At 12:10 noon on November 24, 2019, I ate dumplings and oil-sprinkled noodles at a snack bar outside the north gate of Mudu Ancient Town. The price was 10 yuan per person, which was quite cheap. After dinner, walk into the ancient town.

Mudu Ancient Town, also known as Duchuan, Xujiang, and Xiangxi, is located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province, the west of the ancient city of Suzhou, and is located in the Taihu Lake Basin. It is a famous scenic spot in the south of the Yangtze River. It is known as the "No. 1 Town in Wuzhong" and the "Xiujue Crown in Jiangnan". Mudu Ancient Town is an ancient Han cultural town of the same age as Suzhou City. It has a history of more than 2500 years. In August 2008, it was rated as a national AAAA scenic spot and one of the thirteen scenic spots in Taihu Lake Scenic Area.

Mudu is the hometown of traditional Han handicrafts. In history, there are famous clay sculpture masters Yuan Yuchang, silverware master Zhu Bishan, jade carving master Lu Zigang, embroidery saint Shen Shou and other famous masters. Their works are all treasures in national collections. There are famous cultural relics attractions such as Yanjia Garden, Hongyin Shanfang, Gusong Garden, Lingyan Mountain, and Tianping Mountain.

Except for the fee-paying attractions, Mudu Ancient Town is free of charge. It is a rare scenic spot in Jiangnan Ancient Town. If you get off at Yan Yanjia Garden Station, enter the ancient town from the north gate archway, follow the road and walk directly to Yong 'an Bridge in the center of the ancient town. The first thing you can see is Yanjia Garden. We visited Mudu Ancient Town once a few years ago, but we only walked around the street and didn't enter the fee-paying attractions. We came here this time to make up for the shortcoming of the last time.

Yanjia Garden is located on the bank of Wangjia Bridge, Shantang Street, Mudu Town. The door faces Xiangxi and the back is leaning against Lingyan."Although it is located in a mountain forest, the structure of the garden is too refined to allow the city." It is one of the famous gardens in the south of the Yangtze River.

The predecessor of Yanjia Garden was the residence of Shen Deqian, a famous celebrity in Suzhou and editor of "The Origin of Ancient Poetry" during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. In the eighth year of Daoguang (1828 AD), descendants of the Shen family gave this courtyard to Qian Duanxi, a poet from Mudu. Qian's family piled stones and cleared ponds, built pavilions and buildings, and had friends in Bookstore, Tionong Building, Yanqing Pavilion and other places. For a time, the inscriptions and poems were very popular. Gong Zizhen praised the garden with such beautiful words as "It is wonderfully constructed and very natural, and its meaning is not ideal" and "It is like a beauty by leaning on the stone". In the 28th year of Guangxu (1902 AD), Yan Guoxin, the richest man in Mudu (grandfather of Mr. Yan Jiagan, a Taiwanese politician), bought Xiandi Garden, renovated it, and renamed it "Xiandi Garden". Because the owner's surname is Yan, the locals call it "Yan's Garden". After the efforts of three generations of owners, Yanjia Garden has lasted for more than 170 years. Whether it is the vicissitudes of time or the cultural heritage, it has given Yanjia Garden a cultural atmosphere and a famous garden style. In 1935, modern architect Professor Liu Dunzhen visited this garden twice and lingered. He highly praised the layout and local treatment of Yanjia Garden and considered it the "leader" of local gardens in Suzhou.

After seeing Yan's Garden, I came out along the north bank of the river and eastward to the next scenic spot, Hongyin Shanfang. Hongyin Shanfang was a private garden owned by Xu Shiyuan, a literator in Mudu in the early Qing Dynasty. Every time Qianlong went to Jiangnan to visit Mudu, he had to abandon his boat here, land ashore and travel into the park. Therefore, the local people used to call Hongyin Shanfang the folk palace of Qianlong. Ji Xiaolan, He Shen, Liu Yong and other ministers also stayed here several times, leaving behind Duan Duan's famous stories. Hongyin Mountain House is jointly formed by two Ming Dynasty gardens, Xiuye Garden and Xiaoyin Garden. Its 'beauty of rivers, mountains, winds and moon, and the beauty of ponds, pavilions, flowers and trees' is far superior to other gardens. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, Xiaoyin Garden was part of the former residence of Shen Shou, the 'embroidery empress' of a generation.

Another well-known attraction in Mudu Ancient Town is Gusong Garden, which is close to the landlord of Hongyin Mountain. Gusong Garden, also known as Cai Shaoyu's Old Residence, is a mansion garden-style building built in the Qing Dynasty. It was built by Cai Shaoyu, a rich man in Mudu in the late Qing Dynasty. The buildings in the house are simple and elegant, with very fine carvings and certain artistic and cultural value. It is now a cultural relic protection unit in Jiangsu Province. There is a Ming Dynasty Podocarpus pine tree in the back garden. It is green and vigorous and has a beautiful posture. The Ancient Pine Garden is named for its pine tree.

The Bangyan Mansion we last went to was in a remote location. It was in a small alley on the south bank of the river. There was no hustle and bustle of tourist groups, but it was quite quiet.

Bangyan Mansion is the former residence of Feng Guifen, a disciple of Lin Zexu, an enlightened thinker and political commentator in the late Qing Dynasty. Its house is located south and north, with its gate facing Xujiang River. It has a front house and a back garden structure, which has a typical Jiangnan mansion garden architectural style in the early Qing Dynasty.

There are three entrances in the front house, which are divided into a lobby, a hall and a balcony. There is a flower basket hall and a book building out of the hall and west. The garden was rebuilt on the ruins of the original garden site, with the pool as the center, with halls, pavilions, corridors, pavilions, bridges and Yellowstone rockery scattered in it. The entire garden covers an area of nearly ten acres.

After visiting these four fee-paying attractions, it is already 4 p.m., just to the eastern end of Mudu Ancient Town. Not far ahead is the road outside the ancient town. There is a No. 38 bus that takes you back to downtown Suzhou. Since we had already visited Guzhen Street last time and time did not allow us, we decided to take the bus back. Get off at Pingmen at 5:30 p.m., have dinner nearby, and then walk back to the hotel.