Pei Bai Village in Shanxi

　　During China’s two-thousand-year feudal society, there was one unique aristocratic family—the Pei clan of Wenxi in Hedong. The birthplace of this clan is now Pei Bai Village, Liyuan Town, Wenxi County, Shanxi Province.

　　Pei Bai Village in Liyuan Town, Wenxi County, is 25 kilometers from the county seat. It officially opened to domestic and international tourists on the third day of the third lunar month in 1995, showcasing its rich historical and cultural heritage of the renowned Pei family and a series of newly built attractions.

　　The Wenxi Pei family was one of the most prestigious and influential clans in Chinese feudal history. Its founding ancestor was a descendant of Feizi, the progenitor of the Qin state. A branch of Feizi’s descendants was enfeoffed in Fei Township, and thus adopted “Fei” as their clan name. Later, during the reign of King Xiang of Zhou, the sixth-generation descendant Ling was granted the title of Lord of Jie Township, and by dropping the radical “邑” (township) and adopting “衣” (clothing), the character was changed to “裴,” becoming the Pei surname. The Pei clan later split into three branches, settling in Hedong, Yanjing, and Xiliang, but genealogical records trace all lineages back to the Pei family of Wenxi, hence the saying “There are no other Pei families under heaven.” From the Qin and Han dynasties, through the Wei and Jin periods, to the Sui and Tang peaks, the clan’s prominence endured, with lingering influence even after the Five Dynasties. The family’s remarkable number of notable figures and their achievements in virtue, scholarship, and literature were truly unparalleled in both Chinese and world history. According to the *Pei Clan Genealogy*, the family produced 59 chancellors, 59 generals, 14 Secretariat Directors, 55 Ministers, 44 Vice Ministers, 11 Attendants, 10 Censors, 25 regional military governors, surveillance commissioners, and defense commissioners, 211 prefects, and 77 county magistrates. Among those ennobled were 89 dukes, 33 marquises, 11 counts, 18 viscounts, and 13 barons. The family also intermarried with royalty, including 3 empresses, 4 crown princesses, 2 princess consorts, 21 imperial sons-in-law, and 20 princesses—truly a lineage of “generals and ministers in succession, nobles in one household,” earning the village the title of China’s “Chancellor Village.”

　　The Pei clan also boasts numerous accomplished figures in academia, worthy of admiration. For example, Pei Xiu of the Western Jin Dynasty was China’s most outstanding cartographer, hailed alongside the European scholar Ptolemy as two brilliant stars illuminating the ancient world’s map-making history from the East and West. His “Six Principles of Cartography”—scale (proportion), orientation (direction), distance (route), elevation (terrain), alignment (angle), and straightness (curvature)—laid a scientific foundation for later map-making and hold an extremely important place in the history of world cartography. Pei Xiu’s son, Pei Hui, was a philosopher and thinker of the Western Jin Dynasty who, amid the prevailing trend of revering Zhuangzi and Laozi and indulging in metaphysical debates, proposed unique, simple materialist views such as “non-being cannot give rise to being” and “being is the foundation of all existence and change.” Pei Songzhi of the Southern Song Dynasty, a historian, annotated the *Records of the Three Kingdoms*, while his son Pei Yi and great-grandson Pei Ziye authored immortal works such as the *Collected Explanations of Records of the Grand Historian* and the *History of the Liu-Song Dynasty*, collectively known as the “Three Historians of the Pei Clan.” Pei Ju of the Sui Dynasty wrote the *Illustrated Account of the Western Regions*, providing detailed descriptions of the politics, economy, culture, transportation, and customs of 14 Western Region states, which holds significant value for studying northwestern Chinese society during the Sui and Tang periods. Pei Shiqing of the Sui Dynasty was the first person in Chinese history to lead an official Sui government delegation to Japan, making important contributions to the development of Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations. Other notable figures include the Eastern Jin novelist Pei Qi, the Northern Wei literary figure Pei Bomin, the Eastern Wei poet Pei Rangyun, and the Tang Dynasty historian Pei Guangting.

　　Today, Pei Bai Village preserves many historical relics of the Pei clan, including architecture, steles, and tombs. The Pei Ancestral Hall, also known as the Jin Ancestral Hall, was built in the third year of the Zhenguan era (629) during the Tang Dynasty. It features a front hall, rear hall, Number One Scholar Archway, and stele corridor, and was once grand in scale, but suffered repeated damage from wars and reconstructions. Jin Gong Pei Du, whose courtesy name was Zhongli, was a key minister serving four Tang emperors—Xianzong, Muzong, Jingzong, and Wenzong—and rose from general to chancellor, eventually being enfeoffed as Duke of Jin. The Jin Ancestral Hall is currently under reconstruction.

　　The Pei Clan Stele Corridor was rebuilt in the 1970s and preserves dozens of ancient steles, which hold high value in both historical documentation and calligraphy artistry. Among them, the *Pei Hong Stele*, combining Wei and clerical script styles, features steady brushwork and was engraved in the third year of the Datong era (568) during the Northern Zhou Dynasty under Emperor Wu, making it the earliest surviving Pei clan stele. The *Pei Jingmin Stele* was composed by Li Baiyao, a historian of the early Tang Dynasty, and written in regular script by the calligrapher Yin Lingming. Its style is close to Yan Zhenqing’s yet also carries hints of Liu Gongquan’s, appearing dignified and weighty with vigorous strokes. The *Pei Guangting Spirit Way Stele* was composed by Zhang Jiuling and written in running script by Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Li Longji. Its brushwork is bold, and the characters are elegant. The *Ping HuaiXi Stele* was composed by the famous Tang Dynasty literary figure Han Yu and rewritten during the Xianfeng era of the Qing Dynasty by the Grand Councilor Qi Junzao. This stele commemorates the achievements of the renowned Tang chancellor Pei Du in suppressing the rebellion of Wu Yuanji in HuaiXi. It consists of four stone slabs erected side by side, exuding grandeur, with excellence in text, calligraphy, and carving, earning it the title of the “Three Perfections Stele.” Additionally, there are 17 Pei clan genealogy preface steles carved between the Jin Dynasty’s Dading era and the Qing Dynasty, representing the essence of the clan’s heritage. These steles are invaluable materials for studying the Pei clan’s history and calligraphy art.

　　The Pei clan tombs are located five kilometers east of Pei Bai Village, on Phoenix Plateau. In the past, the site was filled with countless burial mounds and towering steles, and though most have been leveled or destroyed, their general layout can still be observed, with some tomb areas still retaining stone tablets.

　　To protect the cultural relics of the Pei clan and develop tourism, the Wenxi County government decided to establish the Pei Clan Cultural Tourism Development Zone, constructing attractions such as the Pei Clan Stele Garden, Pei Jin Ancestral Hall, Pei Clan Ancestral Temple, and China Pei Clan Culture City, as well as commercial and entertainment service areas. In 1994, the ancient temple fair on the third day of the third lunar month was revived, and many construction projects have been completed. The Pei Clan Stele Garden, the Exhibition on Pei Jin’s Life and Achievements, the Miniature Landscape of the Pei Clan Cultural Tourism Zone, the Giant Statue and Stele of the Pei Clan’s Founding Ancestor, as well as attractions like the Chancellor Platform and General’s Slope, have begun receiving visitors.

　　Phone: 0359-7028752

　　Address: Party and Government Street, Wenxi County