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Jishi Yanming 击石燕鸣

It was said that Jishi Yanming was a story happened in Jiayuguan Pass of the Great Wall of China. There was a pair of swallows nesting in Rouyuan gate of Jiayuguan pass city. One day the two swallows flied out of the pass city for food. When night was about to approach, the female swallow then went back to their nest early and waited for the male swallow. The time the male swallow came back to the pass city, the city gate had closed. Thus he was unable to go into the city and reunite with the female swallow. He was so sad that he knocked himself to the wall and died. The female swallow got heartbroked and lamented all day long till her death. Though she died, her lamenting cry of "Jiu Jiu" still lingered in the walls. If people hit the wall with a rock, the sound of "Jiu Jiu"  would come to our ears. Later people thought  that it was a sign of good luck when hit the wall with a rock and the sound of "Jiu Jiu"  come. And the strange thing was that those people who did this before they went out of the city for war  were all coming back very safely. From then on, this place became to be a hot travel spot. Ever there were people going out of the city pass, they would throw a rock to hit the wall and listen to the “Jiu Jiu” sound and through this way to decide whether they should go out of the city this time.

After the founding of new China, in order to protect the heritage, people were not allowed to throw rock to the wall. The local government moved a hug rock to this place and made it to replace the wall behind. Thought it was replaced by rock, the sound of Jiu Jiu can still be heard. According to scientists, this is because of the unique structure of the wall and the echo of the sound.
For most reason this story had been handed down and remembered by people was that the destiny of the two swallows was actually the fate of most farmers and civilian of Qin dynasty when people were forced to build the Great Wall. This story to a large extend is a portrayal of the history.