Changqi Ancient Pagoda

　　   The Tiyan Pagoda is commonly known among locals as the Octagonal Tower. It is located by the fields and water’s edge on the southeastern side of Nan’an Market in Changqi Town. Originally built in the 10th year of the Tongzhi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1871), it features a three-tiered, octagonal structure standing 6 meters tall. The pagoda gate is inscribed with the three characters “Tiyan Pagoda” (Pagoda of the Wild Geese), while the base level is embedded with the “Record of the Tiyan Pagoda,” written and inscribed by Li Shizhou, a successful imperial examination candidate from Xiwang Village and an official of the Ministry of Personnel. Constructed from grey bricks and resting on a circular rammed-earth platform, the pagoda has fallen into disrepair over the years, with overgrown weeds and nesting birds adding a wild charm and visibly highlighting its historical patina. The Tiyan Pagoda is shrouded in a mysterious rural aura. It is said that before students began their schooling at private academies prior to the liberation, they would visit the pagoda to burn incense and pray, demonstrating their determination to seek scholarly honors.

　　   The Wangling Ancient Pagoda is also commonly referred to as the Octagonal Tower. It is situated by the Wangling Bridge in Changqi Town and is a stupa-style pagoda, constructed during the Ming Dynasty in the Gengchen year of the Wanli reign (1580). It underwent two renovations, one during the Xianfeng reign of the Qing Dynasty and another in the 1980s. The pagoda consists of two levels: the lower level is called the “Bao De Shrine” (Shrine of Repaying Virtue), with a couplet inscribed on its doors: “Repaying is as weighty as Heaven; Virtue matches Earth without bounds.” It is said to have been established in memory of the Buddhist master Zeng Chi, who once surveyed the mountains and waters for the local villagers. In gratitude, the villagers built the shrine to honor him. The upper level is called the “Wen Di Pavilion” (Pavilion of Literary Emperor), whose door also bears a couplet: “May literary fortune flourish, with brushes sweeping away thousands of troops, glorifying the Han lineage; May the Emperor’s favor shine, with starlight illuminating Seven Melodies over Mount Hua.” Together with the nearby Huashan Li Memorial Hall and the Grand Ancestral Hall of the Huashan Li Clan, the ancient pagoda forms the Huashan Li Clan Ancestral Complex, which is a cultural heritage site protected at both the municipal (Maoming) and prefectural (Huazhou) levels.