History of ancient Huizhou immigrants

1987165438+10, the State Council issued a document announcing the revocation of Huizhou area and the establishment of Huangshan city at the prefecture level. For this name change, many Huizhou people are still "worried": Is there only one tourist attraction left in Huizhou?

The preciousness of Huizhou lies not in its name. Mountains and rivers and villages are one of the main targets for tens of millions of tourists to visit Huizhou every year. The essence of Huizhou culture is embodied in its own system from philosophy, art to lifestyle. What is the driving force behind the formation of this special regional culture?

0 1 Huizhou, landscape is her background color.

Ancient Huizhou maintained the pattern of one state and six counties for a long time, including Shexian, yi county, Xiuning, Qimen, Jixi and Wuyuan. Since modern times, Huizhou government has experienced the transformation of administrative divisions. Wuyuan was first placed in Jiangxi, then Jixi was placed in Xuancheng City, Anhui Province, and the main part of Huizhou existed as Huangshan City today. "Five Mountains come back without looking at the mountains, and Huangshan comes back without looking at the mountains". Huangshan is indeed a business card for Huizhou, Anhui and China.

Huizhou experienced a violent geological movement. Thus, the basic pattern of the central fault basin and the uplift of the fault blocks on both sides was formed. Geographically speaking, Huangshan is the watershed between the Yangtze River and Qiantang River, with Tianmu Mountain in the east and Jiuhua Mountain in the north, which is the center of mountainous areas in southern Anhui. Huizhou, headed by Huangshan Mountain, is mountainous and hilly. According to the Records of Huizhou Region, the area under the jurisdiction of Huizhou region before its revocation was 65,438+03,403 square kilometers, of which the total area of hills and hills reached 65,438+00,578 square kilometers. Because of these mountains, there is the Xin 'an Painting School, the Huizhou merchants who have traveled all over the world, and the Huizhou we see.

Foreign tourists go to Huizhou to play, mostly to see the mountains in Huizhou. When Yu Dafu, a writer, traveled to Huizhou, he also left a deep impression on the mountain: "This car has to enter the mountain, learn pangolin, and learn the earth evasion of the gods before it can reach Huizhou ... I counted it silently in the car first, and I had to go around several bends and hurdles to get to Huizhou, but later I was scared by the dangerous scenery around me and forgot the numbers."

The mountains in Huizhou are so famous that the role of water is often overlooked.

The most important Xin 'an River flows eastward into Zhejiang, south of the Yangtze River and Le 'an River into Poyang Lake, and Qingyi River flows northward into the Yangtze River. The hills and hills in Huizhou are dominant, but the water system from here is constantly eroded, which makes mountain basins of different sizes scattered in Huizhou, thus providing space for Huizhou people to thrive later. Ancient villages and towns in Huizhou are built on the basis of basins and valleys.

In the whole traditional society of China, agriculture is the foundation, and Huizhou's geographical conditions are definitely not superior. For example, Huangshan Mountain, which is full of strange pines and rocks, doesn't look like a good place to farm. Huizhou people can only engage in limited agricultural production in river basins and plains. However, it is thanks to this difficult environment that Huizhou culture has been formed. The so-called "past life is not repaired, born in Huizhou. Thirteen or fourteen years old, throw it out. " That's the truth.

The mountain is blocked by people, and the water is let through.

In the story of Huizhou, the role of mountains is to block and the role of water is to communicate.

Huizhou is surrounded by mountains, and the situation is dangerous and solid. Some people even compare it to "Jiange in Shu". Shanyue was the original owner of this land, so they refused to accept the rule of the Central Plains by virtue of their geographical advantages. In the process of the forces of the Central Plains dynasty gradually moving southward, conflicts between indigenous and foreign forces in these mountainous areas occurred from time to time. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Sun Wu besieged Shanyue heavily and drove the villagers out of the mountains. It was the first time that a county (Xindu County) was established here and effective rule began.

Huizhou is an immigrant society. When the war broke out at the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, the steep peaks in Huizhou were enough to be a barrier between the war and the people. This undeveloped "Xanadu" has become one of the destinations of northern refugees.

Family-based northern aristocratic families settled here one after another, and Huizhou people's persistence in blood relationship planted a seed at this time. Similar stories happened twice in the late Tang Dynasty, the Five Dynasties and the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, and the people who moved in became the main body of Huizhou residents. From this perspective, probably all Huizhou people don't belong here.

The footsteps of Huizhou people really never stop. The attribute of Huizhou immigrant society is not only "coming in", but also "going out". A Ming Dynasty Wang Shizhen said: "Generally speaking, there are 13 people in the city and 17 people in the world." Huizhou people seem to be very restless.

In addition to several ancient post roads, Huizhou is also connected with neighboring provinces through a water system extending in all directions. Because of the mountains, most rivers in Huizhou are fast-flowing, making it easier to get out than to get in. For Huizhou people who plan to go out to make a living, the rapid flow of water has its own advantages. Timber merchants in Huizhou sell their timber to other places in the form of "discharging", that is, they bundle the timber into rows and go down the river.

During the period of absolute monarchy, businessmen were discriminated against, and doing business was regarded as "abandoning the roots and pursuing the end", but Huizhou people were "entrusted to business all their lives". Do they have anti-bones behind their heads? Do you want to fight the court? Huizhou people are forced to do business. After all, there is too little arable land here. However, it was their exile that laid the material foundation for Huizhou's prosperity.

Without Huizhou merchants, there would be no Huizhou.

Now when it comes to Huizhou merchants, our first reaction will be the salt merchants in Ming and Qing Dynasties, or the famous red-topped merchant Hu Xueyan. In fact, Huizhou's commercial activities started very early and formed a large scale.

The newly built Nagato Creek in Qimen County written in the Tang Dynasty records that "within a thousand miles, a tea maker is seven or eight years old". In Bai Juyi's famous poem Pipa Xing in Tang Dynasty, the phrase "Whoever pried money first, unintentionally, left her, went to Fuliang to buy tea a month ago" has long existed (Chishan Town, Yixian County and Fuliang County, Raozhou County were designated as Qimen County in the middle of Tang Dynasty). It can be seen that Qimen area has become an important tea distribution center in the Tang Dynasty.

The direct reason why "Huizhou merchants camel" went out to do business was that there were many people but few people, but this did not explain why Huizhou merchants became the most important business gang.

Another important reason is that Huizhou people's clan concept is extremely heavy. Since the end of the Tang Dynasty, the northern gentry groups were destroyed by the war, but the family view of aristocratic families was preserved in Huizhou, a "refuge paradise", and gradually became a key factor affecting regional development.

During the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, the long-standing restriction that people were forbidden to build family temples was broken, and the custom of Huizhou family sacrifices, which began in the Song Dynasty, was gradually opened, and the clan view in Huizhou people's bones was removed, which greatly enhanced their cohesion. Huizhou merchants with the same surname naturally benefited from clan culture.

The Wu family law in Mingzhou has such a family law that merchants, clans and clans should be established. Huizhou people's capital to join the business sea is also mostly obtained through the marriage of families and different families. According to the notes in the Qing Dynasty, after the Wangs moved to Huizhou, they only married the Cheng family, because they were both wealthy businessmen. Not only that, Huizhou merchants even hired apprentices, giving priority to those who knew the family roots.

As the saying goes, "No emblem can't make a town", Huizhou people make their home wherever they go. The friendship between fellow villagers and clansmen makes them spontaneously form a chamber of commerce organization in their place of residence. At the same time, the family engaged in the same industry is also conducive to the formation of monopoly and the maximization of interests. Pawnshops, for example, are mostly merchants in Xiuning.

Well-run, coupled with the warmth of the group, Huizhou merchants quickly accumulated a lot of wealth. In addition to using the money to further invest, improve living standards and benefit the countryside, it is the main purpose of Huizhou merchants.

Many villages in Huizhou are villages with the same surname and the same clan. The concept of clan has given Huizhou merchants a strong sense of responsibility, and they believe that they must contribute to the same clan. This is also a very beautiful thing, and they can honor their ancestors. The Wu family in Xixi Nanwu is rich in financial resources, so they specially invite water conservancy experts to build water conservancy projects for the village, such as dikes. These canals, built in the Ming Dynasty, have been in use ever since.

Besides donating money to public projects, the Wu family is most famous for its association with literati. Jian Jiang, the leader of Xin 'an Painting School, once lived in Wujiashan Temple for a long time. Dong Qichang and others, famous talents in Ming Dynasty, are all guests of Wu family.

It is worth mentioning that Wujiashan was now known as Huangshan Mountain. Communication with literati is not uncommon among Huizhou merchants, and the most magical thing of the Wu family is the artworks collected at home. The Wu family made their fortune by salt industry, and their huge wealth allowed them to collect many art treasures, the most famous of which was the manuscript of "Sacrificing a Nephew", the second running script in the world, which caused public opinion because of an exhibition in Japan a while ago.

However, not all scholars are interested in Huizhou. People often quote Tang Xianzu's sentence "I have never dreamed of Huizhou in my life" to praise Huizhou. In fact, this is lofty. Mr. Ruoshi satirizes Huizhou as a "vanity fair", indicating that he is unwilling to go to Huizhou for fame and fortune. But it also shows the great energy of Huizhou people.

There are many big families like Wu in Huizhou. Most of them keep close contact with scholars, and the most important way is to establish academies.

No matter how poor you are, you can't be poor in academic qualifications.

Huizhou merchants have always been known as Confucian merchants. Their emphasis on culture and education can hardly be compared with that of the whole country.

Bao Baiting, a merchant of Hui nationality in Shexian County, once said, "If you are rich, you can't delay it. What are the benefits of accumulating wealth? " What's the use of having money without education? Many large families in Huizhou almost abandon agriculture and start businesses, and then invest in running schools to let their children study. Amin Jing Hu family in Jixi refers to one of the families in the same family as Mingjing, because their ancestor Hu Changyi was admitted to the imperial examination.

The prosperity of Huizhou's writing style is no accident. Because this is the authenticity of Zhu Chengxin's Confucianism. Zhu, Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao are all from Huizhou. The set of "general ethics" expounded by Neo-Confucianism is not only the mainstream thought of China in ancient times, but also deeply accords with the cultural core that Huizhou merchants attach importance to clans. Huizhou people who want to gain more discourse power through the imperial examination and must maintain family stability naturally attach importance to Confucianism.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, "the most prosperous academies in the world were Lindong, Jiangyou, Guanzhong and Huizhou." Academy, which started in Tang Dynasty, is an important carrier of Confucian culture in Huizhou. Since the Ming Dynasty, Huizhou merchants have gained huge wealth by monopolizing salt industry, and academies have also received a lot of subsidies. Even in remote ravines, you can hear the sound of reading. People call Huizhou "Southeast Zou Lu".

China people have always been generous in education. Huizhou people can be said to be one of the best examples of giving children the best educational conditions no matter how difficult the family is. During the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, Guo Xu, a native of Shexian County, served as the minister of rites. Father failed in business, so he had to teach himself while doing business. Unfortunately, he failed in the township exam five times in a row. After all his possessions were sold, he went to the river to commit suicide. Finally, with the support of a timber merchant, he was able to continue his studies. Guo Xu's experience alone shows that Huizhou people attach importance to education.

The good combination of businessmen and literati is also the particularity of Huizhou culture. Among the four people, scholars, farmers, businessmen and scholars have always been in the first place. Businessmen have the lowest social status. At the beginning of the imperial examination system, businessmen were not even allowed to take the imperial examination. And Huizhou people can directly say such pragmatic words as "good at reading, doing business and doing things", which may be the real reason for the development of Huizhou culture in this land.

05 emblem, a symbol of China's aesthetics.

Whether doing business or being an official, Huizhou people have traveled all over the country. They changed the face of their hometown and everything about their place of residence. The prosperity of Yangzhou in Qing Dynasty benefited from Huizhou salt merchants who lived here. Because of the tradition of respecting Confucianism, these businessmen are not just nouveau riche who only know how to spend money. Their lifestyle has left a unique beauty in the profound culture of China people.

Among the scholars, peasants, industry and commerce, Huizhou craftsmen are the most intuitive impression that can leave us today.

Perhaps it is because of the strong style of study. The most famous handicrafts in Huizhou are learning stationery: Wang Bi, Hui Mo, Tang paper and she Yan. Because Huizhou is mountainous and rich in pine trees, it can meet the needs of mass production in Song Yanmo. The legal system of Huimo is complicated, and it is divided into three schools in Huizhou: she (county), Xiu (ning) and Wu (source). In addition, the literati who traveled between Huizhou merchants also participated in the process of making ink by craftsmen, which made Huizhou ink both practical and artistic. Although things have changed, Huimo has always been among the "Four Treasures of the Study" commonly known by Chinese people.

The three sculptures in Huizhou directly benefited from the rich financial resources of Huizhou merchants. Decoration of brick carving, stone carving and wood carving is essential for Huizhou merchants to build houses or ancestral halls for their families. Figures, landscapes, flowers, birds and animals are all common themes in Huizhou's three sculptures. While decorating the house, it also played a subtle didactic role, allowing the people to contact and be influenced by Confucian culture. Because of these exquisite carvings, the Huizhou architecture with white walls and white tiles looks simple and elegant from a distance, but it is full of rich details at a close look, which fully shows the aesthetic taste of Huizhou people.

Huizhou culture is probably the same. At first glance, it is the regional culture dominated by Huizhou merchant culture. In fact, careful observation can reveal the rich and delicate cultural connotation behind it. It is full of China people's emphasis on education, China people's pragmatic thought of reform if they are poor, and their profound experience of family inheritance.

The division of great Huizhou no longer exists. However, Huizhou culture, which has experienced vicissitudes, has never been cut off. She shows her usual posture between mountains and rivers, and also hides in perceptual cultural symbols to prove her existence to later generations.

References:

Chen Xiuling and Xiao Dongfa's Four Treasures of the Study: Paper, Pen, Ink and Their Cultural Connotation; A brief account of Huizhou region, He; Dual Variations of Merchants and Culture —— A Historical Survey of Huizhou Merchants and Clan Society: Social Changes of Huizhou Merchants and Huaiyang in Wang Zhenzhong in Ming and Qing Dynasties: An Introduction to China's History and Culture, by Yan Wuping; Yu Dafu's works, Yu Dafu; Huizhou: Picking up the Fragments of History, Zhang Jianping.