Jincheng, also known as Jianxing, belongs to Shanxi and borders Henan. It takes more than three hours to arrive from Kaifeng by car. I have been yearning for the long history of Shanxi for a long time, and I suffer from the restrictions on travel and transportation. Although I have been thinking about Shanxi day and night, I have never set foot here. Now I have a good opportunity to drive by myself. In April, when the new crown epidemic is weakening, the grass is growing and the warbler is flying. At the time of the sky, I came to Jincheng, Shanxi for the first time, which is known as the "cradle of Chinese civilization" of Jinshan and Jinmei.
When it comes to Jincheng, we have to mention a 5A scenic spot - Huangcheng Xiangfu. Located in Huangcheng Village, Beiliu Town, Yangcheng County, Jincheng City. Huangcheng Prime Minister's Mansion is the residence of Chen Tingjing, the lecturer of Jingyan in the Kangxi Dynasty, the scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion, the four ministers of officials, households, criminals and workers, the teacher of Emperor Kangxi, the general reviewer of "Kangxi Dictionary", and the famous minister of Qing Dynasty.


Across the river from the gate of the Huangcheng Xiangfu Scenic Area, there are many hostels and homestays built by local villagers at affordable prices. However, when navigating, you must pass a bridge to the other side of the river, and do not enter the paid parking lot, drive the car directly along an uphill road, and park in front of the hotel you booked.


If economic conditions permit and you want a hotel with a better accommodation environment, there are three-star and four-star hotels next to the Huangcheng Xiangfu Scenic Area. The choices are many. There is also direct public transportation to Huangcheng Prime Minister's Mansion in downtown Jincheng. It is very convenient to come here for food and accommodation. During the peak tourist season, you can book tickets and accommodation online in advance.



The night before, I went to the hotel opposite the Prime Minister’s Mansion in the Imperial City, where I lived only two or three minutes’ walk from the scenic spot. After twilight, the lights came on, and the huge square was silent, which was the prosperity of the Chen family back then. In the evening, the staff at the ticket gates are also off duty, so they can wander freely in the square.


Early the next morning, in order to avoid crowds, I chose to enter when the scenic spot just opened. The first thing I saw was the real thing on the Yushulou, the four characters of "Wuting Mountain Village" on the Kangxi imperial plaque. "Wuting" is Chen Tingjing's evening number, and Emperor Kangxi named his former residence with his evening number, which is the highest praise for him as a prime minister.


Zhongdaozhuang is located to the east of Yushulou, which is a landmark building in the outer city. You can feel his majesty in front of you when you pass through the Imperial Book Building.




Next is the stone archway, where you can invite a tour guide, the price is 130 yuan. Listen to the tour guide explain the history of this archway, and then follow the tour guide to tour the whole Xiangfu. It took us about two hours to listen to the explanations with the tour guide, and then we toured for an hour on our own. It took us three hours to tour the entire Imperial City Prime Minister's Mansion.



The grandeur of Chen Tingjing's mansion, the staggered placement of the gate and the second gate, and the strict adherence to the architectural specifications of the feudal imperial power of the year all reflect the loyalty and wisdom of a generation of celebrities.



Dianhan hall. Kangxi gave this plaque to Chen Tingjing, remembering that he worked hard and served as the chief examiner of the examination many times to select many pillars for the country.



The plaque of "dragon, flying and phoenix dancing" is Kangxi's highest praise to Chen Tingjing's calligraphy, which is stretched and lively. At the same time, it also contains "the dragon is the king, the phoenix is ​​the minister, the dragon is flying and the phoenix is ​​dancing, the phoenix is ​​following the dragon, the monarch and the minister are in harmony, and the rules are always orderly".



The place where Chen's boudoir and her attendants live, the courtyard is connected to the hall of the West Garden. The roof of the lady's courtyard is a house without eaves in the entire Imperial City Prime Minister's Mansion. It can be seen that in the feudal dynasty, even a famous family can't stand up to the idea that men are superior to women.



In the lonely and deeply lonely lady's courtyard, a door closed the happiness of women in the feudal period. But how many girls today are not still imprisoned in another invisible courtyard.



The pond in front of Miss's courtyard. The pond is in the shape of a shell, and the water is as clear as a pearl in Xiangfu, implying that my daughter is the jewel in my palm.



The pond in front of Miss Fang's courtyard adds a touch of grace to the austere Imperial Prime Minister's Mansion.




As the landmark building of the entire imperial city, the Heshan Tower stands tall in the Xiangfu. Heshan Tower is also known as "Fengyue Tower", which means "heshan is a circle".


When I went, the Heshan Building was not allowed to enter. Windows are only installed on the third floor of the Heshan Building, and the stone gate to enter the fort is suspended above the second floor, and communicates with the ground through a suspension bridge. At that time, when the war was raging in the late Ming Dynasty, this building was mainly built to resist the invasion of bandits.



Looking at it from this angle, there is a modern building in the distance of Heshan Building, called Huangcheng Village. Most of them are villagers who originally lived and moved out of the Imperial City Prime Minister's Mansion. According to the tour guide, each family is compensated for three-storey villas ranging from 300-500 square meters, and there are various welfare subsidies for weddings, funerals, food, clothing, housing and transportation. It's really enviable.



Next to the Cangbing Cave is the Dictionary Museum, which was transformed from Chen Tingjing's former residence. After all, Chen Tingjing compiled the Kangxi dictionary, and the Chinese characters recorded in it are more comprehensive than the current Xinhua dictionary.



The treasure of the dictionary museum. The paper of the "Kangxi Dictionary" set of dictionaries has turned yellow and black. If you turn the pages with your fingers, it is very likely to cause the pages to break. Only professional tools can be used to overturn them. From the pre-Qin period to the present century, the Dictionary Museum shows the development and evolution of Chinese dictionaries in chronological order through physical display and introduction of key works.



The stone statue of Chen Tingjing in the dictionary museum, stepping on many books, implies that Chen Tingjing also relied on the wisdom of his predecessors to compile and compile the entire set of "Kangxi Dictionary".



After leaving the dictionary museum, looking up at the Heshan Tower, I couldn't help but be amazed.



Chen's ancestral hall. The Chen family enshrines the ancestral temple for offering sacrifices to their ancestors. Built in the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, the structure is a courtyard with two entrances, the ancestor worship hall in the front and the pantheon in the back.





The red lanterns in the corridor enliven the Xiangfu with gray and white brick walls.



Opposite to the Prime Minister's Mansion in the Imperial City is the Xishan Courtyard. In fact, it is the family temple of the Chen family. In ancient times, the two most important places for big families were the ancestral hall and the family temple.



The Xishan Courtyard is included in the ticket of the Imperial City Prime Minister's Mansion. After visiting the Imperial City Prime Minister's Mansion, you can go to the Xishan Courtyard to have a look.




After visiting the Xiangfu scenic spot in the imperial city, you can walk for five minutes to the ancient city of Guoyu next to it. At present, you can only enter the ancient city from Jingyang Gate. The road is being built near Jingyang Gate, and there is no parking lot in sight.



Guoyu Ancient City is 300 meters south of Xiangfu in the imperial city (Huangcheng Xiangfu is actually the north wing of Guoyu Ancient City). It is a "famous historical and cultural village in China", a castle-style village at the foot of Taihang Mountain, and the place where Chen Tingjing grew up .



Guoyu ancient city usually tickets 35 yuan, tour guide fee 50 yuan. It is still under renovation and development, and there are still many local villagers living in it. If you are interested in Shanxi ancient dwellings and honeycomb castles, you might as well come here to have a look.



After entering from Jingyang Gate, just follow the tour sequence indicated on the map of the scenic spot. There are few tourists in the ancient city. Compared with the hustle and bustle of the prime minister's mansion in the imperial city, there is more tranquility here, or a feeling of depression and dilapidation.



Many courtyards in the ancient city of Guoyu have not been repaired. After entering the courtyard gate, there are locked houses and overgrown weeds. In fact, I feel that this kind of scene is more artistic than those fake ancient cities full of tourist group loudspeakers and various camera flashes.



The first relatively large building that you see along the road signs is the Tangdi Temple located in the northwest corner of the ancient city. Major events in the ancient city will still be held here today, and it is the largest temple in the village.



The theater building of Tangdi Temple. The people in the audience can't see the old colors when they walk by, and the people on the stage are singing the smoky opera songs of that year. The song is over, in exchange for someone to stop today.



The Tangdi Temple leads directly to the back mountain, and it seems to be the cultivated land of the local people. Tourists return the same way and continue to visit according to the guide signs.



Villagers with business minds repaired the ancient courtyards and started homestays. The cheapest house price is about 200 yuan, but I feel it's weird to live here at night.



This is the well-developed homestay in the ancient village. I don’t know what the scene will be like after nightfall.



The screen wall of Wufu Linmen and the stone lions in front of the gate face each other, and the changes of the years have not changed their persistence.



The landmark building in Guoyu Ancient City - Yu Tower. This building is similar to the Heshan Building in the Imperial City Xiangfu. Located in the center of the village, it was built in the thirteenth year of Chongzhen in the Ming Dynasty (1640). It is the same military building as Guoyu City to defend against the peasant uprising army.


The "Yu" in Yu Tower means defense and being prepared for danger in times of peace. Louxiong lives in the city, in the center of the ancient village, and you can see dozens of miles around from the top. It's a pity that the top of the tower is now restricted, and only the tunnel is available for visitors to experience, but there is an additional charge of 20 yuan.



All kinds of brick carvings and stone carvings in the ancient city are also scattered in every dwelling and plaque, and you need to have a leisurely time to discover them slowly.



It's just that the ancient city has not been fully developed. The ancient buildings and modern doors and windows complement each other, giving people a sense of dreadful sight.



This is a venue in the ancient city that introduces local wedding customs. I can't remember the name. What impressed me the most was the orange light inside.



I really like this bright yellow light, as if I was in the wedding that year.



Through the half-closed door, the little red lanterns on the sedan chair are especially cute. Playing with dragons and phoenixes, the dependents will live for life.



This is the north gate of Guoyu Ancient City - Gongchen Gate. It is also the exit of the ancient city. But here you can only go out but not in. Go out from this door and walk a 100-meter downhill road, which is the parking lot of the scenic spot. Because the whole Guoyu ancient city is a little dilapidated, it takes one and a half hours to finish shopping.



The only scenic spots that can be walked near Huangcheng Xiangfu are the ancient city of Guoyu. It is recommended to drive or take a car to Haihui Temple, which is closer. However, when I went, Haihui Temple was under renovation and was not open to the public, so we drove directly for 15 minutes to the Tianguan Wangfu Scenic Spot, which is 5 kilometers away from the Imperial City Xiangfu.



Tianguan Wangfu is an outstanding politician and reformer in the Ming Dynasty. It is a large-scale official building built by Wang Guoguang, an important official of the Ming Dynasty for 40 years, and his family for several generations. The residential complex has a history of nearly 500 years.



The main road of the entire scenic spot is southeast, and there are signs in the scenic spot, which are clear and clear. You can visit them in sequence according to the numbering order on the map. The ticket price of the scenic spot is 30 yuan.



The gate of the scenic spot is through a bridge and then up the stairs. It is quiet and has the function of defending against enemies and bandits.



The centralization system of the Ming Dynasty was a system in which the cabinet and the six ministries were mutually restrained, and the six ministries were headed by the official ministries. The other names are heaven, earth, spring, summer, autumn and winter. The Minister of the Ministry of Officials was called the Heavenly Official, the Minister of the Household Department was called the Earth Official, the Minister of the Rites was called the Spring Official, and so on, so the local people called Wang Guoguang's mansion the Tianguan Mansion.



There is also a towering watchtower in front of Tianguan Mansion, which must have the same function as Chunqiu Tower and Yu Tower.



After entering the gate and walking up Guhe Street for more than a hundred meters, you will arrive at Tianguan Mansion, also known as Zhong Zaidi. This is Wang Guoguang's mansion.



The Lufeng Courtyard located at the Xianglu Peak in the south of the village cannot be traced when it was built. You can burn incense and worship in the temple, and this is also the place where Wang Guoguang's young man studied.





Because the TV series "White Deer Plain" was filmed in many places here, the scenic spot also used this as a publicity point. The original stills were pasted on the wall of the ancient street. The most impressive one is the farewell scene where Zhang Jiayi stood here.









There is only this archway left in the ancestral hall, and I did not find the ancestral hall behind it.



In the village, I found some purple or green Spring Festival couplets pasted on the doors. I didn’t like it at the time. Later, I checked the Internet and found that some people who passed away had to paste green couplets during the New Year. They could paste blue couplets in the next year. Get used to it.



It was cloudy and rainy, and my companions were sitting here listening to the bell, watching the rain scene, in a daze.



At the end of the scenic spot is Fan's Manor, which was built in the late Qing Dynasty and took shape in the current scale during the period of the Republic of China.



Listening to the tour guide, above the gate of Fanjia Manor, there are exquisite woodcarvings of Fu Lu Shou Samsung and Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea, which are exquisite folk wood carving art. The word "Fan Pu" on the top of the gate was written by Zhang Hengyu, a famous calligrapher in modern Shanxi, who was a Jinshi in the late Qing Dynasty.





Walking into the gate, you can see a Chinese and Western building in front of you. It organically combines the traditional moon gate of our country with the Western European style. This is not unrelated to the fact that the owner of the Fan Mansion was mainly responsible for the reception of foreign guests during his tenure. He was influenced by Western culture. . The two gates are round and square, implying that there is no square without rules.



Going out from the ancestral hall of the Fanjia Manor, you can basically return to the exit of the scenic spot.



The entire Tianguan Wangfu scenic spot is not particularly large, and two or three hours of walking and stopping are enough. Afterwards, return to the parking lot of the scenic spot. If you have time, you can walk along the river to the Zhongzhuang Buzhengli Mansion Scenic Area 500 meters away. If you drive by yourself, you don't need to drive, so you can save a parking fee.





Zhongzhuang Buzheng Li's Mansion is on the east bank of the Qin River, which is a 3A scenic spot. It is recommended to stop by to see it if you have time, and you don't need to come here specially.



According to the order of the tour on the map of the scenic spot, about one hour is enough. Some of the courtyards inside have become restaurants. In addition, there is an additional charge for the ancient dark passages of the Ming Dynasty.



The red lanterns all over the street seem to be the characteristics of Shanxi folk houses.



All the courtyards of the Li Mansion are connected front to back and connected to the left and right. Close the door to form a whole, open the door to extend in all directions. This layout is also called chessboard courtyard.



It is an antique village with a history of more than 1,500 years. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Zhongzhuang produced a total of 7 Jinshi, 15 Juren, and hundreds of tribute students and supervisors. legend. Among them, there was a chief envoy, and his name was Li Zhi (zhi).



Zhongzhuang is the place name of this place, and Buzheng is Li Zhi's official name. The name of this scenic spot comes from this.



The granary is the most impressive part of the Zhongzhuang Buzheng Li Mansion scenic spot. The three floors are about 15 meters high, all of which are used to store grain. It can be seen that the population of Li Mansion was prosperous back then.



The entire Zhongzhuang Buzheng Li's Mansion is generally accessible, and it takes at most an hour to walk out. What was particularly depressing during the period was that there was a street door that was open, and I walked out of the scenic spot after walking. I don’t know if the door is closed on weekdays, otherwise it would be a bit tricky to spend money to buy tickets to enter.



Leave Zhongzhuang Buzheng Li's Mansion, return to the parking lot of Tianguan Wangfu, and drive to the next scenic spot - Di (di) Ji (ji) City.



Diji City is also 5 kilometers away from Tianwangwangfu Scenic Area. After driving into the parking charge office, I found that there are still several modern residential buildings here.




The building is built on a small hill, with villages and towns in the south, Qinhe River in the north, surrounded by water on three sides, and is in the shape of a peninsula. Looking at the city from afar, you can see a rock-solid pillar standing upright in the middle, hence the name Diji City.



There is a live performance in Diji City at night. According to the parking lot charge staff, it is only available from Friday to Sunday, but it was raining when I went, and the performance was cancelled.



Not much to say, still follow the route of the scenic spot signpost.





The most distinctive feature of Diji City is its walls. It is made of discarded crucibles after iron smelting, mixed with stones and green bricks to form a base, which is not afraid of rain erosion, and is not easy to be corroded by acid and alkali. It can be described as a veritable "bronze wall and iron wall".


The circular hole is the crucible.



After climbing the city wall, you can see the river surrounded by water. In the distance, it should be the venue for live performances.





The ticket price for Diji City is 30 yuan. If you don’t watch the show, just walk along the towering city wall, and more than an hour is enough.



It takes more than an hour to drive north from Huangcheng Xiangfu, and there is also Dayang Ancient Town, which is also a scenic spot in my three-day tour plan.



Da (dai) Yang Ancient Town ticket is 65 yuan. Located in Zezhou County, it is the hometown of Zhao Feiyan, and the idiom "Yan Shou", which is fat and thin, refers to Zhao Feiyan.



If you come by car, if you see the Tianzhu Pagoda in the east of the town, it is not far from the ancient town. The entire ancient town is relatively large, and it still takes half a day to visit it all.



The ancient street is long and crowded with merchants, but it is still full of vitality today.



History and vicissitudes are everywhere in the ancient town. All the ancient alleys and gatehouses clearly record the past. The castles and pavilions are still there, and the houses still exist. They all tell the history.



The Town History Museum and the Ancient Needle Making Museum in the ancient town are usually charged separately. In fact, it is better to open them completely so that tourists can enjoy themselves.







The Cultural Courtyard is located in the center of the ancient town and is the place where the local community fire is held.



The culture compound and even the entire Dayang Ancient Town are full of strong Cultural Revolution style. The walls of Ming and Qing buildings are mottled with the words Long Live Chairman Mao, as if stepping into the era when parents were young.





Here is the origin of "beating around the bush". I can't help but think that the family letters from thousands of miles away are just for the wall, so it doesn't matter if it is three feet away. The Great Wall is still there today, and the story of Qin Shihuang back then is not seen. The Chinese virtue of humility has been handed down since ancient times.








The specialty of Dayang Ancient Town is noodles, and the prices here are not expensive, so if you come to visit, you can eat with your stomach free.




Walking around the ancient town, I accidentally walked out through this door. I don't know if there is anyone here to check the ticket. In recent years, Dayang Ancient Town has been developed and renovated, and there will be a performance of blacksmithing flowers at night. I hope this ancient town can regain its former glory.




The story is divided into two parts, from Huangcheng Xiangfu all the way to the south, about an hour and a half, and then I arrived at the last scenic spot of my three-day tour - Manghe Nature Reserve. Manghe Tourist Scenic Area has four characteristics of "strange, secluded, beautiful and dangerous", and is known as "Little Guilin in the North".



I arrived at Manghe River from Yangcheng County one night in advance and booked a farmhouse in the scenic area. In this way, the peak flow of people and the cost of sightseeing cars on Sunday are avoided. Under normal circumstances, the main entrance of the scenic spot is located in the south of the Manghe Nature Reserve. After passing the ticket gate, you need to buy a 20 yuan small traffic ticket for the scenic spot, and then take a small sightseeing train to the entrance of Monkey Mountain in the north of the reserve.



I stayed in a farmhouse in the scenic area, so I could drive in directly, and after breakfast the next morning, I walked for ten minutes to the entrance of the trail in the scenic area.



Manghe Nature Reserve is known as the "treasure house of animal and plant resources in Shanxi". The 10-kilometer-long calcified landscape is called the only calcified canyon wonder in eastern China by geologists.



Another major feature of Manghe is that there are many macaques. The monkeys here are waiting for tourists to be fed on both sides of the trail. They are not afraid of people at all, but you must not play with them when feeding them, after all, they are still wild monkeys.



In fact, the signs in the scenic area have clearly stated not to feed food and avoid eye contact with monkeys, because they are worried that macaques will hurt people.



There is only one trail in Manghe River, follow the flow of people, and you will not get lost or go the wrong way. You can enjoy the mountain scenery and water scenery on the way. The fly in the ointment is that I don’t know if it is due to the season. The river is almost dry. If it is a wet season, the scenery will be more beautiful.



This place is called Xiaohuangguoshu Waterfall, and the water is scarce, how can it be as famous as Huangguoshu?



The water of the Mang River is very clear, like emeralds in the mountains.



You can take a short rest when you walk to the Dragon Cave. There is a natural cave here, which is cool and ventilated. This is also closer to the end of the trail.



Mangyuan is the source of the Mang River and the end of the trail. From here, you can go back the same way.



It takes more than 3 hours to walk back and forth across the Manghe River. If you take the small traffic in the scenic spot and add the queuing time, it is estimated that it will take almost 4 hours. Another thing to mention is that friends who come from the direction of Zhengzhou and Jiyuan will pass a scenic spot called Jiuligou in the navigation. Even if you pass by, you have to pay another ticket for Jiuligou scenic spot. If there is another road, you have to walk an extra hour on the mountain road from Yangcheng. I don't know if it will change in the future. Friends who drive by themselves must pay attention to zoom in on the navigation map so as not to affect the mood of travel.



Check out my three-day itinerary.


Since my planned itinerary attractions from north to south are Dayang Ancient Town, Huangcheng Xiangfu, Guoyu Ancient City, Tianguan Wangfu, Zhongzhuang Buzhengli Mansion, Diji City, Manghe Nature Reserve. In order to reduce going back, I swam all the way from north to south.




On the first day, we departed from Kaifeng at 9 o'clock in the morning, arrived at Dayang Ancient Town at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, and drove to Huangcheng Xiangfu at 6 o'clock in the afternoon, and stayed overnight opposite the Huangcheng Xiangfu.
At 8:30 the next day, I visited the Xiangfu in the imperial city, and walked to the ancient city of Guoyu at 11:30. At two o'clock in the afternoon, drive to Tianguan Wangfu, and then walk to Zhongzhuang Buzheng Li's Mansion. At half past five, I drove for ten minutes to Diji City. Taking advantage of the night, I rushed to Manghe Nature Reserve for accommodation.
On the third day, I left the farmhouse at nine o'clock, played in Manghe River until one o'clock in the afternoon, and then returned. Back to Kaifeng at 6:00 pm.


I thought that there was only the Imperial City Prime Minister's Mansion in Jincheng, but this time the trip took longer and I went to more small people, but there are ancient dwellings with Shanxi characteristics, and I also appreciated the charm of the natural scenery on the last day. On the way back, everyone is very nostalgic, and I hope that I will have the opportunity to travel by car next time in the near future.