The 700-year-old city of Guiyang, a cultural heritage site hidden in the bustling city

The ancient city of Guiyang, which was founded in the Yuan dynasty, flourished in the Ming dynasty, was renovated in the Qing dynasty, and was dismantled in the Republic of China. During the Ming dynasty, the ancient city of Guiyang had already formed the basic pattern of 'Nine Gates and Four Pavilions'. The nine gates are: the Great South Gate, the Second South Gate, the Old East Gate, the Great West Gate, the North Gate (now the fountain), the Weiqing Gate, the Liuguang Gate, the New East Gate, and the Hongbian Gate; the four pavilions are: Wenchang Pavilion, Yuhuang Pavilion, Lingguan Pavilion, and Huangjing Pavilion. At the end of the Qing dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, for the convenience of transportation and urban development, the old city walls and gates were demolished one after another. Now, of the 'Nine Gates and Four Pavilions' of the ancient city of Guiyang, only part of the wall of the Old East Gate and the Wenchang Pavilion on its moon city remain, with the other parts only preserved in the form of place names still in use. Wenchang Pavilion, a key national cultural relic protection unit, is one of the main landmarks of Guiyang city, now standing on the left side of the intersection of Zhongshan East Road and Wenchang South Road. The structure of Wenchang Pavilion is ingenious, with a nine-eaved, nine-angled unequal-sided spire roof, nine corners, fifty-four columns, and eighty-one flying eaves and beams, all based on the number nine, which is unique in China. The first floor of the pavilion enshrines Guan Gong, the second floor enshrines Wenchang, and the third floor enshrines the Kui Star, making it the cultural heart of Guiyang city. Standing on the city wall, one can also see the Dongshan Temple opposite. There is a poem that describes the once scenery of Wenchang Pavilion: 'Wenchang Pavilion, crowning the lofty hill, was once the site of the western garden of calligraphy and painting. Sighing at the devastation of the Gui Palace, the sound of reading fades into the land of white clouds.'