Wuyuan Xiangao Ancient City: Rain Falls on Xiangao, a Dream of a Thousand Years

Wuyuan, a place that haunts my soul and dreams, I took advantage of a weekend to start this two-day, two-night journey. Taking a sleeper train from Changsha, after one night’s sleep, I arrived in Shangrao. Then, from Shangrao, I took the earliest high-speed train to Wuyuan. I spent two days in Wuyuan, and at night, there was a direct high-speed train back to Changsha from Wuyuan. This was my first stop in Wuyuan: Xiangao Ancient City! On the first day in Wuyuan, the weather was not very good; a drizzle started as soon as we left the high-speed train station and continued until evening. Holding an umbrella and wearing a raincoat, I could barely cover myself from head to toe. In this weather, I took a bus from the high-speed train station, then walked for ten minutes to arrive at Xiangao Ancient City. Stepping on the bluestone slabs, I walked through Wuyuan’s commercial pedestrian street. Perhaps it was too early, as most shops were still closed. Passing through this short pedestrian street, I finally saw the entrance to Xiangao Ancient City. There were few tourists in the rain, which was just right. The bricks and stones of the ancient city wall were soaked by the rain, their colors deep and rich, as if time had repainted them. The air was free of dust, filled only with a fresh scent mixed with earth and plants. The bluestone pavement beneath my feet had been polished to a warm luster by thousands of years of footsteps. Now, soaked by the rain, it became a softly shining mirror, reflecting the mottled horse-head walls on both sides and a few green branches peeking over the wall tops. Walking on it felt like stepping on the spine of history—soft yet solid. Turning into a narrow alley, the world instantly quieted down. The white walls on both sides were no longer dazzling, stained with the smoke-gray of time. The rain painted marks of varying depths on them, like an unfinished ink scroll. Raindrops hitting the oil-paper umbrella made a “tick-tock” sound; falling from the eaves onto the stone steps, a “pitter-patter” sound. These sounds were clear and ethereal, not breaking the silence but deepening the tranquility of this place. At that moment, I suddenly understood the charm of the name “Xiangao.” It was not just a place name but a state of being—heartstrings gently plucked by the rain and wind, producing a clear echo that quietly resonated with some ancient sigh. The ancient city is not large but well laid out, faintly revealing the atmosphere of a former commercial port. Wuyuan is an ancient city with a long history and many historical sites. Historically, Wuyuan was under Anhui’s jurisdiction, one of the six counties of the ancient Huizhou prefecture. It is the hometown of Zhu Xi, a famous Neo-Confucian scholar of the Southern Song Dynasty, and Zhan Tianyou, the father of China’s railways. “In a lifetime of infatuation, no dream reaches Huizhou.” The word “Huizhou” is increasingly mentioned, and Wuyuan, located in a remote mountainous area, has fortunately preserved all the charm of ancient Huizhou. The grandeur of history and the subtlety of daily life are separated by just a rain’s distance. Here, there is no commercial hustle and bustle, only authentic Southern Song Huizhou-style architecture: horse-head walls mottled by time, wooden carved windows half concealing old dreams, elders sitting by the doorstep weaving bamboo strips, time never far away. Compared to the crowded Huangling, this place is so quiet you can hear your own heartbeat. Walking through winding ancient alleys, every step feels like treading on the veins of history. Occasionally, the sound of opera from a radio drifting from a courtyard makes this “living ancient city” feel even more real. Sitting here, you don’t have to think about anything, yet you can think about everything. Time seems softened by the rain, passing very slowly. Life in the ancient city is probably like this—deeply rooted in the daily necessities of life, with profound cultural heritage. The so-called “great recluses hidden in the city” may refer to this kind of calm and unhurried ordinary heart maintained amid bustling old sites. An ancient city that fully reveals Huizhou’s cultural lineage, intangible heritage craftsmanship, and the warmth of the marketplace, with all core experiences open for free, is worth a leisurely stroll here.