As the water level of Yangtze River dropped a lot during the drought period, a giant stone shaped like a turtle emerged from the river, attracting many citizens and photographers in Longmenhao, Nan’an District on May 8. (Photographed by Long Fan)

CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- “This is Hugui Boulder!” At 12 o’clock on May 12, at the Dongshuimen Bridge Bus Stop, Mr. Ge, a citizen, pointed to a giant stone exposed in the Yangtze River, Longmenhao, and said excitedly to his friends.

Over the past few days, “Hugui Boulder out of the River” has aroused heated discussion. Netizens have forwarded pictures of the giant stone in the WeChat Moments. A Douyin video of this giant stone has gained 40,000 likes. However, Liu Heyue, author of the picture book Hugui Boulder, and others all denied on social media that it was Hugui Boulder. What’s going on? A reporter from Chongqing Daily conducted an interview.

The Hugui Boulder was located at the junction of the two rivers of Chaotianmen. It is generally believed that the name of Hugui Boulder was related to the legend of Dayu. For example, Gazetteer of Nan’an District, Chongqing City, Sichuan Province wrote that: “It is said that Yu married Tu Shan’s daughter. He went out to tame flood after marriage, and did not enter their home after passing three times. His wife stood on the stone and called Dayu to go back home, hence it got the name. Thus, the Hugui Boulder was commonly known as ‘Turtle Boulder’ and ‘Wugui Boulder’.”

On May 12, the exposed part of the boulder in Longmenhao Section of Yangtze River was about five or six meters in height and about thirty or forty meters in length. Viewed from the front and side, this boulder looks like a turtle.

The hearsay of “Hugui Boulder out of Water” attracted the attention of Professor Lan Yong, Director of the Institute of Historical Geography and Doctoral Supervisor of Southwest University. “In 2008, the Hugui Boulder was blown up because of its influence on the passage of ships. How could it be called Hugui Boulder?” At 13:00 on May 12, Lan Yong came to the scene for an inspection.

"The opposite of this boulder is Dongshuimen on the Yuzhong Peninsula, while the opposite of the real Hugui Boulder is Chaotianmen. The distance between the two is very far. In addition to the fact that the Hugui Boulder has been bombed and other factors, it can be determined that this boulder is not the Hugui Boulder." Lan Yong said that in the drought season of the Yangtze River, this giant stone had also appeared above the water surface. This year, the boost online made it suddenly "popular".

Professor Zhou Yong, President of the Chongqing Local History Research Association and Doctoral Supervisor, also pointed out that this giant stone in Longmenhao Section of Yangtze River was definitely not the Hugui Boulder, which was located at the intersection of the two rivers, on the side of Danzishi. “When we were young, we often swam in the area around the Shazui, Chaotianmen at the junction of the two rivers, and we knew that the Hugui Boulder was at the junction of the two rivers. Now the hot news about “Hugui Boulder out of Water” was definitely a misleading.

According to Lan Yong, this huge stone in Longmenhao Section of the Yangtze River was actually the main body of Guanyinliang. In the Qing Dynasty, the “lifeboat” was once moored here. There was a large stone beam not far upstream of Guanyinliang, the top of which is called Chicken Wings (also known as Jizibao).

What are the characteristics of the main body of Guanyinliang? The reporter followed Lan Yong to the side of the giant stone facing Yuzhong Peninsula, and saw two Buddhist statues of Qing Dynasty carved on the giant stone, beside the statue niches, the Chinese characters “清风皓月” were carved. Lan Yong said that the ancients carved statues on the stone beams in the middle of the river were to pray for safe navigation. “Longmenhaoyue” is one of the twelve attractions in Bayu. This giant stone as part of the ‘Longmenhaoyue” landscape is of special significance and charm.”

Is the real Hugui Boulder still there? Lan Yong came to the sidewalk of Nanbin Road directly opposite to Chaotianmen Square and pointed at the confluence of the two rivers to the reporter. “Hugui Boulder is no longer visible, but it carries the beautiful love story of Dayu and the daughter of Tu Shan, and will still exist in the cultural memory of ciizens for a long time.” (Translated by Luo Juan, Fathom Language Limited)