According to historical records, the Li villagers of Modao Village are descendants of the Li Tang imperial clan. The ancestor of “Modao Li,” Li Huan (pronounced "Dao"), was an eleventh-generation descendant of Li Ke, the Prince of Wu and the third son of Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin. Li Ke was born to Emperor Taizong and Empress Yang, the daughter of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, thus inheriting royal bloodlines from both the Sui and Tang dynasties. Among Emperor Taizong’s fourteen sons, Li Ke was the one who most resembled his father in character and was also the most gifted in both literary and military arts, enjoying the highest prestige among officials and common people alike. As recorded in the "Old Book of Tang," "Li Ke possessed both literary and martial talents; Emperor Taizong often praised him as being very much like himself. Because he already enjoyed great renown and was deeply favored by the people, his reputation was universally admired." Emperor Taizong had originally intended to make Li Ke his crown prince, but due to opposition from ministers such as Changsun Wujie, Li Ke ultimately did not become heir apparent. Instead, Li Zhi, Changsun Wujie’s own nephew and the Prince of Jin, was chosen as the crown prince. After Li Zhi ascended the throne as Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Ke was unjustly accused and executed on fabricated charges orchestrated by Changsun Wujie. When evaluating Li Ke and Li Zhi, Mao Zedong criticized Emperor Taizong, saying: “Li Ke was a remarkable man, while Li Zhi was mediocre; no father knows his son better than his own father. Yet in the end, he listened to Changsun Wujie’s advice—truly wise throughout his life, but foolish for a single moment.” Li Huan served as a close attendant to Emperor Zhaozong of Tang, Li Ye, holding the official rank of Zhengshi Lang, plus the title of Yin Qing Guanglu Dafu and Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince.

Emperor Zhaozong of Tang was an ill-fated emperor. By the time he ascended the throne, the Tang Dynasty had already reached its final decline. Emperor Zhaozong found himself completely controlled by Zhu Wen, the ruler of Liang—a powerful regional warlord—and possessed virtually no real authority. In the first year of Tianyou (the first month), Zhu Wen, determined to bring about the fall of the Tang Dynasty, declared himself emperor and, despite fierce opposition from his ministers, forcibly relocated the capital to Luoyang. Just after the fifth day of the first month, Zhu Wen ordered the complete destruction of Chang'an’s imperial palace, government offices, residences, and civilian dwellings, compelling Emperor Zhaozong, all civil and military officials, and the entire population of the city to move to Luoyang. On the eleventh day of the first month, Emperor Zhaozong’s imperial procession set off, stripped of all ceremonial pomp and pageantry. The emperor and empress traveled in a single palanquin, slowly making their way along the road. The chancellor, the chief minister of the Secretariat, ministers of various departments, and princes and imperial consorts—some rode in sedan chairs, others on horseback, but most walked on foot. Knowing full well that this journey to Luoyang held little hope for survival, Emperor Zhaozong, in order to spare the Li clan from utter annihilation, summoned Li Hui and only one or two other members of the imperial family to the Xingde Palace near Huaxian County in Shaanxi Province (then known as Huazhou), where they were staying temporarily. There, Zhaozong quietly dismissed everyone else, leaving only Li Hui and a few other loyal courtiers behind. Turning to Li Hui, Emperor Zhaozong said with deep sorrow: “As an old saying goes, ‘If you’re freezing to death on a mountaintop, why not fly away to a place where life is sweet?’ We, your imperial majesty and all of you here, are all descendants of the Li clan. Once we reach Luoyang, it will be exceedingly difficult for us to survive. Considering the legacy of our ancestors and the continuation of the Tang dynasty, I urge you not to accompany me any longer. Each of you should flee for your own safety, so that the Li clan may endure and have a chance to thrive again someday…” Amidst sobs and tears, Li Hui formally resigned from his post and, taking advantage of the chaos, led a group of royal relatives, carrying with them the genealogical records of the Tang imperial family, on a desperate flight to Yongxiu (then called Jianchang), where they eventually settled in Modao Village.

There are two legends about how Modao Village got its name. According to one legend, Guan Yu, the famous general of the Three Kingdoms period, was ordered to garrison the area known as “the head of Chu and the tail of Wu.” Modao Village was the place where he specifically sharpened his Qinglong Yan Yue Dao sword. The legendary stone used for sharpening swords is still preserved today by the pond in front of Modao Village.

Another legend has an even greater impact—so much so that it’s recorded in the local chronicles of Yongxiu County. It tells of the Eastern Jin period, when Poyang Lake (then known as Pengli Ze) suffered from recurrent floods and was plagued by monstrous water dragons. At the time, the highly respected Xu Xun not only led the local residents in flood control efforts but also took his disciples along to slay the water dragons and eliminate the evil creatures. The very spot where he forged and sharpened his swords is now the village of Modao.

A painting from the Qing Dynasty titled “The Map of Madao, Where the Founding Ancestor First Set Foot,” clearly records that at that time, Madao Village was not only home to grinding stones but also boasted the Sword-Grinding Spring, the Sword-Grinding Valley, and a temple named Wanfu Temple. The map also marks a “Wu-Chu Thoroughfare,” which was the sole route for entering and leaving Madao. Li Zhi’s decision to settle in Madao was closely tied to its geographical location. Before the construction of the Zhelin Reservoir, Madao was surrounded by mountains on all sides and was famously known as “the head of Chu and the tail of Wu”—a remote yet defensible stronghold. While taking refuge here, Li Zhi still harbored ambitions to restore the Tang dynasty. Unfortunately, in the very year Li Zhi fled, Emperor Zhaozong of Tang was assassinated by Zhu Wen, and the Li clan members remaining in the capital were likewise massacred. Faced with such dire circumstances, Li Zhi had no choice but to retreat to this isolated corner. To escape further danger, Li Zhi even pretended to be a descendant of Master Huang, barely eking out an existence in disguise.

李衟认为磨刀是块风水宝地，有利于家宅兴旺，临死前让家人把他安葬在磨刀一座叫老鼠尾的山上。李衟死后，磨刀李氏四处迁徙繁衍，有超过百万李姓源自磨刀，遍布江西、湖北、湖南、安徽、福建、台湾，而且出了不少达官显贵。据传，民国名人、同盟会会员、江西都督李烈钧（祖籍江西武宁），前国家主席李先念（祖籍湖北黄安），前全国人大常委会副委员长李井泉（祖籍江西临川），前中华民国代总统李宗仁（祖籍广西临桂），新加坡内阁资政李光耀（祖籍福建），其先祖都是从磨刀迁徙出去的。

The knife-sharpener Li Chang (style name Gongzhe) was an imperial scholar who passed the examination in the first year of Huangyou during the Northern Song dynasty. He served as Minister of Personnel, Minister of Finance, and Grand Scholar of the Longtu Pavilion, and was ennobled as a marquis. He was a close friend of the great scholars Su Shi and Su Zhe, deeply trusted and respected by both. Su Shi composed a poem in his honor, saying: “You and I are as close as brothers, our bond surpassing even that of kin.” Li Chang had an elder sister who was bestowed the title of Lady Ankang and possessed profound literary talent; she was the mother of Huang Tingjian. Huang Tingjian lost his father at the age of 13 and grew up under Li Chang’s care, eventually achieving fame.

The "Song-Yuan Xue An" holds that although Huang Tingjian was a scholar of the Su School, his style was quite different from Su Shi's; rather, his scholarly cultivation stemmed from Li Chang. Huang Tingjian himself once said: “It was truly my maternal uncle who taught and guided me.” Every year on the 23rd day of the ninth lunar month is Li Hua’s memorial day. Members of the Li clan who have migrated away voluntarily return to Modao to pay their respects and honor their ancestor, Li Hua.

Before the outbreak of the Japanese invasion of China, Modao Village had a ancestral temple called the Zhigong Temple, also known as the Pangan Temple. The temple was built in an exceptionally grand style; above its entrance arch was a stone plaque inscribed with the words "Xian Li Pan Gen" (this stone plaque is still preserved by descendants of Li Zhigong in the warehouse of the former Modao Production Team). The temple had a depth of 15 meters and featured a stage for operas, an open courtyard, side rooms, a hall dedicated to ancestral tablets, and a spacious hall used for family gatherings. During the Japanese invasion of China, Japanese soldiers constructed bunkers on the hillside adjacent to the temple. They dismantled the temple’s wooden beams and used them as firewood, while the bricks were repurposed to build the bunkers. As a result, the Zhigong Temple was completely destroyed.

Even more unfortunate than the ancestral hall is Li Huan’s tomb. In the 1970s, when the Zhelin Reservoir was constructed, as the reservoir’s water level rose, Li Huan’s tomb was submerged. The Li clan has long passed down a saying: “The Li clan boasts many distinguished figures, yet their ancestor’s tomb lies drowned in water”—a reference to Li Huan’s tomb being inundated. In 1989, the Li clan pooled their resources to build a new tomb for Li Huan at Laoshuwei. During the autumn and winter of 2006, the Poyang Lake basin experienced a drought unseen in a century, causing the water level of Zhelin Lake to drop dramatically. By February 2007, Li Huan’s tomb finally reappeared above water. The joint tomb of Li Huan and his wife is quite unremarkable. The tomb is shaped like a rounded mound, with its sides constructed from bluish-gray stone slabs. A spacious sacrificial hall, paved with stone slabs, adjoins the tomb. The three tombstones in front of the tomb have become blurred over the years due to prolonged exposure to water; only the central tombstone—a monument over a meter high—still bears faintly legible inscriptions: “Tomb of Li Huan, Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty, and Lady Pei.” The rediscovery of Li Huan’s tomb provides tangible evidence for tracing the origins of the Modao Li clan.