Everyone knows that the thatched cottage must be clocked in. Who knows that the thatched cottage builder has been passed down for three generations?
"Autumn in autumn, the wind screams high and winds up the triple thatched cottage on my house." Thousands of years ago, Du Fu's "The Thatched Cottage was Broken by the Autumn Wind", let the thatched cottage and this poem be passed down through the ages.
Feng Zhi, the author of "Biography of Du Fu", wrote in his book, "When people mention Du Fu, they can ignore Du Fu's birthplace and death place, but they can't forget the thatched cottage in Chengdu." Feng Zhi is probably because of this. The high recognition of the value of poetry and literature has made this kind of emotion and evaluation.
Du Fu’s former residence of thatched cottage in Chengdu (now in Chengdu Du Fu Thatched Cottage Museum) has always been a "sacred place" for tourists at home and abroad to admire Du Fu and worship the poet poet. Where to check in.
Since its reconstruction in 1997, every move of the thatched cottage has mobilized everyone's heart. Even the renewing of the thatched cottage every two or three years will attract major media to report and a huge number of tourists to visit.
Unlike ordinary tourists, every time Zhang Ji comes to the hut, his heart is not only the respect for Du Fu, but also a sense of pride. This is because Zhang Ji’s family is the "builder" who built the hut. ——Grandpa Zhou Chuanqing once participated in the reconstruction of thatched cottages. Zhou Lichun's son Zhou Lichun inherited his father's business and became the second generation leader of thatched cottage maintenance.
Zhang Ji, born in the 90s, is the third-generation heir of the "builder" of thatched cottages.
In fact, earlier, Zhang Ji had no interest in repairing huts, thinking that it was a dirty and tiring job that was not profitable, had no future, and was tiring.
As he grew older, he slowly understood the importance of inheriting traditional craftsmanship and his family's deep affection for Du Fu and thatched cottage.
Whether to repair the thatched cottage and where to repair it
It's all the masters who have the final say
Every April, the flowers in Chengdu Du Fu Thatched Cottage Museum (hereinafter referred to as "Du Fu Thatched Cottage") scramble to open first, attracting visitors.
Sitting on the stone bench on the right side of the hut, Zhang Ji said that his first visit here was when the thatched hut was rebuilt in 1997. At that time, his grandfather Zhou Chuanqing, as the main person in charge of the construction team, took his father, uncle, etc. People work here.
Because he was still young and didn't know anything, Zhang Ji just played in this yard for a few days.
After growing up, Zhang Ji worked outside all year round and rarely returned to Sichuan. It was not until early 2020 that he had to return home because of the epidemic. "Maybe my uncle saw that I stayed at home for a long time, and he was bored. It just happened to be a thatched cottage. It’s about to be renovated again, and I’m more interested in ancient buildings, so let me take a look."
In January this year, Zhang Ji accompanied his uncle Zhou Lichun and more than a dozen old craftsmen from the ancient towns of Pidu District and Tangyuan Township to come to the thatched cottage again.
Among the veteran craftsmen are Liu Ruiyin, 72, and Liu Mingfu, 77, who are “net celebrity” craftsmen who have been on the news many times.
The thatched cottages have to be replaced on a large scale every ten years, and partly renovated and maintained every two years. Almost all of them have participated.
And every partial renovation and maintenance must be determined based on the amount of rain that year and the degree of damage observed by the masters on the spot.
It's up to them whether to fix it or not, and where to fix it.
Zhang Ji pointed to the thatch above his head and said that the thatch here is generally damaged the most because there is a tall tree next to it to block the sun. The roof will not dry after the rain and the thatch is more likely to damp and rot.
Heavenly starvation craftsman's craft originated from the ancestor "Zhou Gaijian"
To repair the hut, the first step is to replace the strips, and Zhou Lichun is mainly responsible for splitting the strips.
Every day, he would chop 2-3 bamboos from the hut, then cut the bamboos into several sections into buckets, and then cut the bamboo sections into two and two into four...until they were cut into uniform thickness and clear blue and white. Stick film.
"The sticks used in thatched huts pay attention to'one green and three yellows'. One blue stick is matched with three yellow sticks. This will be tough enough. The remaining sticks are called'deaths' and cannot be used." Every week Lichun sat in the thatched cottage. Visitors will always be photographed and onlookers during the slashing.
Zhou Lichun was able to have such a skillful technique thanks to the teaching of his grandfather and father.
It is understood that Zhou Lichun's grandfather has been learning this craft since he was 12 years old. He was once a famous master in the town. Everyone called him "Zhou Gaijiang".
After Zhou Chuanqing inherited this craft from his father "Zhou Gaijiang", he passed it on to his son Zhou Lichun.
"Heaven's starving craftsman." Before graduating from elementary school, Zhou Lichun began to learn to do some stick work.
In order to lay a solid foundation and exercise his skills, he spent a lot of time learning to cut the strips.
The work of sticking sticks all depends on hand work, and his fingers are cut by bamboo and it has become a commonplace for him.
In order to pass on the skills of his ancestors, Zhou Lichun was obsessed with the diligence of the bamboo work, and finally came to his generation and became the "agent" for the maintenance of the hut masters.
Because he loves to study ancient architecture, Zhang Ji often chats with Zhou Lichun. He heard his uncle tell the story of almost giving up this craft inheritance.
Zhou Chuanqing is a traditional craftsman. He pursues the ultimate perfection in everything he does. Whenever he finds that the seniors are not doing well enough, he will point out bluntly.
It was also because Zhou Chuanqing used the most extreme standards to demand himself and the people around him, resulting in his only son Zhou Lichun as an apprentice.
Once, Zhou Lichun didn't do a good job in some areas during his work. Zhou Chuanqing immediately picked up the bamboo pole to beat him when he saw it. "Uncle said, fortunately, he didn't fight at that time, otherwise he would give up this craft." Zhang Ji said that his uncle was different from his grandfather. Although he pursued perfection, he would use another master to remedy the situation.
Changing the thatch is the most difficult. It looks simple, but it’s actually very technical.
After the strips are split, cross the thick strips and wrap them on the top of the thatch frame, and then use fine strips to tightly tie the thatch to the bamboo pole frame to make the thatched roof stronger.
The last step is to change the thatch.
"It's the most difficult thing to change thatch." Zhang Ji said, every time he watched the teacher fly over the wall, he used a self-made pick rod to insert it diagonally into the top layer of better thatch, pick it up, and take out the lower layer of rotten thatch. , And then spread the new thatch in flat, and then use the comb board to pat down in order to make the thatch bedding even and orderly.
The master has rich experience and exquisite craftsmanship. The paved new thatch has distinct layers, smooth slopes and neat edges.
"It seems very simple, but it's actually too technical." Zhang Ji recalled the night before his first change of thatch. Uncle Zhou Lichun told the story of his family and thatched cottage, and was worried about the loss of traditional craftsmanship and no successor. "I thought about it for a long time and decided that I must learn this craft."
The next day, Zhou Lichun asked him to try in the hut.
Zhang Ji was nervous, he was afraid that he would damage the thatch by stepping on it, and he was also afraid that improper operation would damage the overall appearance.
But he changed his mind and he would never learn if he didn't do it himself.
To get on the thatched roof, you must first learn the special steps.
In order not to step on the thatch out of the pit, you need to walk slowly with your feet 90 degrees horizontally.
"Every thatch is going down vertically. When we walk on it, our feet must be horizontal to form a cross with the thatch. After the area of force is large, the thatch will not be stepped out of the pit." Zhang Ji said , The center of gravity cannot be placed on the feet completely, and more parts of the body should be in contact with the thatch to achieve a balanced force.
After learning to walk, we will change the thatch.
He followed the master step by step.
“After the new thatch is laid flat, you need to pat it in with your hands. It’s easy to watch Master Liu shoot it, so I’ll shoot it in. When I pat it, ah, those few really hurt.” Zhang Ji said. The thatched cottage uses yellow thatch, which is solid, very hard, and barbed.
The master "hands" with them all the year round. Zhang Ji described Zhou Lichun's hands as eagle claws with calluses on them, as if they were wearing armor.
Zhang Ji endured the pain until night, after taking off his clothes, he picked out the barbs one by one from his arms, legs and feet.
It is precisely because of the "power" of yellow thatch that he strengthened Zhang Ji's determination, "I admire their spirit very much. Now many masters are too old and working on the roof is very dangerous, and I don't want them to engage in this kind of work anymore. "
It’s hard to find the yellow thatch that builds thatched huts. It’s hard to find the yellow thatch that builds thatched huts.
Because Du Fu mentioned "thatch" in "The Thatch Is Broken by the Autumn Wind", the roof of the thatch must be made of thatch instead of wheatgrass. In order to restore Du Fu's living environment to the greatest extent, he chose yellow thatch.
It is hard to find the "builder" who repairs thatched huts, and the yellow thatch that builds thatched huts is also hard to find.
It is understood that wild yellow thatch grows on sunny hillsides 500-1000 meters above sea level in Sichuan, and its growth range is not large.
Du Fu's thatched cottage staff once went to Renshou, Jianyang and other places when rebuilding thatched cottages and collected them from local farmers.
Nowadays, yellow thatch is even rarer, and only Tonghe Township, Sanxing Town, Jianyang still has a larger amount of yellow thatch.
In 2015, Du Fu’s Thatched Cottage underwent a large-scale grass replacement and repair work. In order to find yellow thatch, the related personnel began preparing for thatch collection six months in advance. They went to many places and eventually raised 23,000 jin in Tonghe Township, Sanxing Town, Jianyang .
As it was 7 million catties less than expected, the replacement of grass and restoration can only meet the replacement of the main building of the former residence of the thatched cottage.
Huang Mao is hard to find, so it becomes extremely cherished.
If the yellow grass that has been removed is of good quality, it will be reused-moved to the surrounding small thatched pavilion, which contrasts with the thatched hut.
Around November each year, the yellow thatch grows to a certain length. After it is purchased by a special person, it needs to be dried thoroughly before it can be used in the hut.
Therefore, most of the time for thatched cottages to be thatched is in January of the following year.
Excluding the months of working in Du Fu's cottage, what do you do in the remaining time?
Zhang Ji thinks very clearly, “make money to support the family and learn traditional crafts.” As the third-generation heir to the maintenance of thatched huts, Zhang Ji knows that the word “inheritance” is not a verbal talk. The ability to let the masters rest assured that the maintenance of the hut will be handed over to us."
Chengdu Commercial Daily-Red Star News reporter Rao Jin, Zeng Qi, photographer Duan Xueying