Xuanzhou Island in Wuzhou: What is the unique charm of the Lion King's base?

The headquarters of the world-famous Xuanzhou Wushu Lion Dance Troupe is located on Xuanzhou Island in Teng County. The troupe's founder, 72-year-old Deng Minghua, his entire family, and young students all live here. Every morning at 7 o'clock, after running around the island, the students punctually beat gongs and drums to practice the basic skills of lion dance. The joyful sound of gongs and drums breaks the tranquility of the island, and a busy day on Xuanzhou Island begins.

Reporting and writing: Our reporter Quan Ganmei, correspondent Xu Jingcai

Photography: Our reporter Mai Chaoshu (unless otherwise credited)

Xuanzhou Island surrounded by emerald bamboo. Photo by Xu Jingcai

Xuanzhou Island is the seat of the Xuanzhou Village Committee in Tangbu Town, Teng County, situated on the Xun River about 10 km from the Teng County seat. The island is 5 km long and about 1.5 km wide, with over a thousand households and more than 5,000 residents, making it the second-largest inland river island in Guangxi. The island is surrounded by water on all sides, ringed with bamboo, with patches of green cash crops in the center, and modern concrete buildings standing among the swaying emerald bamboo and green trees. Legend has it that Xuanzhou Island got its name from the first household on the island, whose surname was Xuan.

Fruitsand Melons

Homeland

Deng Minghua is a native of Xuanzhou Island. When he was young, he helped others pilot boats to make a living, but the unstable life on the water eventually made him give up this well-paid job. In the prime of his life, he returned to the island and, with his whole family, established a martial arts lion dance troupe, settling down to a peaceful life. Deng Minghua says that every plant and tree on Xuanzhou Island is full of allure for him. "In my memory, Xuanzhou Island was covered with melons and fruits." Wearing a gray-blue shirt with a small braid, Deng Minghua sat down casually and began to speak endlessly about the Xuanzhou Island in his heart.

Xuanzhou Island has fertile soil and abounds in fruits and vegetables, earning the saying "No soil is richer than Xuanzhou's." Deng Minghua recalls with a chuckle that as a child, what he loved most were the red and green melons and fruits on the island - pick one at random, take a big bite, and your mouth would be filled with sweetness. "The fragrance of Xuanzhou's melons and fruits can be smelled even at home." Sugarcane, tomatoes, and winter melons - these fragrant agricultural products accompanied Deng Minghua through his youth and prime years. "In the 1970s, Xuanzhou's sugarcane was famous throughout Wuzhou. In the 1980s, tomatoes grown on Xuanzhou dominated the Wuzhou urban market. In the 1990s, Xuanzhou's winter melons became popular with everyone."

The Tropic of Cancer happens to pass through Xuanzhou Island. Surrounded by river water, Xuanzhou Island provides villagers with superior farming conditions. The fertile land and pleasant climate keep Xuanzhou Island green all year round, with different melons and fruits planted on the continuous fields in all four seasons. Standing on the field ridges of Xuanzhou Island, as far as the eye can see are melon vines swaying in the wind. Every plot of land is neatly tended by the diligent villagers. On rectangular plots of various sizes, crops of all kinds grow toward the sunlight, and neatly built melon trellises are hung with black-skinned winter melons, bitter melons, and long beans, the plump fruits looking most tempting.

Black-skinned winter melon is a specialty of Xuanzhou Island.

The fertile land nourishes the people of Xuanzhou, but they are not content with farming alone - they have also learned to "live off the water." "In the past, quite a few Xuanzhou Island residents made their living by boat, and even now no fewer than 1,000 residents still make a living on boats." Deng Minghua was among the earliest residents on the island to earn a living by piloting boats for others. He says the boat-piloting skills of Xuanzhou Islanders are famous far and wide, and the wages for boat work are relatively high. In the 1980s and 1990s, many villagers chose to go into the shipping business, some piloting boats for others, some working as sailors. "Now the villagers on the island have basically all built several-story, tastefully decorated modern buildings. Many of these buildings were constructed after villagers gradually increased their incomes through boat work. Some villagers not only built buildings on the island but also bought homes in the county town."Lion King

Base

Deng Minghua's home is nestled among green trees and emerald bamboo. Two modern concrete buildings, one new and one old, stand side by side. A plaque with black characters on a yellow background reading "Teng County Xuanzhou Wushu Lion Dance Troupe" hangs at the entrance. In front is a simple lion dance training ground built with sheet metal, with neatly arranged iron poles and red, yellow, and black lions placed around the grounds. Young students call out to one another, performing the lion dance with impressive form. The training ground is simple, but the equipment is complete - this is the headquarters of the Oriental Lion King based on the island. The fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold; behind the Lion King's honor lies arduous training. Apart from eating and sleeping, the students spend all their time training every day.

Xuanzhou Island has a long history of lion dance. During festivals, villagers always perform lion dances from door to door to offer congratulations. After giving up his boat-piloting job and returning to the island, Deng Minghua noticed that the village children would wander around the alley entrance when not in school. He thought: since the village has a lion dance tradition and his father knows martial arts, why not gather the children together and form a lion dance team? So, after much deliberation, he decided to bring together the village children and his own children to play at lion dance. In July 1997, the Xuanzhou Wushu Lion Dance Troupe was formally established. No one could have imagined that this lion dance team, starting from zero, would become the future Oriental Lion King and even the World Lion King. In 2000, the Xuanzhou lion team became a National A-level lion team. In July 2004, at the 6th Genting Cup World Lion King Championship in Malaysia, the Xuanzhou Wushu Lion Dance Troupe won the championship, earning the titles of "Oriental Lion King" and "World Lion King," causing a huge sensation at home and abroad.

"Learn propriety before learning lion dance; cultivate virtue before practicing martial arts." This is what Deng Minghua often tells his students. He says that lion dance is not just about technique but also about the team's moral character - propriety and virtue matter more than technique. Although already over 70, he remains spirited and still insists on personally teaching his students moral values every day. "My father is a very simple person. He values moral character above all else." Deng Minghua's eldest son, Deng Yu, says his father always matches his words with actions. Once, at a major competition, another team told his father that if the Xuanzhou Lion Dance Troupe was willing to deliberately lose so they could take first place, they would give his father 100,000 yuan, but his father flatly refused.

In Deng Minghua's eyes, the title of Lion King was not easily won. He says Xuanzhou Island is a place with simple, honest folkways, which allows students to settle down and practice earnestly, and the lion team has always valued learning from others' strengths to offset its weaknesses, constantly seeking guidance from outstanding teams. "I always tell my students that the main purpose of competition is not to fight for first place but to learn." Deng Minghua says that the team's achievements today are the result of members continually absorbing others' strengths and training hard.

Deng Minghua demonstrating for lion dance students