Baozhu Temple

　　Baozhu Temple is situated at the meeting point of Yao River and the Pearl River estuary in Huangyao Town, named after its proximity to Baozhu Mountain. Originally built in the third year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1524), it underwent two major restorations—in the ninth year of the Qianlong reign (1744) and the twentieth year of the Guangxu reign (1864) of the Qing Dynasty. The temple consists of upper and lower halls, both adorned with carved beams and painted rafters, stone pillars, and roofed with glazed tiles. The murals inside the halls are strikingly lifelike. A pair of stone lions guards the entrance. With a screen wall and moon gate framing the view, the temple is bordered by water on three sides and flanked by several ancient banyan trees. At the foot of Baozhu Mountain lies an arched bridge, at the head of which stands the Zuolong Ancestral Shrine. Beneath the bridge is a large rock shaped like a carp, as well as a “Yu Gate” (a traditional symbolic gateway) about three meters high, known as the “carp leaping through the Dragon Gate.” To the left of Baozhu Temple is the famous Huangyao Ancient Stage, facing the clear, jade-like waters of Yao River, where a stone stepping bridge has also been built for pedestrians’ convenience. In the autumn of 1945, both the Guangxi Provincial Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and Huangyao Middle School were housed within Baozhu Temple. Due to years of neglect and damage during the Cultural Revolution, parts of the structure were demolished. In 1984, the county government allocated funds for a complete renovation. In July 1986, it was reopened to the public as the former site of the Guangxi Provincial Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, attracting a steady stream of visitors.