Qingyan Town

　　　The ancient Qingyan fortress ruins are located 29 kilometers south of the city. Originally built in the 11th year of the Hongwu reign during the Ming Dynasty (1378), it is now one of the provincial-level historical and cultural towns. With a long history and rich cultural heritage, the town boasts an exceptionally vibrant cultural atmosphere. Within a 3-square-kilometer area, there is a dense collection of temples and ancestral halls, including 9 temples, 8 shrines, 5 pavilions, 2 ancestral halls, 1 institute, and 1 palace—nearly 30 religious and memorial structures, many of which remain well-preserved to this day. These ancient buildings feature rational layouts, majestic appearances, exquisitely carved beams and painted rafters, and multiple layers of upturned eaves, demonstrating ingenious architectural craftsmanship that is truly breathtaking.

　　Guiyang is 28 kilometers from Qingyan, 40 kilometers from Qiantao, and 60 kilometers from Gaopo. Buses run daily from Guiyang — Huaxi — Qingyan — Qiantao — Gaopo from the passenger transport station. Alternatively, you can take a bus to Huaxi and then transfer to a dedicated shuttle heading to Qingyan, Qiantao, or Gaopo.

　　Traveling 12 kilometers south from the center of Huaxi Town will bring you to Qingyan. Qingyan is a nationally recognized historical and cultural town where industrious and simple people of Han, Miao, and Buyi ethnicities have jointly written the town’s history over the past 600 years.

　　 It was strategically situated at the pass of nine mountain ranges and nestled among five peaks. It stands as a remarkable example of military city planning from China’s transitional period between cold and hot weapons—skillfully utilizing the terrain, built along the mountains, with a rational layout and minimal investment but maximum defensive and offensive capabilities. Its defense system was so comprehensive that after enduring countless battles over centuries, it earned the reputation of the “Impregnable Fortress of Qingyan.” The great traveler Xu Xiake, who visited Qingyan, described it as the “vital southern stronghold of Guizhou.”

　　 This is a splendid fusion of Han culture and ethnic minority cultures. A Buyi Tusi castle that began in 1378, after hundreds of years of evolution, has become a town where diverse cultures converge. The town hosts guildhalls from Hunan, Sichuan, Jiangxi, and other places, as well as traditional homes combining elements from Anhui, Shanxi, Hunan, and Guizhou’s Miao and Buyi peoples. Eastern and Western civilizations collide here—it is home to China’s earliest private postal agency, established eight years before the official government post office. A century ago, street signs in the town were even bilingual, featuring both Chinese and English.

　　 This is a fertile ground for flourishing humanities. The town has deep cultural roots, peaceful yet vibrant. Historically, it was home to institutions such as the Guangshun Prefecture School, Qingyan Academy, and Wenchang Pavilion. It produced notable figures like Zhou Yuhuang, Zhao Yijiong, and democratic revolutionary fighter Ping Gang, who served as Secretary-General to President Sun Yat-sen, all adding brilliant colors to Guizhou’s culture.

　　 This is a vortex of inclusive thought. Despite its small size, the town is densely populated with temples and deities, where Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity, Catholicism, and indigenous religions coexist harmoniously. The presence of multiple religions living side by side in peace, with morning bells, evening drums, temples, and churches, creates a uniquely serene and auspicious atmosphere in the ancient town—a truly remarkable sight.

　　 This is an architectural model of harmony between man and nature. The town is embraced by green hills and crisscrossed by clear waters, with a naturally formed layout. Local residents used stones from the mountains to build walls, houses, roads, and bridges. The town features numerous ancestral halls, with the former structures including nine temples, eight shrines, five pavilions, two ancestral halls, one institute, one palace, one tower, one hall, one government office, and eight memorial archways. Among those still standing or restored are three stone memorial archways such as the Zhao Lilun Centenarian Archway, as well as the Dingguang Gate, North Gate, Yingxiang Temple, Ciyun Temple, Wanshou Palace, Wenchang Pavilion, Zhao Gong Ancestral Hall, and Qingyan Academy.

　　 In modern history, the shocking “Qingyan Missionary Case” took place here. During the revolutionary war period, the Red Army passed through here during the Long March. In the Anti-Japanese War era, the Guiyang Liaison Office of the Eighth Route Army established a settlement here, where the parents of — and — once lived.

　　 Strolling through the ancient town, you’ll encounter city walls, gates, old post roads, alleys, stone walls, stone archways, and old wooden houses with double-eaved gray tiles. Swinging shop signs in the breeze, temple bells, and church hymns all carry the weight of endless history, filling Qingyan with an ancient and mysterious atmosphere. Meanwhile, a dazzling array of distinctive local snacks enriches the palate and offers a taste of the town’s deep human warmth.

　　 Because of its rich and colorful culture and strong sense of antiquity, famous films and TV dramas such as “Finding the Gun” and “Yin-Yang Pass · Yin-Yang Dream” were filmed here.

　　 Blending Chinese and Western cultures, and encompassing traditional, religious, and revolutionary cultures, Qingyan is profound in content and rich in heritage. It is known as the “Kaleidoscope of Ancient Towns.”

　　 As a cultural ancient town with hundreds of years of history, Qingyan has produced several cultural figures.

　　 Not far from the center of the ancient town lies Qian Tao’s Qilong Village, the hometown of Zhou Yuhuang, a Hanlin academician of the Qing Dynasty and one of the compilers of the Kangxi Dictionary. Zhou Yuhuang, whose given name was Qiwēi and courtesy name Tong... (the rest appears garbled), authored more than 800 poems and was hailed as the “Leader of Elegance in the Qing Poetry World” and the “Foremost Poet of Guizhou.” In his honor, later generations built the Tong... Pavilion in Qilong Village. This place preserves memories, and literati gather here. The town is a wonderful place for literature.

　　 Within the walls of Qingyan Town emerged Guizhou’s first top imperial scholar—Zhao Yijiong, son of Zhao Guoshu. The Zhao family had four sons, among whom Yijiong became the zhuangyuan (top scholar), while the eldest and third sons both achieved the level of jinshi (advanced scholar)—a true family of talent.

　　 The tradition of education, notable cultural figures, and historical relics enrich the land at the foot of the Dajiang Mountain. They create a strong cultural atmosphere here. During the Anti-Japanese War, some departments of Zhejiang University relocated to Huaxi Qingyan, and mathematician Su Buqing also brought his wife and children here to teach students. Guizhou University, established in 1902 and located in Huaxi, has now entered the “211 Project.” Together with Guizhou Minzu University, the Guizhou Provincial Party School, and Tsinghua Middle School, it forms another beautiful scenic line in Huaxi, collectively carrying forward the enduring cultural legacy at the foot of Dajiang Mountain.