Songxi

Songxi

Introduction Songxi and the nearby Song Dynasty relics are located in Songxitou Village, at the border of Ketang Town and Taohe Town in Haifeng County. Locals refer to it as Zhiquxi. The stream is about one kilometer long, approximately four meters deep, eight meters wide on the surface, with riverbeds about 20 meters wide on either side. According to the "Historical Sites" section in the "Supplementary Chronicles of Haifeng County": "Ten li to the southeast lies Hefengkou, an expanse of fertile land where waterways were once blocked. When Song Dynasty ships arrived here, they dredged through the obstruction. Merchant vessels from Guangzhou carrying salt often gathered here." The Chian River in Haifeng flows eastward past the Xiaodaysu and Dadaysu villages in Taohe Town before turning northward—its downstream section is known as Dongxi. Another branch of the Chian River curves westward and is called Xixi. The two streams are about two kilometers apart at their closest point. At the end of the Song Dynasty, when Emperor Duanzong fled south after defeat, his naval forces, coming from Jiazi Town in Lufeng County along Dongxi toward Xixi, reached this point only to find the waterway impassable. They then dredged a channel to connect Dongxi and Xixi, allowing the ships to proceed from Dongxi through Xixi and on to Lijiangpu. Later generations referred to the stream excavated by the Song army as Songxi. Consequently, the village also came to be called Songxitou Village. There are many other Song Dynasty relics around Songxi. About 200 meters west of Songxitou Village lies "Songwangshan," a small round hill. In the third year of the Jingyan era of the Southern Song Dynasty (1278), Emperor Duanzong sought refuge here and set up camp on this hill. It has since been called "Songwangshan" (the King’s Hill).

Legend has it that local villagers once served Emperor Duanzong fish soup made with "baizaiyu" (white fry fish) caught in Dongxi. This happened during the fish's peak season, and the soup was rich with golden oil slicks—delicious and sweet. Emperor Duanzong praised it repeatedly, saying, “This is truly a feast of jade rice accompanied by golden broth!” Five li east of Songxi lies "Songshiling" (Song Army Ridge). The Song army built earthen steps here to allow troop movement, hence the name. The ridge is over 500 meters long, originally only two meters wide, but after Liberation, it was widened to four meters, leveled by excavation and fill, and now has a relatively smooth surface. "Sacred Well" and "Imperial Banquet Pool" are located on the southern slope of Xiaojinlong Mountain (also called Lujing Mountain) in Xinnan Township, Fujia County, Haifeng County. Although Emperor Duanzong suffered defeat here, Wen Tianxiang, who had led loyalist troops to reclaim areas such as Chaoyang and Huizhou, sent news of victory. Upon hearing the good news, Emperor Duanzong held an imperial banquet at the “Osprey Pool” on this southern slope to celebrate with his ministers, boost morale, and inspire the soldiers. They drank sweet spring water there, which later generations named “Sacred Well,” while the “Osprey Pool” became “Imperial Banquet Pool.” A stone tablet inscribed with the four large characters “Sacred Well Relic Site” is still preserved there.

Shanwei City, Guangdong Province

Taohe Town: A town under the jurisdiction of Haifeng County. Established as Taohe Commune in 1958, restructured as a district in 1984, and officially became a town in 1987. Located in the southeastern part of the county along the lower reaches of the Huang River, it is 16.5 km from the county seat. Covering an area of 64.1 square kilometers with a population of 32,000, the town also has over 20,000 overseas Chinese and compatriots from Hong Kong and Macao. The Haifeng-Shanwei Highway runs through the town. It administers 16 neighborhood committees including Yangnan, Yangdong, Yangxi, Yangbei, Puya, Taonew, Taobei, Taoxi, Taonan, Taodong, Xiaxi, Xiabian, Xiaya, Yaqing, Tongpu, and Jinxi, as well as the Taotang Neighborhood Committee. Local township enterprises engage in knitting, toys, garment manufacturing, dyeing, and printing... More detailed information on Taohe Town++