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Zhao Liewen’s Gardening Practices and Activities in His Diary Li & Yin

Zhao Liewen (1832‒1894), style name Huipu had been working for Zeng Guofan and his
and pseudonym Nengjingjushi, was from salary was paid by Zeng Guofan. In the
Yanghu, Jiangsu Province, China. The summer of the 4th reign year (1865) of
Chronicle of Mr. Zhao Huipu (Liewen) of Emperor Tongzhi, Zhao Liewen set out from
[1]
Yanghu compiled by Mr. Chen Naiqian Changzhou and went alone to various places
offers a glimpse into his life. His first dairy, in Jiangnan to select a site for building his
titled The Diary of Falling Flowers and house and garden. The Fuyuan Garden
Spring Rain Nest (Luohua Chunyu Chao Rìjì), Palace Treasure Book (Fuyuanpu
now stored in the Nanjing Library, documents Gongbaoshu) documents that he travelled
his life between the 2nd year (1852) and the east for site selection: “Since July, I have
[2]
6th year (1856) of the Xianfeng period . traveled east and reached my hometown first,
There were many wonders and anecdotes in but the town environment was damaged and
his life, but they were easy to come and easy not good enough for accommodation. So, I
to go. Two years after he wrote his first diary, decided to head for the foot of the Yu
Zhao Liewen picked up his pen again and Mountain for site selection and chose a
wrote his second diary, titled The Diary of remote area. At the end of August, I found one”
Tranquil Living (Nengjingju Riji) [3] , [3] .
spanning 32 years, demonstrating very real Zhao Liewen went south by boat along
emotions and events, especially the spatial the water trail to places such as Yangzhou,
information of the house and garden of the Wuxi, Mudu, Changshu, and so on. Together
Tranquil Garden growing out of nothing. with his friends from various places, they
Through surveys, Mr. Chen Congzhou had an examined over a dozen of sites inside and
overall understanding of the remaining outside Xiyanju of Yangzhou, Suzhou, and
landscape architecture in Changshu in the Changshu. Most of the sites were given up
1950s, arguing that the Zhao Garden has a due to dissatisfaction, unwillingness to rent,
vast area of water, with round hills and the Yu or the high price [Table 1]. After
Mountain behind looking like a screen, so the comprehensive considerations of price,
scenery is borrowed very appropriately [4] . location, fengshui, vista, and other factors,
After renovation and maintenance, the Yan Zhao Liewen pondered between the empty lot
Garden, the Zeng Garden and the Zhao of the West Village outside Changshu city,
Garden were added on the list of Changshu and the former site of Wu Garden in
City Cultural Heritage Protection Units. The Jiuwanwei south of the city. The West Village
“Tranquil Garden” (Jing Pu) planned by Zhao was recommended by his friends Feng Shizhi
Liewen, now known as “Zhao Garden,” and and Xue Anlin, which was located outside
the Zeng Garden of Fuzzy Boundary (Xukuo Changshu, with “a view of the mountain from
yuan 虚廓园) are collectively referred to as near and afar” [3] . And the Wu Garden’s
“Zeng-Zhao Garden.” The diary written by former site was in Jiuwanwei west of
Zhao Liewen might truthfully reconstruct the Changshu city. “It is near water and the West
process of site selection, house purchase, and Mountain looks like a bird stretching its
garden construction, thus offering a detailed wings. There was no such beautiful scenery in
understanding of the elegant gatherings of the whole city. A vast parcel of wilderness has
literati that took place in the garden in the late been found, with a big pond located in the
Qing dynasty (1644‒1911). south. An old man worked there. I tentatively
asked him what the family name of the owner
1. SITE SELECTION was. He said it was the former Wu Family’s
[3]
1.1 Choosing a site in the west of Plant/Herb (or Medicinal) Garden.” . Wu
Changshu city Baoshu, the owner of the private garden,
The process of site selection requires wanted to put it on sale because his family
consideration of many factors. It is both was on the decline. What made Zhao Liewen
complicated and coincident. Zhao Liewen to finally decide to select the former site of

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