What is Chadong, the Town of “Border Town”? How far is it from Fenghuang Ancient Town?

I’ve been wondering what the meaning of travel is? How much courage does it take for a person to go to another unfamiliar city? It’s only when I truly started this journey alone that I understood the meaning of “Cherishing the simple joys, enduring loneliness”. When you encounter those beautiful things and no one is around to share them with, what kind of loneliness will be in your heart? Maybe only when you are there will you understand!

Recalling that place

It’s been nine months, perhaps the charm of Chadong is too strong, perhaps the warmth of Chadong people is too warm, I still have the idea of recording the journey with my pen.

It was just before the Mid-Autumn Festival, the carriage was unusually lively, the train was approaching Jishou, the speed gradually slowed down, my friend was pulling me hard beside me “Look quickly”.

Through the window, the mist outside the car was billowing, hidden by the mountains, the houses were built along the mountain, dotted with emerald green leaves, a beautiful and tranquil landscape painting.

First arrival

After getting off the bus, the mist gradually dissipated, and the city’s appearance became clearer. Looking closer, most of the houses outside the station were low, with large windows, but the space between the houses was very narrow, barely enough for a cat to pass through. There was a sign in the square that read “Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture”, the surface was slightly moist. We were here discussing our next itinerary.

The bus to Huayuan, along the way we took the highway, climbing along the mountains, on the other side of the road was a steep ravine, the greenery rooted in the rocks blocked our sight from exploring further. After a while, the view became wider, surrounded by mountains in the low-lying area, ancient houses clustered together, like a group of stars holding the moon.

Chadong was not originally called “Border Town”, my initial understanding of Chadong came from Mr. Shen’s “Border Town”. “From Sichuan to Hunan, there is an official road to the east. This road goes to the border of western Hunan, and comes to a small mountain town called “Chadong”.

Looking at the map of western Hunan, you will find that there is no place called “Chadong” in the whole Fenghuang county. When you move your eyes to Huayuan county north of Fenghuang county, at the junction of Hunan, Sichuan city of Wudou, and Guizhou, you will find “Border Town”. The closer you get to Chadong, the more puzzled you become, there are no towering mountains that you imagined, no strangely shaped trees, only wild grass and rocks everywhere in the mountains, only the busy figures of herding cattle and farming. The unique geographical environment isolates this small town of Chadong from modern civilization, everything retains its original color, allowing it to grow freely, and instead flourishes more and more.

A village hidden in plain sight

The wheels rolled forward, the scenery outside the window slowly receded, brown tile-roofed buildings and stone alleys replaced the rice fields and wilderness along the way, suddenly there was a sense of “a village hidden in plain sight”. The car stopped at the town’s service center, below which was the Qingshui River where the Mawei River and the Chong’an River meet.

I am separated from Chongqing, only by you.

Walking upstream along the river, the east-west market is bustling, various shops are located in it, shouts and bargaining voices mix together, the hand-woven backpacks carried by the people who come to the market are a unique sight in the crowd. Passing through the “Border Town Tower”, on the other side of the bridge is the “First Gate of Southeast Chongqing”, already within the jurisdiction of Chongqing. On the right side of the gate is the monument and inscription commemorating the advance of the Liu and Deng armies into Southwest China.

Small courtyard in town

Returning along the bridge, a small courtyard caught our eye. Looking in through the fence, it is the residence of an old man and an old woman, the house is a low house with the characteristics of the town, located at the top of the riverbank. The front gate fence is close to the stone alley, a white pipe is tied to the fence, the side of the fence is hollowed out in a certain spacing, and earth is piled up to plant cockscombs.

The small courtyard that the old man and woman manage is exquisite.

It was noon, taking a small path to the side of the river, under the spreading green branches, it was cool. Two or three sailboats were moored at the shore, the boatmen greeted us enthusiastically, judging the time, they could only shake their heads regretfully. There was no worry on the boatman’s face, only a smile, saying “Come again next time, you must take a boat, our…” There is a sense of pride in being a person of Chadong in the simple words.

Following the river downstream, the emerald green river water and the azure sky complement each other. On this side of the river, a group of freehand sketchers stood, crouched, or sat, concentrating on drawing smooth lines; on the other side of the river, there was a suspended corridor, behind which green mountains rose one after another, and a small stream cascaded down from the suspended corridor.

A dugout canoe floated on the water, two or three children swayed their oars, playing with each other. By the water’s edge was a stilt house built on the water, the sound of pounding clothes with a mallet came from near the water.

Approaching Cuicui Island, the river water split around the island, the river surface gradually widened, and the river water became shallower. Reefs were exposed, small groups of fish darted through them, the water rippled slightly, reflecting their shadows. Cuicui Island is actually not big, but it is mostly covered with greenery, surrounded by green pines and cypresses, shaped like an ancient ferry, quietly moored in the Qingshui River, the statue of Cuicui stands at the stern, looking forward to the return of her lover, Nuansong.

Unexpected journey

PS: The original destination of the trip was Fenghuang, listening to the advice of the sister in the train seat, we adjusted the itinerary, but unexpectedly had a fruitful trip. There are two theories about the prototype of “Border Town”. One is Fenghuang, where Shen Congwen’s former residence is located, the other is the border town of Chadong (renamed “Biancheng Town” in 2008). Regardless of the authenticity of the two, the simple folk customs and beautiful scenery of Chadong are very characteristic of the local area.