Hejian Prefecture Office

Hejian Prefecture Office

Hejian Prefecture Office is a national AAAA-level tourist attraction.

Hejian Prefecture Office is located in Hejian City, Cangzhou, Hebei Province, and has long been known as the "Foremost Prefecture South of the Capital." With a history spanning 804 years from its establishment during the Northern Song Dynasty to its abolition during the Xinhai Revolution, it was once the workplace of the renowned Northern Song official Bao Zheng. The scenic area covers a construction area of over 5,000 square meters, including six major exhibition zones: Hejian's historical evolution, administrative culture, poetry culture, ancient penal law, temple culture, and integrity culture. Centered around prefectural office culture, it recreates Hejian’s development from ancient times to the present.

The prefectural yamen was the place where ancient Chinese officials handled official business. Hejian City is now under the jurisdiction of Cangzhou, Hebei Province. Historically, Hejian was one of the four renowned prefectures alongside Baoding, Jinan, and Kaifeng, boasting a history of over 2,700 years. Successive dynasties established commanderies, states, prefectures, and prefectural offices here, making it an economic, political, cultural, and military hub south of the capital, hence the title "Foremost Prefecture South of the Capital."

Since the establishment of the prefecture during the Northern Song Dynasty, Hejian had both a prefectural and a county yamen coexisting for 804 years. Thus, the city housed both a prefectural office and a county office until the Xinhai Revolution abolished the prefecture but retained the county. In 1936, the Kuomintang government briefly re-established a commissioner's office here, with both the commissioner’s and county offices located within the original prefectural yamen (now the site of No. 2 Middle School). The old prefectural yamen faced south, with a tall screen wall (zhaobi) erected in front. On either side of the screen wall were gateways (yuamen), beyond which a straight path led to Hejian’s east-west main street. The street-facing side featured a tall wooden memorial archway inscribed with the four large characters “Yan Zhao Xiong Feng” (Heroic Spirit of Yan and Zhao) — (legend has it these were written by Zhili Governor Fang Guancheng). A pair of stone lions stood on either side of the gate, and there was also a well nearby. On the walls beside the entrance (after the Xinhai Revolution), the left side was inscribed with “The World Belongs to All,” and the right with “Select the Virtuous and Capable.” Inside the gate was a guardhouse (reception office), facing two flagpoles with square finials. To the east and west were rooms where yamen runners lived. Further inside was the ceremonial gate (yimen), with staff quarters on the east and west sides where clerks worked. To the east of the gate was the Shenming Pavilion, and to the west was the Jingshan Pavilion. Beyond the yimen lay a broad courtyard pathway shaded by ancient cypresses, lush and verdant. A large bronze bell hung on the western side, inscribed with text containing one thousand taels of platinum, audible up to forty li away. This bell was later looted by Japanese invaders during the War of Resistance.

Along the pathway northward, there were originally five stone steps leading up to a hall called the Great Hall (Dating), which served as the office where the prefect tried cases. For general civil cases heard in the Great Hall, the public was allowed to attend, showcasing the "wise and fair judgment" of the "honorable magistrate." In the center of the Great Hall hung a plaque inscribed with three bold characters: “Bao (?) Tang” (Treasure (?) Hall), said to have been written by Yan Song of the Ming Dynasty. On either side of the Great Hall were side rooms where the prefect rested and changed clothes. In front of the Great Hall stood a Warning Stone Pavilion, with an inscribed stone tablet bearing the words: “Your salary and provisions come from the people’s hard-earned wealth. The common people are easy to oppress, but Heaven is hard to deceive.” This stood opposite the seat of the prefect inside the hall. Behind the Great Hall was a connecting hallway, beyond which lay the Second Hall, where confidential cases were tried without public attendance. Behind the Second Hall was the inner residence, where the prefect (formerly called the provincial governor) and his family lived. On the east and west sides of the inner residence were side rooms used by the prefect for handling official documents and receiving guests. The west courtyard housed a shrine and the office of the Tongzhi (deputy prefect), while the east courtyard contained a land shrine and the office of the Jingli (recorder).

The large screen wall in front of the prefectural yamen was about seven meters high and ten meters wide. After the Xinhai Revolution, the southern side of the screen wall featured a portrait of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. The northern side displayed a passage from the “Datong Chapter” of the Book of Rites: “When the Great Way prevails, the world is for all. The virtuous and capable are selected, trust is promoted and harmony cultivated. Thus, people do not only love their own parents or children. They ensure that the elderly have a proper end, the able-bodied have a useful role, and the young have opportunities to grow. Widows, widowers, orphans, childless elders, and the disabled all receive care. Men have their roles, women their homes. People dislike seeing resources wasted on the ground, but not because they want to hoard them. They dislike not using their own strength, but not for their own benefit. This is the Great Harmony.” This screen wall stood firmly here until after the founding of the People’s Republic of China, when it was demolished in 1963 due to obstruction of traffic during street construction.

South of the prefectural yamen was Prefecture Gate Street, once a bustling and tidy thoroughfare lined with restaurants and shops. At the southern end of the street stood a wooden memorial archway, rebuilt in the eighth year of the Yongzheng reign of the Qing Dynasty (1730), a purely wooden structure with upturned eaves, brackets, painted beams, and carved rafters, quite spectacular. There was a central main gate flanked by side gates, allowing smooth traffic flow in both directions. Above the east and west side gates were inscribed the characters “Cheng Zhen” (True City) and “Zheng Ping” (Upright Peace), respectively. The main gate bore the inscription “Yan Zhao Xiong Feng” (Heroic Spirit of Yan and Zhao), with the signature below reading Commissioner Huang Weicheng — though these four characters were actually written by Wang Bolong, a local scholar (successful candidate in the imperial examinations), in the city. After the founding of the People’s Republic, they were rewritten as “Prosper the Economy” by Bai Jinhua, a teacher at Hejian Normal School, giving this ancient structure a contemporary meaning. This wooden archway was also demolished in 1963 due to street construction.

The reconstruction project of Hejian Prefecture Office officially commenced in November 2010 and was largely completed and opened to the public in June 2013.

Scenic Area Address: Hongpailou Street, Hejian City, Hebei Province

Transportation: Take a taxi within Hejian City to Hongpailou Street.