It is said that more than 2,500 years ago, in order to stop the attack of Wu State in the ancient Yue Kingdom, the then Prime Minister Fan Li was ordered to build a city and station troops to guard the gate at Xixingdu by the Qiantang River in Hangzhou. Because of its superior geographical location, there is also the saying that “the first place in eastern Zhejiang, Ning, Shao, and Taiwan are the throats of the neck”, with the help of the canal, it quickly developed into a north-south material transshipment place where department stores and merchants gathered, which is now the west The predecessor of Xinggu Town. 
When I first came here, I felt a bit unexpectedly deserted, standing on the “House Bridge” in the middle, Looking to both sides, it seems that you can see the end, and it can be seen that its area is not large. Through aerial photography, it is clear at a glance: in addition to the old buildings on both sides of the river ditch, there are two old alleys intersecting in the shape of a “D”, which is the whole of Xixing. In addition to a small amount of fields and greenery, the surrounding area has been surrounded by modern residences and office buildings. In such an environment, it has added a “quietness in the midst of the hustle and bustle” to the ancient town. 
In fact, due to artificial rainfall in Hangzhou, the outdoor temperature has It dropped below 40, which is still comfortable in the hot summer. But in the evening, the ancient town of Xixing still looks a little lonely, and there are almost no tourists. I really like this kind of atmosphere, walking a little lonely, observing the world in the sound of my own footsteps. 
Noticed that the water in the ditch is really turbid, very It hurts the “elegance of the scenic spot”, so I specifically inquired with the local residents pacing the door of the old house, and the answer turned out to be “it’s always been like this”, I was a little surprised, such an original and informal Jiangnan ancient town, go It seems to be rare everywhere. 
The interesting thing is that the river water is not dirty, but the ecology is not good. In addition to the canna and various aquatic plants in the middle of the water, there are many wild small crabs and fish and shrimp living comfortably on the crevices and “tidal flats” near the shore. No, when I was taking pictures, a father and son happened to come over to catch crabs. Because they were often “frightened”, these little guys had already become very alert, and they would burrow into the mud or crevices in the water if they moved slightly. Fortunately, they are also “old hunters”, and they cooperated tacitly. The big ones walked around with their special crab claws, and the small ones were followed by the buckets holding crabs, and they soon had more than ten harvests. It’s just that these wild crabs are very small. I caught them when I was a child. The main fun is the process of catching them.
Xixing Ancient Town has a strong atmosphere of life. Most of the local residents retain their old habits. Walking through the mottled old streets and alleys, it seems that they have returned to their childhood, and even traveled to more places. early years. Therefore, I personally think that this place is second only to Mantou Mountain, and it has the characteristics of old Hangzhou. Friends who like this style must come and make a card. 
Due to the drop of water level, the ancient boats and merchants had to overturn the pond and cross the embankment, and then loaded the ship separately. After unloading the equipment, a special industry “crossing the pond” appeared in Xixing. This is also the industry with the largest number of employees and the most fierce competition in the town. According to statistics, when Xixing was at its peak, the town opened a cross-border business. There are as many as 72 Tanghangs, and even after the vicissitudes of life, there are still a few of them that have survived. Broken down.
(Graphic author: A Lu, please do not reprint, please pay attention to collection and like) 
In addition, Xixing also has 32 tea shops, 16 tobacco shops, 12 southern goods shops, 9 oil candle shops, 8 restaurants, 2 pharmacies, and Yuechang Yellow Fish Shop. , Yang Yonghe Cotton Cloth Store, Pan Zeng Nanhuo Store, Shunxiang Butcher Store, Yukang Rice Store, Guanfu Tofu Store, Qingji Hotel, Wang Deyi Wine Sauce Store, Shenfu Taiyan Store, Fu Hexing Restaurant, Xu Shoujun Carpenter Store, Yang Yonghe Cloth Shop, Yaogen Bamboo Shop, Kongshui Gold Tailor Shop, etc. Due to the characteristics of day and night operation, Xixing’s lantern industry is also extremely prosperous, and there are hundreds of people specializing in lantern making. There are as many as 6 workshops. So although this ancient town is not very impressive, if you want to seriously investigate the historical background, it is estimated that it will take three days and three nights to finish. 
Don’t look at the small scale of Xixing Ancient Town, originally However, there are two City God Temples, large and small, both of which honor Fan Li, a doctor from the State of Yue, as the City God. The Dachenghuang Temple is located at the source of the East Zhejiang Canal. There are still a pair of guardrails and a pair of stone lions. The guardrails are engraved with four regular script characters of “Fuze Changliu”, which can be vaguely seen. The culvert under the stone slab is the Longkou Gate at the head of the East Zhejiang Canal. 
There are many historic sites in the town, many of which have been integrated into the lives of the locals. You can meet the Shimen Sluice and other sites left by the ancients hundreds of thousands of years ago. 
With the narrowing of the Qiantang River With the vigorous development of modern urban construction, the ancient town of Xixing gradually lost its advantage of being a water and land hub, and declined for a while, so that many people in Hangzhou have not heard of it now. In fact, the transportation to the ancient town is very convenient. In addition to self-driving, you can also take Metro Line 1 and get off at Xixing Station. After exiting from Exit D, walk forward about 200 meters and turn left, and then go straight for about 500 meters. The nearest bus station is Longtumiaoqiao Station, accessible by bus No. 362M. Take bus No. 195, 340, 586 and 8225 and get off at Qianmo Road Binxing Road Station, which is only 340 meters away from the ancient town.