"Girdled by water and leaning on mountains stand ten thousand homes, Xiangyang since ancient times, abode of the rich and opulent.
To the north window in February I glance back, the sun drenching the city in floral hue, a tapestry of blooms."
This "Xiangyang" poem comes from the Northern Song's Jia An, speaking of the splendor of this ancient city.
Since the Late Eastern Han, when chaos reigned supreme, the Jingxiang Region under the rule of Liu Biao saw "fertile land for thousands of miles, citizens wealthy and prosperous," becoming a pure land, with generations of distinguished scholars and nobles emerging.
The most famous, of course, were the Sleeping Dragon and the Young Phoenix.
During the Yongjia chaos of the Eastern Jin dynasty, scholars fled southward, and Guanzhong aristocrats resettled in Fan Mian, near the Han River, bringing with them great wealth and population.
No matter the changes in dynasties, this place had always been the stronghold of Ezhou.
