Moon Mountain in Evening Green

Moon Mountain in Evening Green

Moon Village nestles against a semi-circular bamboo grove, with the village homes also arranged in a crescent shape. A stream flows around the village, and the two crescents together form a half-emerald, half-muted round moon. At dusk, the crescent-shaped village is already wreathed in cooking smoke, while the crescent-shaped bamboo-covered mountain appears especially tranquil. The ancient pine trees and dense bamboos on the mountain closely encircle the village. The woods on the back hill, bathed in the faint glow of the evening sunset, appear remarkably clear. The moonlight, as gentle as water, spills over the leaves, revealing patches of fresh, variegated green. The beautiful pavilions seem to be reflected in Moon Mountain’s golden mirror, while the ancient pines and lush bamboos look as if planted within this exquisite painting. Nearby bridges such as the Rulong Bridge and the Laifeng Bridge seem to bring people even closer to this celestial moonlit realm. Faced with such stunning scenery, borrowing a sliver of silver light to climb up to the ridge of the back hill and take in the full view of Moon Village offers an indescribable sense of leisure and charm. Such a hidden paradise, reminiscent of the line “fishing boats chase peach blossoms away, don’t tell others of this town,” offers a rare taste of peace and serenity for urban dwellers caught up in the hustle and bustle of daily life.

The fame of this “Moon Mountain in Evening Green” can be attributed to “Eighth Master” Wu Maoxiu. In his time, the “Eighth Master” followed Prince Lu in resisting the Qing and restoring the Ming. After their defeat, he retired to his hometown and became devoted to local development and writing. It is said that originally, the back hill of Moon Village was only sparsely covered with some scattered bamboo and pine trees. During the completion ceremony of the Wu Wenjian Ancestral Hall, Wu Maoxiu proposed a landscape (water) plan for the village: to let the semi-circular back hill grow thick with bamboo, plant pines along the curved edge, and extend them toward the mountain ridgeline to form a pattern of a dragon playing with a pearl. To encourage the villagers to take this seriously, he declared that no person or livestock was allowed to enter and damage the bamboo forest on the back hill—any violators would be punished. If any pigs or cows trespassed, they would be slaughtered and the meat distributed among households as a warning (“san gui”). Unexpectedly, the next morning someone reported seeing a fat pig rooting around for bamboo shoots in the back hill bamboo forest. Wu Maoxiu immediately sent people to catch and slaughter the pig. Then another report came in: the pig belonged to the master’s own household. Wu Maoxiu responded even more resolutely: “If it’s mine, it should be slaughtered even more!” In truth, he had intentionally had his family release the pig onto the hill so he could lead by example. Thanks to the exemplary actions of the “Eighth Master,” the lush pines and bamboos on the back hill quickly flourished. Over the following centuries, through the upheavals of time, changes of governance, and periods of chaos and order, the bamboo forest on the crescent hill has never been destroyed, gradually becoming the scenic wonder known as “Moon Mountain in Evening Green.”