Yangcheng Guoyu Village

　　   Guoyu Village is a castle-style ancient village. Its city wall was first built during the Ming Dynasty, stretching 1,400 meters in total. The village still preserves nearly 40 structures from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, totaling over 1,100 rooms, represented by landmarks such as the Tangdi Temple, Guoyu Fortress, Yulou Tower, shops, and residential houses. The profound influence of an education-focused agrarian culture, a strong commercial mindset, and the village’s unique military-strategic location have shaped its distinctive village appearance and cultural depth. It features both official residences and merchant mansions, as well as common homes, ritual and ancestral temples, and defensive structures such as the city wall and Yulou Tower. Despite centuries of weathering, these remains remain intact, forming a unique ancient architectural complex in northern rural China. Luo Zhewen praised it as: “A gem among Chinese vernacular dwellings — the lofty walled city of Guoyu.”