As a reporter who grew up in Beijing since childhood, he once spent the wonderful childhood in Caochang Headline Guangdong Guild Hall in the Fresh Fish Mouth outside Qianmen. Recently, the reporter took time to visit this alley where I once grew up, but now it is beyond recognition. The narrow alley is dilapidated, and there are not many decent old doors and houses left. Especially the Guangdong Guild Hall where I lived was even more tragic... At the same time, the intermittent memories of that year also appeared in my mind one by one.

Beijing's moat (file photo)

What I deeply remember is that there was only one bicycle in the family as a means of transportation for my father to and from work. Other people relied on two-legged walking to travel. If you want to think of a so-called distant journey, you had to walk to the bus stop. At that time, it felt like it was a long way to walk from home to the station. Caochang Headline is located from the Xianyukou entrance in the west and at the Muchang Hutong exit in the east. It is about one-third to the west of this east-west road several kilometers.

Beijing's city wall (file photo)

At that time, there were two roads to the station, one north and one west. The closer one was to go from the north entrance of Caochang Toutiao and enter the Shengou Hutong diagonally opposite. It went north first through the bridge at the moat, and then crossed the railway to the foot of the city wall. At that time, there was a doorway leading out of the city, but the small door that opened irregularly seemed to be under the management of the railway department. If you leave the door open, you will find Zhengyi Road after you go out. The road along the city wall is where the first three gates are now. There is just a No. 6 trolley bus passing through here. There is a station on Zhengyi Road. However, if you are unlucky that the small door under the city wall does not open, you can only turn back and head west on Qianmen Outer Street.

Zhengyangmen Railway Station (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

At that time, the railway between the moat and the city wall had not yet been demolished, but it was no longer in operation. Its destination is Zhengyangmen Railway Station on the east side of Qianmen Tower. I remember filming the movie "After the Armistice" starring Zhang Ping here at that time. I even made an appointment with my classmates to go to the location of the train station at that time to watch the filming. What I have a deep memory is that the camera was advancing on the platform to shoot, and only when watching the movie did I see the dynamic effect of the original train travel, which is reflected on the screen.

Stills of "After the Armistice"(file photo)

The other road from the north exit of Caochangtiao and heading west to Dazhalan Station, the No. 5 bus that is often taken, felt very far away at that time. Remember to pass through many hutongs such as Qingyun Hutong, Changxiang Sitiao and Toutiao, then pass through Dazhong Theater, Lianyou Photo Studio, Tsinghua Garden Bath Bath, Tianxingju Fried Liver Shop, Bianyifang Roast Duck Restaurant, Black Monkey Shop, etc., and finally walk out from the fresh fish mouth facing Dazhalan, which is to Qianmen Outer Street.

Xianyukou Street View (Information Photo)

Now looking at some pictures of old Beijing, these profound memories come back to mind. But for some unknown reason, now that I have visited the old place again, I feel that these roads have suddenly become much shorter, far from the hard work of running step by step on two legs in childhood. Now there is a strong contrast between the renovated scene and the memory of that time.

The former site of a small school on Xinglong Street (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

After passing through the three long alleys and heading east, I came to Beijing Xinglong Street No. 1 Primary School, which is close to the north entrance of Caochang Headline. My six-year primary school career here was unforgettable... Standing at the school gate and looking at the gray building inside It seems to be much smaller...

Caochang Headline Road Sign (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Finally, we came to the headlines of Caochang. After entering the narrow alley, the scene in front of us was much different from the impression we had back then. I heard from my mother that shortly after I was born, I moved to the Guangdong Guild Hall at No. 20, Caochang Headline (later re-planned to No. 7). I spent it here around the early 1970s of the last century. Some childhood events have deep memories, while others have been forgotten. However, the days when I experienced the more decent Guangdong Guild Hall are still fresh in my memory.

Former site of Macheng Guild Hall (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

At that time, there were three clubhouses in Caochang Headline. Starting from the north entrance, the first was No. 20 Guangdong clubhouse where I lived in Luxi, and then it was No. 5 Xingguo clubhouse diagonally opposite the horse number of the Guangdong clubhouse. Then walking to the south end and turning east, it is Macheng clubhouse in No. 10 on the north of Nankou Road of Toutiao. Although they are both halls, the former is several times larger than the latter two.

Current headlines of Caochang (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

I remember that at that time, the Guangdong Guild Hall had a courtyard with a total of about ten courtyards and a total of more than 30 families lived in it. These families were mainly calculated based on the surnames of large households and did not include the children of each household. At that time, more than 90% of the hospital were Cantonese, while less than 10% were outsiders outside Guangdong. Several more families work in the railway system. I can still call several of the names of my Cantonese friends I grew up with when I was a child, such as Heng Zai, A Menzi, A Man, A Lai, etc.

Former site of the Guangdong Guild Hall (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The courtyards in the Guangdong Guild Hall are very particular and are basically independent. I remember that there are about six courtyards with wing rooms like front corridors and back buildings, and the rest are generally irregular courtyards. Perhaps because the Guangdong Guild Hall runs east-west, the main rooms of the courtyard in the Guild Hall are basically oriented west to east, and the wing rooms are mostly oriented north-south.

Current Caochang Headline No. 7 (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Recently, I heard from Jia Xulu, his childhood friend who had fun together, that the Guangdong Guild Hall used to be the official residence of a fourth-rank official. The original two round horse stones at the gate are evidence. It is said that the shape of the horse stones in the homes of officials in the Qing Dynasty was determined according to the taste of officials. There are said to be round and square shapes on Shangma Stone. If you do not follow the taste of officials, you will be punished.

Caochang Headline Old Residential Houses (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

There are two gates in the Guangdong Guild Hall, one is the main entrance and the other is the horse horn. I remember that at that time, there was a large plaque of the "Guangdong Guild Hall" in the middle of the main entrance, and two small plaques of the "Bangyan" and "Tanhua" inside the door. The main entrance is only three rooms away from the same direction as the hornet.

Caochang Ertiao Residential Houses (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Originally, you could walk through both doors, but later a dirty pool was pressed in the center of the horse-horn doorway. In summer, the smell was smelly, and in winter, the sewage flowing by the pool froze into ice, making it easy for people to slip and slip, so very few people left through this door. Although it is called a horse's horn, I have never seen a horse tied to this door in the years I have lived in. Until later, due to the shortage of houses, the horse number was changed to residential houses.

The intersection of Caochang Headlines and Ertiao (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Now that I think about it, there were two families in the yard at that time that might have some "status". One is the southernmost courtyard surnamed Luo in the guild hall; the other is the northernmost courtyard surnamed Mai. I heard from my mother that the owners of the Luo courtyard were Luo Fukan and the younger one were Luo Yinggong. They were both well-known calligraphers in Beijing at that time.

Caochang Ertiao (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Luo Fukan has a close relationship with famous Peking Opera master Cheng Yanqiu and others. When Mr. Luo passed away in 1955, Peking Opera masters Mei Lanfang, Cheng Yanqiu and former Vice Chairman of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China Li Jishen all went to the Guangdong Guild Hall to express their condolences. To this day, I still vaguely remember that in the courtyard of the Luo family, several monks gathered around a large long table and performed rituals for several days. It was very solemn.

Old door and old household facade (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

There are three young masters in the Mai family in the north courtyard, namely Mai Si, Mai Wu and Mai Liu. Mai Si once studied in Japan, but later married a Japanese wife and returned to China. The couple were very loving when they were in the Guangdong Guild Hall. They had several children. Later, his Japanese wife died of illness. Later, Mai Si also took his family and left the Guangdong Guild Hall in Beijing to return to his hometown in Guangdong.

Caochang Ertiao (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

In the main room in the yard closest to the gate, there is also a large family named Huang, a Guangdong nationality. My partner, who is a few years older than me, is called Topaz. His mother was working in a film distribution company in Xijiaomin Lane. At that time, his mother would take them there every week to watch a movie, which made me very envious at the time. Later, their family moved to Shuiduizi in the eastern suburbs, and their interactions were much less.

Now Changxiang Santiao North Exit (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

Many things about childhood are still interesting. I remember that every weekend, as long as the touching melodies of Guangdong music "Bubugao" and "Colorful Clouds Chasing the Moon" came from Changxiang Sitiao Primary School, which was only separated by an alley, it signaled that open-air movies would be released again. So, that night, under the guidance of adults, the children took small benches and went to the playground of the primary school to watch a movie. I remember that at that time, each ticket was only two cents. Films such as "Sea Soul","Song Jingshi","Dong Cunrui","Underground Pioneer","Plain Guerrilla","Red Child", etc. were all films that Changxiang Sitiao Primary School once played.

Caochang Hutong Landscape (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

The backyard of the Guangdong Guild Hall is a public toilet. I remember that whenever fireworks were set off on May Day and National Day, the children in the Guild Hall and I would secretly climb onto the roof of the toilet to see the fireworks. With the sound of thunder from the clear, you can look up and see the colorful fireworks blooming in the sky. Sometimes the north wind blows, and bundles of white parachutes popped out of many fireworks fall slowly on the surrounding roofs in the night sky. Because the toilet is close to Qingyun Lane Hutong, it is inevitable that our friends will accidentally climb onto the roof of their homes. Therefore, once they are discovered, they will be reprimanded by the people in the courtyard of Qingyun Lane.

Current Xinglong Street (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

In my nearly 20 years living in the Guangdong Guild Hall, I have witnessed its changes. It has gradually transformed from relatively regular courtyards into a messy miscellaneous courtyard. Each courtyard is covered with small kitchens, and the residents therein have also changed one after another. And there are fewer and fewer people who are truly Cantonese. Some childhood friends of family members who worked in the railway also left Beijing for Tianjin, Lanzhou, Baoding and other places with their parents 'work transfers.

Current Qianmen Street (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

When I moved and left here in 1970, the Guangdong Guild Hall was already beyond recognition. Coincidentally, in the early 1970s, I moved from Caochangtiao, which belonged to Chongwen District at that time, to Xianyu Lane diagonally opposite Beijing Station in Dongcheng Area. The difference between Xianyu Lane and Xianyukou was only one word. Especially a few years later, Chongwen District was merged into Dongcheng Area, and I spent more than 20 years of good time here.

Sunset on Qianmen East Road (Photo: Feng Ganyong)

After moving, I heard that in 1989, Caochang Headline Guangdong Guild Hall underwent a major renovation. The original Guangdong Guild Hall was completely demolished and several buildings slightly stronger than simple buildings were renovated. I have been there once, but there are not many old neighbors left. I heard from the old neighborhood that there are many fewer opportunities for everyone to communicate with each other when they live in a building. I heard that Caochang's headlines may undergo large-scale overall renovation along with the area outside Qianmen, and the history of some old Beijing courtyards such as the Guangdong Guild Hall will also become people's memories forever...(Photo: Feng Ganyong)