Chiping Fenghuang Ridge

Chiping Fenghuang Ridge

The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal winds around Linqing City like a green ribbon. At one of the canal’s bends lies an artificially piled-up green hill stretching for miles. In those days, Emperor Qianlong traveled down the canal to the south of the Yangtze River seven times, passing through Linqing, where he once composed plaques, couplets, poems, and calligraphy here. This place was originally home to a structure called the “Wuwei Temple.” In the 30th year of Qianlong’s reign (1765), he inscribed the plaque “Blessing on the Ferry Road” for the Wuwei Temple and composed the couplet “Dual sluices regulate flow aiding relief; Three elements harmonize ensuring peace.” In the 35th year (1770), during his southern tour, Qianlong visited again and, charmed by the pleasant scenery, even disembarked from his dragon boat to stroll along the ridge. Since then, this hill has earned the graceful name of Fenghuang Ridge (Phoenix Ridge) and was included in the “Sixteen Scenic Spots of Linqing” under the title “Phoenix Ridge Gathers Excellence.” In the 39th year (1774) and the 41st year (1776) of Qianlong’s reign, he composed and inscribed the famous lengthy poems “Lament of Linqing” and “Song of Linqing,” which were erected in stone at the foot of Fenghuang Ridge. The opening lines read: “Linqing lies by the canal, richest in the Qi region.” Qianlong wrote numerous poems for the “Wuwei Temple” and had them engraved on stone tablets.

In the 21st year of the Republic of China (1932), the Jinde Branch (a gathering place for gentry initiated by Han Fuju, then Chairman of Shandong Province) was built at the foot of the ridge. To commemorate Wu Xun, the legendary beggar who pioneered charity schools in Linqing, a grand hall with five bays and twenty-four pillars in a horse-stopping corridor style was constructed, named the “Memorial Hall of Lord Wu.” A wooden memorial archway originally located in front of Aotou Fan was moved and placed opposite the hall. On the east side of the hall, two brick-and-wood structures with pointed roofs—pavilions named “Memorial Pavilions of Lord Wu”—were also built, adding a touch of classic charm to the area around Fenghuang Ridge.

On the southern side of Fenghuang Ridge lies a small stele forest containing over a hundred stone tablets, including several notable pieces. Aside from Qianlong’s imperial steles, there is also a “Treasure” tablet with calligraphy in the style of Mi Fu, replicated by the great Qing Dynasty calligrapher Weng Fanggang; a martyr stele of Wang Zhaizuo from the Ming Dynasty; a carved stone of Guan Yu’s portrait painted by Tang Dynasty’s Wu Daozi, featuring the classic “iron-wire” brushstroke technique of considerable value; as well as a white jade Buddhist statue from the Tang Dynasty, the epitaph of Kong Qian from the Later Tang Dynasty, the Linqing Expanded School Quota Stele, and a cursive script stele of Kaiyuan Temple by the Ming Dynasty calligrapher Fang Yuanhuan. The content of these tablets and their calligraphic artistry often captivate visitors.

Within the scenic area, there is also a sculpture titled “Shandong Fast Storytelling,” created by the artist Qiu Zhihai.

There is also a bronze statue of the master Gao Yuanjun, rendered so lifelike that it vividly captures his humorous and witty artistic persona. On the flat grassy land south of Fenghuang Ridge, surrounded by lush pines and cypresses, stands a solemn and elegant stele pavilion—the “Monument to General Zhang Zizhong, Famous Anti-Japanese Hero.” General Zhang, hailing from Tangyuan Village in Linqing City, spent his childhood in Linqing. During the War of Resistance against Japan, he served as Commander-in-Chief of the 33rd Group Army and sacrificed his life on the frontline in Yicheng, Hubei in 1940. To honor his great achievements, the local people erected this monument pavilion. The inscription on the stele was penned by General Zhang Aiping, who was then the Minister of National Defense of the People’s Republic of China, allowing future generations to pay tribute forever.

Today, Fenghuang Ridge has become a public space for leisure, entertainment, and fitness. As early as the founding of the People’s Republic of China, it was named “People’s Park” by the government. A wide variety of plants were introduced, including southern bamboo, cedars, exotic flowers, pines, cypresses, peach blossoms, lilacs, and wisteria, creating a rich garden atmosphere and increasingly beautiful scenery. In spring, peach blossoms and willows are green, birds sing, and flowers bloom; even in winter, the shadows of bamboos sway and the pine forests remain dense. “Willow smoke drapes every embankment, while serene paths wind around emerald waters.” Truly worthy of the fine reputation of “Phoenix Ridge Gathers Excellence.”