A Hidden Gem in Yuhuatai: The Wooded Path

Yuhuatai is a truly underrated scenic spot. I always thought it was just the Martyrs' Cemetery, but I never expected it to also have the thousand-year-old Gaozuo Temple and the spirit way of Li Jie's tomb! Within Nanjing's Yuhuatai Scenic Area lies the Ming Dynasty tomb of Li Jie. The spirit way stele and stone carvings are still present. Compared to Xu Da, Li Wenzhong, and Liu Ji, Li Jie is not only far less known among the founding fathers of the early Ming Dynasty, but he also died early in the Northern Expedition alongside Xu Da. His final official position was only the fourth-grade Commander Tongzhi. Li Jie (1331–1369), a native of Shouzhou, Huoqiu (present-day Huoqiu County, Lu'an City, Anhui Province), was a founding noble of the Ming Dynasty and the father of Consort Li Shu. After Empress Ma passed away, Consort Li Shu was ordered to manage the affairs of the six palaces, effectively acting as the empress. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, Li Jie pledged allegiance to Zhu Yuanzhang and successively served as the Commander of Guangwu Guard. In the second year of the Hongwu reign (1369), he participated in the Northern Expedition and died on the battlefield at the age of 38. He was posthumously awarded the title of Grand General of the Pacification of the State and Commander-in-Chief. The tomb was originally located in Yanghuicun Village, Yuhuatai, outside Zhonghua Gate in Nanjing. The spirit way stone carvings have been relocated three times to their current location. The existing spirit way stele is 2.9m high, and the tortoise base is 2.5m long. There are also stone sheep, stone tigers, stone horses, as well as two grooms and two military figures. Not far from Li Jie's tomb's cultural preservation stele is the Erzhong Shrine, originally named Baozhong Shrine, built to commemorate the Southern Song Dynasty anti-Jin hero Yang Bangyi. Wen Tianxiang, an anti-Yuan hero, and Yang Bangyi were both from Jishui, Jiangxi. After Wen Tianxiang's martyrdom, people also enshrined him in the Baozhong Shrine, and it was renamed "Erzhong Shrine" (Shrine of Two Loyalties). On the screen wall inside the shrine is Wen Tianxiang's *Song of Righteousness*, inscribed by the famous calligrapher Wu Zhongqi. In the backyard, there is a well and a well parapet. On the wall next to a spring is a stone plaque that reads: "Ancient name: Yiquan Spring." The exact date of the spring is unknown. Address: Yuhuatai Martyrs' Cemetery, 215 Yuhuatai West Road, Yuhuatai