Xisai Mountain

Xisai Mountain

Xisai Mountain is located in the stream bend of Fan’yang Lake (also known as Fanchang Lake) in Fan Nan Township, about 10 kilometers west of Huzhou. The Wanli-era *Huzhou Prefecture Annals* from the Ming Dynasty states: “Xisai Mountain is twenty-five li west of Huzhou City, with Peach Blossom Cove nearby, and Fan’yang Lake below. It was here that the Tang poet Zhang Zhihe fished and wandered.” The Yongzheng-era *Zhejiang General Annals* from the Qing Dynasty says: “More than twenty li south of Wuxing’s southern gate, among the hills of Xiagu and Qingshan, the distant mountains stretching out in this area are known as Xisai Mountain. With its clear waters and picturesque scenery, it is truly a paradise. It is called Xisai because Xiagu City served as a military encampment for (the Chu statesman Chunshen Jun), facing west and oriented east.”

Xisai Mountain is world-renowned thanks to the *Fisherman* poem written by the mid-Tang hermit poet Zhang Zhihe (730–810): “Before Xisai Mountain white egrets fly, peach blossoms drift where the fish in the stream fat lie. A straw raincoat, a bamboo hat too, I’d fish until the rains cease and winds subside.” Zhang Zhihe, also known as Xuanzhenzi, served as an imperial scholar under Emperor Suzong. Gifted and principled, he did not conform to the times and was later demoted to the post of Nanpu Commandery Magistrate. After being pardoned, he wandered the rivers and lakes, calling himself a “Recluse of Misty Waves.” The *Epitaph of the Vagabond Master Xuanzhenzi Zhang Zhihe* by Yan Zhenqing (governor of Huzhou during the Dali era of the Tang Dynasty) records: “In the ninth month of the ninth year of the Dali era, I visited Yan Zhenqing in Huzhou... Yan remarked that his little boat was worn out and asked if I could get him a new one.” Zhang replied: “If you would grant me a fishing boat, I would be content to drift from home to home along the lakes and rivers, wandering between the Tianmu Mountains, a joy for a man of the wilds.”

While in Huzhou, Zhang Zhihe associated with other literati in the city at the time, including the Jingling recluse Lu Yu, the proofreader Pei Xiu, the former imperial censor Li E, the monk poet Jiaoran, and Yan Zhenqing. Day and night, he paddled his small boat through the serene streams of the Tiaoxi and Xisai Mountain areas, pouring genuine emotion into writing what came to be hailed as timeless masterpieces — the *Fisherman* poems. There are five *Fisherman* poems in total, at least three of which depict the landscapes of Huzhou. The first of the five is the most famous and inspired countless imitations. In 823, Emperor Saga of Japan’s Konin era composed five matching poems. Imperial princesses and renowned Confucian scholars such as Nukano Mamoru also wrote two poems in response. Japan has even included Zhang Ji’s *Night Mooring at Maple Bridge* and Zhang Zhihe’s *Fisherman* in its school textbooks. The *New Book of Tang · Biographies of Hermits* says: “Xuanzhenzi, surnamed Zhang and named Zhihe, was on good terms with Duke Lu, Yan Zhenqing. When Yan was governor of Huzhou, he invited guests for a drinking gathering and together they composed the *Fisherman* poems. The first poem was composed by Zhihe, and Yan, along with Lu Hongjian, Xu Shiheng, and Li Chengju, composed a total of 25 matching poems, each praising the others' work.” The mountain gained fame through poetry, and thus Xisai Mountain became a scenic highlight of Huzhou. During the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty, the “Evening Fishing at Xisai” was listed as one of the Eight Scenic Views of Wuxing.

Xisai Mountain is also the site of Yan Zhenzhi’s tomb. Yan Zhenzhi, a native of Wucheng, served as Minister of Works in the 26th year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty (1393). He was buried in his hometown, Xisai Mountain, after his death. The Qing-era *Wucheng County Annals* by Xu Fengxian state: “Old prefectural records say that the tomb of Minister Yan Zhenzhi is on Xisai Mountain. The minister styled himself ‘Old Man of Xisai’ and was buried there upon his death. The mountain lies directly west of the city.” Locals refer to the site as Yan Tomb, Yan Family Grave, or Minister’s Tomb Hill. In front of the tomb hill lies Fan’yang Lake, about two li to the east is Peach Blossom Cove. Li Jie (also known as Cishan), a famous landscape painter from Piling (present-day Changzhou) and former prefect of Piling during the Southern Song Dynasty, once made his home on Xisai Mountain. He created the *Xisai Fishing Village Scroll* and invited his close friends Fan Chengda and Zhou Bida to write inscriptions for it. In 1185, Fan Chengda wrote a lengthy colophon of over 290 characters, including the line: “When the peach blossom waters rise, I’ll row to Xisai in my boat, ask the host to buy fish and wine, and sing leaning on my oar.” This inscription was once part of the collection of the master painter Zhang Daqian, and the original is now housed in New York, USA.