To be honest, before going to Xing'an, my imagination of Lingqu was limited to the word "ancient".
A ditch that has been dug for more than two thousand years, no matter how awesome it is, how can it be done?
But I was slapped in the face. Standing on the edge of the mouth, I watched the water divide into herringbones, three parts flowing into the Li River, and seven parts flowing into the Xiang River. At that moment, I suddenly felt a little confused. The water was surprisingly quiet, so quiet that it felt as if it didn't know what it was witnessing.
Don't lock your ancestors' belongings into glass cabinets
In the past, whenever I mentioned protection, the picture that came to my mind was to surround it with a fence, pull a rope, and hang a "no touching" sign. It's like porcelain kept in a deep boudoir, untouchable at all.
But Lingqu is not porcelain.
It is a river, yes, it does have fresh vitality. Over the years, it has flowed from the Qin Dynasty to the present. In the process, it has shuttled through many dynasties, witnessed countless shipwrecks, witnessed and experienced countless love and hatred, but it contains many more things in its belly than what is recorded in our county annals. It is really much more. If you really encircle and imprison it, it will be completely dead in the true sense.
A living legacy is a legacy
One detail is particularly interesting. Xing'an is currently working on a project called "Doujun Cultural Village." The people in these so-called "Doujun Cultural Villages" are descendants of the soldiers who guarded Doumen, which is equivalent to the place known as the ancient ship lock in modern times. They are no longer engaged in lock guarding, but are competing to build farmhouses for people's leisure and entertainment.
An elder brother told me that when his grandfather's generation used this place as a boating place, his father used this place to do the work of rowing, and now he is doing cooking in this place.
You see, the water is still the same water, and the shore is still the same shore, but the way of living has changed. Isn't this ten thousand times more vivid than erecting a monument and engraving a few words on it?
The spirit of Lingqu is probably here - it allows you to live in ten thousand different postures.
Technology is a magical thing if used correctly
I went to the renovated ancient lecture hall and to be honest, I was shocked.
There is an immersive theater there. When you are in it, it feels like you are sitting on a boat. There are sounds of water and chants everywhere, and warships from the Qin Dynasty will sail right in front of your face.
There was a child there. He was playing AR. He was holding a tablet in his hand and scanning the steep gate model. Then the screen began to demonstrate how to open and close the gate and how to adjust the water level. However, his mother tried to pull him away, but she couldn't pull him away.
I just suddenly thought that if the craftsmen of two thousand years ago knew that the stones they carved could one day make a child squat there and study the principles of water conservancy for a long time, I would probably be very happy to think about it.
But don't get too excited and forget where your roots are
Technology is a good thing, but it cannot dominate.
I saw some plans on the Internet, mentioning a "Huahua Bei Canal Rafting Zone" and a "Qincheng Water Street National Recreation Area". Just hearing it makes my head hurt. But don’t turn Lingqu into another place for Internet celebrities to check in. The river is full of neon lights and there are barbecue stalls on both sides!
The real sense of luxury is when people can stand there in a daze and think about something, instead of being busy taking pictures and posting them on Moments.
Let water flow into life again
What impresses me most is not the big projects.
What he said was said by the villager named Qin Feng. The road in front of his house used to be filled with potholes and weeds growing taller than people. Nowadays, the bluestone road has been built and paved with vegetation called lawn. After dinner, you can go for a walk along the water channel.
This is the true meaning of living inheritance.
It is not about turning Ling Canal into a large-scale tourist attraction, but about making it return to the daily life of local residents, so that children can catch fish by the canal, the elderly can play chess under the trees, and young people in love can walk along the embankment.
It should be ordinary, used for breathing, with body temperature, not just a symbol that only exists in travel brochures.
I think I have an answer to that question
Before going there, I had been wondering: How to realize the modern value of Lingqu?
I figured it out on the way back.
Modern value is not forced on it, it is already there, we just need to use modern methods to bring it out.
Water is still the same water. More than two thousand years ago, it was responsible for transporting military rations, silk, and porcelain. What does it transport today? It carries the curiosity of tourists, the research carried out by scholars, the nostalgia in the hearts of tourists, and the wonder of ancient wisdom in a child.
The function has changed, but the "shipping" thing has not.
Give me some time, don't rush
Finally, I want to say, don't worry.
Whether it is applying for World Heritage status or becoming a 5A scenic spot, they are all just means and not an end. Lingqu has been waiting for us for more than two thousand years, and it has no shortage of just a few years.
Do it slowly, treat it as an elder, listen to what it wants to express, and don't always have the idea of letting it get money for us.
One day, people around the Lingqu canal will no longer discuss how to develop it and how to use it, but will naturally live around it like an old tree in front of their home - that is its best modern value.
At that time, this thousand-year-old canal will truly come back to life.
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