Former Residence of Li Fuchen

　　   The former residence of Li Fuchen is located at No. 12 Huayuan Road, Heping District, currently. The main building was built in 1918, with a brick-and-wood structure, consisting of two floors and a basement, covering a construction area of 4,891 square meters. The building was actually the residence of Li Fuchen’s sons, Li Jifu and Li Zhinian. Later, since Li Fuchen’s mother preferred living in a bungalow, additional single-story houses were added. The entire site covers an area of 8.144 municipal mu (5,429.36 square meters). Designed by Swiss architect Lü Fu from the Loyal Engineering Company, it is a group of buildings imitating the style of an English courtyard. The main entrance of the main building faces south and features a porch with three arched windows adorned with square steel openwork decorations. Ascending the steps leads to a square corridor, where there used to be a central fountain in the courtyard, with large flower stands positioned at the four corners. On the east, west, and north sides of the corridor, there are three sets of buildings respectively. The central areas of the east and west buildings both feature two-story-high cross-vaulted halls, with four Ionic columns on pedestals standing at each corner. The interior decoration of the building is extremely refined — all residential rooms use Philippine wood, double-sash windows, and red ceramic brick flooring, while the hall floor is made of decorative terrazzo. Parts of the exterior walls feature square pilasters and protruding windows, with dentil moldings on the eaves, offering a novel and unique design. The surrounding courtyard of the main building is filled with greenery and flowers, with an iron-fenced wall on the southern side. This grand residence, situated along the street and highly eye-catching, features a unique style, elegant design, tranquil surroundings, and an air of luxury. It is a fine example of modern architecture decorated using classical methods.

　　Li Fuchen (?～1910)　　   Li Fuchen (？－1910) was a native of Tianjin. In his early years, he came from a poor family and made a living as a peddler, running a small money stall, exchanging silver currency, and dealing with money notes. Observing that employees of foreign firms in Tianjin earned relatively good incomes, he sought help to get a job as a handyman at the British-owned Jardine Matheson-affiliated trading company, Dent & Co., performing odd jobs such as carrying slop buckets. Due to this experience, even after he became wealthy, people often referred to him behind his back as “Slop-water Li.” In the late Qing Dynasty, due to variations in the silver content and standards across regions, as well as the complexities of dealing with copper cash, money notes, and transfer codes, the Chinese accounting offices of foreign firms had to hire experienced locals to handle silver exchange, cash counting, and debt collection... More+

　　Li Jifu 　　   Li Jifu was the son of Li Fuchen (a native of Tianjin who became wealthy as a comprador for Dent & Co., and was known as “Dent’s Li”), and he also served as a comprador for the British firm Dent & Co. After Li Fuchen passed away in 1910, Li Jifu and his younger brother Li Zhinian took over the comprador positions at the firm. The two brothers divided their responsibilities, with Li Jifu handling imports and Li Zhinian managing exports. At the time, import operations were less profitable than exports, so the activities of his younger brother Li Zhinian became the primary source of wealth for the “Dent’s Li” family. Another source of the “Dent’s Li” fortune came from real estate — taking advantage of the expansion of the British Concession, they bought land and sold it at higher prices, amassing great wealth and acquiring multiple properties. Li Jifu passed away in 1927 due to illness... More+