Bajing Terrace: Friends should be beyond a thousand mountains, not sending plum blossoms in a distant message

"Looking east to the seven Min provinces, south to the five ridges, observing the unevenness of the mountains, overlooking the rushing waters of Zhang and Gong, where clouds and mist appear and disappear, and the vegetation is lush; from village to village, the sounds of chickens and dogs can be heard." This is the preface written by the great literary master Su Shi after viewing the 'Map of the Eight Sceneries of Qianzhou', in which he also wrote eight poems praising the Bajing Terrace, including 'Friends should be beyond a thousand mountains, not sending plum blossoms in a distant message' and 'Weary traveler ascends with endless thoughts, the lone cloud and setting sun mark Chang'an' among other fine verses. Bajing Terrace is located at the confluence of the Zhang and Gong rivers in Ganzhou, symbolizing ancient Ganzhou. The terrace was originally built during the Jiayou period of the Northern Song Dynasty by the then prefect and 46th generation descendant of Confucius, Kong Zonghan. Originally a city tower of Qianzhou (now Ganzhou), it has been built and abandoned multiple times, and the current Bajing Terrace was reconstructed in 1983 in an ancient style.