In the past, there was once a pagoda called the Leifeng Pagoda, situated on the shore of the beautiful West Lake (in Hangzhou, Jiangsu Province).

According to legend, over 700 years ago, there was once a whit snake that was transformed into a beautiful woman named Bai Niangzi (also known as Madam White Snake), who met and fell in love with a man named Xu Xian on the shore of the West Lake. They lived together happily. However, there was a monk, named Fahai, who knew that Bai Niangzi was in fact a white snake. He caught her and placed her in captivity underneath the Leifeng Pagoda. Fahai said that he would not release her unless the Leifeng Pagoda collapsed and the water in the West Lake dried up.

More than 70 years ago, the Leifeng Pagoda on the shore of the West Lake really collapsed. Although people never saw the beautiful Bai Niangzi, many thousand-year-old Buddhist sutra scrolls were discovered hidden between the bricks of the Leifeng Pagoda. Later, many precious cultural relics were also discovered beneath the Leifeng Pagoda. The new Leifeng Pagoda, situated on the shore of the West Lake, was rebuilt in accordance with the original pagoda’s appearance.