Jianshui, a small town in southern Yunnan with a slow life engraved in its bones.

Jianshui area was once called "Huili" and "Pier". "Dock" means waterfront pier, and "Huili" means sea in Yi language, which translates to Jianshui, a city near the sea. Today's Huili Sea has already dried up, but it has become a symbol here.

In the ancient songs of the Yi people, it is praised like this: "Dams are built on all sides, surrounded by mountains, and running water overflows into Haizi everywhere. The dam is under construction, and the seawater in the dam is cool and cool in spring. "

Jianshui, located in Honghe Yi Autonomous Prefecture, has been inhabited by many ethnic groups since ancient times. Yi, Hani and other ethnic minorities account for the majority of the population here. The history of Yi people living here can be traced back to the Shang Dynasty in Zhixia.

Since the Ming Dynasty, the central government has strongly encouraged residents of the Central Plains to emigrate to remote areas, and the number of Han immigrants in Jianshui has also been increasing.

As an important town in southern Yunnan, it is also very busy.

Jianshui, once surrounded by Haidian, is also called building a dam. Bazi is the name of Yunnan people for mountain grassland. Since ancient times, bazi has been an area with prosperous agriculture and fertile soil and water. The former Jianshui Dam has changed from Huilihai to an important town in southern Yunnan. Firmly guarding Yunnan's gateway to South Asia.

By the Tang Dynasty, Jianshui had become the most important transportation hub in southern Yunnan. Relying on the rich water system and excavated ancient roads, the Tang Dynasty and Nanzhao regime opened the door to the outside world. Jianshui wrote in the Chronicle of Yunnan in the Tang Dynasty: "Anning is fourteen miles south of the city, reaching the pier. From the pier, the boat travels along the river and rises to Nanman on the 35 th. The barbarian couldn't understand the boat, so he took the sea route. Jia Yong stepped into Zhou Zhen, Dengzhou and Linxiyuan and took Fengzhou Road. "

Buttou Road and Tonghai City are two ancient roads connecting Nanzhao and Annan. The ancient people traded with each other in this way, which not only brought prosperity to Jianshui Dam, but also "looked after their relatives at home and controlled their toes outside".

Where there is water, there is a ferry, and where there is a ferry, there is a bridge.

People in Yunnan say, "Build water to see the bridge, Shiping to see the temple". Among the many bridges built with water, Shuanglong Bridge is the most famous. It is one of the top ten famous bridges in China today.

Located on the Lujiang River and the Benjiang River five kilometers west of Jianshui City, it is commonly known as the "Seventeen-hole Bridge". When Shuanglong Bridge was first built, it was just a small bridge with three holes. Later, due to repeated floods in Hujiang and Benjiang, the riverbed widened (because there were many floods in the past), and government officials decided to expand it into a long bridge with 17 holes.

At present, there are still two pavilions on this large stone arch bridge with three pavilions and seventeen holes. The big attic in the middle of the bridge is a three-story square structure with yellow glazed tiles on the roof and vehicles on the bottom. The existing small attic at the southern end is exposed with double eaves, and the eaves are very high, which has the charm and beauty of classical architecture.

The beauty of Jianshui is the beauty of an ancient bridge crossing an ancient village.

Ten kilometers to the west of Shuanglong Bridge is the well-preserved representative of southern Yunnan folk houses-Tuanshan folk houses.

It is different from the elegant black tile white walls of Huizhou architecture and the dazzling inlaid porcelain and gold lacquer of Chaoshan dwellings. Tuanshan dwellings are like a combination of the two. Beautiful, but not lacking in exquisiteness. In Yunnan, a land where flowers bloom all year round, it exudes vitality and vitality.

Tuanshan village in history was once the residence of Yi people, and it was called "earth house" by Yi people, which means "land where gold is hidden and silver is buried". Later, the Zhang family who moved to Tuanshan Village became rich by relying on the rich tin mines under the Red River. Various clans have returned to their hometowns to build luxury houses, and beautifully decorated houses have sprung up in Tuanshan Village.

Local people still live in the old house, which brings a rare vitality to these quiet buildings, just like Jianshui ancient city full of fireworks. Traditional commerce and street atmosphere are the key to set off the beauty of ancient buildings.

How can you not eat tofu when you get to Jianshui?

The foodies say that it is not the same thing to build tofu without building water, while the people who build water say that there is no taste they like without the big board well with the west gate.

Jianshui, known as the "Ancient Well Museum", still retains many ancient wells. They constantly nourish generations of water builders, and Daban well water with good water quality is used by water builders to make tofu. They insist that the sweet well water gushing from this well is the key to making good tofu.

Jianshui people have their own way of eating tofu. Put the tofu in the dip dish and poke it in the middle to let the hot air escape. After the tofu is dipped in the sauce, slowly put it in your mouth. The slight odor produced by fermentation will soon be replaced by the rich bean flavor, which has a delicate taste similar to cheese.

After chewing the tofu in your mouth and licking the sauce left on your mouth, your eyes still don't forget to look for the next piece of baked tofu with a slightly cracked skin on the grill.

Walking on the street of Jianshui, whether it is a meal or not, there are always three or four diners sitting around the tofu stand. Jianshui, who eats tofu, looks like a Chengdu person who drinks a bowl of tea. Tofu and tea seem to be the protagonists, but they are not. Sitting around a table is for gossiping, and eating and drinking is just a supporting role to be invited to chat.

Eating tofu is the tip of Jianshui people's tongue and a footnote in daily life. Rather than eating this piece of tofu, it is better to say that you are chewing the life of the ancient city that will be forgotten by the times.

We have gained wealth in the rapid development, but it seems that we have gradually lost the ability to slow down and appreciate the beauty of life. The Jianshui people who sit on the street corner and eat 30 tofu a day are not one of the few lucky people in this era.

Wenyu Yao Lu

Tumiao Yao Lu