Qili Shantang Ancient Travel Notes Part 2

April is the cruelest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.

April is the cruelest month,
it nourishes lilacs from the land of death,
fuses memory with desire,
awakens the numb roots with spring rain.

——T.S. Eliot, "The Waste Land"

Continuing from the previous article.

After crossing Baigong Bridge, another temple appeared——

Baoen Zen Temple was built by imperial decree to commemorate the 13th elder brother of Kangxi who had a blessed life in Suzhou. It is said that he once reduced taxes and levies in Suzhou and repaired the Grand Canal many times.

Also not open. Keep going.

There is a collapsed bridge on the other side of the river.

There were several archways immediately following, the handwriting was no longer clear, and there was no introduction. It felt like they were not well protected, which was a pity.

There is garbage all around the archway.

Across the road is Tao Zhenxiao Temple.

Although it is on the municipal insurance list, from the outside, it looks like a row of dilapidated houses.

One archway was seriously damaged.

Since it is inaccessible, the original appearance of the archway cannot be seen.

There are several archways along the way. Either it is blocked by large garbage discarded everywhere, or it is overgrown with weeds, giving it a deep sense of desolation and decadence.

In fact, the brick carvings on the exterior walls are in good condition, but they are blocked by weeds and cannot be seen clearly.

Keep going.

Along the way, I noticed that the old houses on Shantang Street have retained many boundary markers, with different styles.

A tree with strong vitality was exposed beside the collapsed part of the wall by the river.

I thought the house might be torn down. Don't know if it will be preserved.

Stone road.

This piece of Bairen Hall was originally supposed to be a boundary monument. Maybe the house was gone and it was used as a stone.

There are many similar boundary monuments.

Some are other people's tombstones.

The dates marked on these two pieces are both the fifty-sixth year of Qianlong's reign. In fact, I think these cultural relics should be displayed in museums instead of being stepped on by us.

The road underfoot was blocked again.

The bridge is a train track.

Agile friends can actually turn it from the right.

If you don't want to take the risk, just turn around and go to the other end of Shantang Street.

That’s it for today.

Qingming and good health.

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