The Ming Dynasty literati Liu Dong has a text called "The End of Water". The so-called "end of the water" is the "head of the water source" at the westernmost end of the Cherry Gorge in the Fragrant Hills, where the valley ends and the source of the spring water is seen, hence the name. The text of the opening cloud (slightly abridged):

Guanyin stone pavilion and the west, are all streams, streams are the commission of the spring; are stone, stone are the rest of the wall. The south bank, all bamboo, bamboo all streams around and stone leaning. Yan is difficult to bamboo, to this, Linlin mu mu. ...... past Longjiao Temple and west, heard the sound of springs. Spring flow long and short sound, downstream flat also. Flowers, drain spring and service to flowers; bamboo, drain spring and service to bamboo; not flawed sound. Flowers and bamboos have not served, the spring is like a stone spring carry on.

This is the first time I've ever seen a spring like this one. ...... The stone grates are flowing freely and drain dry, and when people step on the stone, the water beads are gradually clothed.

These lines are to the effect that: from the Guanyin Stone Pavilion to the west, will enter the valley (i.e., today's "Cherry Gully"). There are streams and rocks everywhere, which are derived from springs and mountains. In ancient times, Beijing belonged to the northern Yan land, the climate is cold, bamboo is difficult to grow, but here are patches of dense planting, it is really a strange scene. After admiring the Longjiao Temple, I heard the sound of the spring as I walked westward, but the sound was relatively small because the flowers, plants and bamboos were all competing to let the spring water water water them, so the spring water did not have time to make a loud sound to declare its power. Then go upstream, the stream around the infiltration of the bamboo forest flowers and trees gradually less, water and plants between the distance, the sound of the spring then grows, the flow of water agitation in the cracks of the stones, splashing wet swimmers' clothes.

There are two most noteworthy elements in the text: the bamboo forest and the Rongjiao Temple. Let's start with the temple. Ming Dynasty literati Liu Dong visited this valley, the ancient name of "retreat valley", "Cherry Gully" is the common name. From the full text, he took the ancient temples along the way as a sign to show whereabouts, from east to west is Longjiao Temple, Yuantong Temple, Taihean, Guangquan Abandoned Temple and Wuhua Temple. These five temples are all gone today. Cherry ditch in the ruins of Longjiao Temple can still be seen, into the valley can not go far, from the north bank of the stream ascending more than ten steps, there are walls and doors, the lintel engraved with the words "Gucao Tingyin". Into the visible cliffs between a flat land, one or two acres in size, when this is located here Longjiao Temple. Northeast corner of the small courtyard, the ancient acacia stands in the wind, should be the first construction of the ancient temple planted last week, we went to visit, a family of three hand in hand will be surrounded by the estimated age of the tree and the temple when half a thousand years.

Bamboo, from the terrain is really likely to become a forest. The valley is generally presented in the shape of a trumpet tube, the more outward the wider. This is also true of Cherry Gully, and the valley east of Longjiaoji Temple, with its meandering streams, is quite open in a few places. The northernmost bamboo forest, should be more than 100 kilometers north of Beijing, Huairou County (now changed to "district") northwest of the Hongluo Temple, I visited. Calculated according to the latitude, Cherry Gully stream infiltrated the Ming Dynasty bamboo forest, really can not be called strange. I said earlier, "worthy of attention", the reason is that these retired valley bamboo and Cao Xueqin have a relationship. First put a stop to whatever, and then enjoy the second half of the "end of the water":

Mixed flowers and algae, monks and gardeners can not be named. Grass to not family, the guest is fighting to flowers, picking a hundred paces ear, each other out, half different. However, the spring flowers are still no match for the persimmon leaves in the fall. Leaf purple purple, real dandan, wind and sun flow beauty, dawn tree full of stars, sunset wild all fire: Xiangshan said apricot, Yangshan said pear, Shou'anshan said persimmon also. West on the round temple, looking at too and nunnery before the mountain people pointed to the end of the water children, spring source. To the lei lei in two stone corner such as kan, spring cover from which out. Birds and trees sound strong, spring groan can not be heard. Sitting for a long time, began to leave, said: "his bird sound, his tree sound, the sound of this spring also." And west on the Guangquan abandoned temple, half a mile north, Wuhua Temple. However, tourists look at the reclining Buddha always return, said: "reclining Buddha no spring."

Difficult word only "loud laughter", sound "chicken". "groan" is a small bird chirping, compared to the spring sound smaller. "Grass can not be clan" means that the grass can not be categorized to call out the name. The phrase "the flowers of spring are not yet as good as the persimmon leaves of autumn" tells us that it is a spring tour. The whole article is full of praise sentence is this: "leaf purple purple, real dandan, wind and sun flow beauty, dawn tree full of stars, the evening wild all fire: Xiangshan said apricot, Yangshan said pear, Shou'anshan said persimmon also." Do not plunder people's beauty, according to record today's note: meaning that can cause the above fascinating scenery of fruit trees, in Xiangshan is apricot, in Yangshan is pear, in Shou'anshan is persimmon. "Xiangshan", now the western suburbs of Beijing Xiangshan. "Yangshan", a section of the mountain east of Biyun Temple and west of Wolverine Temple. "Shou'an Mountain", north of the Wolverine Temple, that is, where the cherry ditch. The last sentence of this article, I do not like it from the travel notes, but the set of the ancients, but from the historical point of view and revealed to us a message: when the retreat deep valley is a rare place, very quiet and wild flavor. On the "Guangquan Abandoned Temple" record also has historical value, the article of the bamboo forest and the abandoned temple triggered the association of the red scholar Mr. Zhou Ruchang, who has been involved in Cao Xueqin's later years of residence, I summarize the record here -

Look at him (Liu Dong) to write about the landscape of this place, the bamboo forest and the abandoned temple, the bamboo forest and the abandoned temple.

Look at what he wrote about the scenery of this place, bamboo forests and springs and streams are the two main features. This is the Cherry Gorge. Wang Yuyang in the eleventh year of the Kangxi (1672) tour of the retreat valley, there is "the south of the stream ten thousand poles of bamboo, the years gradually dense," the poem, can be proved to the early years of the Kangxi this bamboo forest is still very good. And Tun Cheng in Xueqin after the death of the poem, which has a "retreat on the Pavilion wind bamboo, Wolverine nuns before the stone stone step twisting" words, the last sentence is to write this Wolverine Temple to the west of the retreat of the valley scenery, not only confirms the Qianlong period of the bamboo forest is still there, but also explains the Dun Cheng of this place is very familiar with. This place from the Fragrant Hill, Biyun Temple is only five miles north of the light, and the legend of the Fragrant Hill a little east of the Jianrui Battalion of the White Flag, Box Yellow Flag place, the closest to each other, and after a turn that is the path can be accessed. Qianlong time has not been how prosperous, and the mountains in front of the area is very different, is a secluded place. General tour to the Wolverine Buddha Temple, but also more do not know its side of this deep and secluded good place to go. Xueqin probably fell in love with this piece of Xishan Mountain, the best place, the palace of the ghosts. If you examine the Ming Dynasty, and the title of the Duncan brothers and others wrote the Xue Luo door and alley, winding paths, the yellow leaves of the village similar to the scene. Therefore, I suspect that Cao Xueqin's travels may be very close to this place, his friend Zhang Yiquan Chunliutang Poetry Manuscript preserved in a Xueqin walk in the western suburb of resting in the Abandoned Temple of the title of the poem, in the depths of Cherry Ditch, the valley of the mountain gradually rise, there is a famous abandoned temple, that is, the Guangquan Temple, but also a coincidental point. His village may be surprisingly far from here, this may have something to do with the legend of "Jianrui camp". Can and spring stream bamboo, Jianrui barracks combination of locations, in addition to this area, there is no second place. Considering all the clues can be very consistent, this is indeed a very worthy of research and investigation of the location. Note: retreat valley south of the bamboo forest, the legend of Xueqin lived in the "box yellow flag north camp" of the north, there is a small village called "north ditch", the location of the most in line with the idea.

Cao Xueqin actually lived in the White Banner camp called "yellow leaf village" of the old house, is Mr. Zhou Ruchang guessed the retreat of the village south of the bamboo forest, "north ditch", or is it a few other experts proved that the village, or are these places where he has lived or Lived in more than two places, which has become a hot issue of red debate. In my opinion, they are but once hidden in the vicinity of a few kilometers under a roof, master Xueqin drank the water of which well, really so important?

Oh, I have a critical error here that needs to be clarified. A few days ago, I wrote "yellow leaf village miscellany", by a map of the misleading, guessing that the Ming Dynasty has been dilapidated Guangquan ancient temple, its location in the cherry groove water source head due north direction, climb a few hundred meters to it, that is, today's "straw hat Pavilion," and the north side of the Yan'erling ridge between the concave area somewhere. It seems that the direction is wrong. At the end of "The End of the Water", the direction is made clear: "Go west to Guangquan Abandoned Temple". This monastery should be directly west of Water's End, not directly north. Some years ago, some good people went to this temple in accordance with the text of the ancient books, and the travel notes left behind specifically stated that they climbed up the western ridge from the "Head of the Water Source", and said that they saw an ancient well, with a seal-engraved stone inscription saying "Guangquan Ancient Well", which was embossed on the mouth of the abandoned well. Since there is the word "ancient", it can be seen that it is the handwriting of a later generation.

Next time, I will visit the end of the retreating valley water, and climb the mountain to the west