Shuikouying Village

Shuikouying Village

Shuikouying Village is known as the home of “three successful imperial examination candidates in successive years and two tribute students from the same examination list.” Starting with Shang Tinghuan, the father of Shang Yanliu, four generations of the Shang family pursued scholarly careers, producing two imperial jinshi degree holders. As a result, some say the Shang family is synonymous with Guangdong’s scholarly gentry in modern times. The last “zhuangyuan” (top imperial scholar) in Chinese history was Shang Yanliu, a descendant of this village.

Recommended Attractions:

In addition to visiting the former residence and hometown of China’s last zhuangyuan, visitors are also encouraged to explore a rare grove of “ekki trees.” On the northern side of the village, along the waterfront, there is a 30-acre ekki tree forest—rare, protected ancient trees classified as a second-class national heritage. The ekki forest connects to nearly 100 acres of fish ponds and about 50 acres of lychee orchards.

Travel Tips

Address: Located beside Huadu Avenue.

Shuikouying Village: Situated in the southeastern part of Huadong Town, Shuikouying Village lies along the central section of Huadu Avenue. It covers an area of 324 hectares, includes five villager groups, and has a total population of over 1,570.

Our village has a rich cultural background. It still preserves the Shang family ancestral hall and three flagpole stone plaques commemorating imperial examination achievements. Historical records note that “three successful imperial examination candidates in successive years and two tribute students from the same examination list” refers to Shang Tinxu (who ranked 35th in the 1889 Imperial Examination's Enke section for Shuntian Prefecture, achieved the second class in the palace examination, and was appointed as an official in the Ministry of Revenue), Shang Yanliu (China’s last zhuangyuan, who once served as director of the Guangdong Provincial Research Institute of Culture and History; his son Shang Chengzuo became a professor at Sun Yat-sen University… More detailed information on Shuikouying Village++)