Study On The Construction Of Jing Garden Of Zhao Liewen In Changshu In The Late Qing Dynasty

As one of the representative literati in the late Qing Dynasty,Zhao Liewen was a powerful aide of Zeng Guofan.Zhao Liewen moved from Changzhou to Changshu after Taiping Heavenly Kingdom War with his family.During the 4th year of the reign of Emperor Tongzhi(1856),Zhao Liewen finally purchased the site of Jiuwanwei in the southwest of Changshu City.After obtaining the housing deed,Zhao Liewen began to build his home "Jing Garden",and completed the final pattern after more than 20 years.The Diary of Nengjing Dwelling not only provides a detailed basis for studying the political pattern of the late Qing Dynasty and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement,but also it has a quantitative record of the entire garden construction process of Jing Garden.And the descriptions in the diary provide important information for the restoration study of the Zhao’s garden.This paper takes the social background from the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China as an entry point to analyze the socio-economic background,humanistic background and natural environment background of garden construction in Changshu.The gardens with related records but can not be found,as well as the existing records and the sites existed would be sorted out.By combing out the list of traditional gardens and the basic profiles of every garden in Changshu,the development of Changshu’s traditional gardens is clarified.This paper will focus on the complete construction process,and the application of different plants and the influence of Fengshui of the garden,to clarify the specific changes in the Jiangnan Literati Garden from the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China.Firstly,through Zhao Liewen’s The Diary of Nengjing Dwelling and related literature such as county records,local philosophies and literati notes since the Ming and Qing Dynasties,the construction process of Jing Garden would be divided into four stages.On the basis,the author would analyze and prove the details of Jing Garden in each period,and draw a schematic diagram of the restoration plane.The first stage was from the 4th(1865)year to the 13th(1874)of the reign of Emperor Tongzhi Qing Dynasty,and the basic pattern of the residential area was confirmed.Tianfang Storied Building was the main building to lead the whole house.The second stage was from the 1st(1875)year to the 4th(1878)of the reign of Emperor Guangxu Qing Dynasty,and in the residential area,the Daiyu Building and Yan Terrace was built while the base of the garden area “One continent and two islands” was laid,and the building group “Yuanxin Hall,Jianwei House and Snow Pavilion” was also planned.The third stage was from the 4th(1878)year to the 6th(1880)of the reign of Emperor Guangxu Qing Dynasty,and the North Storied Building in the residential area was built,while the the two islands was decorated with trees,stones,etc.The forth stage was from the 6th(1880)year to the 15th(1889)of the reign of Emperor Guangxu Qing Dynasty,and the orientations of the five storied building and the four pavilions are determined,and the final pattern of Jing Garden is completed(few changes were occurred between the the 12th(1886)year to the 15th(1889)of the reign of Emperor Guangxu Qing Dynasty).Secondly,by analyzing Zhao’s diary,and other historical materials,the paper is aimed at obtaining some historical understandings about the plants in Jiangnan scholar garden in the late Qing Dynasty: the plants mainly come from purchase in Suzhou flower market,presents from friends and directly transactions with planters;the plants in the garden are distinguished by ground planting and potted landscape,but the species selection has no significant difference from the varieties given by Gao Lian,Wen Zhenheng and Li Yu’s books,on the basis of regular maintenance,it is necessary to ensure that flowers in garden can be admired at each of four seasons,among which peach blossom,lotus,chrysanthemum,plum are the most cherished beauties,and the practical functions of plants has been continued.Finally,in the construction of Jing Garden,there are the following facts:(1)Zhao Liewen is a strong believer in Fengshui and is familiar with the traditional theory of Fengshui.He has the ability to identify fake Fengshui books and can perform Fengshui practices such as divination,fortune-telling and Xiangzhai.(2)Zhao Liewen not only strictly follows the instructions of Fengshui(good or ill luck)in each of the directions for the construction of the Jing Garden,but also invites Fengshui masters to assist in exploring Fengshui in the Garden.Zhao Liewen’s "Life Trigram" is“Dui Gong”,and Jing Garden’s "House Trigram" is “Gen Zhai”.The two element is the basis to judge good or ill luck in Jing Garden.(4)Zhao Liewen’s "Life Trigram" and Jing Garden’s "House Trigram" determine the orientation and size of each structure in the garden,and even the specific time of demolition and construction.