe in the legend and keep the beauty in our hearts. Just like the popular poem "Nian Nujiao·Chibi Nostalgia" written by Su Dongpo in Chibi, Huangzhou, Hubei. Although it is not Chibi, Puqi, where the Chibi War took place, people couldn't bear to part with it, so they called Chibi where he expressed his nostalgia for the past " "Wen Chibi". Just like in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Guan Yunchang warmed wine and beheaded Hua Xiong to steal Sun Jian's credit, and went to the meeting alone to steal Lu Su's name, but it did not affect his heroic image in people's minds. What people want is the fame of celebrities and the artistic appeal in literary and artistic works. As for the truth, there is no need to delve into it. In fact, across the country, there are many tourist attractions that use myths, folklore, and celebrity anecdotes to increase their popularity. This is just to enhance cultural connotation, add publicity stunts, arouse people's curiosity, attract people to travel here, and take advantage of the opportunity. It’s just about developing the local economy, why bother using history to rectify the source! Anyway, Lanzhou Wuquan and Huo Qubing are closely linked. This is an indisputable fact. What's even more interesting is that in the war years, Huo Qubing went to war here and there in order to save the common people from the suffering of their lives. During peacetime, Huo Qubing was given the role of a doctor in Wuquanshan Park. The name engraved on the base of the sculpture is said to be able to cure the illness on the body by touching it. So many people come here and touch his name with either dry or soft hands, hoping for the auspicious words of "cure the disease" and seek comfort for their souls. They didn't care. Huo Qubing was a hero who died young.
The five springs are named Mengquan, Juyue Spring, Mozi Spring, Ganlu Spring and Huiquan. The name of the spring has traditional culture, romantic feelings, gratitude, and hope for happiness.
Mengquan and Huiquan are the only places to go up the mountain on the east and west sides of the park. Mozi Spring, Juyue Spring and Ganlu Spring are located halfway up the mountainside of the park and are arranged in a slightly straight line. Not far from the stone-paved path to the east of the park, a pavilion breaks into view. In the pavilion is a stone tablet with the word "Mengquan" written in red. There is a spring next to it, which is not big. It is about three feet long and less than one foot deep. It is round in shape and the walls of the well are built with stones. The spring water is crystal clear, with green moss on the walls of the well, small fish swimming leisurely in the pool, and fallen leaves floating on the water. The source of this spring is in the cliff called Donglongkou on the mountain, and flows down like a waterfall. Therefore, the mountain is steep and the road is narrow. Later generations named it "Mengquan" after the hexagram, which means that there is danger at the foot of the mountain in Donggu. Not far upstream from Mengquan, there is also the "Bagua Platform" built, which introduces the gurgling stream flowing down the mountain into the Bagua Platform, forming a new landscape.
The stream flows down from the Bagua Terrace, part of it seeps into Mengquan, and part of it flows along the side channel into the lotus pond below, watering a pond of fragrant lotus and nourishing a pond of koi. Mengquan is pure and sweet. It is said that tea made with Mengquan water will have a mellow and fragrant taste. Li Wen of the Ming Dynasty once wrote a poem praising Mengquan: "The Master invited me to cook new tea, and the water was drawn from the fifth spring in the mountain." But now people have already drank tap water, and the spring has become a scenic spot for people to watch.
Not far from the stone bridge in the west of the park, there is a bridge, Mingqi Bridge, and a spring next to it, named Huiquan. The spring is round and is the largest of the five springs, with a diameter of about six feet. , the water is more than two feet deep. The stream from Xilongkou on the mountainside flows freely and freely, forming two larger pools above Huiquan. The sound of water is gurgling, and the sound of tinkling and tinkling is endless, like a natural sound played by nature. , Symphony of the Times. Huiquan reflects the sun, moon, stars and the surrounding green trees, like a dense and colorful gongbi painting, changing colors with the seasons, but the water is as bright as a mirror and calm, like a hermit in the mountains or a master of Taoism. There is a sense of calmness and leisure like "not shocked by honor or disgrace, watching the flowers blooming and falling in front of the court; leaving or leaving without care, watching the clouds roll and relax in the sky." However, this spring has been the main drinking water for local residents for many years, and it irrigates the surrounding farmland. Because it benefits the people, it is called Huiquan. A glance at the spring vividly explains the philosophy of joining the world and being born out of it.
Mozi Spring is located in Mozi Cave, downstairs of Kuangguan Temple, halfway up the mountain. Entering along the door with the plaque reading "Moziquan", you will find a dark cave, about three feet deep. Although there are four light bulbs above your head, it still feels cramped and oppressive, and there is a bit of mystery in the cave. There is a foot-square Buddhist niche carved into the stone walls on both sides. I don't know what Buddha was enshrined in the past, and there are traces of incense. Today there is no Buddha statue, only the Buddhist niche lying quietly in the stone wall. At the end of the cave, go down a few more steps and you'll reach the spring. The spring is square in shape and the water is not deep. Because there are no lights beside the spring, the light is dim and the scenery in the water cannot be seen clearly. In the past, monks in the temple placed stones and tiles in the spring, saying that if the person seeking a child touched the stones, he would be a boy, and if he touched the tiles, he would be a girl. Perhaps to prevent people from cheating, there are no lights by the spring on purpose. Let’s bet on the luck of those looking for a child! On both sides of the gate of Moziquan is a couplet written by Liu Erxin, a modern scholar in Lanzhou: "In a confused way, I brought the Buddha's feet to ask for my parents; I clearly took the stones and said they were children and grandchildren." Maybe someone once believed this to be true, and Mr. Liu Erxin wrote it Let this couplet be satirical and persuasive! Although many tourists today still go to the spring to find a stone or tile, it is more of a game and entertainment.
Chumozi Spring is adjacent to Juyue Spring to the west. Entering through a plum blossom-shaped doorway along the wall, you will find a small courtyard. In the courtyard, there is a huge Ailanthus altissima and several pine trees, as well as a black viewing stone standing on a stone platform. The opposite gable is engraved with the words "The bright moon rises from the Tianshan Mountains". A Wei stele with big characters. This sentence comes from the first sentence of Li Bai's poem "Guan Shan Yue". But this "Tianshan" is obviously not the "Tianshan" described by Li Bai. It should be "mountain on the horizon" which seems to fit the artistic conception of Juyuequan. There is a half-moon shaped pavilion on the west side of the small courtyard next to the corner of Wenchang Palace. Inside the pavilion is the Moon Spring. The Moon Spring is about a foot wide and five feet deep, shaped like a well. This spring is the earliest place where the moon comes out of Wuquan Mountain when the moon rises from the east mountain. Especially on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the moon's shadow casts directly into the center of the spring, like a moon. In the plate, it is named "Jueyue Spring". The best time to enjoy the Moon Spring is on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. At the worst, you can only see a pool of spring water in spring, summer and autumn. You can also watch the sun, moon and stars in the water. In winter, the shallow spring water also condenses into ice, making it impossible to gaze at the moon. If you want to gaze at the moon, you can only look up at the sky. There is a small fan-shaped window at the base of the pavilion. Outside the window is a marble disk in the shape of a full moon, engraved with the poem "Spring Mountain Night Moon" by Tang Dynasty poet Yu Liangshi. There are often tourists shaking their heads and reciting the poem on the disk: "There are so many wonderful things in the spring mountains, and I forget to return home at night. Holding the moon in the water in my hand, I fill my clothes with the fragrance of flowers. There is no distance when I am happy, and I want to go and cherish the beauty. Looking south to the place where the bell rings, The pavilions are deep and verdant. "Because the characters are written in wild cursive, I don't know many of them, so I read them awkwardly, and even mispronounced many of them. However, it did not affect the enjoyment of tourists, but made my fellow travelers burst into laughter. Wuquanshan Park already has temples and pavilions, plank corridors, pavilions, trees and flowers. It is indeed very appropriate to use this poem to describe people's mood when they go to Juyuequan to admire the moon. The song "Spring Mountain Night Moon" has become the highlight of Juyuequan. I have to admire the designer's unique ingenuity.
Ganlu Spring is located on the cliff in the southwest corner of Qingxu Mansion. It is the highest spring among the five springs. It is said that this spring was called Shuyu Spring in the Ming Dynasty because of its abundant water and flying beads splashing jade. After the middle of the Qing Dynasty, the flow of the spring gradually became smaller, but it continued to rain for a long time and did not dry up during severe droughts. Because the terrain was high, it was convenient to pray for nectar from heaven, so it was changed to nectar spring. There is a folk saying: "If the world is peaceful, then nectar will fall from heaven." said. Nowadays, there is a hexagonal pavilion built on the spring with the words "Ganlu Spring" written on it. The walls of the pavilion on the ground are carved with patterns of pine, orchid, bamboo, peony and other patterns. The spring also formed a hexagonal shape and was about seven feet deep under the pavilion. The water in the spring was also relatively shallow. There were some coins thrown by people floating in the spring. I don’t know whether it is to pray for it to bring more rain to Lanzhou, which is arid and rainless, or to thank it for the sweetness it brings to people. It is unknown whether Manluquan likes this way of gratitude.
The Five Springs in Lanzhou are not really a spectacle in terms of scenery. Just like the men in the north, they are honest and simple, and it is difficult to amaze people's eyes. Compared with the seventy-two springs in Jinan, the spring city, they pale into insignificance. The springs in Jinan can gush out freely in a lake, like a pot of freshly boiled water, with water sprays gushing out everywhere, like lotuses in full bloom.
Of course, there are also things that suddenly emerge from the earth, making it impossible to guess where its source is hidden, and just gurgling out of the ground like this. The springs in Lanzhou cannot be compared with the springs in Jinan in terms of quantity, scale and momentum. But in Lanzhou, which is located on the Loess Plateau, although the Five Eyes Spring is not very beautiful, it has a beautiful legend and has been the spring of life and happiness for Lanzhou people for many years. In the hearts of Lanzhou people, nature has a sacred place.
Wuquan Mountain Park has also become a beautiful business card of Lanzhou because of the legend of the Five Eyes Spring.
About the author: Liu Fengge, whose real name is Liu Guomei. He has been in the army for 30 years and is a member of the Gansu Provincial Writers Association. In 1992, he got involved in literature and published works in newspapers such as Guangming Daily, People's Liberation Army Daily, People's Liberation Army Literature and Art, Chinese Prose, Feitian, and Selected Prose Magazine. He has won more than 10 literary awards inside and outside the military, and dozens of works have been published. It has been reprinted in newspapers and online and included in various literary collections. He published the collection of essays "Walking with Songs" and won the second prize of the Armed Police Literature and Art Award, and the novel collection "Blowing the Bamboo Flute" won the third prize of the Armed Police Literature and Art Award.