Talk about the Liao Pagoda (4) I am a small pagoda, and the Liao Pagoda in Suizhong, Liaoning Province is the first place in the world.

In many areas in the north, either in city centers, parks, or fields, you sometimes see tall and majestic brick pagodas. Standing in front of the pagoda, I always feel a sense of admiration and curiosity. Impulsively, the pagoda has stood there silently for thousands of years, experiencing, witnessing, and watching everything that happens on this land. I have always believed that they will tell us many distant and mysterious stories...

There are three Liao Pagodas existing in Suizhong County, Huludao City, Liaoning Province. The smallest one is located in Qianwei Town, 25 kilometers away from Suizhong County. It is 7.2 meters high, Level 3, and has an 8-angle shape. It is built with solid bricks and has brick-carved flowers on the belt, which is typical of the pagoda style of the Liao Dynasty.

Avantgarde Leaning Tower before restoration

(Picture from the Internet)

Avantgarde Leaning Tower after restoration

(Picture from " The online article "Qianwei Leaning Tower in Suizhong")

The county seat of Laibin County in Laizhou in the Liao Dynasty was in today's Qianwei Town, and it was established there in the Yuan Dynasty Ruizhou, so the Qianwei Leaning Tower is also called the "Ruizhou Ancient Tower".

Compared with towers around the world, this tower is very small, but it is the most inclined one, with an inclination of 12.01 degrees. It has stood for thousands of years without falling, making it the "first inclined tower" in the world. .

Leaning Towers of the World and China

Maybe everyone has a small tower that makes people care about them in their hometown. No matter how far you go, it will always be the one that reminds you of your hometown. A lighthouse.

The other two Liao Pagodas in Suizhong are located on Miaofeng Mountain, 70 kilometers away from Suizhong County. There used to be a Miaofeng Temple under the tower, but it no longer exists. The twin towers are one large and one small, 50 meters apart. The big tower is 24 meters high, with 8 angles and 9 levels. On the south side of the tower is engraved with the words "Emperor Tianzuo of the Liao Dynasty announced the relic tower". The small tower has 6 corners and 5 levels, and is about 10 meters high.

Different from other twin-shaped twin towers in the Liao Dynasty, these two towers are more like an elder brother leading a younger brother, with the mission of "proclaimed by the emperor" to protect each other in the mountains for thousands of years.

Twin Towers of Miaofeng Temple

(Pictures from the Internet)

The ancient name of Suizhong was Xinglin Castle. The county was built and called Suizhong. In the 1980s, archaeological excavations in Suizhong unearthed architectural ruins from the Qin and Han Dynasties left over by Emperor Qin Shihuang and Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty during their eastern tours.

Ruins of Jieshi Palace in Suizhimaowan

(Pictures from the "Solo Flying" POCO website)

Cao Cao's Northern Expedition to Wu Huan visited Jieshi on his way back and wrote a poem "Viewing the Sea". Jieshi was on the seashore in the southwest of Suizhong.

Suizhong Bohai "Jieshi"

(Pictures from the Internet)

"The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" Cao Cao went to the Jieshi to compose poems " Viewing the Sea"

Suizhong's landform consists of "six mountains, one water and three fields", which is suitable for planting pears. "New Tang Book. Bohai Biography" records that "there are plums in Jiudu and pears in Leyou", and "Leyou" refers to the Bohai Bay area in western Liaoning. Suizhong is especially famous for its white pears. White pears are the best among pears and have been cultivated for more than 300 years. They are large and yellow in color, have high sugar content, thin skin and thick flesh, are juicy and delicious, and have the functions of promoting body fluids, relieving coughs, moistening the lungs, It has cardiotonic, diuretic and anti-alcoholic effects and has a long storage period. In the 1950s and 1960s, it was exported to Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, and Yemen.

Suizhong White Pear

(Pictures from the Internet)

In the Northeast in winter, on the hot Kang, or in Drinking, chatting, and some sour and delicious frozen pears by the warm fire. This comfortable life has been passed down for thousands of years. Ouyang Xiu's son-in-law Pang Yuanying once recorded in his collection "Wenchang Miscellaneous Records" that when he was on a mission to the Liao Kingdom, the Khitan people entertained him with frozen pears. "Thawed"

Pang Yuanying's "Wenchang Miscellaneous Records"

(Picture from Baidu Encyclopedia)

Frozen Pear

(Picture Sourced from the Internet)

Water tofu is a special delicacy in Suizhong, with unique cooking methods and exquisite eating methods. After the soybeans are soaked and fully expanded, they are ground into a slurry with a stone. The finer the better. In the past, "donkey grinding" was used, but now the labor cost of "donkey" is too high, so electric grinding is used instead. Filter the soy milk through tofu bags, boil it, and add brine.

Note that the donkey must wear a "covering his eyes" when grinding, otherwise the donkey will faint and vomit after turning a few times. Another function of "covering his eyes" is that the donkey cannot see the surface of the stone mill. Soybeans will not be eaten secretly.

Donkey Lamo

(picture from the Internet)

Use a wicker strainer to hold water tofu. You can drain the water and use chopsticks to eat it. Eat all the water in the gaps in the fence.

Pair it with a plate of condiments containing minced garlic, minced chili peppers, chive flowers and coriander leaves, plus meat marinade, and a bowl of sorghum rice. It's perfect.

If it is convenient, invite the chef to your home to order water tofu and eat it immediately. It will be more delicious, authentic and lively.

Suizhong Water Tofu

(Pictures from the Internet)

References

1. " Suizhong County Chronicle, 1988.

2. Suizhong County Government official website, /.

3. Meng Ling, twin towers of Miaofeng Temple in Suizhong.

4. Ruixue Pengmei 1120’s blog, the world’s first leaning tower: the Qianwei Leaning Tower in Suizhong, Huludao City.