Longjing Ancient Village, Hezhou, Guangxi

Longjing Village was first settled by the Hu family, followed by the Zhu, Mo, Huang, and Zhang families. According to the Huang family genealogy, the ancient dwellings of Longjing Village were first built during the Wanli period of the Ming dynasty, about 400 years ago. Although the Zhang family was the last to settle in Longjing Village, they had a feng shui master who saw a dragon vein in the village and bought the land from the Hu family to build a house. Since then, the Zhang family has prospered and become the largest family in Longjing Village. Today, Longjing Village still retains a large number of ancient dwellings from the Tongzhi to Guangxu periods of the Qing dynasty, including the former residence of Zhang Tingfu, an advisor to three presidents of the Republic of China. The ancient dwellings of Longjing Village are exquisitely built, with dragon and phoenix carvings, and are well-preserved. Longjing Village is an important settlement for locals, preserving their unique customs. The village has a thousand-year-old ancient post road, paved with stone slabs, over 1,000 meters long. The spring water of Longjing is sweet and fragrant, and the bubbles can predict the weather. The village is dotted with ancient banyan trees, and the Xiaoliang River flows through the village, adding to the idyllic scenery. The village has a 400-year-old archway-style gatehouse, inscribed with "Xusheng Building," which was the entrance to the village in ancient times. Walking on the cobblestone village road, worn uneven by hundreds of years of history, you feel like you are walking into a maze, stepping into an ancient "bewildering array," losing your sense of direction. These winding alleys were used to resist foreign invaders in ancient times, with a distinct military flavor. In the courtyards of some ancient dignitaries, there was a "horse-riding path" for their exclusive use, where you can still seem to hear the sound of horse hooves. On both sides of the main road, there are gatehouses inscribed with "Zhenlong Alley" and "Gongbei Alley," and it is said that the two cobblestone alleys connected to the gatehouses were exclusively for men and women. The ancient dwellings of Longjing are scattered along the winding alleys, with two-entry structures and side rooms, and a courtyard paved with bluestone bricks in the middle for drainage and lighting. Due to the long history and well-preserved ancient dwellings of Longjing Village, many tourists come to visit, and several TV dramas have been filmed here. It is a Chinese historical and cultural village, a fifth batch of Chinese traditional villages, and a key rural tourism village in China.