Gufeng Village

Gufeng Village

Nestled among mountains, Gufeng Village is quaint and elegant, with beautiful natural scenery and unpretentious cultural heritage. It is brimming with vitality and a majestic charm. The Huizhou people, who highly valued feng shui, demonstrated particular attention and distinct characteristics through their ancestors in the village. Known as “guarded by lions and elephants, watched over by turtles and snakes,” the lion stands for majesty, the elephant for kindness, the turtle for longevity, and the snake for purity—symbolizing the prayers of the ancient villagers. Within the village lie six scenic spots that captivate visitors: Wangjun Mountain, Yifeng Peak, Wulong Cave, Sheji Rock, Seven Stars Chasing the Moon, and Yunzhuang Academy. The past of ancient Gufeng Village holds much that is worthy of careful interpretation and study by people today.

A pagoda tree stream about three to four hundred meters long runs through the village, acting as a radiant pearl in the conceptual construction of Gufeng Village’s scenery. Like a pure white jade belt encircling the village, it is pristine and graceful from head to toe, traversed by more than ten granite arch bridges. Each bridge is furnished with stone benches and chairs, and some even have exquisitely crafted “beauty rests.”

On both sides of the pagoda tree stream are wide flagstone paths and a uniform style of Huizhou architecture—white walls, black tiles, and horse-head gables. Especially notable are the numerous official residences, which further highlight the village’s prosperity and elegance. It is a rare example in Jixi of “small bridges, flowing water, and rustic homes,” a classic Huizhou-style “garden” village, a splendid natural landscape painting, and the first aspect of Gufeng Village’s “one beauty, two abundances, and three wonders.”

The “two abundances” refer to “abundant residences and abundant ancient buildings.” There is a dedicated section discussing the many official residences; here we focus on the “abundant ancient buildings.” While time has brought changes and the present is not what it once was, the historical prosperity and remnants still strongly reflect the great number, unique character, and impressive scale of these ancient structures. In November 1993, the renowned Chinese architectural expert Mr. Zheng Xiaoxie praised after an inspection: “Feng Village boasts a beautiful environment, many typical Huizhou-style buildings that are rare and in urgent need of protection.” Here we cite two documented examples: in a handwritten copy of the Gufeng genealogy housed in the county archives, there is a record titled “Record of the Linqing Hall”: “The master of the house, in his heart, is told that the stream flows with countless threads, all crystal clear—how could it not be because its source is pure? From the ancestors to you yourself, your family has passed down integrity and purity through the generations…” Although this speaks of the path of “cultivating one’s heart,” it reflects that the hall’s owner was a family of considerable stature, certainly with extraordinary architecture, emanating a rich scholarly atmosphere. A local, Wang Pu, wrote “light competing with curtains and screens,” describing the grandeur of the building—with bright red lanterns hanging high, curtains hanging down, poetry, music, and books evoking the splendor of the magnificent Linqing Hall. Additionally, according to Gufeng historical materials compiled in 1985 by four villagers including Feng Huaqing (then 75 years old), and now preserved by his son Feng Zhijian, there is a record of a wealthy family who built the “Meiyuan Studio,” cultivating over a hundred plum tree stumps, creating a private garden. This gives us a glimpse into the extraordinary architecture of that household.

The “three wonders” are the three marvels: the ornamental pillars, the pagoda trees, and the arched bridges. There are nine ornamental pillars, made of granite and shaped like cylindrical columns with rounded tops, erected on both banks of the pagoda tree stream. Over two meters tall, villagers call them “horse-tying pillars,” and there is also a legend that these pillars were used to hang “sky lanterns” for lighting. In the Ming Dynasty, they were called “sky-supporting pillars.” In ancient times, they were known as “defamation wood,” symbolizing the call for the public to “offer candid advice.” This shows the civilized essence of Gufeng Village’s ancestors. The nine pagoda trees were planted during the Ming Jiajing era. Village elders say each tree is lush and robust, with trunks around 60 centimeters in diameter. They embody the meaning of “befriending others for their virtue.”

The arched bridges are what made Feng Village famous both within Jixi (“Nine Pagoda Trees and Thirteen Bridges”) and beyond Huizhou. A single village having 13 bridges is unique in Jixi, and among the old Huizhou prefecture’s six counties, it ranks second only to the “Three Wonders of Kengkou Pan Village” in Wuyuan, which has a hundred bridges. Bridges are considered iconic scenic highlights that connect cities and villages. In the famous Song Dynasty painting “Along the River During the Qingming Festival,” the most eye-catching feature is a bridge spanning like a rainbow. The thirteen bridges of Feng Village are: Longmen, Yunzhuang, Anren, Chongli, Dashu, Chongyi, Shangde, Lotus, Green Lotus, Red Bridge, Beishan, and Dushan. Among them, the “Record of the Reconstruction of Longmen Bridge in the Jiajing Xin Hai Year” from the genealogy copy states: “The beams span across two temples, facing each other over a central stream, flanked by the White Tiger and embraced by turtles and dragons holding a pier with their snouts, beneath which lies a gorge… where the Cloud Bridge was built, named Longmen Bridge. Above the bridge, a pavilion was constructed with carved pillars serving as a screen.” “Next to Longmen Bridge are the Wenchang Pavilion and Guanyin Pavilion, where the annual Guanyin Festival is held. Built between the cliffs, the bridge has a huge rock lying beneath it, with a hole over a foot in diameter in the middle, through which the stream water flows, churning silver waves. Above the bridge is a covered walkway with a ‘beauty rest,’ facing one side toward the screen and the other toward the stream. In leisure time, one can sit, listen to the babbling brook, gaze at the moon through the cave window, enjoy laughter all around—a picturesque scene blending landscape and culture, truly enchanting.”

Little-known is the fact that the bottom of the pagoda tree stream is entirely paved with granite stones, demonstrating the ancients’ advanced awareness of environmental protection and disaster prevention. This not only reflects the village clan’s economic prosperity but also serves as evidence of the villagers’ noble spirit in supporting public welfare and sanitation. The official residences, arched bridges, memorial archways, corridor pavilions, ornamental pillars, pagoda trees, flowing springs—all blend together like a symphony of classical architecture. Visitors who come here are enthralled, lingering and finding it hard to leave.