Hu Xueyan Memorial Hall

Hu Xueyan Memorial Hall

Located in Jixi County, the memorial hall covers an area of approximately 800 square meters and includes two courtyards. The site was originally built during the Ming Dynasty as the Wenchang Temple. The memorial hall uses a large number of photographs, books, and artifacts to recreate the life of Hu Xueyan, who experienced both highs and lows in the worlds of business and government. It is reported that the memorial hall has collected nearly a thousand tools and daily items used by Hu Xueyan during his lifetime, with over a hundred already sorted and displayed. The memorial hall has also specially created a "Pharmacy" modeled after the "Hu Qing Yu Tang" traditional medicine shop, where Hangzhou's "Hu Qing Yu Tang" provides thousands of types of traditional Chinese patent medicines and employs traditional Chinese medicine experts to offer services to visitors.

Hu Xueyan, born in 1823 and died in 1885, had the childhood name Shunguan and the courtesy name Xueyan. He was from Huli Village. In his youth, Hu came from a poor family and made a living by herding cattle. When he grew older, he was recommended to work as an apprentice at a money shop owned by a family surnamed Yu in Hangzhou. He earned the shop owner’s favor and was promoted to run errands. In the tenth year of the Xianfeng reign (1860), due to the shop owner having no heir, Hu was gifted the money shop before the owner’s death and subsequently opened his own bank, Fukuang Bank. He also interacted with officials and became a prominent merchant and local notable in Hangzhou.

In November of the eleventh year of the Xianfeng reign (1861), when the Taiping Army attacked Hangzhou, Guangyong purchased and transported weapons and grain from Shanghai and Ningbo to supply the Qing army. Zuo Zongtang, who served as the governor of Zhejiang, appointed Guangyong as the general manager in charge of provincial finances and military provisions, which led to substantial profits for Fukuang Bank. Officials both inside and outside the capital treated Fukuang as their unofficial treasury, depositing unlimited funds. He also assisted Zuo Zongtang in establishing enterprises, managed the Shanghai Procurement Bureau, oversaw the Fujian Ship Administration Bureau, handled the purchase of foreign machinery and weapons, and recruited foreign technical personnel, from which he earned substantial commissions. He also manipulated commerce in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, monopolizing silk and tea exports, controlling the market and dominating finance.

By the eleventh year of the Tongzhi reign (1872), Fukuang Bank branches had expanded to over 20 locations across China. With capital exceeding 20 million taels and land holdings of tens of thousands of acres, Hu was awarded the honorary title of Acting Prefect of Jiangxi and granted the privilege of wearing a yellow mandarin jacket due to his contributions to supporting Zuo Zongtang, making him a typical example of an official-merchant.

In the thirteenth year of the Tongzhi reign, plans were made to establish the Hu Qing Yu Tang Xueji Traditional Medicine Shop. In the second year of the Guangxu reign (1876), over 10 acres of land were purchased outside Yongjin Gate in Hangzhou to build a gelatin factory. Based on an existing prepared medicine shop, Hu Qing Yu Tang Xueji invested heavily in hiring renowned physicians from Zhejiang, collecting ancient prescriptions, summarizing experience, and developing over 400 proven formulas for pills, powders, ointments, medicated wines, and elixirs. These were precisely prepared for easy transport and consumption. At the time, with frequent wars and epidemics, products such as “Hu’s Plague-Expelling Pill,” “Zhuge Military Powder,” and “Eight-Treasure Red Spirit Pill” gained immense popularity. Later, Hu Guangyong personally wrote a plaque inscribed with the words “No Deception,” instructing employees that “the pharmaceutical industry concerns lives, and deception must never occur,” and that “procurement must be genuine, and preparation must be meticulous.” The herbs used were directly sourced from their places of origin, and Hu established his own deer farm. Hu Qing Yu Tang became one of the largest domestic traditional medicine shops producing a comprehensive range of Chinese patent medicines, gaining fame both in China and abroad and contributing to the development of China’s pharmaceutical industry.

In the eighth year of the Guangxu reign (1882), Guangyong opened a silk factory in Shanghai, spending 20 million taels of silver to monopolize the purchase of millions of piculs of newly produced silk in China in an attempt to control the silk trade. This angered foreign merchants, who united to boycott Chinese silk. Additionally, as customs and maritime transport were controlled by foreigners, direct export was not possible. By the summer of the following year, the silk had to be sold at low prices, resulting in losses of 10 million taels, half of his family fortune. With cash flow issues and rumors spreading, officials from various regions rushed to withdraw deposits, leading to widespread unrest. In November, businesses across the country collapsed, family assets were liquidated, Hu Qing Yu Tang changed ownership, and bankruptcy was declared. Soon after, the Qing court ordered his dismissal, investigation, and severe punishment. Guangyong dismissed his concubines and servants and passed away in despair in November of the eleventh year of the Guangxu reign.

The Red-Topped Merchant Hu Xueyan (1823–1885), also known as Hu Guangyong or the Red-Topped Merchant, was a late Qing Huizhou merchant and an official of the second rank. As a renowned businessman of the late Qing period, Hu Xueyan assisted in founding the Fuzhou Shipyard, the Shanghai Procurement Bureau, and established the Hu Qing Yu Tang Xueji Medicine Shop. Hu Xueyan’s business philosophy emphasized that “Heaven represents innate wisdom, the foundation of business; Earth represents acquired cultivation, relying on integrity to stand; and People represent benevolence and righteousness, understanding choice and balance, adhering to the principle that ‘a noble person loves wealth but acquires it through proper means.’” However, the once immensely popular Hu Xueyan ultimately ended in bankruptcy, surviving his later years on the meager income from Hu Qing Yu Tang. From a broader historical perspective, Hu... More details about Hu Xueyan++