林泓穎

風(fēng)簾翠幕，煙柳畫橋，微芒的細(xì)雨里白墻墨頂隱隱約約，像是宣紙上深深淺淺暈開的墨色。很難想象江浙滬交界處，在繁華綺麗的滬杭線上，還會(huì)保存著這樣一個(gè)民風(fēng)淳樸的古鎮(zhèn)，仿佛是特地為了看慣軟紅十丈的人準(zhǔn)備的。作為江南六大古鎮(zhèn)之一，西塘更是有著“夢(mèng)里西塘”的美名。因此，在看似相同的水脈樓閣背后，一定有著西塘獨(dú)一份的夢(mèng)幻與溫柔。

水是西塘之魂。在西塘古鎮(zhèn)中，有九條河道穿境而過，把全鎮(zhèn)劃分成八個(gè)地塊，故稱“九龍捧珠，八面來風(fēng)”?！熬爬餅愁^放棹行，綠柳紅杏帶啼鶯”，隨處可見的清澈，滿足了對(duì)夢(mèng)里江南水鄉(xiāng)的一切幻想。扎根于水，西塘古鎮(zhèn)發(fā)展出了獨(dú)特的自然景觀：橋多、弄多、廊棚多。

整個(gè)西塘古鎮(zhèn)有五福橋、安仁橋、安境橋、永寧橋等11座宋代的橋，還有臥龍橋、環(huán)秀橋、五富橋、送子來鳳橋等明清時(shí)期的橋。橋梁各具特色而渾然一體，使全鎮(zhèn)既有空隙又緊密相連。這其中，環(huán)秀橋不僅是鎮(zhèn)上最高的橋，還是古鎮(zhèn)最重要的紐帶，將“廊”和“弄”連接了起來。站在橋頂上，心境是豁然的開朗。遠(yuǎn)處碼頭的岸邊停著一溜古樸的船只，橋墩處柳枝搖曳，樹影婆娑。俯身是千年的河，聆聽的是千年的水聲?！敖履昴晖嗨啤?，月如此，水亦如此，叫人怎能不產(chǎn)生出世之感？下了橋，才算一次完整的“人步彩虹過”，看到的還是船枕清波眠，便有了回到人間的實(shí)感。

環(huán)秀橋南接熱鬧繁華的西街，分布著各式各樣、或長或短的弄堂，而西街的盡頭就是最有名也是最有特色的弄堂石皮弄。它由全長68米、216塊厚度僅三厘米的石板鋪就，寬僅1米，被譽(yù)為“江南第一弄”。據(jù)說下雨天弄內(nèi)不積水，是由于薄如皮的石板作為下水道的表皮，石皮弄因此得名。弄左右兩壁梯級(jí)狀山墻有6-10米高，歲月溜到這里，留下了斑駁的痕跡。回響在青石板上的足音，不知是歸人還是過客。在這悠長悠長的巷陌，又有多少人幻想著迎面會(huì)走來一個(gè)撐著油紙傘的丁香一樣的姑娘呢？

穿過西街，走過環(huán)秀橋，就到了一定要慢慢逛的煙雨長廊。放眼整個(gè)江南水鄉(xiāng)，西塘的廊棚也是獨(dú)一無二的建筑，是西塘最大的特色。所謂廊棚，其實(shí)就是帶頂?shù)慕?。西塘的街道大多有廊棚覆蓋，廊棚沿河一側(cè)有的還設(shè)有靠背長椅。擇一個(gè)雨天，端一盞清茗，坐在廊棚下憑欄遠(yuǎn)望，細(xì)數(shù)自己的心跳聲，一些很懷舊的心情便油然而生。關(guān)于廊棚的由來已無從考證，民間流傳最廣的有“為郎而蓋”和“行善而搭”兩個(gè)版本。但無論是寡婦感謝“郎”的救濟(jì)之情還是幫助小叫花子躲雨的善良之心，廊棚能建造，絕非一家一戶之功，而是每家的檐連在一起，形成了一個(gè)公共的活動(dòng)空間，使行人往來無日曬雨淋之憂。這也體現(xiàn)出古鎮(zhèn)居民樸實(shí)、與人為善的處事哲學(xué)。

雖然江南的雨如煙如霧，但難免會(huì)覺得有些涼。這時(shí)候來一碗熱氣騰騰的特色小吃便是最好?！八姆绞呈拢贿^一碗人間煙火”，在西塘，最有人間煙火氣息的當(dāng)屬陸氏餛飩。三代祖?zhèn)鞯氖炙嚕敲逼鋵?shí)的老字號(hào)。拌入雞蛋清的餛飩皮吹彈可破，和面湯一起倒入提前勾兌好的佐料，吃起來有一種特別的溫暖。西塘人還愛喝點(diǎn)小酒。在西塘歷史上有過許多大大小小的黃酒作坊，釀造方式古樸，但保留了最正宗的味道。黃酒性和、味醇，唐代詩人張光朝到此地也要感嘆“醞酒寒正熟，養(yǎng)魚長食鮮”，它是交流感情，饋贈(zèng)親友的佳品。

西塘不僅有靈秀的風(fēng)景、濃郁的人情味，還有獨(dú)特的文化底蘊(yùn)。西塘是古代吳越文化的發(fā)祥地之一，早在春秋戰(zhàn)國時(shí)期就是吳越兩國的相交之地，故有“吳根越角”和“越角人家”之稱。相傳春秋時(shí)期吳國伍子胥興水利，通鹽運(yùn)，開鑿伍子塘，引胥山（現(xiàn)嘉善縣西南12里）以北之水直抵境內(nèi)，故西塘亦稱胥塘。

伍子胥肯定不會(huì)想到，自己挖建的用于兵戈之爭的胥塘河在兩千多年后依然健在，并且發(fā)展到今天，已經(jīng)成了一筆寶貴的遺產(chǎn)。一脈相承的吳越文化，可以從吳儂軟語里窺見一二?！皡歉柙秸Z總溫柔”，西塘以田歌和越劇最為出名。田歌是中國地方寶貴的音樂文化遺產(chǎn)，旋律自由而清亮，內(nèi)容多反映民間故事、農(nóng)事活動(dòng)。由西塘田歌改編的原創(chuàng)音樂劇《五姑娘》在第七屆中國藝術(shù)節(jié)上榮獲“文華獎(jiǎng)”。越劇是中國地方戲曲藝術(shù)之一，在西塘有著眾多的興趣愛好者，他們匯聚一起成立了西塘越劇協(xié)會(huì)。每逢節(jié)日或者廟會(huì)，都會(huì)用越劇來助興。西塘人不僅表演越劇名劇，而且還創(chuàng)作出了富有時(shí)代氣息的新越劇?，F(xiàn)代著名劇作家顧錫東先生便是西塘人，他的代表作越劇《五姑娘》、《五女拜壽》《漢宮怨》《陸游與唐琬》深受人們喜愛。

西塘古鎮(zhèn)還有提倡民族氣節(jié)的傳統(tǒng)。自古道“燕趙多慷慨悲歌之士，吳越乃復(fù)仇雪恨之鄉(xiāng)”，以推翻清朝、建立民主共和政體為志的南社于1909年11月在蘇州秘密成立，而發(fā)起人吳江著名詩人柳亞子，在西塘發(fā)展南社社員18人。南社主要以文字鼓吹反清革命，“欲憑文字播風(fēng)雷”，與同盟會(huì)互相呼應(yīng)，成犄角之勢。一時(shí)京、滬、蘇、浙、湘甚至南洋等地不少報(bào)紙都為南社社員所掌握。后來南社雖在大革命的浪潮中四分五裂，但西塘的一班詩友，又組織了胥社，成為南社在西塘的延伸組織。胥社成員的詩文絕大多數(shù)保留了下來，這些詩和他們的“宗師”柳亞子在西塘留下的90首詩文一起收錄在西塘西園，成為西塘的千古絕唱。

“春秋的水，唐宋的鎮(zhèn)，明清的建筑，現(xiàn)代的人”，是對(duì)西塘最真實(shí)的寫照。一方面，古鎮(zhèn)的歷史價(jià)值和藝術(shù)價(jià)值，需要盡力去保護(hù)。西塘鎮(zhèn)負(fù)責(zé)人馮斌在接受訪問時(shí)表示：“西塘是古典，同樣也是現(xiàn)代的，我們?cè)诒Ｗo(hù)中傳承西塘的文脈?！蔽魈寥朔浅Ｗ⒅貙?duì)西塘文化的保護(hù)和傳承。今天的西塘，依然完好地保存著25萬平方米明清古建筑群，是目前保存最完整、面積最大的古鎮(zhèn)，并成功列入世界文化遺產(chǎn)的預(yù)備清單。另一方面，古鎮(zhèn)也在適應(yīng)現(xiàn)代化，古與新往往能碰撞出別樣的味道。每年十月底至十一月初在西塘舉辦的“漢服文化周”，讓現(xiàn)代的人去還原遍地綺羅，演一場屬于那個(gè)時(shí)代的繁華。白天不營業(yè)、晚上才開放的西塘酒吧一條街，將“古鎮(zhèn)”和“現(xiàn)代化”兩個(gè)看似相悖的概念結(jié)合在了一起。清晨享受作為一個(gè)古鎮(zhèn)的靜謐，深夜卻是華燈初上，熱鬧非凡，而醒來，卻又身處千年不變的河流街道，楊柳岸依舊是曉風(fēng)殘?jiān)拢腥糇韷?mèng)一場。

一岸煙火一岸夢(mèng)，半卷詩書半卷風(fēng)。千年的歷史，依然延續(xù)著的文化傳統(tǒng)和現(xiàn)代的生活方式讓人感受到西塘的生命依然是如此的鮮活。“夢(mèng)里西塘夜未央，江南古韻意猶長”，櫓聲悠悠，水流匆匆，一如西塘，既快又慢地向前走去。

Xitang， a Water Town to Remember

By Lin Hongying

At the juncture of Jiangsu， Zhejiang and Shanghai lies an ancient town named Xitang， which is rustic in style. The houses are built with white walls and black titles， and in rainy days they poetically resemble black ink dripping on white paper， a spectacle rarely seen by modern city dwellers. The largest in the six ancient towns of the Jiangnan （south of the Yangtze River） area， Xitang is blessed with its own subtlety and thus hailed as “the Dreamlike Water Town”.

Waters are the soul of Xitang， which is divided into eight parts by nine rivers running across it. The limpid waters everywhere give off an impression of Xitang being a fantasy world， where bridges， lanes and roofed corridors uniquely and reasonably abound.

There are 11 bridges that were built in the Song dynasty （960-1279） and some others in Ming （1368-1644） and Qing （1616-1911）. Though differing in architectural style， together they link every part of the whole county closely in a balanced way. The highest Huanxiu Bridge， which is also the most functional in town， connects the corridors and the lanes. To the south of Huanxiu bridge stands the West Street， a lively and bustling street with different lanes varying in shape and length. The best-known lane here in Xitang， or probably in the Jiangnan （south of the Yangtze River） area as a whole， is located at the end of the West Street. With an overall length of 68 meters and a width of only 1 meter， this Shipi Lane was made of 216 3-mm-thick stone plates and enclosed by 6-to-10-meter-tall ladder-shaped side walls.

Walking across the West Street and Huanxiu bridge brings you to a ceilinged corridor， where visitors are advised to linger on. The so-called “ceilinged corridor” is actually a street with roof， and it is the number one featured architecture in Xitang and the Jiangnan area. Inside those ceilinged corridors， some benches are placed at the side by the water for the sightseers to rest on while enjoying a nice cup of tea. The exact origin of the ceilinged corridor remains uncertain， yet there is one thing for sure： it is a collective feat attributed to every household， with their eaves linking with another to jointly create a public shelter for passengers. This is also an interpretation of local folks simple and easygoing characters.

For visitors， typical chilling rainy days are perfect for sight-seeing， and also perfect for having a bowl of comforting hot local snack. In Xitang， the most popular specialty is the “Lus wontons”， a three-generation-old brand. The skin of the Lus wontons is made from egg white mixture and thus extremely thin， and the hot wonton soup is well seasoned， making the whole dish taste of warmth. Xitang locals also love to drink a little wine. Throughout Xitangs history， there have been many large and small yellow wine breweries， where the wines have been brewed in an old-fashioned way to produce a most authentic flavor. The mild nature and mellow taste makes yellow wine an ideal gift for families and friends.

And Xitang certainly has more to offer than beautiful landscape and friendly local residents. A place of strategic importance on the boundary between the State of Wu （ca. 12th century BC-473 BC） and the State of Yue （2032-222 BC）， it is known as the birthplace of Wu-Yue culture. It is also known for field songs and Yueju opera. Coming in free and bright melodies， field songs are a valuable musical and cultural heritage in China， which are mostly inspired by folk stories and farming activities. The musical Five Girls， adapted from Xitangs field songs， won the “Wenhua Award”， a top award for performing arts， at the Seventh China Arts Festival. Yueju opera is one of the local opera arts in China， and there are many enthusiasts in Xitang who have come together to form the Xitang Yueju Opera Association. At every festival or temple fair， Yueju opera is always performed to cheer people up. The people of Xitang not only perform famous Yueju operas， but also create new Yueju operas with modern vibes. Mr. Gu Xidong， a famous modern playwright， is a Xitang native. His masterpieces， such as Five Girls， Birthday Congratulations， Han Palace Grudge and Lu You and Tang Wan， are all very popular.

In Xitang， “there flow waters from the Spring and Autumn Period， stand towns of Tang and Song dynasties， erect buildings of Ming and Qing dynasties， and live people of modern times，” as a popular saying goes. On the one hand， the historical and artistic values of the ancient town need to be preserved by all means. Today， with 250，000 square meters of buildings from Ming and Qing dynasties remaining intact， Xitang is deemed as the most complete and largest ancient town in terms of preservation， and has been included in the reserve list of World Cultural Heritage.

On the other hand， the ancient town is also adapting to modernization. The “Hanfu Culture Week”， held in Xitang from the end of October to the beginning of November every year， allows modern people to approach a prosperous and luxurious lifestyle back to sometime around the Han dynasty （202 BC-220 AD）. The Xitang Bar Street， shut down during the day while open for business at night， reconciles the seemingly contradictory concepts of “ancient town” and “modernization”.

Xitangs cultural traditions have survived thousands of years， and will bloom for years to come， while the local lifestyle with a touch of modernness proudly speaks for the lively and vivid side of the historical place.