The Ancient Canal Remembers the Past

I had the opportunity to train my family to take the pharmaceutical college entrance exam at Guangling College, Yangzhou University, and drove 250 kilometers to the southernmost part of Yangzhou. Staying at the Gemei Hotel near the school and having dinner early, I went to the nearby Guyun River to take a look. As I went west, I saw many concentrated schools nearby, including the Shuren Middle School, where teachers, students, and parents took a group photo at the school gate with a banner saying "I will definitely win the middle school entrance exam". To the east was the Tourism College, to the west was the Guangling College Technician College, to the north was the Subei Hospital, and on both sides of the ancient canal were university towns. All of them are newly developed campuses in recent years. Both the ancient canal path and the main road of Laishi are blocked by iron fences, and motor vehicles are parked on the side. In order to protect the ancient canal path, motor vehicles have been prohibited from passing through. The ancient canal is about 70-80 meters wide, with clear and rippling green waves. The stone embankments on both sides are protected by green plants, and the canal path stands tall with solar street lights. The slope inside the path is planted with green cedar trees, and there are old ladies tending to narrow fields in the forest. Electric bicycles occasionally pass by on the road. There is a small pavilion 100 meters away for visitors to rest, and stone tablets are inscribed with the past and present of the ancient canal. Looking north along the river, there are two towers standing tall on the canal, one fat and one thin, in the distance. The river is calm and meandering, as the sunset sets and the last rays of the sun cover the river. The ancient canal is shimmering with golden waves, as if telling visitors about the thousand year history of the ancient mulberry trees along the canal. Traveling south along the river, the canal bay curves eastward, and asking passersby, heading south for more than 10 kilometers is Guazhou Ancient Ferry. The sky is getting late and the early spring chill is forcing people back to the hotel.

At dinner at a restaurant in the evening, I met a colleague from Suqian who was also staying at the same hotel to take the college entrance exam for medicine. Like my wife, I was in my fifties and had ambitious plans to take the exam. I have two children, one working and the other attending university, and the burden is heavy. Therefore, I need to obtain a college entrance exam for medicine and then register as a pharmacist to open my own pharmacy and become a boss. My roommate also thinks the same way. During the day, I work at the pharmacy, and at night, I hold thick pharmacy books and study late at night, taking a pile of dense notes. I don't think about the amount of money and time and energy I need to keep track of my studies. I don't know how effective. Without various certificates, one cannot enter the industry. Pharmaceutical certificates require a college degree in pharmacy to qualify for certification. It is unknown how many people in the province and across the country are fighting to obtain qualifications for this profession. After a brief introduction to dinner, I went back to the hotel to read books and also had to deal with tomorrow's exam. The next morning, we arrived at the south gate of Guangling College. There were many vehicles and people, and this was the only exam center in the province. Most of the candidates were middle-aged, but there were also young people. It was not a problem for them to be old enough to become bosses or pharmacists in this field. I sent them into the examination room, and I was bored and lazy, sitting in my car looking at my phone to pass the time. I also got down and ran around to familiarize myself with the nearby environment. I ran west to the technician college, then turned back to the south gate and ran east to the pond. I saw people working and weeding in the fields of the pond. There was a small path leading to the West Canal landfill in the lush reeds by the pond, and then to the small path by the West Canal. The canal road was accessible to cars. An old man took a walk and I went up to inquire about the different management on the east and west sides of the canal. The old man asked me where the people were from, and I said they were from Yancheng. He warmly introduced me to the fact that the two sides of the ancient canal belonged to different district management. The east side was the development zone, and the west side was the Hanjiang District Introduce the history of the Yangzhou Canal. This is the ancient canal, and the location of the excavated river channel in history was basically the same. Initially, it was mainly used for military transportation of troops and food for war purposes, In the middle and later stages, it is necessary to open up the north-south grain and material channels, as well as to meet the needs of government transportation and drainage and irrigation. Yangzhou City is a distribution center for grain and supplies from the north and south. The newly excavated Beijing Hangzhou Grand Canal in 1952, located more than 10 kilometers east of here, is the main channel of the canal with a width of 100 meters. I live nearby. When I was a child, the ancient waterway was busy with hundreds of boats competing for flow, and the sound of oars and sails hanging at night was incessant. The ancient canal is no longer accessible, mainly for sightseeing and protection. It has been declared a natural heritage site, and the river is not straight to the south. There are three bends that lead into the Yangtze River to slow down the flow of the canal. From Guazhou Gudu in the south to Gaomin Temple in the north, both sides are not far away. You can go and have a look. Yangzhou is an ancient city with historical and cultural origins, as well as a livable city in the scenic area. For outsiders, you can visit more. Say goodbye to the old man and thank him for his warm introduction. The landscape along the canal is well protected, and the embankment road is clean and tidy. Large ditches have been excavated on both sides of the canal embankment, which is the reason for taking soil to build the embankment. Someone is fishing on the canal. The fishing rod is long, and the tip of the rod and the float are swaying up and down on the water surface. The fishing line is not long. I have not seen this fishing method before. I asked if the fishing method is bucket fishing and the static bait lure fishing. Have you seen bucket fishing? Is it the same fishing method as catching big fish. I watched quietly for a long time without catching the fish. He was really patient and asked me if you were Peikao. A Peikao person was watching fishing here before and was introduced by me to visit nearby Gaomin Temple. Don't you want to go and see? There are many scenic spots worth visiting when you come to Yangzhou. He told me many scenic spots, some of which he has been to and some of which he has heard of for the first time. I would like to learn more about the history of Yangzhou.

The ancient city of Yangzhou was born from a canal and is a prosperous logistics hub. Since ancient times, it has been a north-south water transportation corridor and a channel for transporting troops and grain. It has also been plagued by wars and has been repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt. The ancient canal is the oldest section of China's Grand Canal, with a history of 2500 years. In 486 BC, the "Zuo Zhuan" recorded two major events: the construction of the new capital city and the excavation of the Jianghuai artificial canal, both of which occurred in the same year. The birthday of the Grand Canal is also the beginning of the history of Yangzhou's founding.

The ancient canal flows from Guazhou Ancient Ferry into the river, with a total length of about 30 kilometers, and is now an important part of the Yangzhou Grand Canal. Urban construction can be divided into three stages: the Spring and Autumn Period's Hancheng, the Han Dynasty's Guangling City, and the Six Dynasties' Wucheng. The construction of Yangzhou began in 486 BC, when King Fuchai of Wu established Hancheng north of Shugang as a logistical support for military operations. Han Guangling City was the capital of King Liu Bi of Wu, and the prosperity of Yangzhou began from there. During the Six Dynasties period, Emperor Xiaowu attacked Guangling, and the city of Guangling turned into ruins, known as the "Wucheng".

The first half of Yangzhou city in the Sui Dynasty was the Yangzhou General Administration Office, and the second half was the Jiangdu Palace. During the Tang Dynasty, the size of Yangzhou city expanded. With the completion of the Grand Canal by Emperor Yang of Sui, Yangzhou developed from an important commercial port in the Sui Dynasty to a water and land transportation hub in China during the Tang Dynasty, a salt transportation center in Huainan, and the largest economic city in the country.

The city of Yangzhou in the Song Dynasty was destroyed by war, and the size of the city was greatly reduced. After the southward migration of the Song Dynasty, the Jianghuai region became a confrontation area between the Song and Jin Yuan armies, and its strategic position was elevated. The city of Yangzhou underwent several repairs or additions, and the formation of the inner city defense pattern marked Yangzhou's prominent economic position giving way to its military position.

The Yuan Dynasty formed the pattern of the Beijing Hangzhou Grand Canal due to the straightening of the canal channel, and the opening of maritime transportation in the Yuan Dynasty weakened the position of Yangzhou as a north-south transportation hub. The prosperity of Yangzhou city was far less than that of the Sui and Tang dynasties.

After the wars of the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties, the size of Yangzhou city in the Ming dynasty shrank. For the convenience of defense, Yangzhou successively built the "old city"

The 'new city' forms a two city pattern. The old city is surrounded by moats to the east, west, and north, and the Grand Canal to the south.

During the Qing Dynasty, Yangzhou Prefecture was established with Jiangdu County as its capital, and the urban layout continued from the Ming Dynasty. In the mid Qing Dynasty, Yangzhou City was not only a transportation hub, but also developed into the largest salt industry distribution center in the country. Especially during the Ming and Qing dynasties, the ancient Grand Canal served as the national center for water and salt transportation, as well as a distribution center for goods. This made Yangzhou's urban economic activities exceptionally active, with a rapid increase in population and prosperous cultural development, making it a famous economic metropolis in the country at that time.

At the end of the Qing Dynasty, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Qing army engaged in a major war, and the Yangtze River waterway in Yangzhou was under control. The canal gradually silted up, and the transportation of water and salt gradually declined. The Qing government only relied on river transportation for one tenth, and most relied on sea transportation. In 1912, the opening of the Jinpu Railway added insult to injury to the Grand Canal. Shipping and railways were the main means of communication between the north and south for transportation, and the position of the canal in national politics and economy was greatly impacted. Coupled with the devastation of war, the city of Yangzhou gradually declined.

After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, the government carried out a renovation of the ancient Grand Canal in Yangzhou. Construction began in 1958 and was completed by the end of 1961. The Yangzhou section of the canal was once again bent and straightened, and diverted from Wayaopu to Liuwei into the Yangtze River. After the diversion of the Grand Canal, the ancient Hangou section from Zhuyuwan to Guazhou became a truly ancient canal. From the historical context of the Yangzhou Ancient Canal, it can be seen that the fate of the ancient canal is closely related to the city of Yangzhou. From the Spring and Autumn Period to the end of the Han Dynasty, the ancient canals were mainly used for military defense. After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the function of the ancient canals gradually shifted to water transportation, and the urban nature of Yangzhou also changed from a military stronghold to a commercial metropolis. The land use along the canals shifted from defensive deep ditches and high walls on the outskirts of the city to logistics, transportation, and commercial land.

The ancient canal flows quietly, shedding the hustle and bustle of the past, but imbuing the old city area of Yangzhou with an ancient and mysterious color. Nowadays, the vast majority of cultural heritage in Yangzhou city is distributed along the banks of the ancient canal, especially in the historical districts. They are mostly houses, salt shops, cultural and educational facilities left over from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

The main facilities include salt merchant residences, religious buildings, celebrity residences, cultural and educational buildings, gardens, commercial associations, and other architectural relics.

Historical culture includes salt culture, commercial port culture, religious culture, theatrical culture, and traditional craft culture.

Legend has it that Emperor Yang Guang of Sui stumbled upon a painting of Guangling in Mulan Pavilion. It was this painting of Guangling that sparked Yang Guang's desire to visit. Although Yang Guang was greedy for pleasure, he had no waterway and was about to give up this idea. When Empress Xiao came up with an idea, a world shocking Grand Canal was excavated with just one painting. It shows the ingenuity of the painter. As the saying goes, once the thousand mile long river opens, the waves of the Sui Dynasty will last for nine days. Emperor Yang of Sui once wrote a good poem called "Wild View": The crow flies to count, and the water flows around the lonely village. The setting sun is about to set, and at a glance, the darkness fades away. Emperor Yang Guang of Sui stumbled upon a painting of Guangling in Mulan Pavilion. It was this painting of Guangling that sparked Yang Guang's desire to visit. Although Yang Guang was greedy for pleasure, he had no waterway and was about to give up this idea. When Empress Xiao came up with an idea, a world shocking Grand Canal was excavated with just one painting. It shows the ingenuity of the painter. As the saying goes, once the thousand mile long river opens, the waves of the Sui Dynasty will last for nine days. Emperor Yang of Sui once wrote a good poem called "Wild View": The crow flies to count, and the water flows around the lonely village. The setting sun is about to set, and at a glance, the darkness fades away. In 605 AD, Emperor Yang of Sui, who had just ascended the throne, initiated a great project - excavating a new canal. China's terrain is high in the west and low in the east, and rivers have flowed into the sea since ancient times. The Grand Canal, which runs through the north and south, has cleared the meridians of civilization in the five major river basins of Haihe, Yellow River, Huai River, Yangtze River, and Qiantang River, connecting the east, west, north, and south of China, and achieving the first true integration and unification in Chinese history. The Grand Canal of the Sui Dynasty made Yangzhou the capital of the Grand Canal. The intersection of the Yangtze River and the Grand Canal is a link for economic and cultural exchanges between the north and the south. Ships traveling from south to north are loaded with sea salt, grain, silk, ceramics, coal, and stop here for transportation. Merchants gather here, trade is frequent, and the economy is developed. Yangzhou has become the economic center of the south. Emperor Yang did not come to Yangzhou for the sake of Qionghua, nor for the sake of beautiful women. The purpose of Emperor Yang of Sui's southern tour was first to pacify Jiangnan, strengthen control over Jiangnan, and maintain the important significance of the unified situation of the dynasty.

The second expedition to Jiangdu was in 610 AD, when the economic power of the dynasty was unprecedentedly strong. Emperor Yang of Sui began to build the Jiangdu Palace. The Jiangdu Palace is grand in scale and decorated with gorgeous decorations, with over ten palaces of various names inside. In addition, there are palaces built at the eastern bay of the canal and the southern Yangtze River. After the completion of the Wantou Palace, it was converted into a temple due to poor feng shui. The Yangtze Palace is called Linjiang Palace, which offers a panoramic view of the vast Yangtze River. The most legendary one is undoubtedly the Lost Tower. There are also many rumors about the palace of the Misty Tower. According to records, the palace of the Misty Tower is extremely luxurious, with thousands of households, continuous paths, secluded and elegant rooms, and winding houses.

In Jiangdu, Emperor Yang did not seek solace in the mountains and waters, but was busy with official duties day and night, dealing with domestic and international affairs. He received foreign envoys at Jiangdu Palace, making Yangzhou a window for foreign exchange and one of the 'Three Capitals' at that time.

In the year 616 AD, the Three Expeditions against Goryeo were unsuccessful, causing widespread discontent among the people. The peasant uprising in the north was delayed, but at this time, Emperor Chang of Sui may have lost his ambition, or perhaps in order to save national strength, he insisted on returning to Jiangdu and successively killed Cui Minxiang and Wang Airen, who strongly opposed it,

Sui Changbian's contribution to Yangzhou is unparalleled. As a citizen of Yangzhou, we should objectively evaluate him.