Zhang Zhaohong: The mystery of the tombstones in the "Alberta Chinese History and Culture Grand View Garden" (4)

Zhang Zhaohong: The tombstone mystery in the "Alberta Chinese History and Culture Grand View Garden" (4) Phoenix City Zhang Zhaohong In the process of looking for "big building villages", I saw a lot of the past...

Phoenix City Zhang Zhaohong

In the process of looking for "big building villages", I saw that many of the formerly prosperous hometowns of overseas Chinese have turned into "uninhabited villages." Fortunately, the genealogy of Deng Xiangyuan’s ancestors was finally found!

Deng Xiangyuan is a "people from Kaiping Tower Village". I thought that "Kaiping Dadu Village" was a good clue. I could at least find some relevant geographical information on the Internet, but I was disappointed. No information about "Kaiping Dadu Village" could be found on Google, Wiki and other websites. I could only find the postal code of Kaiping Dadu Village on "Baidu": 529367. Is this high-rise village in decline? This inference is not impossible. Later, I found a piece of information that confirmed that many overseas Chinese villages in mainland China have now become "uninhabited villages." The situation is shocking.

The information found comes from "Southern Metropolis Daily". The report is about Dengbian Village, a declining hometown of overseas Chinese in Kaiping.

Dengbian Village is located in the jurisdiction of Jichong Village, Sanbu, Kaiping. At that time, there was a gold rush abroad in Kaiping, and Dengbian Village had the largest number of people. However, in the following nearly a hundred years of immigration and urbanization, Dengbian Village in Kaiping has gradually become deserted, with only a few old buildings remaining in place, recording those abandoned times. More than ten years ago, Dengbian Village was abandoned as the last two households of villagers moved away. Tall trees and dense vines have covered the entire village, but from the blue brick walls and doorrails of these old Lingnan houses, we can still see the exquisiteness of the architecture and the prosperity of the overseas Chinese hometown. After the last two households of villagers moved away more than ten years ago, Dengbian Village was gradually covered by vegetation. The village is now surrounded by waterholes. In front of the first house in the village, a thick banyan tree completely occupies the entire house. The roots of the tree completely erode the roof of the entire house, forming a unique tree wall.

The banyan tree on the roof has been there for decades. The seeds were sown by birds flying over. The banyan tree began to grow randomly when no one was in the house. There is an old saying "Leave the tree alone but not the people", which refers to the banyan tree. Many of the walls inside the house are engraved with murals, as well as ghosts, gods and mythological figures. Someone dug up several jars of silver coins in a house before. Later, many people came to dig for treasures, but no one dug up anything again. However, almost the entire floor of the house was turned over, and the uninhabited village became a paradise for treasure hunters.

More than a hundred years ago, many young adults in Kaiping went to the United States and other places to work and make money. "Most of them went to the United States to build railways. At that time, they earned hard-earned money while working abroad." Young people earned money abroad and then sent it back to Dengbian Village, creating the exquisite ancestral houses that can be seen today. Stable remittance income has made this village a "paradise" for people surnamed Zhen, and also made it a "fat meat" in the eyes of bandits. Before liberation, Dengbian Village was often harassed by bandits, so the villagers raised funds to build a 7-story watchtower and formed a defense team to protect the villagers. This watchtower is still standing, and no one can move the solid iron gate. "No one can open this iron gate, and even if someone wants to steal it, they can't move it away," the villager said. The short-term peace brought by the watchtowers failed to stop the people of Dengbian Village from moving away. The huge difference between the amount of remittances and the amount of farmland cultivation has also tempted young people in Dengbian Village to leave the village from generation to generation and immigrate overseas through various channels. After the young adults who have gone abroad have established a foothold, they bring the elders and women in the village overseas. By the late 1990s, there were only two families left in the village. The two households eventually moved out.

Later I found out that there is also an "uninhabited village" in Taishan, which is adjacent to Kaiping! It is understood that among all the towns and streets in Taishan, only two have made it clear that there are no uninhabited villages in the town. According to incomplete statistics in Shuibu, Dajiang, Baisha, Chonglu and other towns, there are more than 20 "uninhabited villages" with only one, two or even one household left. In addition, there are 14 "uninhabited villages" in Shuibu Town. In recent years, a large number of "migrant workers" in rural areas have gone out to work in cities, which is also one of the reasons for the creation of uninhabited villages.

In this way, it is not surprising that no information can be found in Kaiping's "Big Building Village". Mr. Tang Xiao also mentioned that 20 years ago, in order to assist American archaeologists, he wrote to the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office in Kaiping, Guangdong, hoping that they could provide information about Deng Xiangyuan himself or his descendants. However, nothing happened. After all, it was more than a hundred years ago. Many reporters in mainland China do not know much about the history of Chinese immigrants in the United States. Just like the above-mentioned reporter from the Southern Metropolis Daily, they still said that "in the 1920s, there was a gold rush abroad in Kaiping." In fact, Chinese people at that time had already been restricted from entering the United States by anti-China laws for 30 years. How many immigrants could go and dig out gold!

> The thick banyan tree completely occupied the entire house. I once asked for information from fellow Kaiping residents in Phoenix City. Many local Kaiping people only said that they had heard of the place name "Daodao Village". Deng Ruyang, the vice president of the Kaiping Association, told me that the former Daodao Village was the collective name of several villages, but there was no more specific contact information. I have checked the information and found that Phoenix City can identify seniors such as Justice Deng Xinping and founder of the Chinese Senior Citizens Association Deng Changlong as being from Da Daode Village. However, they have also passed away many years ago.

However, the emperor paid off. Later, I found the 92-year-old senior Deng Yuedian and informed him of the situation of Deng Xiangyuan's tombstone. He said that his hometown Yong'anli and Daduou Village both belong to the Chikan Hulong District in Kaiping. He has a map that allows me to see the specific geographical location of Daduou Village. This is simply great! I couldn't wait to make an appointment to visit this World War II U.S. Air Force combat hero. I read about him when I was writing my book "Pearl of the Desert."

arrived at his home and finally saw the location of the building village on the map. Then his words made me feel so excited, like the dark clouds parting and the moon shining brightly! He said that the second bedroom of the Deng family in Yong'anli and the third bedroom of the Deng family in Da Daode Village both belong to the same ancestor! Then, senior Deng Yuedian took out a genealogy with a red cover, which clearly read: Deng family tree from 1200 to the present, editor: Deng Yuedian, all rights reserved. (To be continued, the article is serialized in "Phoenix Art and Literature Network" http://www.paaca.us)

Map of the Dragon Guard in Chikan, Kaiping: The second room of the Deng family in Yonganli and the third room of the Deng family in Daduou Village are not far apart.