Architectural layout of Qingzhou traditional ancient villages

In addition to the beautiful mountains and rivers, there are actually many cultural landscapes in Guangxi. Those weather-beaten ancient villages often have many hidden scenic spots that few people know about. There are always some surprises when you find them.

It is said that there is a Longdao Village not far from Zhongshan Town, Hezhou. There is a whole well-preserved ancient house in the village. In particular, the couplets on the doors of these houses are carved in stone, so I decided to go there.

From Zhongshan, I got on the minibus to Coral. After more than 20 minutes, the driver put me at the intersection. Navigation shows that there are still nearly two kilometers to go, so take your legs and walk.

There were bursts of fragrant rice sounds along the road, and there were several villages along the way. It was not until I heard the children's frolicking in the distance that the "Longdao Primary School" appeared. I thought the Gu Jian group I wanted to meet was not far away, but I haven't seen it for some time, so I have some doubts about the accuracy of the information.

Walking inside for a while, I accidentally saw an old woman washing in front of the house. There are several carved stone piers at the door of the house, which look like the stone foundations of ancient buildings. Now they should be used as stone benches or things.

A few more steps, and you will see a big old blue brick house next to it. There is a pool of clear water in front of the house, a small "wind and rain bridge" and a new building with a new masonry structure nearby. The villagers were chatting in the sunshine by the bridge, and they were a little surprised to see a stranger break in. Then they greeted me with a smile and took the initiative to tell me this stranger: "Go up, there are many more behind."

The village built on the mountain is very imposing, and a string of square caves are arranged on the bluestone at the entrance of the lane, which should be the trace of the ancient city gate. Climbing the stairs, the old houses are contiguous, and the castle is still secluded.

Walking into the old house, it was surprisingly quiet around. Each family has a blue brick wall, a unified gray roof, and several have exquisite eaves. Both sides are carved with exquisite patterns of wood, but they are still antique after years.

Try to walk into one of them. The patio and stone steps are overgrown with weeds. The wooden door of the house is a little rotten, and the steps of the house are a little collapsed. There are several big houses with livestock manure left on the ground, which may be used by captive animals, and some still have a lot of farm tools piled up. It turns out that these old houses have long been uninhabited.

But the most gratifying thing is that every family is Shikumen, and the door frame is granite. Couplets are not written on paper, but engraved on stone doorframes. Every family did not repeat it. It is really "Spring Festival couplets last forever, and a picture lasts forever".

The fonts are basically block letters, and the calligraphy is different. The seal cutting form has both yin and yang, and the antithesis is neat and elegant, antique.

Couplets have flat bottom, sharp bottom and round bottom, and flowers are carved at the upper and lower ends, but there is no common horizontal batch. Instead, gossip and leading flowers and plants. I can't help but have a question: will you write a horizontal batch every year?

Looking at the empty old houses, we can see that the houses have two floors and the layout is mostly the same. There is a stone staircase next to the patio on the main hall, and houses are on both sides. The kitchen may be on the side of the main hall upstairs. The space under the kitchen is either piled with firewood, farm tools and other sundries, or raised with poultry and livestock.

You can still see the traces of murals on the wall. On one wall of the largest house, there is a mural of 1 1, and the word "longevity" can be seen vaguely in the middle room. Moreover, these old houses also have a feature that every household is connected together, and each household has a side door or back door leading to the left and right neighbors or alleys.

Judging from the shape of the horse head wall, it is very old in the Central Plains. Many walls have square holes, which are the holes on the turret.

In the middle and late Qing dynasty, the situation was turbulent, and several gun towers and gatehouses were built in the village, and gates were also set up in the alley. Even the fish ponds in front of the village have been changed into trenches, all for defense.

I am the only tourist in the whole ancient building complex. All the old houses are listed as ancient buildings for protection. The old house originally left for it has been cleaned up, but there are almost no signs of reconstruction, and everything remains the same. Walking among them, there is a surprise of exploration. I called my friend half jokingly and half seriously and said, "I'm in the Guangxi version of Angkor Wat."

As for the stone couplets, it is said that there was a juren in the village that year. After his success, he gave up his official career and returned to his hometown to start a private school. He devoted himself to teaching and educating people and lived a poor and lonely life. This was difficult to understand in the feudal society where learning was excellent and being an official at that time, and the villagers felt even more incredible.

As the years passed, he became old, but he trained a group of scholars for the village. Only then did the villagers understand his good intentions and for the sake of Ji Qide did they show that they were the hometown of poetry and ceremony, and that they had the unique scenery of this "stone carving couplet".

The whole ancient village almost completely retains the residential architectural style from the Ming Dynasty to the present, mostly the rest peak and the hard peak, and there are several buildings with the style of the Republic of China, but many paintings and carved beams have naturally decayed, and some old houses have become dangerous buildings.

With the development of social economy and the double impact of modern culture and urbanization, this ancient village with traditional heritage has gradually become an "uninhabited village" with the relocation of villagers.

Later, according to the survey data, there is a reason why the residential buildings in Longdao Village have obvious Sui and Tang dynasties legacy. The whole village was founded in the Yuan Dynasty (A.D. 13 16) by the descendants of Ying Tao, Taiwei of Qingzhou, Shandong Province, and has a history of 700 years. The village has also been listed in the list of the first batch of traditional villages in China, and these ancient villages are also called "the original samples of traditional villages in China".