Yuanbao Mountain

Yuanbao Mountain

Yuanbao Mountain is located on the southern ridge of the hills about six or seven li east of Shuangtashanzhen. It earned its name because there is a huge rock on the mountain that resembles a yuanbao (a traditional Chinese ingot), lying across the mountaintop. The yuanbao-shaped rock is over 100 meters long, with both ends curling upwards. On the northern side, there is a cave that is 8 meters deep, 6 meters wide, and 1.6 meters high. The cave never sees sunlight, and even in the fifth month of the lunar calendar, there is still ice inside. Yuanbao Mountain and Shuangta…

There is a valley between Yuanbao Mountain and Shuangta Mountain. The eastern cliff is a sheer precipice over a hundred zhang high and more than 300 meters long, covered with numerous holes resembling a beehive. The caves vary in size and depth, serving as ideal nesting spots for birds. Some of the branches used to build nests appear to weigh one or two hundred jin, most of which were built by eagles, hence the name “Eagle Cliff.” This valley is thus called Eagle Valley. Eagle Cliff is massive in volume, uniquely shaped, and extremely spectacular. In addition to Eagle Cliff, Eagle Valley also has many strange rocks in various forms, such as Little Club Mountain, Chair Mountain, Camel Mountain, Stone Men, and Stone Monkeys. There are several large caves within Eagle Valley, the largest of which is 30 meters deep, 15 meters wide, and 5–10 meters high. Inside the cave, there is a constant trickle of underground spring water that never runs dry.

The Legend of Yuanbao Mountain

Long ago, there was a village plagued by an epidemic. Every household fell ill, and people died every day. Nearby, there was a pharmacy owned by a man surnamed Wang. Seeing the situation, he raised the price of medicine by 30%, forcing poor families to sell their homes and land to afford treatment, ultimately losing everything.

In the village, there was a poor family whose two daughters had already died of illness, leaving only a mother and her son. The son, Shuan’er, was kind-hearted and hardworking. He helped others buy medicine and food, and took care of brewing medicine and soup for his mother, staying busy all day helping everyone. One day, his mother said, “Stop worrying about me, I’m not going to make it.” After saying this, she fainted. Just then, there was a knock at the door. When Shuan’er opened it, he saw a Taoist nun.

The nun said, “I was traveling and it’s gotten late. May I stay here for the night?” Shuan’er, worried she might catch the illness, told her the truth. The nun replied, “Kind sir, I know how to heal. May I take a look at your mother?” She then felt the mother’s pulse while Shuan’er hurried to cook. The nun told Shuan’er, “Your mother is seriously ill. Tomorrow morning, go to the depression at the top of the southwestern mountain. There you’ll find a yuanbao-shaped stone plate with a blue-green herb growing on it, bearing purple flowers. Pick it and boil it into a soup—once she drinks it, she will recover. But remember, you may only pick it, not uproot it.” Shuan’er did as instructed. Strangely enough, as soon as his mother took the medicine, she opened her eyes not long after and was soon able to get up and walk around.

Shuan’er was very grateful for the flower. The next day, he brought water up the mountain to water the plant. To his surprise, the flower he had picked the day before had bloomed again. Thinking of the other sick villagers, he picked another flower to make soup for them. Day after day, he went to pick the flower, and it bloomed anew each time. In less than half a month, all the sick in the village had recovered. The pharmacy owner, Mr. Wang, who had hoped to profit greatly from the situation, saw his dream of wealth vanish and became furious. He sent people to follow Shuan’er to find where the flower grew. Wang intended to dig up the plant and take it home to grow rich. He gathered some of his men and went up the mountain to dig it out, but no matter how hard they tried, not even a piece of stone could be removed. Meanwhile, the small stone plate suddenly began to grow larger and taller. Wang shouted, “Climb down quickly!” As he clung tightly to the edge of the plate, the yuanbao-shaped stone suddenly rose over ten zhang high, gradually forming a mountain peak. Those on the plate either fell to their deaths or starved to death.

Later, people named the mountain “Yuanbao Mountain” based on its shape. To this day, a local rhyme circulates in Chengde: “In the yuanbao cave grows the lingzhi grass, a treasure that wards off disaster and heals disease. Whoever steals it with a black heart will surely die and never escape the cave.”

Transportation Guide

Scenic Area Address: Within Dayuanbao Mountain Village, Shuangluan District, Chengde City, Hebei Province

Transit Routes: Take bus routes 2 or 5 within Chengde City and get off at Xiadianzi Station. Then walk west along Xiayingfang Street to reach the site.