Héguì Building

　　Héguì Building is situated in Zhenshan Village, Meilin Town. Constructed by Jian Ciping in the 10th year of the Yongzheng reign of the Qing Dynasty (1732), it is also called the Foot-of-the-Mountain Building. Covering an area of 1,298.8 square meters, it was built with an investment of 15,000 taels of silver.

　　As the name suggests, Héguì Building encourages people to uphold the traditional Chinese virtue of valuing harmony. True to its name, amid rapid changes and trends, the building exudes exceptional peace, tranquility, and stability.

　　The building is a 5-story rectangular structure standing 21.5 meters tall. The first-floor earthen walls are 1.34 meters thick, narrowing progressively toward the top, with the fifth-floor walls only 65 centimeters wide. It is the tallest square earthen building in the county. The interior features a well-organized wooden and earthen structure with 140 rooms.

　　The building has one main gate in the center, with four staircases located at the east, west, south, and north corners inside the building, leading to all levels. In the center of the courtyard stands a three-room, single-hall style schoolhouse. Above the front door of the hall hang two historically significant plaques: one is the “Promote Education and Respect Teaching” plaque, awarded by Lin Sen, Chairman of the Nationalist Government, and erected by Jian Xianqiang; the other is the “Promote Education and Benefit Overseas Chinese” plaque, gifted in October of the 16th year of the Republic of China by Chen Shuren, Head of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Commission of the Nationalist Government, and also erected by Jian Xianqiang.

　　Héguì Building was constructed on swampy ground using several thousand pine logs as foundations. Due to the unique properties of pine wood, the building has withstood several earthquakes without collapsing. The open ground in the courtyard feels soft underfoot, and bamboo poles inserted into the soil bring up water. There are two wells on the property — one with clear water and one with murky water.

　　Regarding the origin of the murky well, legend has it that it happened when a woman who was in her postpartum confinement period opened a well cover she shouldn’t have.