Text | Chang Jidong
Ten years ago, I made two books about the old photos of Hangzhou, "Memory of Tiancheng" and "Hundred Elephants of the West Lake", which is also the opportunity of me and the city of Hangzhou.
The 100th photo of the book "Hundred Elephants of the West Lake" reflects the original appearance of Liu Zhuang at that time.
In 2019, I took annual leave and chose the city of Hangzhou.
Because I have edited the history of Liu Zhuang, I chose Liu Zhuang for the place where I lived.
Liu Zhuang was built by the Guangdong merchant Liu Xueyuan.
Liu Xueyuan (1855-1935) was a native of Xiangshan, Guangdong, and a compatriot of Sun Yat-sen.
In 1897, when Liu Xuexuan returned to Guangdong, he passed by Hangzhou's West Lake and marveled that "there is no such good lake and mountain in his hometown".
One day, when Liu Xueqian took his servants through Yang Gongti Songzhuang (now known as Guo Zhuang), he saw that the pavilion was beautiful and extraordinary, so he handed over his name and asked to see him.
I didn't want the Owner of the Song family to have a guest at home that day, so I politely refused to refuse.
Liu Xuequan was determined to set up another place in the West Lake to surpass Song Zhuang.
Later, Liu Xue consulted the entrance examination, but the official position was not satisfactory, so he entered the business world.
With the help of the package "Min surname" (similar to today's lottery), he quickly became a huge rich man in Guangdong.
After that, he also funded Sun Yat-sen's uprising and served as Li Hongzhang's staff.
【Liu Zhuang by the West Lake that year】
At the age of 43, Liu Xueyuan, who had experienced the struggle between the official field and the shopping mall, retreated to Hangzhou, bought a large area of land south of Dingjiashan next to the West Lake at a high price, and began to devote himself to the construction of his "water bamboo residence", that is, "Liu Zhuang".
Liu Xuexuan, who was born into a jinshi, had his own hills and ravines in his chest for the ancient gardens.
Through the construction of the "Water Bamboo Residence", he put his gardening concept and art into practice.
After 8 years and costing more than 100,000 silver, this huge project was completed at the end of 1905.
The design of the garden should be skillful in using the high and low shape of the topography of the site and the landscape resources to create landscaping.
From the old photos of that year, it can be seen that the water bamboo residence has created a quiet, elegant and leisurely artistic conception, its internal and external scenery, the hall is empty, like an open green field, stacked stones into mountains, and fences are built into a winding path, planting peach and plum garden, and can be directly into the painting.
"Water bamboo residence" in addition to water is bamboo.
Water, up to the outer lake, to the Yongjin Gate;
Bamboo, can cover the shade, quiet and far-reaching, for the character required to be a person.
Liu Zhuang went through several ups and downs with the fate of his master.
After Liu Xuewen's death, fan Yuanying, the widow of the eighth concubine, relied on the seller's property to support herself, and finally donated Liu Zhuang to the state in 1953 because she could not afford to pay the land value tax.
In 1954, Liuzhuang was transformed into a state guesthouse, which included the former Hanzhuang, Yangzhuang, Kangzhuang and Fanzhuang, with an area of 360,000 square meters.
The first Constitution of the People's Republic of China is drafted here;
The Sino-US Joint Communiqué was signed here.
Pavilions, small bridges and water pavilions, curved corridors to repair bamboo, ancient wood and strange stones, the environment is extremely quiet and elegant, immersed in it can make people forget the hustle and bustle of the world.
Most of the gardens are modern buildings, and it is a pity that the private gardens of the past no longer exist.
I have also been to suzhou gardens many times, and I always lament the wisdom and ingenuity of the ancient artificial garden.
In fact, the biggest gain I have gained from going out to study in recent years is not only the scenery, but also the change of heart and action.
This kind of classical garden must have its cultural heritage.
Stroll around Liuzhuang to enjoy the lake and mountains, and look up to see the newly built Leifeng Pagoda opposite.
Opposite Leifeng Pagoda is Jingci Temple, where there is the Nanping Evening Bell, one of the famous Ten Views of the West Lake, and the Qianlong Imperial Pen Stone Stele.
The next day, I also visited the Jingci Temple, and I saw that I was practicing Jingci together, and one of the sentences made me sigh deeply:
Ten parties come, ten parties go, a total of ten parties;
Ten thousand people give, ten thousand people use, a total of ten thousand people!
Each monument always has its own cultural connotation, which can be understood by future generations, and it will certainly be less of a detour.
If Liu Zhuang is completely preserved to this day, its scenery and culture will certainly give us a lot of inspiration.
Fortunately, there is a special historical exhibition hall in the park, which has left a rich spiritual property for the current West Lake State Guesthouse.
Liu Zhuang, which has been through a hundred years of change, has undertaken a new historical task today, completed a magnificent turnaround, and glowed with new brilliance!
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