Shi Guangling was very skilled in martial arts and could lift a pair of 390-pound stone locks with both hands (the stone locks are still preserved). In 1860, mountain bandits broke out in Fu'an area. The Qing government asked his regiment to prepare for defense. He took the lead and quelled the bandits' rebellion and ensured the safety of the territory and the people. Although Shi Guangling aspired to be a leader in martial arts and was a scholar and a military strategist, he had no intention of pursuing an official career. He gave up many opportunities for him. For example, after quelling the bandit rebellion, Marquis Zhu Yi wanted to recommend him to the Qing court, but he declined. Shi Guangling was strict in his conduct throughout his life, and people respected and feared him. The Fengtailong Tea House complex built by him is majestic and magnificent. After more than 200 years of vicissitudes, it still retains its grace. During the Anti-Japanese War, Funing Middle School, the first school in eastern Fujian, moved to Tanyang and was located in Fengtailong House, making it the education center of eastern Fujian for a time. Shi Guangling was fond of doing good deeds, such as building ancestral temples, building bridges and paving roads, etc. Others, such as relatives having weddings and funerals, and those who had no money, would definitely give them. His good deeds are too numerous to enumerate. Shi Guangling is dedicated and dedicated, and the black tea processed by Fengtailong Tea House is plump and even in shape, with a mellow and fragrant taste and a bright red color. At its peak, more than 3,000 tons of tea were produced annually, and it was sold all over the world under the brand name Tanyang Gongfu. It is reported that due to the influence of Shi Gong, the British bought the most tea from Tanyang Gongfu.
The founder of the famous Fengtailong Tea House, and one of the founders of the famous Tanyang Gongfu Black Tea at home and abroad. According to the genealogy record, Shi Guangling "diligently cultivated, sought to win over businessmen, and met with British merchants. The most important thing to buy Chinese tea was to export it abroad, as a public service." At that time, foreign powers represented by the United Kingdom invaded China with force, and at the same time, they transported shiploads of opium into China and robbed tens of thousands of silver, causing most of the Chinese people to live in dire straits and lose their lives. But the tea shop owners represented by Shi Guangling exchanged boatloads of black tea for a large amount of silver, bringing prosperity to their hometown. [1] Tanyang Village was originally a little-known village at the foothills of Baiyun Mountain in Fu'an. However, when history entered the first year of Xianfeng in the Qing Dynasty, this village became famous for its creation of a black tea later named "Tanyang Gongfu". Hear the world.
Tanyang Village is located in Shekou Town, about 20 kilometers northwest of Fu'an City. It is surrounded by peaks like a screen. Starting from the town, walk along the mountain and stream, cross the Longfeng Bridge and Zhenwu Bridge, and arrive at Tanyang, which is suddenly open and beautiful at the foot of Guixiang Mountain.
Guo Pingye, a native of the Qing Dynasty, wrote in "Records of Tanyang Village": "As far as Tanyang, there are mountains and gates, a stream of water, chickens and dogs can hear each other, and the circle is lush. The tea produced is beautiful and abundant. The so-called "Wuyi style" and "foreign countries call it Xiao Wuyi" means that the production process of Tanyang Gongfu black tea originated from Wuyi. In the eyes of foreigners, It is a Wuyi black tea with a unique flavor. But the Tanyang people seemed dissatisfied with the naming of "Xiao Wuyi". Perhaps to distinguish it from the black tea from Wuyi Mountain, the Tanyang people renamed the black tea created in their village "Tanyang Gongfu".
At that time, Tanyang Gongfu was first impressed by the elegant "afternoon tea" in Britain, and was cherished by the royal family. Therefore, "British businessmen purchased Chinese tea, focusing on Tanyang production." Tanyang Gongfu became a Time is sweeping the British Isles.
The increasing overseas trade of black tea injected vitality into Tanyang Village, making it a place where tea merchants from all over the world flocked to make money. Tanyang Village soon prospered. In the decades from Xianfeng of the Qing Dynasty to Guangxu, tea merchants from far and near established as many as 36 tea shops in Tanyang, and many tea merchants and tea farmers settled here. In Tanyang Village, there are rows of teahouses and warehouses, long streets, secluded lanes and deep courtyards. From here emerged a group of Fujian tea merchants who dominated the business world, such as Shi Guangling, Hu Dasheng, Wu Buyun, Shi Changsi, and Hu Zhaojiang. I think back on those days, every spring, the market in the village would be bustling with industry and commerce, and the fragrance of tea would linger around the moon, just like a picture of a tea village during the Qingming Festival. Folk songs sing: "Tanyang is a beautiful place in March, and tea shops are on the streets." "The tea season is here, thousands of families are happy, and tea bags are paving the way and making beds." This is a portrayal of the prosperous market in Tanyang Village and the busy tea season.
However, the prosperity is like a dream. The First World War blocked sea and land transportation, coupled with the government's excessive taxes, merchants' adulteration, and the rise of Indian black tea, etc., the Tanyang Kungfu market shrank rapidly, and Tanyang Village's century-old heyday gradually faded into dusty history. The life of the tea village is in ruins, with only alleys and ancient houses remaining in the setting sun.
Reform and opening up is like the mighty spring breeze and spring rain, which makes thousands of mountains turn green and thousands of trees sprout. The calm time of waking up is like the spring of dead trees, gradually rejuvenating.
In 2001, Fu'an City was named the "Hometown of Chinese Tea" by the country because it has 300,000 acres of tea gardens and the famous Tanyang Gongfu tea. In 2006, Tanyang Gongfu was approved as a national “geographical indication protected product”. In 2010, it won the title of "China's Well-known Trademark". Tanyang Gongfu - the beauty in red at the foot of Baiyun Mountain finally regained her beauty, reappearing the character of "ecology, harmony, health and nobility", mellow fragrance and romantic red beauty, and walked into the human world.
Wind and Rain Corridor Bridge, Tin Hau Shrine, teahouses and teahouses, earth-carved buildings, tea merchants' houses, ancestral halls of wealthy families, old-fashioned oil mills... There are still many ancient tea-related architectural remains in the tea village today. Wandering in the alleys with green bricks and black tiles, reliving the ups and downs of Tanyang Kungfu is like going back in history. In a sense, tea culture is a leisure culture, which is closely related to leisure and tourism activities. At the same time, drinking tea is good for your health. Tea contains more than 450 kinds of organic compounds and is also rich in minerals. Medical books of the past dynasties have recorded that tea has 20 and 219 medicinal effects. Since ancient times, people have also used tea to cultivate their moral character and cultivate their sentiments. In modern life, drinking tea can also harmonize interpersonal relationships, enrich cultural life, and improve people's quality. For Fu'an, developing tea culture tourism is based on utilizing its rich tea culture tourism resources, complying with the needs of the city's development, and adapting to the needs of contemporary leisure and tourism development trends.
1. To create a rural leisure environment, it is necessary to develop tea culture tourism resources
Tanyang is a demonstration village for the construction of new rural areas in our city. Through the construction of new rural areas, it will give people a comparative The comfortable countryside is suitable for human settlement and leisure, which also provides favorable conditions for the development of rural tourism. Carrying out tea culture tourism and creating a leisurely artistic conception of rural tea culture is a necessary way for our city to develop rural tourism and create a leisure village.
2. To promote the in-depth development of tourism, it is necessary to develop tea culture
Tea culture tourism is experiential tourism and cultural tourism. Fu'an has a shortage of tourism products. Carrying out special tourism and experiencing tea culture tourism is the only way for our city to move away from a single tourism product and move towards diversified tourism products. The development of tea culture tourism is in line with the needs of Fu'an's tourism for in-depth development.
3. Revitalize the tea industry and promote the economic development of Fu'an
Developing tea culture tourism can, on the one hand, help the "Tanyang Gongfu" tea brand to go nationwide, increase its popularity, and increase Sales volume, revitalize the tea industry; on the other hand, develop tea cultural tourism, promote the interaction and integration of the tea industry, tourism industry, and cultural industry, promote tea through tourism, drive farmers to get rich, and promote the rural economy and tourism economy. "Tanyang Gongfu Tea" is a world-famous tea well-known at home and abroad, and Tanyang, the origin of this world-famous tea, has also been famous far and wide following the footsteps of "Tanyang Gongfu Tea".
"The tea season is here, thousands of houses are in a row, and tea bags are paving the way for bed.
The street lights are bright and the sky is bright, and the theater troupes are singing all night long.
Going up the street and walking down the street On the street, the threads of new clothes are cut off.
The silver is measured in measures, and the boats are moored at Qingfeng Bridge."
This is a local folk song that describes the prosperous scene of Tanyang in the past. When Tanyang Gongfu became a hit, people at home and abroad made various speculations about Tanyang, which was only known by its name but not by its actual form. Some people describe Tanyang as a bustling metropolis with gold everywhere, and it was the best place for tea merchants to dig gold at that time; others say that it is a beautiful manor filled with the fragrance of tea, as beautiful as a paradise... …
Now, when the reporter once again stepped into the village where "Tanyang Kungfu" was created, Tanyang had faded away from its former prosperity, but only the fragrance of tea remained the same.
The traces of Zhenwu Bridge are vivid, and the ancient prayers of tea people are expressed
Take a tricycle from Shekou Town, Fu'an City to Tanyang. The road is more than two meters wide and winds along the mountainside. It was raining lightly at that time, and the tea mountains far and near were shrouded in clouds and mist in the rain. Nearly 15 minutes later, the driver said Tanyang had arrived.
At this time, the first thing that caught our eyes was a covered bridge. There was also a stone slab mark with the word "Tanyang" engraved on the edge of the covered bridge. After the driver introduced it, we found out that this was the tea trading place located at the entrance of Tanyang Village. Bridge - Zhenwu Bridge.
Zhenwu Bridge is the first sight of Tanyang Village, with wooden corridor houses and a combination of stone and wood. Looking at the bridge from a distance, it is connected by countless tile-covered pavilions. The bottom part is made of granite and spans the Tanyang River in an arch shape. Walking into it and taking a closer look at the bridge, you will see that there is a short hanging column hanging from the end of both sides of each beam. Under each hanging column hangs a lantern-shaped wooden sculpture, surrounded by carvings of flowers, plants, insects and fish. The numerous wooden pillars and shrines are painted in bright red, giving the entire covered bridge a strong visual effect.
According to local villagers, Zhenwu Bridge used to be an important passage from Fu'an to Shouning. At that time, this was also the busiest place for tea transportation. The waterway under the bridge could be used for boats, and tea was shipped to various parts of Europe from here. Speaking of the origin of Zhenwu Bridge, Hu Chenchao, secretary of the Party branch of Tanyang Village, also told a history about "Tanyang Kungfu".
In the fourth year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1371), there was a tea farmer named Hu Fusi in Tanyang Village. He cultivated a kind of tea called "Tanyang Caicha", and then it spread in eight villages around ten miles away. Tea farmers all over the world have planted this kind of "vegetable tea". In order to facilitate trade, local tea farmers built this covered bridge on the ancient road from Fu'an to Shouning. However, Tanyang Covered Bridge has suffered many disasters since its construction. Therefore, in the second year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty (1876), when Shi Guangling and others rebuilt the temple, they appointed Emperor Zhenwu as the commander. Zhenwu is the god in charge of the north and water and fire. He holds two generals, the turtle and the snake, so he is revered as a protector by the people in the tea country.
Whenever the tea market opens, or on the third day of the third month or the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, Tanyang tea farmers will put out offerings, burn sticks of incense, and pray for the safety of the bridge and the prosperity of the tea town. It can be seen that Zhenwu Bridge is more than just a bridge in the eyes of Tanyang tea farmers. With the rise and fall of "Tanyang Gongfu" and the historical evolution process, it has become a traditional folk culture, which includes the local tea farmers. A simple and affectionate prayer for tea leaves.
Now, standing on the Zhenwu Bridge, you can see a microcosm of Tanyang history in front of you. The stream under the bridge is clear, and the stream looks like it can be crossed by walking. Prosperous transactions were once frequently performed here. The trees beside the bridge are lush and leafy, and through the greenery, you can see the once prosperous tea estates in front of you.
The centuries-old tea street has been as prosperous as a dream
Not far after passing Zhenwu Bridge, you enter Tanyang Village. Most of the villagers live on the south bank of Tanyang Creek, and the county road passes through it. It passes by the village and becomes the bustling city of the village. Tanyang Village is divided into Upper Street and Lower Street. Almost all the ancient houses here were built when it was prosperous. According to the "Fu'an County Chronicle", at its peak, there were 36 tea shops on Tanyang Street, producing more than 20,000 boxes of dry tea every year, and this was Tanyang Lower Street. Under the leadership of Hu Chenchao, the reporter walked up the stone steps from an arch entrance on the side of the road and entered Xiajie.
The entire lower street is an ancient alley with narrow lanes, which looks particularly peaceful. On both sides of the lane are tall mud walls. The mud walls are yellow with red, slightly peeling off, and the remaining quotations of Chairman Mao can be faintly discerned.
Although the "Tanyang Gongfu" ancient tea shop on both sides of the ancient lane is a little dilapidated, it cannot conceal the prosperity of the past. The building of the tea shop is not surprising from a distance, but when you get closer, you can see that it is very tall, with a pavement facing the street, and the interior is like a spacious wing of a residential house, with two floors, three floors, and the highest is four floors. According to Hu Sichao, the tea shop purchases tea leaves on the ground floor; fans, flat screens and other equipment are placed on the second floor for refining; the third floor is used as a warehouse; if there is a fourth floor, it is used as housing for workers. “To this day, there are still tea farmers making and researching tea in these ancient tea shops, passing down their own ‘Tanyang Kungfu’ from generation to generation.” Standing in front of the ancient tea shop, Hu Sichao was full of thoughts.
Exit Xiajie and walk along the county road for almost 200 meters to Shangjie. The five deep courtyards located at the foot of the hill at the end of Shangjie are particularly eye-catching. Hu Sichao said that the five ancient houses are Yixiantang, Erxiantang, Sanxiantang, Sixiantang and Wuxiantang. Most of them have a history of a hundred years. Most of the owners of the mansions are named Wang.
Hu Sichao told reporters that people in the village call these large houses "six doors and eight corridors", which means that each of them is composed of six main rooms and eight wing rooms, with spacious patios and corridors. , fish ponds, flower beds, huge halls, carved beams and painted buildings, antique. Some gates still have a "sedan pavilion" in front of them. In the past, no matter the dignitaries or wealthy merchants, they had to dismount their horses and sedans before entering the house. This is enough to show how wealthy and wealthy the people were at that time.