Liuzao Old Street Xiangxue Street is one of the seven historical and cultural heritage conservation areas in Pudong, Shanghai, which was visited a few years ago. On the afternoon of January 12, 2020, the car passed by Liuzao and deliberately got off the car and walked again.

During the Song and Yuan dynasties, most of the eastern area of Nanhui in Pudong, Shanghai, was still open to the sea. Therefore, making salt by boiling waves was the main business of the area, and the coastal salt farms formed a field and stove management mechanism. Stove, also known as salt stove, is a stove that boils and boils salt from the sea. Stove is the most basic management unit of a salt farm, arranged from south to north. Liuzao Salt Field ranks sixth, hence its name "Liuzao". The east-west river channel in Liuzao Port is the waterway for transporting sea salt to the west. Liuzao Chengji Town was established in the Ming Dynasty and had reached a certain scale by the Qing Dynasty. The main street, Xiangxue Street, is an opposite street that was built along Liuzao Port, with a total length of about 3 miles. With the gradual extension of the coastline to the east, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, Liuzao changed from an area that was originally devoid of brine to cultivable farmland, and salt industry gradually replaced agriculture. The loading and unloading of cargo ships in Shihe Liuzao Port and the sale of daily necessities such as rice, cotton, cloth, and north-south goods in shops on Liuzao Street are no longer just salt. Today's Liuzao is no longer a township in Nanhui, Shanghai, but a community in Liuzao, Chuansha New Town, Pudong, Shanghai.

From under the Liuzaogang Bridge on Nanliu Highway, you can enter Liuzao Xiangxue Street on Qianjie and Houhe. Walking from east to west, you will see a two-story small building in front of you. This should be an old building built in the first half of the last century, with simple wooden carvings on the eaves of the second floor.

Xiangxue Street no longer has shops, and the streets are all inhabited by residents, of course, there are also tenants from outside Shanghai. Many old houses on the north and south sides of Xiangxue Street have been replaced by new houses that were renovated in the 1980s and 1990s or even more recently. However, there are also many traditional old houses in Pudong, so the historical and cultural landscape of Jiangnan water towns can still be seen intermittently.

The Qian Family Hall, located at the corner of the street, is a newly renovated old building that looks a bit exquisite and exquisite.

Of course, the more old houses on Xiangxue Street are still in their original state without repair, and their weathered appearance has a more charming charm.

These old buildings, which were originally shops, can still be seen as exterior wall layouts, such as door panels, when converted into residential buildings.

Traveling to Zhongshi, walking up the bridge on Liuzao Port and looking west, in the gloomy weather, the scenery of the water towns and markets on Liuzao Old Street feels a sense of melancholy and desolation.

Continue westward along Xiangxue Street and arrive at Liuzao Guandi Temple. This temple was built during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, with only one storefront size and approximately 35 square meters. The temple gate is tightly closed, making it impossible to enter and observe.

A few years ago, I walked along Liuzao Old Street and turned back when I saw no old buildings on the west side of Liuzao Guandi Temple. This time, because I wanted to see the Liuzao Ancient Theater, I continued my journey westward.

On the north side of the street, an old house caught my attention. On the west side of the pink wall between the walls and doors of the old house, there was a quote from Chairman Mao written in the late 1960s: "Make up your mind, not afraid of sacrifice, overcome all difficulties, and strive for victory.". Fifty years back in time, how many things, time flies.

Crossing the small bridge, one can see the riverbank built with blue bricks to the west, which is a common riverbank shape in water towns in Jiangnan.

On the south side of the west pier of the bridge, there are stone steps paved with stones leading to the riverbank. These are obviously the original objects of the past, and the small bridge has been transformed into a cement bridge, and the original stone bridge slab is no longer there.

Continuing forward, you may see several old buildings on the street.

Plum blossom branches emerge from the walls of an old house courtyard, giving people a fresh breath of spring approaching before the end of winter.

Continue to look at a charming two storey mottled old building. It is really the original site of Liuzao Chenghuang Temple. The ancient stage is behind the building. The area where this building is located is now a small factory. After 4 pm, the door of the building was locked and we were unable to enter and take a look, which is a bit regrettable.

Turn back along Xianxue Street to Liuzaogang Bridge on Nanliu Road, continue eastward, and want to see the Fu Family Ancestral Hall, which is said to have a history of two to three hundred years. There is a traditional residential building in Pudong, which is somewhat dilapidated and rented by outsiders from Shanghai.

The road leading to the front of the house is a green brick paved grid road, and the courtyard floor is also paved with green bricks, which is very similar to the style of traditional Pudong residences. I mean that's the ancestral hall of the Fu family, but later I found out it wasn't. The Fu Family Ancestral Hall should still be heading eastward. I saw no signs of old houses ahead, and with a firewood dog blocking the way, the sky gradually darkened, so I didn't move forward.

Liuzao Old Street, two ancient buildings, the Fu Family Ancestral Hall and the ancient stage, will be left for future visits.