Huang Rongyuan Hall: The Unconcealable Radiance of a 'Mixed-Blood'

Among the more than a thousand old villas on Gulangyu Island, No. 32 Fujian Road, Huang Rongyuan Hall, is considered a classic masterpiece of high culture and elegance. Who has such substantial financial strength and such exceptional aesthetic vision to build a villa that stands out from the rest? Even the Haitian Hall complex, formed by the five villas opposite, cannot conceal its jade-like brilliance. Huang Rongyuan Hall is a paragon of Sino-Western fusion, not only because its main building integrates Greek columns, Nordic window lattices, and Chinese pavilions, but even the Taihu rocks in the courtyard, reflecting the clear water, are surrounded by layers of seasonal flowers, like ripples caused by a stone thrown into a pond. The term 'mixed-blood' seems very fitting for it—just like with people, when the thousands of miles of travel for a union are matched correctly, it can give birth to spirits of heaven and earth, and unparalleled beauty in the human world.