Xiuning: Wan'an Ancient Town

The Wan'an Ancient Town in Xiuning is four kilometers east of Xiuning City. It was once the seat of Xiuning County. I often pass by it on Qiyun Avenue in Xiuning, but I have never gone in to take a look.

It seems that Xiuning has already released an overall renovation plan for Wan'an Ancient Street, but it is just a mere text, and no major actions have been taken for many years.

Wan'an Ancient Town used to be one of the four ancient towns in Huizhou. Now the whole street has not been developed for tourism and looks deserted. Many shops and houses have been deserted. However, walking on the old street is still a sight. You can still vaguely feel the bustling atmosphere of businessmen and porters back then.

Different from other traditional villages in Huizhou, Wan'an Ancient Town is affected by political, economic, transportation and other factors, and exudes a strong commercial atmosphere.

There are many shops on both sides, and there are many time-honored brands and old workshops. It is said that during the heyday of the Qing Dynasty, the ancient town had more than 400 shops. Looking at the old street from the angle below, if you are filming a movie with old themes, you don’t need to rearrange the scene props.

Ninety percent of the stores are empty, and the few remaining old shops are also deserted, probably in preparation for the next step of development.

Seeing this old-fashioned counter reminds me of the "Xianheng Hotel" written by Lu Xun. It is nothing more than this pattern. The short-yi gang asked for a pot of rice wine and a plate of fennel beans, "standing outside the counter." , drink it hot and take a rest.”

I still find it interesting when I read Lu Xun’s “Kong Yiji” now. Why didn’t I find it interesting when I read it? Now that I think about it, it's not my fault, it's my teacher's failure to teach me well. A vivid novel sounds like crap.

I don’t know if this is a father and daughter or a father-in-law and his daughter-in-law, making tofu skin in the workshop. I was very careful when taking pictures, for fear of being ridiculed, but fortunately, they didn't react at all. If it were developed into a tourist attraction in the future, and it would be crowded with people all day long, would it still be so calm? I remember that a sign suddenly hung in the window of an old barber shop in Tuochuan, Wuyuan: "Ten yuan for taking a photo."

I saw a dozen old people in their sixties on the old street. I asked the two people in front of them, one came from Shanghai and the other from Jiangsu, if they were returning home. After Ning attended a class reunion, he came to the ancient town to look for traces of his youth.

The distant memories seem to be gradually awakened, as if they have returned to the past. The young man left home and the old man returned, the local accent has not changed and the hair on the temples has faded. It is sad to visit the old place again. Things have changed and people have changed. Think about it, the scene of this ancient town is not like life. No matter how beautiful it is, it will eventually become a thing of the past.

The main road of Wan'an Ancient Town runs east-west along the Hengjiang River. The streets and alleys are shaped like fish bones, with more than ten alleys branching out from south to north. When you walk into an old house and take a closer look, you will see that the interior has been damaged. It is quite serious. It seems that the restoration of the entire ancient town requires considerable financial resources.

Walking down the stairs along the old street and passing through the alleys along the river, you will find Wanan’s Shuibu Wharf. When land transportation was underdeveloped, Wan'an had always been an important cargo distribution center in ancient Huizhou. It is said that in the heyday of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, there were as many as 80 large and small water ports along the river. Looking into the distance from here, you can see that the Hengjiang River flows from west to east, but after passing Wan'an, it is blocked at the ancient city rock line and turns south.