Cheju Village, situated 17 kilometers southeast of Yuyao’s urban area and at the southern end of Hemudu Town, boasts a rich cultural heritage. As documented in Baoxing’s ‘Siming Annals’, prior to the Song Dynasty, Cheju was recognized as one of the six major water-side markets in the old Cixi County, alongside Wenxi, Yuxi, Dayin, Huangmu, and Lanxi. On the first and sixth days of the lunar month, it would come alive with people from the surrounding four townships who would gather for the market. Cheju was also a significant location for parking and stabling horses.
The village’s name is intertwined with the history of Goujian, the King of Yue during the Spring and Autumn Period. It is believed to be the place where the king honed his weapons and endured hardships. Adjacent to Cheju is Cheju’ao, which can be accessed by passing through the highway bridge. Traveling south and then turning west at Shijia leads one to Xitian Peak, where the renowned tomb of Shi Songzhi, a prime minister of the Southern Song Dynasty, is located. The tomb faces east, with its passageway nestled against the mountain to the south and a stream to the north, extending to Paimentou.
In front of the tomb, there once stood a stone tablet inscribed with ‘Xitian Paradise’ by Emperor Lizong of the Song Dynasty. The surviving tablet is now preserved at the ruins of Kaisou Temple. Shijia itself is a village that originated from the descendants of the Shi family, who were tasked with guarding the tomb, and it has a history spanning over seven hundred years.
Furthermore, the interior of Cheju and the surrounding ten-mile stretch of Hanxi are characterized by their lush greenery, earning them the nickname of the “small Amazon of eastern Zhejiang.”It is said that the ‘Chanyue Temple’, which was built in the Five Dynasties, is located at the foot of this mountain. There seems to be not only a primeval forest here. There is a poem that goes: ‘A guest comes from the mountain. In this season, there are staggered layers of forests. A single stone stands alone on Song’ao Mountain. Leisurely entering Chanyue. In the state of Wu during the Three Kingdoms, Empress Dowager Wu was prosperous. In the Five Dynasties, incense was even more prosperous. Drinking from Longquan at the water pond. There is an old man in the side room. It’s not that peach blossoms are blooming like Tao Yuanming. Abundant bamboos and camphor fragrance. Beautiful only in its tranquility. Leaving far away, the mountains are intertwined. The temple is faintly visible. Where is the way back for the heart?’.
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