The Grand Liu Residence of the Liu Family in Ningxin

The Grand Liu Residence of the Liu Family in Ningxin

The Grand Liu Residence of the Liu Family in Huangling, Ningxin, Xingning, is situated in the northeastern suburbs of Xingcheng, approximately 2 kilometers from the city. With a total area of over 4,500 square meters, it was originally constructed in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, boasting a history of around 300 years. It is a classic example of traditional Hakka "weilong" style architecture. The front portion of the residence includes a semicircular pond covering more than a thousand square meters, while the rear is made up of semicircular residential buildings, collectively forming a roughly circular layout reminiscent of the Taiji (yin-yang) symbol. The main structure of the Grand Liu Residence is built primarily using earthen bricks, timber, and roof tiles. Its most distinctive feature is that it remains warm in winter and cool in summer, offering moisture resistance—making it well-suited to the warm, humid climate of southern China. This type of enclosed residence also provides fireproofing and theft prevention, resembling a small self-contained “kingdom,” and stands as a microcosm of China’s self-sufficient agrarian society.

The main building of the Grand Liu Residence has a width of 65.5 meters and a depth of 63.4 meters, covering a constructed area of 3,729 square meters. It houses an imperial plaque inscribed with an edict from the 12th year of the Qianlong reign. It is said that three generations of the family donated 3,000 dan (a unit of volume) of grain for disaster relief, earning imperial plaques from Emperors Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong.

Yilian Village: Yilian Village in Xingning City, Meizhou, is located in the western suburbs of Xingtian Subdistrict Office. The village administers 34 villager groups, with 1,000 registered households and a population of 3,373. The total area of the village is 0.8 square kilometers, including 900 mu of arable land. Yilian Village experiences an average annual temperature of 21.4°C and an annual precipitation of approximately 1,227.3 mm, characterized by a subtropical monsoon climate. The total rural economic income of Yilian Village in the previous year was 1.5 million yuan. … Yilian Village Detailed Information++