Introduction to Chajiang Village

Chajiang Village is located on the southern border (Shangnan Township) of Anfu County, Jiangxi Province, adjacent to Yongxin County and under the jurisdiction of Yangmen Township, Anfu County. The village borders Shangcheng to the east, Gaozhou to the south, Zhoufang and Taishan Village of Yongxin Luxi to the west, and Rentou Village of Pengfang Township to the north. Chajiang Village is 6.5 kilometers away from the township government, about 45 kilometers to Anfu County via Jintian and Zhouhu, and about 40 kilometers to Yongxin County via Yangmen and Huaizhong.

According to historical records such as "Anfu County Chronicle", Chajiang River was once a virgin land that had been sleeping for thousands of years, a swampy wasteland and thick reeds. In the second year of Chunhua of the Song Dynasty (AD 991), the founder of the Zhu family, the tenth successor, moved from Qiancun to Chajiang River. He overcame obstacles, found land, settled, and established his home here. The Zhu family has thrived in hardships and hardships, and has grown and developed over thousands of years. Chajiang Village consists of natural villages such as Chiqiu, Inujiang, Shangshi, Zhongshi, Xiashi and Qiaobian. It has 8 groups, with 465 households and a population of 1,650 people (data in March 2021). From the 10th generation onwards, the clan branches divided and migrated outwards.

The total area of ??Chajiang Village is about 3 square kilometers, and the buildings cover an area of ??about 0.9 square kilometers. The village is located in a mountainous area with more mountains and less fields. The mountain area is about 5,400 acres, and the paddy and dry farmland area is more than 1,044 acres, with an average per capita of less than one mu. The cultivated land under its jurisdiction is closely connected with the mountains and forests, and the fields are intertwined among them. Early rice and late rice are planted in two seasons a year. Some cold water fields only plant one season, and the yield is not high. Cotton and rapeseed are also grown in the fields, but they are basically self-sufficient. Most of the mountains are planted with fir, pine, and camellia trees, and there are also many fruit orchards. Over the long years, the tribe and the surrounding villagers have cultivated the land together, adhering to the ancestral precepts, living in harmony with their neighbors, living in friendship, and thriving.

Chajiang has been known as a small paradise since ancient times, with picturesque mountains and rivers, beautiful scenery and fresh air. The village is backed by mountains and surrounded by green hills on three sides. Qieling, which lies to the east of the village, is the natural barrier of our village. There are three mountains with unique images behind the village, like three roaring lions, with lifelike shapes. The villagers call them the "Three Lions", which is why Chajiang Village is divided into three lions: upper, middle and lower. There is another mountain next to it, which looks like a recumbent giant beast with a peaceful demeanor. People call it a pictogram. There are Chayuan Ridge and Shankou Ridge behind the mountain. There are layers of terraced fields in the ridge, gurgling streams, and rolling hills on both sides. Red-heart cedar, wetland pine, green and tall, Camellia oleifera forest and oil-rooted trees cover the hillside green. There are also tall and majestic mountains such as Wufengling and Qibei Ridge, which are lush and green.

At the head of the village, Yuxiaoxian Mountain, Mangxing Ridge and Shibi Cliff stand tall and towering into the clouds. The top of the mountain is often shrouded in clouds and mist, appearing and disappearing, making it mysterious and fascinating. There are many ancient legends about Yuxiao Fairy Mountain. There was once a temple called "Yuxiao Altar" built in the mountain col, which was very popular. Unfortunately, it was demolished during the Cultural Revolution. Today, except for a few rocks, there is almost no trace.

There is Chajiang River in the north of the village, which is dammed and dammed. It looks like a crouching dragon, and its roar can be heard far away. Piba accumulates river water into a reservoir, which divides the east and west canals into two canals, about several kilometers long, to irrigate and support the people. The Chenshan River (also known as Zhouhu Water) in front of the village and the Chajiang Pixi Canal behind the village are like two active long dragons, winding southward around the village. The clear flowing water nourishes the fields beside the river, giving the village infinite vitality and beauty. The village is winding, living near the water, and animated by the water.

Chajiang Village has four bridges built on the Chenshan River, with different shapes. The bridge at the head of the village is called "Xinqiao". It is designed and built after the famous Zhaozhou Bridge. It is beautiful in shape, safe and economical. The bridge is more than thirty meters long and is entirely made of stone. There are no piers underneath, only an arched bridge hole spanning the river. There are two small bridge holes on each shoulder at both ends of the bridge. The river usually flows through the bridge hole. When there is a flood, the river water can also flow through the four small bridge holes. The bridge is spacious enough for two cars to pass side by side, with railings on both sides. There is an archway on the east side of the bridge with the message "Chajiang welcomes you". The view from the bridge is wide and you can see the whole village, with beautiful mountains and clear waters, numerous houses and smoke from cooking stoves. It is a good place to take pictures. The bridge at the end of the village is named "Anyong Bridge", formerly known as Rainbow Bridge, which means flying across the sky. This bridge is a county-level protected ancient building. It was built in the late Ming Dynasty. It is a seven-hole stone arch bridge with beautiful shape and solid structure. Over the past hundreds of years, it has been repaired and reinforced many times. Although it has been attacked by wind, rain and flash floods, the Anyong Bridge is still intact to this day. In 2018, a bridge was rebuilt directly leading to Zhangqiao Village, Luxi Township, Yongxin County. There is also a Chajiang Middle Bridge in the middle of the village, connecting the front yard of Tianbian in Shangcheng Village. It was a wooden bridge at first, and then changed to a stone bridge. It was destroyed by a once-in-a-century flood in June 2019, and was rebuilt with reinforced concrete in 2020.

Chajiang Village has a spacious road (cement trunk road) that runs through the whole village from north to south, connecting the first and last bridges. In the Chiqiu section, roads and channels run side by side. The small shops and entertainment facilities in the village are basically concentrated on both sides of the road. During the day, farmers, carts, bicycles, motorcycles and cars come and go on it. After tea and dinner in the evening, if the weather is good, people will come to the road from their homes to chat about home affairs, take a break, play chess and cards. There are no large supermarkets or markets in the village. They grow their own vegetables and are self-sufficient. Vendors often walk along the road selling tofu, fish and meat. In recent years, several branch cement roads have been built, which greatly facilitates vehicle traffic.

There are densely populated houses on both sides of the road, mostly newly built bungalows, and there are very few old houses. Most of the new houses are small Western-style buildings with three to five floors, with blue bricks and glazed tiles, and free and diverse styles. They are the best evidence of the improvement of the living standards of the villagers. If possible, families can plant trees and flowers in the front yard and backyard.

Old houses are generally made of blue bricks, black tiles, white eaves and horse head walls, with internal wooden frame structures. Wooden columns, beams, doors and windows or under the eaves are often decorated with carvings or paintings. The techniques are diverse and the forms are rich. The themes include figures, insects, fish, flowers and birds, and Geometric patterns etc. Houses usually pay attention to symmetry, and the hall is spacious and can accommodate eight square tables. It is usually divided into two layers. The upper layer can be moisture-proof. Rice, straw and uncommon sundries are mostly placed on the upper layer. The upper layer can be climbed up and down by movable wooden ladders. The old houses had heavy doors, narrow windows, and poor lighting. Nowadays, some of them have been demolished, and a few are listed as county-level protected cultural relics.

To the east of Anyong Bridge is Wenchang Pavilion, a place where ancient people gave lectures. From the Song Dynasty to the Ming and Qing Dynasties, sages of the family and literati from far and near gathered here to exchange knowledge and skills. Wenchang Pavilion has a quiet environment, surrounded by ancient camphor trees, open fields and pleasant scenery. In the early 1970s, there was a junior high school here, and then it was changed to the site of Chajiang Primary School. Generations of students in the family have received enlightenment and primary education here. After entering the 21st century, Chajiang Primary School was closed due to too few students and was merged into Shangcheng Primary School. The Zhu family in Chajiang is a family of etiquette and righteousness, a scholarly family with numerous talents in the past generations. As the old saying goes: "We work together to dry the grain, and teach our children to read." The tribe has always advocated cultural education, respected knowledge, and respected teachers.

Chajiang Village is located in the Nanxiang area of ??Anfu County. The rural dialect "Nanxiang dialect" is spoken in neighboring Jintian, Zhouhu, Ganluo and other places. It is a legacy of ancient Chu. Its pronunciation is special and different from Anfu County. . In the old days, Chajiang had many unique customs and rituals, but now most of them have been abolished. For example, from a person's birth, three dynasties, full moon, one year old, enlightenment, marriage (finding a matchmaker, eating, giving meeting gifts, visiting people, setting a date, paying the burden, getting married, returning home, etc.), birthday party to funeral. Another example is that a house builder spends his days breaking ground, digging foundations, and erecting frames, and then moving to a new home. There is also the New Eating Festival, which refers to eating new rice during the harvest of early rice. There is also the custom of burning pagodas during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Young people pick up residual tiles everywhere to build a pagoda that is as tall as one person. Every household donates straw and burns the pagoda until it turns red at night, which symbolizes that the days are getting more prosperous. In addition, the dragon lantern dance from the Spring Festival to the Lantern Festival, in addition to the dragon, is also equipped with a dragon ball, two sets of gongs and drums, spring, summer, autumn and winter, plum, orchid, bamboo, chrysanthemum, flowers, birds, insects, fish and other lanterns. Firecrackers are given out from door to door. According to customs, food is also particular. For example, fried beans are eaten during Guyu, eggs are eaten at Beginning of Summer, rice dumplings are eaten at Dragon Boat Festival, moon cakes and grapefruit are eaten during Mid-Autumn Festival, and pig's trotters are eaten during New Year. Most of the villagers are good at wine and drink well, and they will treat them to drinks during every year and festival. When children are three days old, one month old, one year old, and newly married, they will invite tea. This is a happy moment for women. Dried carrots, salted ginger, fried soybeans and camellia are put into a tea bowl and brewed together. The tea has a strong flavor.

The people of Chajiang Village have always been mainly engaged in agriculture. They are rich in rice, soybeans, camellia oleifera, peanuts, fruits, sweet potatoes, turmeric, etc. There are fermented bean curd, Nanjo, soybeans, tea oil, ham, domestic Traditional local products such as pigs and yellow beef. After the reform and opening up, the village developed agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, sideline production, and fishery simultaneously, carried out diversified operations, and achieved some development, such as pig raising. In recent years, farmland construction has been standardized, and most fields can be mechanized for farming and harvesting. The whole village only raises dozens of cattle for beef cattle, and no longer use cattle to plow the land. The orchard industry has emerged, and bayberries, oranges, grapefruits, etc. have become famous. With economic development, the living standards of the tribesmen have also greatly improved. A rural health clinic has been built in the village to provide basic medical services to villagers. Chajiang Village is geographically remote and has very limited resources. Compared with developed areas, it still lags far behind. For example, medical conditions are poor, and serious or difficult illnesses require treatment in Jintian, county or provincial hospitals; the market is incomplete, and the market is located in Shangcheng, five miles away from the village, making life inconvenient. There are still 34 registered poor households in the village with 106 people.

After the reform and opening up, a large number of tribesmen left their homeland (615 people according to statistics), said goodbye to their relatives, and joined the great wave of economic development. Some tribesmen come to Anfu County or Ji'an City for work; those who live far away live all over the country and even overseas, and most of them go to Guangdong, Zhejiang, Fujian and other places. The tribesmen have achieved success in their careers and have a surplus of income. Even if they have settled down elsewhere, most of them still care about their hometown and return to their hometown to buy property. Chajiang's external transportation is also continuing to improve. The village head road connects Pengfang and Jintian, and the village tail road can directly lead to Yongxin. In 2020, the construction of the Yichun-Suichuan Expressway will begin, passing through Chenshan Mountain in Pengfang and passing near Tanyuan, which will bring more convenience to Chajiang's external communication.

Chajiang, a village with a beautiful environment and close to nature, is where the Zhu clan has lived for generations. It is also a warm haven for the clan members, and it is also the hometown that wanderers love and linger in their dreams. In the future, the tribesmen who stay in Chajiang will be able to live and work in peace and contentment and run their families diligently; the tribesmen who work hard all over the world will also be able to have successful careers and cherish their homeland. With the national rural revitalization plan, Chajiang Village will surely be rejuvenated and move towards a better tomorrow.

Reference materials:

1. "Chajiang Zhu Family Genealogy" was revised for the fourth time in 2000

2. "Chajiang Zhu Guangshaotang Genealogy" 2002 Year version

3. Chajiang Village Committee bulletin board information (March 2021)