The festival of escorting the Fairy Princess Chu Hoa – Hy Cuong in Lam Thao district (now part of Viet Tri City)

The festival of escorting the Fairy Princess Chu Hoa – Hy Cuong in Lam Thao district (now part of Viet Tri City)

Legend has it that, “King Hung Vuong the 18th had two daughters named Tien Dung and Ngoc Hoa. Both grew up to be increasingly beautiful, while their royal father aged day by day. Since the king had no sons, he decided to build a palace on Tien Cat hill to find a husband for Princess Ngoc Hoa and choose a person who was virtuous and talented to pass on the throne. Ngoc Hoa’s beauty made birds jealous and fish envious every time she bathed on the banks of the Tien River. People rumored that her beauty reached the highest mountains and the deepest seas. One day, Sơn Tinh, also known as Nguyễn Tuấn, the Mountain Deity of Tản Viên, came to propose. At the same time, another person emerged from the waters of the confluence of the Bạch Hạc River, introducing himself as Thủy Tinh, the Deity of the aquatic region, also seeking to propose. Observing the appearance of the two suitors, the King spoke:

You two, one is the lord of the green mountains, the other is the deity of the deep waters, surely both are powerful and talented. So, let’s have a competition to see who is more skilled!

Thủy Tinh, being naturally hot-tempered, spewed water from the river in a furious display, creating dark clouds, thunder, lightning, stormy rain, and devastating winds. The people were frightened and terrified. Sơn Tinh smiled, took his staff, pointed it at the clouds, and immediately the dark clouds dispersed, the thunder and lightning ceased, and calmness returned to the sky. He then touched the ground with his staff, and everything went back to normal, as if nothing had happened.

The competition ended without a clear winner. The King and his courtiers deliberated and issued a marriage challenge:

Early tomorrow morning, whoever brings the following offerings first: a 9-tusked elephant, a 9-spurred rooster, a 9-red-maned horse, 100 square-shaped Chung cakes, and 100 round-shaped Dày cakes, will marry Princess Ngoc Hoa.

Sơn Tinh opened his book of spells and, a moment later, had all the required offerings. He and his family brought the offerings to the Tien Cat palace. Early the next morning, the offerings were gathered in Phu Duc village to be taken to the Hung Temple for the royal father. Since they arrived too early and the city gate was still closed, Sơn Tinh used a leaf to imitate the crowing of a rooster. The guards, thinking it was morning, opened the gate. Sơn Tinh presented the offerings to welcome Princess Ngoc Hoa as his wife.

The bridal procession was organized with solemn rituals and customs of the ethnic community. The bride was escorted from her home to the communal temple (shared temple of Vi and Treo villages) for the villagers to express their gratitude. After the gratitude ceremony, the bride was carried on a sedan through Trieu Phu village and then back to Tản Mountain along the Red River.

Arriving at the head of the village at a sandalwood tree (a sandalwood tree built from horizontal onyx stones at human eye level), due to her affection for her parents, Ngoc Hoa decided not to proceed further. The villagers had to perform a Thanh Hoang village worship ceremony here. After the worship, the villagers engaged in various performances such as making sounds, hunting pigs, presenting offerings, displaying elephants and horses, and performing comedic skits to entertain the princess. Thanks to these activities, she was pleased and agreed to continue on the sedan to her husband’s house.

The sedan procession continued to Cau Tay (Cau Cap Bridge); the princess descended the sedan and floated downstream along the Hong River. The villagers stood on the banks to bid farewell until the princess disappeared behind the green bamboo groves. At this point, the escorting festival of “Rước Chúa Gái” concluded, and the chosen husband, who was a relative of Sơn Tinh, rushed forward to cover the bride with a red cloth, then quickly carried her home. After passing the gate, he carried the bride through the buffalo stable to enter the house. This action symbolized releasing the soul of the princess, preventing her from losing her daughter’s soul. Subsequently, the villagers performed the worship of elephants and horses and closed the temple without further rituals, offering only basic sacrifices like chicken rice and wine.

In the present day, the memory of this event is preserved among the people of Vi and Treo villages, known as the “Tản Viên receives the bride” or “Escorting the Fairy Princess.”

In the feudal era of self-rule, the people of Vi and Treo villages, now part of Chu Hoa Commune and Hy Cuong Commune in Lâm Thao District, respectively, had the common name: Làng He. Vi Cương hamlet was abbreviated as Vi, now belonging to Chu Hoa Commune. Triệu Phú hamlet was known as Treo, now belonging to Hy Cương Commune. Both hamlets are near the historical site of Den Hung.