Shenglongzhai

　　Shenglongzhai is situated on Jinhong Mountain, three kilometers south of Fushui Town in Shangnan County. It was one of the places where Li Zicheng, the leader of the peasant uprising at the end of the Ming Dynasty, operated in the Shangluo area.

　　According to the “Shangnan County Annals”: “Heading east to Shangnan, he took a wife surnamed Wang, known as Niangniang, a native of Fushui Pass.” This refers to Li Zicheng and his wife. Legend has it that in the village of Wangjialou at the foot of the mountain, there was a wealthy man surnamed Wang who, seeing that Li Zicheng's army was well-disciplined and caused no harm to the locals, offered his daughter to Li Zicheng as his wife. It is said that Lady Wang was very beautiful, her long hair trailing from the embroidery window all the way down to the courtyard below. The following year, she gave birth to a son on the mountain. Delighted, Li Zicheng immediately renamed the mountain “Shenglongzhai” (meaning “Dragon-Bearing Stronghold”). Later, when Li Zicheng led his rebel army into Henan, Lady Wang did not accompany him due to their young child. As time passed, she deeply missed her husband and converted their former embroidery tower into the “Wangjun Tower” (“Tower for Gazing at the Lord”). The tower door faced east, and she would gaze out the window every day, hoping for her husband’s early return. Years later, she heard that Li Zicheng had been defeated and killed in battle, and their child had also died young. Overcome with grief and anger, she hanged herself. The local people, sympathizing with the virtuous Lady Wang, buried her on the hill south of the stronghold, and the burial site was named “Xigongya” (“Western Palace Ridge”), a name still used today.

　　To the east and below Shenglongzhai are now two large villages — Wangjiazhuang to the north and Wangjialou to the south — each with around ten households. Stories about Li Zicheng and Lady Wang are still passed down here. A few years ago, during land leveling, an ancient tomb was discovered in the middle of the paddy fields, and people widely believe it to be the tomb of Lady Wang. In 1982, someone digging for herbs on Shenglongzhai unearthed a sword and a pile of arrowheads. After authentication by cultural relics authorities, these were confirmed to be artifacts from the rebel army of that time. The “sword” and “arrowheads” are now preserved in the Shangnan County Cultural Center.

　　Today, the scenery of Shenglongzhai is especially enchanting — the hillsides are covered in tung trees and lush green bamboo, with mountain flowers blooming all year round. Orioles sing in rivalry during spring and summer. The ancient pine tree just outside the stronghold wall remains tall and sturdy, visible from as far as nine li away in the streets of Fushui, as if waving to visitors. Every year, numerous tourists come here to trace the footsteps and pay tribute to Li Zicheng.