The legend of Gaojiayan is a folk literature project in the second batch of representative projects of municipal intangible cultural heritage in Huai'an. The origin of the legend Gaojiayan, formerly known as Hanhuaiyan and Tangyan, is now commonly known as Hongze Lake Dike. It is an important barrier to protect the lives and property of tens of millions of people in the Huaiyang area, and is known as the "Great Wall on Water". In the fourth year of Jian'an in the Eastern Han Dynasty (199 AD), Chen Deng, the captain of the Department of Agriculture, built Gaojiayan (also known as Hanhuaiyan) on the Pofujian River to form Pofutang to store water for irrigation. The Gaojiayan built by Chen Deng was a famous water conservancy building at that time. During the Dali period of Emperor Daizong of the Tang Dynasty (766 AD to 779 AD), officials were stationed in the Hongze Lake area and Tangyan was built in the Zhouqiao area today. In the second year of Jianyan of Emperor Gaozong of the Song Dynasty (1128 AD), the Jin army invaded the south. The Song general Du Chong opened the Yellow River to replace soldiers with water. Part of the river water flowed south and entered the Huai River from Si. In the fifth year of Shaoxi in the Southern Song Dynasty (1194 AD), the Yellow River broke through in Yangwu, Henan (now Yuanyang County, Henan Province), and was divided into two branches, the southern branch rushed into Sishui, and then flowed into the Huaihe River through Huaiyin and into the sea. In the Ming Dynasty, the Yellow River flowed into the Huai River in its entirety, and the water volume increased greatly. In the twelfth year of Yongle (1414 AD), the Gaojia Weir was overhauled under the auspices of Chen Yu, the Bo of Pingjiang, along the old sites of the Huai Weir and Tang Weir, forming the prototype of today's Gaojia Weir. In the late Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, the Yellow River flowed into Sishui from Kaifeng and Xuzhou, and met the Huaihe River at Qingkou, resulting in an increase in sediment and a gradual increase in siltation. The natural waters in the shallow and wide terrain on both sides of the Huaihe River above Qingkou gradually expanded, and the Gaojia Weir earth embankment became a flood control barrier in Shanyang and Gaobao. In the seventh year of Hongzhi in the Ming Dynasty (1194 AD), Liu Daxia built the Taihang Dike to block the northern branch of the Yellow River, and later successively built other side streams to fix the Si River into the Huai River. The large amount of silt brought by the Yellow River caused the bottom of the Yellow River above and below Qingkou to silt up, and the Huai River lost its drainage route, and Hongze Lake expanded accordingly. In February of the sixth year of Wanli (1578 AD), Pan Jixun was appointed as the Prime Minister of Hecao and the Admiral of Military Affairs. He went to Haikou to observe in person and conducted investigations along the Yellow River, Huai River and Yun Line. He believed that Gaojiayan was the key to the two rivers, and proposed the idea of "building embankments to block the river, restraining water and attacking sand, building weirs to block the Huai River, forcing the Huai River to flow into the Yellow River, using clear water to wash away turbidity, and letting sand go with the water". He regarded the construction of Gaojiayan as the primary task of governing the Yellow River and Huai River, and built a long weir with a total length of about 34.80 kilometers from Wujiadun in the north to Yuecheng in the south, cutting off the branch of the Huai River, raising the water level, and forcing the Huai River to flow out of Qingkou exclusively, with sand passing through the gate. From then on, the Huai River used Gaojiayan as a barrier to fight the Yellow River with all its strength and flow out of Qingkou into the sea. With the construction of Gaojiayan, Hongze Lake also became a super-large reservoir in the lower reaches of the Yellow River and Huai River, providing convenience for irrigation and reclamation in the surrounding areas. In the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, the masonry of Gaojiayan had been in disrepair for a long time. In addition, the lake expanded and the waves increased, and the masonry was in constant danger and was seriously damaged. In March of the 16th year of Emperor Kangxi's reign (1677 AD), Jin Fu was appointed as the governor of the river. After taking office, he immediately repaired the broken embankment of Gaojiayan, blocked 34 breaches in masonry and board work, and built a secondary dam to block the flow of water. From the 7th to the 9th year of Emperor Yongzheng's reign (1729 AD to 1731 AD), the court believed that Gaojiayan was of great importance, and allocated huge sums of money year after year to build masonry walls and build full-body masonry. In the 16th year of Emperor Qianlong's reign (1751 AD), the south of Zhouqiao, the north and south of Gunshiba and the north of Jiangba were all built with stone foundation brick walls. During the Tongzhi period, a sub-dam was built on the embankment, and the dam top elevation was 19 meters. In the 5th year of Emperor Xianfeng's reign (1855 AD), the Yellow River moved north, and the embankment stopped being raised. In the following 200 years, the Hongze Lake embankment did not suffer major damage. The construction of Gaojiayan is the result of the struggle between the ancient working people and nature in my country, the crystallization of the wisdom of the working people, and an extremely precious cultural heritage left by our ancestors. The construction of Gaojiayan is closely related to the changes of the Yellow River, Huai River, and Yun River, the formation of Hongze Lake, and the social, economic, and cultural development of the middle and lower reaches of the Huaihe River and even the whole country. In the process of the struggle between the working people and nature, many folk legends related to it have been spawned, which are widely circulated in the Huaiyin area where Gaojiayan is located. Main content Among the many legends about Gaojiayan, the following legends are widely circulated: First: "Legend of Hou Ermen" Between the Tenth Fort and the Eleventh Fort on the Gaojiayan Long Dike, there is a "Hou Ermen" known to all women and children. In the past, there were frequent breaches here, and the government also regarded it as a place of "caution" and took strict precautions. In the Ming Dynasty, in order to further strengthen prevention, the government designated a section of the dike for the local people to guard, and this dangerous area was assigned to Hou Er and his wife nearby. After the division of labor, Hou Er and his wife felt that their responsibility was heavy and took turns guarding day and night. During the autumn flood season of that year, dangerous situations occurred frequently. On this day, Hou Er's wife brought food to Hou Er. When Hou Er was eating on the shore, he suddenly found a place in the water that was bubbling and swirling. He knew that there must be a gap in the dam under the whirlpool. Hou Er quickly put down his bowl of rice and asked his wife to ring the gong to alert the police. He jumped into the water to dig mud for the gap. While ringing the gong to alert the police, Hou Er's wife dug mud cakes and handed them to Hou Er. Although they tried their best, the mud cakes they dug were still not enough to block the gap. Seeing that the gap was getting bigger and bigger, Hou Er immediately blocked the gap with his body in a hurry, but one person's body could not stop the fierce flood. Hou Er was very anxious and shouted "Call someone quickly", and was swept into the rolling flood. Hou Er's wife Lin saw it and jumped into the gap without hesitation. When officials and the surrounding people heard the news and rushed over, Hou Er and his wife had been swept away by the flood. People were grateful for the great sacrifice of Hou Er and his wife, and they were sad and shouted "Hou Er, come back" while rushing to block the gap. The shout shook the heaven and earth, and reverberated in the rolling waves of the Huai River. The second: "The Legend of Nine Cows, Two Tigers and One Chicken" It is said that there are nine cows, two tigers and one chicken around the Hongze Lake embankment. Before the Hongze Lake embankment was built, floods occurred every year, bringing great disasters to the people downstream. In order to eliminate floods and benefit the people, Liu Ji, the founding military strategist of the Ming Dynasty, built a 40-li long Hongze Lake embankment on the east bank of Hongze Lake. The north end of the embankment is at the stonework head of the wharf town of Huaiyin District, Huai'an City. The south end of the embankment is at Jiangba Town, Hongze County, Huai'an City, called Laoduitou, also known as Crab Dam. The Hongze Lake embankment project is very large, all built with stone strips, the embankment is more than two feet high, the bottom width is more than 40 feet wide, and the top width is ten feet wide. The inside of the embankment is all rammed with three-in-one soil (a mixture of lime, glutinous rice juice and clay). After the levee was built, the people in the five nearby counties lived a stable life and were no longer harmed by floods. The nine cows, two tigers and one chicken were placed after the Hongze Lake levee was built. It is located in the dangerous construction area around Hongze Lake. The first cow was placed near the big mouth east of Huai'an City, and some people still call it the Iron Water Buffalo; the second cow was placed at the street corner of Wharf Town; the third cow was placed on the levee of Zhaoji Town, Huaiyin District; the fourth and fifth cows were placed next to the Gaoliangjian Ship Lock in Hongze County; the sixth cow was placed at Zhouqiao in the south of Hongze County; the seventh cow was placed five miles away from Jiangba Town, Hongze County, called Wulibei; the eighth and ninth cows were near Sanhe Town, Hongze County. The two tigers were placed in the west of Huai'an City, in the direction of Wharf Town, where there is a place called Nainai Temple. Once you enter the temple gate, there are two pavilions in the north and south, and the two tigers are placed in the pavilions respectively. The tiger's head faces west, its tail is upturned, and a stone tablet more than one meter high is pressed on its back. According to legend, in the Qing Dynasty, this stele was conferred by Emperor Qianlong. A chicken was placed near the Laoyang Bridge in the east of Huai'an City. There is a place called Shanxi Guild Hall. The chicken was placed on the roof of the Shanxi Guild Hall. These nine cows, two tigers and a chicken were all cast in pig iron. It is said that they have a heart of gold and a courage of silver. Among them, the iron buffalo is the best made. Each weighs more than 4,000 kilograms. It lies on the iron plate with its head held high and knees bent. There are words cast on its shoulder: "Wei Jinkemu Jiaolongzang, Wei Tuzhishuiguishejiang, Zhuoxizu ... These cows, tigers and chickens all have hearts of gold, bodies of silver and iron, and they are lifelike, as if they were alive. It is said that in late spring one year, when the wheat was just heading, a large area of wheat in the old pile of Gaoyan Liubao was eaten by livestock. Upon inspection, there were cow hoof prints everywhere. Whose cows destroyed it? Everyone asked me, and I asked you, but no one knew. There was a farmer named Chen San in the local area. Seeing that the wheat in his field was eaten by cows the most, he was anxious. That night he took an iron fork and hid by the wheat field to catch the cows. In the middle of the night, a cow ran down from the old pile, panting and running to the wheat field, and began to eat the wheat in big mouthfuls. Chen San immediately jumped out and chased after it. When he was about to get close to the cow, the cow also discovered him and hurriedly ran towards the old pile. Chen San chased after it and caught up to the iron water cow. The cow eating wheat suddenly disappeared. Chen San felt very strange: there were no trees around, and no tall crops, where could it hide? Did it see a ghost? He quickly lit a fire and saw that there was still half a piece of wheat sticking out of the mouth of the iron buffalo, and the hooves were covered with fresh soil. Chen San understood at once that it was the iron buffalo who did the good thing. The emperor expected you to control the water and protect the pile, but now you not only can't protect the pile well, but also ruin the people's crops. I'll dig out your golden heart and silver gall, and see if you are still a god. So Chen San went home and got a sledgehammer and a steel drill, chiseled a hole in the back of the iron buffalo, took out the iron buffalo's golden heart and silver gall, and broke its two horns. From then on, the iron buffalo never ate crops again. To this day, there is still a four-inch square hole on the back of the iron buffalo on the Liubao pile of Gaojiayan. Fourth: The Legend of the Stoneworker's Stele and Inscriptions It is said that in the autumn of the eighth year of Emperor Xianfeng's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1858 AD), Wu Tang, the magistrate of Qinghe County, wanted to build Huaiyin City. However, there were no mountains in Huaiyin, and there were few stones and bricks, so it was difficult to build the city wall. Someone suggested that there were plenty of bricks and stones on the nearby Gaojiayan, so why not just demolish it to build the city. When Magistrate Wu heard this, he was overjoyed and sent tens of thousands of people to the levee to dismantle and transport bricks and stones. As the saying goes: it is easy to dismantle, but difficult to build. Seeing that the stoneworker was about to be dismantled, it caused panic among the local people: because the levee was built to prevent floods, and the stoneworker's place was the turning point leading to Gaojiayan, the terrain was dangerous, and Liu Ji once wrote the words "be careful" here and ordered people to hang it as a warning. If the levee here was destroyed, the lake water might overflow from the gap to the five counties under the levee, and the people of the five counties under the levee would suffer. At that time, there was a saying: "If Gaojiayan is torn down, Qinghe and Shanyang will not meet again." The bricks and stones of Gaojiayan could not be demolished, but demolishing the embankment was the order of the county magistrate, so who dared to disobey? The common people secretly cursed Wu Tang as a corrupt official who did not care about the lives of the people. Just when the people were panicking, a white-haired centenarian came. He had a silver beard hanging down to his chest, a ruddy face, a purple vine cane in his hand, a blue flower quilt on his shoulders, and a white rooster in his arms. He saw that the local people were all worried and distressed, so he asked, "What made you so worried?" A migrant worker told the whole story. After hearing this, the old man sighed and said, "The embankment is a embankment to protect the people. Can it be demolished? Don't worry, I have my own way to protect the embankment." As he said, he leaned close to the migrant worker's ear and whispered a few words and left. The migrant worker followed the old man's words, secretly chiseled a stone tablet, and buried it in the embankment of the stonemason that night. The next day, the workers who were dismantling the dike dug up a stone tablet with the words "Liu Ji built it, Wu Tang dismantled it, and it cannot be dismantled here", and immediately reported it to the county magistrate Wu Tang. Wu Tang was panicked when he saw the stone tablet, thinking that it was God's will and could not be disobeyed, so he immediately issued an order to stop dismantling the dike. The dike from the stonemason to Gaojiayan was completely preserved. Later, according to the worker who engraved the tablet, the old man in the quilt and holding the chicken was Liu Ji, who came to enlighten the people to protect the dike because he sympathized with the people. In addition, there are many legends related to Gaojiayan with complete plots, such as "The Legend of the Fish King Hitting the Basket" and "The Legend of the Old Turtle Giving Black Beans", and there are many related legends that need to be excavated and sorted out. (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)