In the year of Jiazi (2020), the moon is in sight, the snow has just passed, and the winter solstice is just around the corner. Nanjing, the ancient capital of the Six Dynasties, is like "the colorful boats and clouds are thin, the stars are rising, and drawing is difficult."

With the majestic heights of Zhongshan and Shicheng, Nanjing creates a terrain inhabited by dragons and tigers; with the towering Yangtze River as its pillow, it takes advantage of water transportation and navigation; and with the graceful Huai River, it creates the haze of Jinchi Tangcheng.

The warm winter makes the winter fade away with its due coldness and dye it with a different kind of warmth. In late autumn, we are optimistic about its success and have lingering hopes in our hearts. Therefore, in the late days of our journey, we look at ourselves and pity ourselves; as we move away, the waves send us hope, and Nanjing City at the end of Mengdong is enjoying the warmth of winter and sensing the unbridled autumn.

The city of Nanjing flows through the sound of oars and lights on the Qinhuai River, and walks between the carved and leaking windows of the Confucius Temple; Xuanwu Lake is clear and beautiful, and Wuyi Alley is full of tranquility, which also gives Nanjing a high mood and elegance.

On the other hand, the fireworks in Nanjing are scattered among the residential houses on Lianlijing Street in the south of the city and among its ordinary alleys. The south of Nanjing's old city is where its soul lies. It is full-time and full of flesh and blood, allowing Nanjing to wash its lead and present the original flavor of its true life.

The old things in the south of Nanjing have also haunted Nanjing people's dreams. In the "endless living, the cold and heat pass", the old things have become hazy and the picture has become messy. At that time, the old things were abandoned and the new ones were taken over, and the pear rice steamed with food made Nanjing's long inheritance and memory were broken into pieces and jade, and then abandoned like a piece of cloth.

Laomendong is a representative place where the old things in the south of Nanjing are carried out, accumulating history and inheriting them. Whether it is in the years when it is regarded as grass and climbing up, or in the era when everything is flourishing and new things are being created, Laomendong is still indifferent to favor and disgrace, and has no intention of leaving or staying, and has guarded its century-old bonds from beginning to end.

The east of the old gate lies east of the Zhonghua Gate (South Gate) in Nanjing, facing Hengyu on the west of the old gate, so it is called "the east of the gate". The Confucius Temple and the Qinhuai River are also within walking distance, standing side by side with it. The origins of Laomen East can be traced back to the Three Kingdoms period more than 1,700 years ago. By the Ming Dynasty of Zhu, it had become a distribution center for commerce and handicrafts. Therefore, not only were there traditional folk houses, but also Jiangnan merchants Yuntun Wuji, talented people and Zhongding aristocratic families also gathered together. For a time,"the market was full of jewelry, and the households were full of jade, and the prosperity competed."

Driven by the survival of historical inheritance and commercial interests, the Nanjing government has unique foresight and surrounded the land east of Laomen. It has worked hard for three years: either tearing down and starting again, or repairing the old, or vacating cages and replacing birds, completing the creative restoration and imitation of historical and cultural districts.

The thousand-acre area of Laomen East is close to the world, and is close to Nanjing's folk crafts-handmade kites, marionettes, paper-cutting, bamboo carving, cloth painting, etc., as well as traditional gourmet snacks-stinky tofu, tofu pudding, plum blossom cake, pot stickers, soup dumplings, sesame cakes, etc., have all been included in Laomen East's commercial territory; at the same time, the local Jinling Carving Sutra, Nanjing Baiju, and the northern Deyun Society also moved in, which is not only the innovation, but also the icing on the cake.

From the intersection of Gutong Lane at the northern end and entering Laomen East, the archway more than fifty feet high will never miss it. Fang is a block of square houses, with more than a thousand sacrifices every year and began in the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, the archway is actually a kind of transformative square gate, and the height of the archway east of the old gate also matches the area of more than a thousand acres east of the old gate.

It is said that this archway was made by stone carvers in Hui 'an on the southeastern coast of Fujian. Therefore, the design of the stone carving pictures is smooth and smooth, and the carving is even more vivid. It can be called a masterpiece of contemporary stone carving. Unfortunately, the couplets on both sides of the poem "The streets are filled with the smoke and water of the Six Dynasties, and the common clothes will write great articles from the ages." The tone is too contemporary and slightly lacking in neat confrontation. However, it does not hide its shortcomings. It is also heroic. It describes the breadth of the southern capital horizontally and the depth of Nanjing City in the vertical direction, making the achievements of the temples and the power of the cities of the past dynasties clearly known. Big end.

So far, there has been little noise and chaos in Laomen East, and it has always been peaceful and prosperous. The streets and alleys in it are gentle and shallow times. Those folk roads, black tiles and white walls, either repaired and abandoned, or copied, all jump with the elements of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, revealing the customs of the Republic of China from time to time. However, the horse-head walls of the famous Menyou ethnic groups can be clearly seen, and they pity themselves. In the long streets and short alleys in the east of Laomen, in the spring rain and autumn wind, they whisper,"The bright moon at that time, and the shadow of each other."

Around the archway stand four groups of sculptures representing the Ming and Qing Dynasties-rickshaw drivers, sugar taro seedlings, old mailbox boxes, and schoolchildren entering private schools. They are vivid and vivid. The above-mentioned sculptures are erected near the main entrance, pointing out the various aspects of residential life in Laomen East under a specific era: rickshaw workers-social class; sugar taro seedlings-living standards; old mailbox-emotional exchanges; school children entering private schools-imperial examinations fame.

It is a brilliant example of drawing a trickle into the ancient street. It is a divine stroke in planning and a finishing touch, making Laomendong vibrant and cherishing its spirit and elegance. The shallow water trickles in the small canal and gently flows through the store doors along the street. It is smart and clear, while the pebbles on the dormant water are staggered, dotted with rippling clear streams, demonstrating the softness and firmness of the water.

The origins of Laomen East are Santiaoying, Bianying and Zhongying. The Sanjiao Barracks were built under the imperial approval of Zhu Yuanzhang (1328-1398), the founder of the Ming Dynasty, to provide accommodation for soldiers and soldiers who were building the Nanjing City Wall. As time flies, the barracks gradually evolved into three civilian alleys in the years that followed, and the name of Quxiang remains the same. The years are in the past, and they are over 600 years old so far!

Less than half a mile south from the archway, the Ming City Wall is in sight, and near the corner on the west side, Starbucks, soft in heart and weak in bones, simple and graceful. The mellow aroma of coffee, if there is any, floats from it, scattered in the breeze, wandering around the left and right, and the Deyun Society (Nanjing Branch) diagonally opposite it is also as quiet as a virgin in the day. In the course of following the rules and regulations, it is proud to rise on the lakes and mountains, and in the gags, it expresses its thoughts directly.

The arrival of this China and the Ocean shows that Laomen East is not only interested in its local customs, but also conforms to the times and does not exclude popular imported products. In Laomen East, the former has its own suitable location, conforms to its style and complements each other; the latter is exotic and popular, and occupies a place, which is natural.

The most eye-catching thing in Laomen East is Junhui Tree House at the entrance of Bianying Lane-the 13th branch of Nanjing's well-known Pioneer Bookstore. It sits quietly on the west side of the block, gracefully and gracefully, overlooking the city wall, and looking up at the Da Baoen Temple.

Junhui Bookstore, which is over 600 years old, is a place for reading and resting from Anhui Province to rush for the exam at that time. The Shangjiang Examination Shack, built by Anhui gentry with funds and specially built for the pre-examination examination room and residence for Anhui rural examinees, is not far away. The bookstore is named "Junhui", which quotes the phrase "Junhui, King Wen, and his great-grandson Du Zhi" in "Poetry·Song of Zhou·Destiny of Wei Tian".

The original bookstores in the old days had long been dilapidated and dilapidated, with rafters and tiles scattered all over the place. Therefore, the Sanjin style Huizhou Academy of the Late Qing Dynasty, which was completely relocated from the original objects of Wuyuan, Jiangxi Province, used it to "resurrect the corpse". As a restored Junhui Bookstore, at least the architectural style is the same. At the same time, professional repairs and design are given to fit the style of the Huizhou Guild Hall at that time as much as possible, giving the bookstores the mottled sense of age as it deserves.

The south gate of the bookstore-the ruins of the original Junhui Bookstore, has been around 400 years. The four characters on the lintel are He Shaoji, a calligrapher in the Qing Dynasty (1799-1873) The Ink Treasure; The main entrance facing north also makes people feel fixed. A strong wooden beam is solid, carved with various characters on it. It is complex and exquisite, and the immaculate carvings are engraved on its doors, windows, eaves, beams, etc., each with a theme and no lack of origin. It is beautiful, and matches the wall outside the house-the Hui Style Horse Head Wall. At the same time, the long time seems to be carved inside, so you are in it. It is like a pleasant time and space travel.

Time runs between the morning and the evening, and the end and the past remains unchanged. The long years of thousands of sacrifices, the thoroughfares and alleys in Nanjing City are by no means a passing cloud. "Streams can easily throw people away, turning cherries red and plantains green." Laomen East carries the precipitation of a long period of time, and now it is singing slowly about the past in the south of Nanjing City, leaving a lasting charm.

2021.05.24.