Fei County 费县

History

In the Spring and Autumn period the place was Bi (鄪邑), the private town of the Jisun (季孙) clan of the state of Lu. Ji Wuzi (季武子) built walls here in 566 BC, and in 530 BC the retainer Nan Kuai (南蒯) seized the town in revolt, holding out for two years. A county was set up in the early Western Han, and the character was read bì in the place name; by the Daoguang years of the Qing, local speech had shifted to the reading fèi now used.

The county is the home of the Tang statesman and calligrapher Yan Zhenqing (颜真卿) and the birthplace of the Song lyric poet Liu Yong (柳永). The Daqingshan breakout battle (大青山突围战) was fought here, and this is where the folk song Yimeng Mountain Tune (沂蒙山小调) was born.

What to see

More than 150 Dawenkou and Longshan culture sites have been found in the county. Remains of the old city of Fei (费县故城) lie at Xibicheng (西毕城), Gucheng (古城) and Ningguozhuang (宁国庄) in Shangye Town (上冶镇), and Shuihu village (水湖村) has a Western Han tomb called the Nine Maidens' Tomb (九女坟). The Yan Lugong stele (颜鲁公碑) stands in the Lugong Temple (鲁公庙) in Feicheng Subdistrict (费城街道).

Two scenic areas are rated 4A: Yimeng Yunpu Dongtian (沂蒙云瀑洞天), about four kilometres north of Dongmeng Town (东蒙镇), and Qishi City (奇石城), north of the county town. The Daqingshan Breakout Memorial (大青山胜利突围纪念馆) lies 11 kilometres north of Xuezhuang Town (薛庄镇). Fei stone (费县石) is plentiful in the county, and its oddly shaped pieces combine thin, pierced, wrinkled and openwork forms.

Food and local products

The county is known for hawthorn, chestnuts and walnuts; walnuts from Shaoyao Mountain (芍药山) and tomatoes from Huyang (胡阳) are on a national register of farm heritage products. Xuezhuang grows Hosui pears (丰水梨), and in the marshy hollow at Youwu village (由吾村), 15 kilometres west of the county town, a lotus root called Xishi lotus (西施莲) is grown.

Getting oriented

The Lunan high-speed railway (鲁南高铁), the Yanzhou–Shijiusuo railway (兖石铁路) and the Rizhao–Lankao Expressway (日兰高速) cross the county, which has Feixian station and the high-speed Feixian North station.

Highlights

• Yimeng Yunpu Dongtian 沂蒙云瀑洞天: 4A scenic area about four kilometres north of Dongmeng Town.
• Qishi City 奇石城: 4A scenic area north of the county town.
• Daqingshan Breakout Memorial 大青山胜利突围纪念馆: 3A memorial site 11 kilometres north of Xuezhuang Town.
• Old city of Fei 费县故城: Ancient city remains in Shangye Town.
• Xishi lotus 西施莲: Lotus root grown in the marshy basin at Youwu village west of the county town.