On July 18, 2023, a bird's-eye view of Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County. Photo by reporter Liu Yini Visual Chongqing.
On December 18, approaching the winter solstice, Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County, was dyed with forests.
At noon, Zhang Yuanquan, secretary of the village party branch, deliberately changed into a traditional Mongolian costume and visited the home of villager Liu Xiaowei.
Liu Xiaowei, who is studying at ** University for Nationalities, is one of the eight new college students in Xiangjia Village this year, and his family is also a former poor household in the village.
Zhang Yuanquan (middle), secretary of the party branch of Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County, visited the home of Liu Xiaowei, who was admitted to university this year. Photo by correspondent Liao Wei.
So far, more than 100 college students have graduated from Xiangjia Village. Every year, when the university admission notice is delivered to the village or the new students leave the village to study, almost every secretary of the village party branch will wear traditional Mongolian costumes and greet or send each other off with a unique Mongolian ceremony.
In Pengshui, where the Miao ethnic group is the main ethnic group, Xiangjia Village is undoubtedly a special case - among the more than 1,900 villagers in the village, more than 1,300 are Mongolian. And according to genealogical records, the Mongolian residents in the village are all direct descendants of Genghis Khan!
The Mongolian people are known as the "people on horseback". And how did these Mongolian villagers in Xiangjia Village come to the depths of Wuling Mountain and thrive here?How did they change from a "nation on horseback" dominated by nomadism to a "nation on the back of an ox" that now cultivates and reads heirlooms?
In the long historical fog and long dust of time in Xiangjia Village, what kind of story is hidden?
On July 18, 2023, a bird's-eye view of Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County. Photo by reporter Liu Yini Visual Chongqing.
The direct descendants of Genghis Khan thrived in Pengshui
After being displaced, he settled in a deserted place among the mountains.
In the afternoon, in the sunshine batik village, Zhang Yuanquan carefully held out the genealogy that had been passed down from generation to generation.
Time flies, grinding the imprint of time on the cover of the family tree;The traces of the years, every page of the family tree, tell the thrilling past since the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty.
According to genealogical records and oral tradition of the older generation, the matter must start with Zhu Yuanzhang's invasion of Dadu (now Beijing), ......Zhang Yuanquan squinted his eyes, as if he saw the smoke of the beacon fire of the year, "According to legend, there were eight brothers in power in the royal family of the Yuan Dynasty at that time, and after being defeated by Zhu Yuanzhang's army, three of them were defeated to the north, and the other five fled to Sichuan, and continued to maintain the rule of the Yuan Dynasty in Sichuan. ”
In the sixth year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1373 AD), the five brothers who fled to Sichuan fought with the Ming army in Hechuan, and fled to the Huangliu Bridge after the defeat.
Tan Xiaorong, a 70-year-old man in Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County, introduced the genealogy of Tan and Zhang. Photo by correspondent Liao Wei.
At that time, it is estimated that the whole army will be wiped out if they run together again, and there may be a glimmer of life when they run separately. Turning to the title page of the family tree, Zhang Yuanquan read the poems left by the five brothers when they broke up word by word - "It was the emperor's family of the Yuan Dynasty, and the Hong army chased and dispersed into Sichuan;The green poplars broke up on the shore, and the willow bridge was inserted with willow teeth;Biting the bloody words on his fingers, he waved away the tears and dripping sand;Later generations remember the eight lines of the poem, which was one five hundred years ago. ”
Since then, the brothers have been in touch with each other.
The genealogy records that only one of them changed his surname to Tan while fleeing, settled in the area of present-day Fengjie, and multiplied for nine generations. Zhang Yuanquan chatted with Chongqing ** reporters, Tan Xiaoyun, who was over seventy years old, dragged a stool and sat down, and took over the conversation, "In the thirtieth year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1602 AD), Tan Qiluan, the ancestor of our branch, was born in Tanjiaping, south of Kuizhou City. ”
Tan Qiluan was later a military attache of the Ming Dynasty, named Wuhou, guarded Kuifu, and fled to Pengshui Tangkou after the defeat of the Qing army in Sichuan, and met Zhang Bangmo, the ancestor of Huguang and Sichuan.
Zhang Bangmo's surname is Tan, and the righteous Zhang Bangmo called Tan Qiluan his wife and brother, and helped him avoid the Qing army's interrogation many times. "Tan Xiaoyun and Zhang Yuanquan have listened to the conversations of their ancestors since they were children, and they have long been familiar with the stories of their ancestors," After gaining a foothold in Xiatangkou, Tan Qiluan changed his surname from his surname to Zhang Pangui because of his gratitude for Zhang Bangmo's life-saving grace, and made a living from farming and hunting. ”
History has long been as thin as dust, and only between the lines of the genealogy and the transmission of the clansmen can we glimpse some traces.
Zhang Pangui, who settled in Xiatangkou, had three sons. In order to repay Zhang Bangmo's life-saving grace, the eldest son was named Zhang Jing;In order not to forget his roots, the second and third sons were named Tan Lun and Tan Dou (died early) respectively. This is the origin of today's Xiangjiaba Mongolian surnames Zhang and Tan.
Once, Zhang Jing and Tan Lun chased their prey over the mountains and mountains, and accidentally found that there was a deserted flat dam in the mountains, which was Xiangjiaba (later changed to Xiangjia Village).
After the two brothers went back to discuss with their families, they decided to move the family to Xiangjiaba.
The decision of the ancestors to move to the mountains should be a decision after weighing the pros and cons. In Zhang Yuanquan and Tan Xiaoyun's view, hiding the Mongolian identity and escaping the Qing court were the two main reasons, "In addition, Xiangjiaba has a flat terrain, sufficient water sources, and is convenient for farming, which is a good choice for the tribesmen who have adapted to farming at that time." ”
With the gradual development of Xiangjiaba and the increasing population, villagers with other surnames such as Tu, Ding, and Li also moved to settle down one after another.
To Zhang Yuanquan's generation, the Mongolian people in Xiangjia Village have multiplied in Pengshui for 29 generations. Xiangjia Village has also become a big family dominated by Mongolian villagers, with multi-ethnic and multi-surname integration and symbiosis.
Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County, surrounded by mountains. Photo by correspondent Liao Wei.
The various ethnic groups gradually merged into one and became one family
Each village household is made up of at least two ethnic groups, and some families have five different ethnic groups.
In the early morning, the drizzle drifted away. Zhang Yuanquan took the reporter through the thorny, snake-infested elephant trunk valley.
On July 18, 2023, a bird's-eye view of the Elephant Trunk Valley in Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County. Photo by reporter Liu Yini Visual Chongqing.
More than four hours later, a huge cave called "Elephant's Trunk Cave" appeared in front of me. The entrance of the cave is like the mouth of a giant beast with its mouth wide and is built with a brick wall that is 7 meters long and more than 5 meters wide. Behind the brick wall, a stone tablet called "Elephant Trunk Stele Stele" tells a dusty past.
In the late Qing Dynasty, the Shida Kaibu of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom passed through Pengshui twice.
The first time, they followed the Mupalm River from Wulong to Pengshui, passed through Xiangjia Village and then went to the Qianjiang River through Niuyapu. In Zhang Yuanquan's slow narration, a history of villagers of all ethnic groups working together to save the day slowly unfolded in front of the reporter's eyes.
At that time, in order to escape the war, Mongolian villagers took the initiative to invite the surrounding Miao and Tujia villagers to participate in the construction of a large stone blockhouse in Xiangbi Cave.
A careful study of today's Elephant Trunk Stele shows that although the Mongolian ethnic group contributed about 71% of the total, and the villagers of other ethnic groups contributed only 29% of the total, the Mongolian villagers included all the surrounding villagers in the refuge list, and Xiangjia Village was thus protected from the disaster of swords.
It is surrounded by Miao and Tujia villagers who have lived here for a long time, and our ancestors were 'outsiders' and Mongolians, so we were naturally worried about not being accepted at first. Zhang Yuanquan said that in the stories of the elders he has been familiar with since childhood, almost all of them are stories of solidarity and mutual assistance among villagers of all ethnic groups.
Since moving into Xiangjia Village, the ancestors have taken the initiative to learn from the surrounding Miao and Tujia villagers Xi mountain farming experience, and also changed their own living Xi habits, taking the initiative to move closer to them in terms of food, language, festivals, marriage and taboos. For example, during the Mid-Autumn Festival every year, the village organizes clansmen to participate in competitions held by surrounding villagers such as playing with lanterns and lion dances. Zhang Hong, chairman of the Luming Township People's Congress, is a native of Xiangjia Village, a Mongolian. He said that in particular, based on the taboo and marriage Xi that "the surnames Zhang and Tan are originally of the same origin and do not intermarry", the Mongolian people in the village all intermarry with the surrounding Miao, Tujia and Han people, and "with the bond of in-laws, the relationship between Mongolians and other ethnic groups has become more and more harmonious." ”
Because of this, each of the 428 households in Xiangjia Village today has at least two ethnic groups, and more than one-third of the households have three ethnic groups. The most special thing is the villager Zhang Fei's family, including Mongolian, Han, Miao, Tujia and Buyi five ethnic groups.
Zhang Renlong, the ancestor of the Mongolian nationality in Xiangjia Village, is a well-known tung oil merchant in Pengshui. He not only set up 24 clan rules for the clan, such as "respecting ancestors, filial piety and friendship, and good neighborliness", but also set up schools in the village to provide opportunities for children of all ethnic groups in the village to receive education.
The Mongolian people have always attached great importance to education, and have built a formal school in the Octagonal Temple, and even opened a junior high school after 1949. Zhang Hong said that so far more than 100 college students have come out of the village.
Time has obliterated many memories, and time has also allowed the various ethnic groups in Xiangjia Village to gradually merge into one and become a family.
At the same time, the Mongolian people in Xiangjia Village still continue their own unique ethnic customs, the most representative is the "Sulu Ingot Festival".
Sulu ingots mean "spear" in Mongolian and are a symbol of Mongolia. Legend has it that when Genghis Khan was born, he held a Sulu ingot. According to Mongolian Xi, the 17th day of the third lunar month is a day to commemorate Genghis Khan's outstanding military talents and great military achievements.
Therefore, every year on this day, the Mongolian people of Xiangjia Village will hold the traditional and grand Sulu Ingot Festival, and everyone gathers together to worship the ancestor Genghis Khan;The elders of the village told the younger generations about the history of the Mongolian people fleeing and relocating, and taught everyone to recite the eight lines of poems that have been handed downAll the people wear traditional Mongolian costumes, sing and dance, and hold traditional competitions such as wrestling, tree climbing, bench topping, horse riding, archery, etc., ......
It is equivalent to the Qingming Festival held on the third day of the third lunar month of the surrounding ethnic groups, or the Spring Festival. Zhang Hong said that although their Mongolian identity was only officially confirmed in May 1982, the surrounding villagers have been tolerant and respectful of these cultural differences for generations. ”
In the course of the development of Xiangjia Village, the people of all ethnic groups share weal and woe, honor and disgrace, life and death, and destiny. It can be said that a history of Xiangjia Village is a miniature version of the history of the integration of various ethnic groups into a pluralistic and integrated Chinese nation, and a miniature version of the history of the great motherland that all ethnic groups jointly created, developed, and consolidated the unification. Zhang Xianding, Secretary of the Party Committee of Luming Township, believes that this comes from the endogenous power of the Chinese nation's pursuit of unity and unity.
There is a stone monument of "Mongolian Style Characteristic Town" at the entrance of Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County. Photo by correspondent Liao Wei.
Create a unique rural tourist attraction -
The two cultures of "horseback" and "cowback" are perfectly blended together in Xiangjia Village.
Although the people have long since changed from a nomadic "nation on horseback" to a "nation on the back of an ox" who cultivates and reads heirlooms, Xiangjia Village still retains a large number of Mongolian elements, which makes it a unique traditional village in the depths of Wuling Mountain - the two cultures of "horseback" and "cowback" are perfectly blended together in Xiangjia Village.
Nowadays, there are place names in the village, such as the racecourse, archery range, target platform, arrow pond, horse road, and whirlpool (where the horses whirl), and there are still ruins or ruins in the village when I was a child. Under the warm sunshine, Zhang Yuanquan took the reporter through the green bamboo of the house, "You see, these older houses, the main house is more than three feet higher than the side room, and it is round, called the yarn hat top, symbolizing the yurt." Some Miao or Tujia villagers have built similar buildings in imitation of us. ”
Bat window flower is one of the construction of Mongolian ancestral hall fort in Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County. Photo by correspondent Liao Wei.
Li Guoxiang, a villager who is over 70 years old, still retains some of the components of the Mongolian ancestral hall fort when it was demolished. You see, this is a bat, and the bats on both sides of the gate are one male and one female, symbolizing good fortune. There are also wild deer and flowering ......”
Not only that, the village also built an octagonal temple and a shrine fort, there was a suicide note and the secret spectrum of the Mongolian royal family, all of which were destroyed in the ten years of catastrophe, leaving only a few pillar bases and a pair of word-of-mouth couplets - Shun Yao Yu Hou crusaded against Rongzong for a hundred years, the king can seek to conquer hundreds of millions of years and build a Hong Pavilion, Yuan Meng, Shanggu waved Ge Yaozu a generation of heroes and heroes are Wen Naiwu Qianqiu and a hundred generations of Zhenji Qiu.
Passing through a bud valley, Zhang Yuanquan took the reporter to the site of the Octagonal Temple.
Zhang Yuanquan, secretary of the Party branch of Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County, explained the meaning of the pillar base of the octagonal temple to the children of Xiangjia Village. Photo by correspondent Liao Wei.
The former octagonal temple covers an area of more than 400 square meters, and the lower hall is dedicated to white horses. When I was a kid, we used to read and play here. Zhang Yuanquan remembered that there was a piece of public land near the Octagonal Temple, and the grain grown by everyone's collective cultivation was used for the sacrifice of the Sulu Ingot Festival in the following year. To this day, when an old Mongolian man in the village dies and writes a seal, people will still call Genghis Khan "Khan" and write it as an ancestor on the ......
After 1947, due to some special historical reasons, the Mongolian villagers of Xiangjia Village no longer held the Sulu Ingot Festival, but learned the Xi customs of the surrounding villagers Xi and chose to worship their ancestors in the "Qingming Society". Until the 17th day of the third lunar month in 2021, the Sulu Ingot Festival, which had been interrupted for 74 years, was held again in Xiangjia Village.
What Zhang Yuanquan didn't expect was that when the Sulu Ingot Festival was held in Xiangjia Village this year, it attracted many tourists from outside the mountain to participate spontaneously.
We want to take advantage of the geographical conditions of Xiangjia Village's lofty mountains and mountains, as well as the cultural Xi of grassland nomads, to create a unique rural tourist attraction and help rural revitalization. Zhang Xianding said that Xiangjia Village not only has the characteristics of Mongolian traditional villages, rich natural landscape resources, but also the industrial foundation that has been developed before.
In the past, although everyone was very hardworking, because Xiangjia Village was remote and inconvenient, the villagers were not rich for a long time. Tan Xiaoyun remembered that in the early 90s of the last century, the Luming Township Party Committee and ** encouraged everyone to develop the sericulture industry according to the climate and geographical conditions of Xiangjiaba, and everyone's life began to improve.
At that time, a thousand acres of sericulture base were soon formed in the village, and almost every household planted mulberry and raised silkworms. After raising silkworms, Zhang Yuanquan's annual income increased from more than 1,000 yuan to more than 4,000 yuan, "The sericulture industry has given us a taste of sweetness, and it has also strengthened everyone's confidence in following the party and the world." ”
On July 18, 2023, Xiangjia Village, Luming Township, Pengshui Miao Tujia Autonomous County, has a bird's-eye view of the local rainbow trout breeding site. Nowadays, under the leadership of the Xingmeng Agricultural Development of Pengshui County, a village collective economic organization, many industries such as citrus planting, cold-water fish farming, Chinese herbal medicine planting, primary processing of edible agricultural products, and livestock breeding have been developed, and the per capita annual income of villagers has exceeded 130 million yuan. Photo by reporter Liu Yini Visual Chongqing.
Subsequently, Xiangjia Village has developed Chaotian pepper, honey pumpkin and other industries, and now under the leadership of the village collective economic organization Pengshui County Xingmeng Agricultural Development, it has developed citrus planting, cold-water fish farming, Chinese herbal medicine planting, primary processing of edible agricultural products, livestock breeding and many other industries, and the per capita annual income of the villagers has exceeded 130,000 yuan.
On November 19, Xiangjia Village once again held a development symposium attended by the township party committee, the person in charge, the two committees of the village branch, and the representatives of the villagers. Everyone agreed that on the basis of consolidating and developing the existing industries, we should inherit the traditional culture, customs and etiquette of the Mongolian nationality with the Sulu Ingot Festival as the carrier, carry out national art activities, restore the Mongolian-style racecourse and arrow pond at the entrance of the village, and rebuild the octagonal temple and other Mongolian characteristic buildingsMake full use of the resource endowment, development conditions and comparative advantages of ethnic areas, vigorously develop high-quality and efficient agriculture, ecological and environmental protection industries, and ethnic handicrafts, and promote the quality and efficiency of tourism, so that everyone's life will be better and better.