In the classic novel Journey to the West (《西游记》), written in the 16th century, the Jade Emperor hosts a peach-eating party in heaven every March. After the harvest, visitors enjoy the fruits of their labor with a glass of mulberry wine under the ancient branches.Īs a native fruit of China, peaches grow mainly along the Yellow River, and even in the orchard of gods, according to legend. Each May, the city hosts a mulberry festival, with locals and tourists gathering to use long poles to shake the fruits from the trees so they fall into a large sheet beneath. It is considered the hometown of the mulberry in China. The city of Xiajin, on the banks of the Yellow River in Shandong province, is home to many mulberry trees over 500 years old. On spring days, young men and women would go to pick fresh mulberries while singing to catch the attention of their crushes, flirt, and perhaps find love. According to Book of Han (《汉书》) compiled in the second century, mulberry groves next to streams were popular spots for lovers’ rendezvous. Mulberries are so delicious and mouthwatering that a line in Classic of Poetry warns against getting too greedy: “As turtledoves should not crave mulberries, girls should not indulge in love.”Īmusingly, “among mulberries (桑间)” is an idiom for a secret dating spot. When April and May come, it is the time to pick juicy mulberries and let them dye one’s tongue purple. The leaves of mulberry trees are the main food source for silkworms. There is evidence that people in China grew mulberry trees as far back as 7,000 years ago, and the character 桑 (sāng) is found on oracle bone inscriptions from the Shang dynasty (1600 – 1046 BCE). Our guide introduces the best fruits for each season, and tells the stories of the cultural significance that make each juicy morsel taste all the richer.Ī Chinese chengyu goes, “The sea turns into mulberry fields (沧海桑田 cānghǎi sāngtián).” While this idiom is used to describe how time brings great changes, it also hints at the long history of mulberry cultivation in China. But knowing when and where to find the best fruits requires some specialist knowledge. Today, when a man falls for a woman, he is said to have “fallen under her pomegranate-red skirt (拜倒在石榴裙下 bàidǎo zài shíliúqún xià).”Ĭhina’s vast territory provides the climate for all kinds of fruits, including rare and exotic species, and the cultural significance behind them is just as broad. The vibrant shade apparently represented their freedom and bravery during a time where they had relatively broad scope to engage in activities like archery and horse riding. Likewise, during the Tang dynasty (618 – 907), women were said to have adored pomegranate so much that even their favorite skirt color was pomegranate red. In Classic of Poetry (《诗经》), China’s earliest existing collection of poetry compiled around the 1st century BCE, a love poem simply titled “Mugua (《木瓜》, Chinese quince)” says “if you throw me a mugua, I would return it with jade.” Ripped away from a long age of peace and broken by soldiers wielding scientifically advanced weaponry, the warriors of the prefectures were drafted into a distant conflict across the edge of the world.In China, fruits are not just part of a healthy diet, they have entered the language as expressions of emotion and values. Īlmost two centuries ago the lightning-powered ships of Ceramia pierced the skies of Soburin heralding an age of oppression that still marks the lands with the resources stripped from the countryside.
It describes the lands of Li Fan, including. The Ogre Gate Inn and the Strange Land of Li Fan is a sourcebook for Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate. Here, nobles may rule, but powerful Kung Fu masters truly reign supreme. In the strange borderlands of the empire you will find Li Fan, an ancient kingdom of ghosts, lost techniques, and magic.
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