古村石步楊梅紅

陳偉權(quán)

漫步在余姚市石步古村，可見榴花紅，枇杷黃，一小時(shí)內(nèi)卻遇不上三五人，古村一片靜悄悄。只有在楊梅季節(jié)，因那里的茡薺種楊梅風(fēng)味特佳，來自寧波、杭州、上海的汽車首尾相接，游人云集。這個(gè)村與時(shí)下古村旅游多有不一樣處，石步村在明、清兩代時(shí)就撰有《石步志》。循《石步志》來訪古尋幽，意趣盎然！

石步山遐思

聚族群居山之隈，白云深處竹籬開。

前江估客乘潮返，后海魚鹽入市來。

這首選自《石步志》的竹枝詞為里人葉兆翔所寫，記述石步地處錦繡的寧紹平原上丘陵地帶，古系慈溪縣西鄉(xiāng)，今屬余姚市東部，歸屬三七市鎮(zhèn)，謂翠屏山的四明山余脈，其中有許多小山。石步山就是其中之一，漫山翠竹蔥蘢，山麓清溪澄碧，從前要跨越清溪，沒造小橋，卻有整齊排列的10多個(gè)石墩，厚重而高出水面，供行人跨越上路通向杜湖嶺和五磊山。有人認(rèn)為石步地名由此而來。更為奇觀的是石步山有巨巖石壁突兀，伸到清溪邊上，石壁上刻有觀音，書有“正大光明”字樣。溪邊的野芹、野茭白襯托翠竹林邊石刻佛像。

據(jù)縣志、宗譜所記：石步始祖葉世儒，字道傳，“官四明教授”，北宋慶歷年間從處州松陽遷至石步。后來鄞江、鳴鶴、馬渚等地的葉姓人氏都源岀石步。

石步村現(xiàn)在的地域，和舊志上記的大體一致，周邊多旅游文化勝跡，東邊靠近田螺山遺址、古縣城慈城，南邊20分鐘車程可達(dá)河姆渡遺址博物館，西邊是有名的羊角田，今稱大霖山，北邊緊連低平的杜湖嶺，毗連五磊寺和鳴鶴古鎮(zhèn)，古村古韻處于濃重的文化氛圍中。

故澤黃公潭

今日石步村大溪寬綽，小溪隱隱。在村東南的黃公潭，與河姆渡關(guān)系淵藪。河姆渡原稱黃墓渡，因秦末漢初黃公終老之地而得名。當(dāng)時(shí)黃公活動(dòng)在姚東地帶，史書所記黃公是有名的商山四皓之一。呂后為鞏固其子劉盈的太子地位，爭(zhēng)奪皇位，設(shè)計(jì)請(qǐng)四皓為劉盈后盾。后來四皓知曉，這是中了呂后采用張良的計(jì)謀，四皓便隱逃外出，黃公來到浙東。有一年大旱，黃公為村民解干旱若渴之懸，認(rèn)準(zhǔn)石步水源挖潭得救。《石步志》上記：“適逢禾苗枯槁，居民束手無策。”黃公手指一小潭，說“此潭可以開浚”，他和村民一起挖土“至五六尺許，源泉涌出”，頓成大潭，水質(zhì)“清澈寒冽異常”，“自后干旱無慮，人蒙其賜，逐名曰黃公潭”。

歷經(jīng)兩千年后，黃公潭水文地質(zhì)變化，沉積淤泥，當(dāng)時(shí)石步村民還沒用自來水，天又大旱。村民葉良通知道黃公潭的來歷，記得從前潭水冬天冒熱氣，夏天冰涼，腳浸潭水難以耐久。于是，葉良通個(gè)人出資，用挖掘機(jī)清淤10多天，挖出大批淤泥，泥中還有不少瓦罐器皿，黃公潭泉涌重現(xiàn)，水清冰潔。葉良通出資以后，村民又自動(dòng)籌款，裝置自來水管，建造房子，開全鎮(zhèn)建造自來水廠先河。10多年后，保護(hù)黃公潭的水質(zhì)依然值得關(guān)注，臨近楊梅苑住家出資也稍加修葺，潭水流經(jīng)渠道，滋潤(rùn)兩旁苗木，穿越農(nóng)莊，入江通海。

安雅堂舊事

樂善好施是中華民族的傳統(tǒng)美德，也是踐行社會(huì)主義價(jià)值觀的重要體現(xiàn)。進(jìn)入石步古村，文化禮堂旁的歡樂大舞臺(tái)前，有可供千人看戲的場(chǎng)地，亭榭臺(tái)閣，粉墻黛瓦，一派古韻新風(fēng)中，每年有批村民出資日夜演戲，有幾年會(huì)連續(xù)上演七八天。古村早時(shí)人才輩出、好事多多，留存的古宅，佐證著村人的善舉故事。

清朝道光年間，鄉(xiāng)紳葉俊秀攜兒子葉封、葉仁建安雅堂，囑后代不忘善舉。縣志記載，現(xiàn)在稱為石步村的上義莊，原謂“葉氏安雅堂義莊”，在道光十一年（1832），里人葉氏繼承先輩之志，捐銀六萬三百兩零建義莊一所，置田一千四百畝零，山十六畝零。如今的安雅堂，雖是余姚市文物保護(hù)點(diǎn)，岌岌可危，但臺(tái)門、石窗依舊，由安雅堂建設(shè)的上義莊曾立有誥封牌樓，村老回憶氣勢(shì)恢宏，至今未留遺跡。卻有石步三進(jìn)堂尚在，有“上義莊牌樓，三進(jìn)堂門樓”俗諺。三進(jìn)堂墻上還貼有官報(bào)。建造三進(jìn)堂時(shí)，有乞丐長(zhǎng)坐施工場(chǎng)地乞討，施工泥水匠、木匠對(duì)他十分難堪，但那乞丐就是賴著不走。后來三進(jìn)堂主人聞知，予以款待，乞丐酒醉飯飽之后，一走了之。時(shí)值冬天，那乞丐坐地之處，剎時(shí)開綻兩朵荷花，傳說是神仙所化，成了吉祥先兆。

古村留有翁文灝存詩耐人尋味。鄞縣人翁文灝曾任國(guó)民政府的行政院長(zhǎng)，是我國(guó)第一代著名地質(zhì)學(xué)家，毛澤東稱道他是“有愛國(guó)心的國(guó)民黨軍政人員”。翁文灝七歲喪生母，后母葉秀芬是石步人，知書達(dá)禮，待他視同己出。翁文灝曾說后母是他一生中影響非常重大的兩個(gè)人之一，直至1965年，他有《少年雜憶·石步》詩，記述外婆家的回憶：

佳境慈溪到外家，山容樹色美難加。水從石出真清澈，步逐坡登見曲斜。

安雅堂名存往跡，滄桑世變待新芽。猶留故澤昭然在，雅堂款賓誼可夸。

詩中前四句寫外婆家山容樹色，村中低坡曲徑，石出水清;后四句寫人文情意，有安雅堂古宅、黃公潭故澤以及外婆家的盛情款待。如今人到石步，也可共享古風(fēng)古韻。

葉家大屋記

石步村民說起葉家大屋，幾乎是婦幼皆知。大屋坐北朝南，三面有臺(tái)門，兩層樓重檐，圍墻高聳，比屋頂還高，正屋三間兩弄，側(cè)屋廂房多間，內(nèi)有前后兩個(gè)天井，墻頭、樑枋多有傳統(tǒng)的磚雕木刻，為麒麟、龍鳳等吉祥畫圖。據(jù)悉，葉家大屋也為葉氏建于清代道光年間，一度家道敗落，轉(zhuǎn)賣給王姓人家，所以葉家大屋當(dāng)?shù)赜钟型跫掖笪葜Q。中法戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)時(shí)，大屋主人后代葉生陽為山東貨主運(yùn)貨到寧波，貨船在鎮(zhèn)海外被法國(guó)軍艦劫持。后來葉生陽通過在法國(guó)人處任翻譯的安雅堂葉姓人氏疏通，貨船得以放還。從此葉生陽深得主人信任，并把獨(dú)養(yǎng)女兒婚嫁給他，葉生陽繼承岳家遺產(chǎn)，葉氏再度中興，大屋從王姓人家贖回，葉氏后人也有就讀燕京大學(xué)的。如今圍墻上藤蔓叢生，仿佛記著這里來過許多達(dá)官名流、革命志士，駐村的工作隊(duì)、土改隊(duì)也住過葉家大屋。

抗日戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)時(shí)期，大屋也是新四軍三五支隊(duì)同志的落腳點(diǎn)。人們知道以梁弄為中心的四明山，為全國(guó)抗日根據(jù)地之一，殊不知當(dāng)年譚啟龍、何克希帶領(lǐng)的抗日隊(duì)伍，從浦東渡過杭州灣上岸，到達(dá)三北地界，先在鳴鶴、石步駐足，革命勢(shì)力逐步向四明山發(fā)展，當(dāng)時(shí)革命隊(duì)伍上四明山，石步是必經(jīng)之路，然后過姚江、經(jīng)車廄，再由杜徐岙走向梁弄。1942年至三五支隊(duì)北撤，葉家大屋曾是慈西（丈亭）區(qū)委所在地，錢憶群、朱敏、項(xiàng)耿等眾多革命先輩都住過大屋。1945年3月，在石步祠堂召開慈溪縣抗日民主政府成立大會(huì)，宣布謝仁安為縣長(zhǎng)，大屋一度成了縣府的駐地。endprint

時(shí)代的痕跡，歷史的憑證，葉家大屋如今已是余姚市文物保護(hù)點(diǎn)。

楊梅亦迷人

石步村有土特產(chǎn)的優(yōu)勢(shì)，有楊梅、西瓜、竹筍等，尤以楊梅為最。

余姚楊梅中國(guó)紅。在上海、杭州等城市一些地?cái)偵系南鲁藯蠲罚４蛑嘁蠲返拿x招客，與石步相連的橫河地方，1978年由余姚劃入慈溪，也有打慈溪楊梅的牌子，受人青睞。

楊梅“其形如水楊，而味似梅，故名。”這《本草綱目》所記只是個(gè)概說，一時(shí)一地只食一種楊梅，甜中帶酸，往往難以比較楊梅優(yōu)劣，其實(shí)，不同產(chǎn)地，不同品種，滋味各異，有的甚至大相徑庭。據(jù)《浙江省農(nóng)業(yè)志》記，全省有64個(gè)楊梅品牌，介紹“優(yōu)質(zhì)品種，首推茡薺種，其原產(chǎn)地在三七市鎮(zhèn)石步村張湖溪。”“在村的老鷹尖，呈現(xiàn)一片古楊梅林”。楊梅時(shí)節(jié)，“紅實(shí)綴青枝，爛漫照前塢”。品嘗楊梅，歡歌笑語蕩漾在林間。1983年產(chǎn)在石步8229號(hào)單株果實(shí)，經(jīng)寧波市組織專家品味評(píng)審打分，名列第一。對(duì)此，上海新民晚報(bào)登出楊梅王的圖片新聞。難怪古代蘇東坡感嘆：“西涼葡萄，閩廣荔枝，未若吳越楊梅。”

優(yōu)質(zhì)楊梅樹品種四季常綠，樹結(jié)名果，既生態(tài)，又有經(jīng)濟(jì)效益。江南地區(qū)的氣候最適宜楊梅樹生長(zhǎng)，海拔10-500米的山地都可種植，茡薺種楊梅還適宜種在瘠薄的土地上，并成為扶貧山區(qū)的舉措之一。據(jù)石步村民張訓(xùn)林反映，余姚的楊梅苗暢銷云南、貴州、江西、福建、江蘇等地，一年以春秋兩季移植楊梅苗為宜。到石步采購楊梅苗的人多，市場(chǎng)看好，張訓(xùn)林父子兩人今年春季銷售楊梅苗金額達(dá)20多萬元。

目前余姚、慈溪兩地種植楊梅面積近9萬畝。地跨余姚三七市、丈亭和慈溪橫河的優(yōu)質(zhì)茡薺種楊梅上市，設(shè)有楊梅王國(guó)觀光景點(diǎn)，可供游客領(lǐng)略元代平可正寫的楊梅詩境界：“五月楊梅已滿林，初疑一顆值千金。味勝河溯葡萄重，色比瀘南荔枝深。”如今，世界流行天然色素，余姚楊梅被譽(yù)為中國(guó)紅，其可愛的自然色彩為全球注目。空運(yùn)保鮮楊梅到法國(guó)的餐桌上，一顆紫紅色的楊梅浸入盛滿白葡萄酒的玻璃杯中，賞色品味，怡心悅目。一顆楊梅價(jià)值一二美元！

Shibu： A Mountain Village

By Chen Weiquan

Shibu Village， nestled in the Siming Mountains in eastern Zhejiang， is different things to different people.

To archaeologists， it is a 20-minute drive to Hemudu to the east， an archaeological site that points to a Neolithic culture of about 7，000 years ago. Tianluoshan Site， another key site that traces back to Hemudu Culture， is also in close neighborhood.

Historians take great interest in the history of the village. Located in the east of Yuyao， a county-level city under the administration of Ningbo， Shibu has a long history. Historians are not certain why the village is called Shibu， or stone steps. Someone said that the village was named after a stone-step bridge that crosses a stream near the village. The county annals and the villages ancestry books record that the village was started by Ye Shiru， a scholar who brought his family there in the Northern Song Dynasty （960-1127）. Over the past centuries， the family grew and many family members moved away to other parts of the county.

Local legends have it that one of the four sages who helped the crown prince hold onto his position and eventually get to the throne in the early years of the Han Dynasty （202BC-220AD） fled from court infighting and came to live as a reclusive in the east of Zhejiang. One year， a drought hit the region and the sage led local residents to a small pond in Shibu and asked them to dig there to make it a big pond. Local residents dug a hole about 2 to 3 meters deep and water emerged and formed a large pond. The pond was later named after the sage. The pond has been dredged and now serves as a source for the waterworks of the town.endprint

Architects and historians love the ancient houses in the village. One of the houses is Anya House， first constructed in 1832. The spacious compound is now a cultural heritage site under the protection of Yuyao City Government. The compound used to have a memorial archway adorned with a plaque with an inscription by an emperor. The archway is no more. The compound has three rows of houses.

Weng Wenhao （1889-1971）， a pronounced geologist， wrote two poems about the village in his last years. He is regarded as the founder of modern Chinese geology and the father of modern Chinese oil industry in literature. From May to November 1948， he served as prime minister of the Republic of China. His stepmother was a native of Shibu Village. In his childhood， he was brought to the village several times. In 1965， he wrote two poems in fond memory of the village and his stepmother and grandmother.

Ye is the paramount surname with the largest population in the village， as testified by Ye Family Big House， a large compound with three gates on the fa?ade. The gates are highly adorned with outstretched double eaves. The big house has experienced the ups and downs of the Ye family. The house was first constructed in the early decades of the 19th century. The family that owned the house came down in the world and sold it to a family surnamed Wang. During the Sino-French War （1883-1885）， Ye Shengyang， a son of the Ye family that had built and owned the house， helped his boss to get back a cargo ship held in custody by French navy near Ningbo. The boss liked the young man very much and Ye Shengyang married the bosss daughter. After inheriting the business， Ye Shengyang bought back the house his ancestors had built. The family flourished again. Some of the descendants went to college.

The big house was used as a safe house during World War Two. A dispatch of the New Fourth Army， under the leadership of the Communist Party of China， was stationed at the house for a while before the troupers moved deep into the Siming Mountains and set up their bases there. In March 1945， the Cixi County government was set up there to fight the Japanese invaders.

The house now is a historical site under the protection of Yuyao City.

In the eyes of tourists， Shibu Village is equal to waxberry. In May every year， tourists come from neighboring cities such as Shanghai and Hangzhou to spend a day in the village and buy waxberry， the best in Yuyao. states that Shibu offers the very best of the 64 waxberry species in the province. Strangely enough， waxberry loves infertile soil. For this reason， many remote regions across the country adopt waxberry as a measure to lift people out of poverty. Shibu sells waxberry saplings to farmers across the country. One sapling farm， operated by a father and his son， sold waxberry saplings in the spring of 2017 and pocketed more than 200，000 yuan.endprint