Dongziguan Village

Dongziguan Village

Dongziguan Village in Changkou Town, Fuyang District, Hangzhou, is an ancient village along the Fuchun River. It connects Tonglu and Jiande upstream and links to Fuyang and Qiantang downstream. Historically, Dongziguan thrived thanks to this great river and its bustling wharf. In Yu Dafu’s 1932 work "Dongziguan," he depicted the riverside town as tranquil, leisurely, serene, and self-sufficient.

“Dongziguan lies on the eastern bank of the Fuchun River. The Qiantang River bends at Fuyang, and from here upward, it becomes the Fuchun River — the east-west current shifts to a north-south flow...” In his 1932 novel "Dongziguan," Yu Dafu, a native of Fuyang, briefly explained the geographic origins of this once-prosperous ancient port town, which had bustling trade and numerous shops.

Looking at the map, Dongziguan is located just below Tongzhou Island. The two branches of the Fuchun River converge here, and the well-preserved traces of the ancient river wharf and post road along the shore resemble the teeth of a comb, meeting the needs of villagers, boatmen, merchants, and travelers from upstream and downstream. One can imagine that in the old days, as a key water checkpoint along the Fuchun River, even if not extraordinarily lively, Dongziguan must have enjoyed a prosperous and contented civilian life.

The village has an 800-year-old camphor tree, and the Yue Stone Temple by the river was built in the 18th year of the Jiaqing reign. The decline of water transport, the rise of land transport, and the accelerating urbanization process have gradually made Dongziguan an obscure name over the past thirty years. The Fuchun River basin has no shortage of picturesque water towns. Compared to the nearby 3-kilometer-away ancient village cluster of Shen’ao in Tonglu — consisting of four distinct natural villages (Shen’ao, Dipu, Huancun, and Xufan) that compete for resources and visitor attention — Dongziguan’s quietness and desolation instead exude a sense of detachment from worldly strife.

To this day, Dongziguan Village retains nearly a hundred ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing dynasties, such as the Xu Family Courtyard, Anya Hall, and Yue Stone Temple. It also preserves many historically valuable sites, including the remnants of the “Official Boat Wharf” and the ancient post road.

Many people visit Dongziguan because of its Hangzhou-style residences. These homes feature white walls, smoked-color roofs, and streamlined roof tiles, with each building seemingly connected to the next — like houses straight out of a painting by Wu Guanzhong. Nestled beside golden-yellow rice fields, their gently curved and elegant roof lines and stone walls render an abstract yet refined image of Jiangnan households. In the public area at the heart of the village, there is also a building with an antique exterior where visitors can quietly read books or gather with friends for relaxed chats.

A half-day in Dongziguan is a leisurely and elegant experience. If you visit on a rainy day, you can feel the simple tranquility — strolling through the village as light rain falls brings peace to your heart; if you come when the sun is shining, you’ll sense serenity and depth, with distant vendor calls echoing through the corners and the blue river surface whispering its own stories. Long alleys and smooth bluestone paths seem to show the passing of time and travelers.

The late Tang Dynasty poet Cui Hao once wrote, “At dusk, where is my hometown? The misty river makes me sorrowful.” Homesickness, especially for a hometown that happens to be a beautiful village, is indeed a deep-rooted aspect of Chinese culture and an enduring sentiment. This is the essence of a beautiful countryside — the hometown that Yu Dafu sailed away from.