Former Residence of Wu Cheng'en

Former Residence of Wu Cheng'en

The former residence of Wu Cheng'en is a national AAAA-level tourist attraction and a cultural tourism site.

The former residence of Wu Cheng'en, an outstanding literary figure of the Ming Dynasty, a globally renowned cultural personality, and the author of Journey to the West, is located at the end of Datong Lane in Hexia Ancient Town, Huai'an District, Huai'an City. Hexia is situated in the northwest of Huai'an City, backed by the Inner Canal. The residence is a quaint and elegant courtyard made of blue bricks, featuring structures such as a study. The former residence of Wu Cheng'en has become a famous tourist destination, receiving thousands of domestic and international visitors.

Journey to the West is a universally beloved mythological novel cherished by people of all ages. When you visit Huai'an, you will surely want to see the former home of the author of this world-famous mythological novel and explore the origins of its creation. I believe that after your visit, you will gain insights and inspiration.

Literary Works

Wu Cheng'en was a great literary figure with an extremely rich body of work. However, due to "poverty and having no sons," most of his writings have been lost. The surviving works include the world-renowned Journey to the West and a collection of poetry and prose titled The Remaining Manuscripts of Mr. Sheyang. Additionally, he wrote a short story titled The Chronicle of the Yu Tripod and a collection of ci poems titled New Compilation of Flowers and Grasses, both of which have also been lost. The lost manuscripts of Wu Cheng'en are said to be ten to a hundred times more than what remains today.

A Turbulent Life

In his early years, Wu Cheng'en was intelligent and quick-witted, widely read, and adept at composing poetry and writing essays with ease. His literary talent was recognized early on by officials, seniors, and social celebrities. He had a deep understanding of Confucian classics and could produce admirable prose. As a result, he was confident in achieving success through the imperial examinations. However, fate played tricks on him. Each time he took the provincial examination, he would eagerly travel to Yingtianfu (Nanjing) to sit for the test, only to return disappointed and without success. The reason was his writing style, which valued authenticity and freedom, making him unsuited for the rigid eight-legged essay format. In the autumn of the 13th year of the Jiajing reign, he failed the exam again. On his way back by boat, he visited Jinshan Temple in Zhenjiang. This fan painting was a gift from Wu Cheng'en to Mister Mohu during his visit to Jinshan Temple. The original fan painting is housed in the Yangzhou Museum, and the poem inscribed on it reads: "For ten years my dusty dreams have circled Zhongling; today I bring a pot and try to climb once more. Drunk, I hold flower branches and sing the water tune, playfully writing on banana leaves to beg the mountain monk. The blue sky sees the moon set as river turtles emerge; the crimson temple hears the rooster crow as the sea sun rises. When the wind passes below, laughter is heard, and I am startled to find myself in the midst of white clouds." From this poem, there is no sign of pessimism or resentment due to his failure in the exams; instead, he paints an image of himself as an optimist.

History of the Residence

In the 29th year of the Jiajing reign, around the age of 45, Wu Cheng'en still had not achieved his ambition of gaining official rank. According to the imperial examination system of the Ming Dynasty, those who had obtained the qualification of scholar (xiucai) for a certain number of years but repeatedly failed the provincial examinations would be recommended by the provincial education commissioner (the highest official in charge of education in the province) to the court for appropriate placement, a process called "entering the tribute." Thus, Wu Cheng'en became a tribute student (nian gongsheng) and went to the capital to await official appointment or other arrangements. After waiting in Beijing for over two months, Wu Cheng'en was greatly disappointed—he did not receive an official position but was instead assigned to study at the Nanjing Imperial College. For the next ten years, until he was 59 years old, he remained a student at the Nanjing Imperial College. Around the age of 60, Wu Cheng'en finally secured the position of Assistant Magistrate of Changxing County (a minor official rank equivalent to a deputy county head). Due to his naturally upright character, he was ill-suited to the corrupt practices of the officialdom of the dark times. After just over a year as assistant magistrate, he greatly angered his superiors and was dismissed on charges of "accepting bribes" and placed under arrest. Soon after, the case was cleared, and he was released. Later, the court appointed Wu Cheng'en as Instructor (Jishi) of Jing Mansion (located in Qizhou, now Qichun County, Hubei Province, also the hometown of Li Shizhen), a minor official rank of the eighth grade. He served as a teacher in Jing Mansion. Not long after, due to old age and illness, Wu Cheng'en resigned and returned home. Back home, he devoted himself to organizing his manuscripts and writings, eventually completing the groundbreaking literary masterpiece Journey to the West.

This is the front half-panel of Wu Cheng'en’s coffin, inscribed with the words “Instructor of Jing Mansion.” It was the discovery of this coffin panel that led to the identification of Wu Cheng'en’s tomb, the discovery of his remains and belongings, and the confirmation of many conclusions. Speaking of the discovery of this coffin, there is quite an unusual story:

In December 1974, several farmers secretly dug up unmarked graves in hopes of selling the coffin wood for money. By chance, they unearthed the coffins of Wu Cheng'en and his two wives, though they did not know at the time that they belonged to Wu Cheng'en. The coffins were confiscated by the production brigade and sold to Madian Middle School, where they were to be repurposed as school doors and windows. The carpenter assigned to the task, surnamed Wu, noticed the inscription “The Sacred Coffin of Wu Gong, Instructor of Jing Mansion, Sheyang” on one of the coffin’s cross panels. Someone jokingly remarked, “Master Wu, the owner of this coffin might even be one of your ancestors!” Master Wu was struck by the thought and kept the upper half of the panel—that is the very piece you see now, inscribed with the characters “Instructor of Jing Mansion.” “Instructor” was a minor official title in the Ming Dynasty’s princely establishments, ranked eighth grade, and was a uniquely established position at the time. Research confirms that this is a Ming Dynasty tomb, and among the four Huai'an natives who served as “Instructors” in the Ming Dynasty, the other three served in other princely establishments. Only Wu Cheng'en, after leaving his post in Changxing, was appointed as “Instructor of Jing Mansion.” Moreover, the tomb owner had the surname Wu and was known as “Sheyang Shanren,” fitting these criteria. Among Ming Dynasty Huai'an natives, only Wu Cheng'en met all these conditions—so who else could the tomb owner be if not Wu Cheng'en?

If Wu Cheng'en was born in the wrong era, then the rediscovery of his coffin did not come at a good time either. 1974 was in the late stages of the Cultural Revolution turmoil, when protecting cultural relics was often considered a “crime.” As a result, ordinary people had very weak awareness and knowledge of cultural relic protection policies. Since the coffin did not directly bear Wu Cheng'en’s name, those who knew about the tomb excavation did not understand its historical value, and those with professional knowledge were unaware of the specifics. This led to the tragic loss of many important relics that had survived the upheaval—a truly lamentable situation.

Wu Cheng'en’s tomb was rebuilt in 1982, located in Erbao Village, Madian Township, twenty li south of Huai'an’s Chuzhou District. These photos show places Wu Cheng'en often visited while serving as Assistant Magistrate in Changxing County, Zhejiang—such as the Bell and Drum Tower, Guan Di Temple, and a corner of the county government street gate. This is the preface written by Chen Wen Zhu, Prefect of Huai'an, for Wu Cheng'en’s The Remaining Manuscripts of Mr. Sheyang. Chen Wen Zhu believed that Wu Cheng'en’s poetry could be compared to that of other notable figures from Huai'an’s history, such as Chen Lin, Bao Zhao, and Zhao Gu.

Address: No. 12, Datong Lane, Hexia Ancient Town, Huai'an District, Huai'an City

Type: Garden / Celebrity Former Residence / Exhibition Hall / Exhibition

Rating: AAAA

Recommended Visit Duration: 1–2 hours

Phone: 0517-85181895

Official Website: http://www.wcegj.com.cn/

Opening Hours:

08:00–18:00

Ticket Information:

Gate Price: 40.0 RMB

Wu Cheng'en (circa 1500–1582), courtesy name Ruzhong, art name Sheyang Shanren, was a Han Chinese from Shanyang County, Huai'an Prefecture (now Huai'an District, Huai'an City, Jiangsu Province). His ancestral home was in Gaodian, Tongcheng, Anhui (now Gaodian, Yutan Township, Zongyang County, Anhui Province). Because his ancestors lived in Gaodian, Tongyang, he was known as a member of the Gaodian Wu clan. He was an outstanding novelist of China’s Ming Dynasty and the author of one of the Four Great Classical Novels, Journey to the West. Born into a family that had declined from scholarly officials to merchants, Wu Cheng'en grew up in poverty. From a young age, he was exceptionally intelligent. The Huai'an Prefecture Annals recorded that he was “quick-witted and highly intelligent, extensively read, and could write essays effortlessly.” However, he did not perform well in the imperial examinations... More detailed information about Wu Cheng'en ++