Yongning is a seaside town in shishi city, Quanzhou. It is said to be a small town, but there are many unusual colors here, which makes it not like an ordinary southern Fujian town. It was an encounter, a sea breeze blowing through the brow, an ancient building as exquisite as pearls and jade, which was painted into a dreamy parallel world and became an unexpected ancient town.

Yongning in summer, the wind is crisp, the pure blue sky is like a piece of glass without impurities, the blue is clean and bright, and the long white clouds bloom lazily in the afternoon.

This ancient acropolis, with a history of more than 600 years, was called "Three Davids of China" with Tianjin Wei and Ahava in its heyday, and still retains a very complete ancient street. The sea breeze passes through the city gate, raising the red flag of hunting at the city gate, walking through the long stone steps and stepping on the flat open space in front of the city gate. Suddenly, I felt a sense of heroism and solemn ceremony.

02

The street behind the city gate is so clean that I am surprised. I am used to the dirty streets of Minnan town. The streets here are even as smooth and tidy as dust. No matter whether it's concrete or bluestone road, I can't see any scraps of paper wherever I go.

Before Yongning, I thought it was just an ordinary Minnan town with a wild smell, just like the hometown town that all young people can't remember. To my surprise, there are youth hostels and public libraries in this small town. It is not a bustling and popular scenic spot, nor a central city of literature and art. The only one that is famous is the Gold Coast, one of the 18 scenic spots in Quanzhou. Is it a bit silly to run a youth tour here? Will anyone come? Can you really keep driving?

I went to Yongningwei Youth Hostel under the guidance of a friend, which was hidden in the alley of Yongning vegetable market. There are two red lanterns hanging at the door, and there is a shelf of books for people to read in the hotel. Simple stone house, simple but carefully arranged. There are several bamboo chairs and a cup of green tea in the courtyard to welcome tourists from all over the world. When you are lucky, you will meet open-air movies and folk concerts.

Later, I heard that Yongning was planning to build the Xibaolou public library, which was transformed from the old building of overseas Chinese. It is open to local citizens and tourists free of charge. Children in Yongning can read and borrow books for free, and hold various public lectures and cultural activities from time to time. This small town, far from the bustling city and located in the countryside, once again surprised me.

03

There are many ancient buildings in the ancient street of Yongning. Although worn out, they can't hide their brilliance. Every building seems to be an abandoned work of art, with a delicate face that no one knows, and spent a long time alone in the dust on the street.

Ningdong Building left a deep impression on me. It is a Chinese and foreign model building, European-style carved window eaves, light cloud-like smooth lines, luxurious reliefs and rounded stone pillars, polished into a natural exquisiteness. Even if you are in the middle of messy wires and the wind and rain mottle your face, you still have that luxurious posture.

Yongning is a famous hometown of overseas Chinese. Overseas Chinese did not forget the mulberry, sent the money they earned back to their hometown one by one, and built this exquisite little building. Walking slowly in the streets of these old buildings, the trees are full of trees, the sun is shining, the big house is there, the yard is there, but the owner does not know where to go.

I heard the whispers of ancient buildings under the clear blue sky. It was a distant story, with nostalgia for my hometown, which turned into tears lingering in my dreams in the dark.

04

There are colorful flags in front of the Chenghuang Temple. This temple, built in the Ming Dynasty, is still full of incense and purple smoke. Most of the houses in the old street have long been abandoned, with mottled moss, locked wooden doors and rusty, and the occasional flash soon disappeared behind the stone houses. Long empty lanes are always quiet, leaving only the sound of the wind.

Yongning old street is covered with red lanterns, and the simple stone road adds a bit of joy. Lantern Festival is coming. It is said that there will be a lively Lantern Festival here this year. The old street has the simplest living atmosphere, and the storefront is still the same as it was decades ago.

From barbershop photo studio to Xiaobuzhuang department store, there are many prosperous flowers scattered here, and people choose not to change its appearance. Finally, I chose to leave this land intact to these old streets and stores, and seal it up with the past stories. Abandoned streets have become eternity in my memory.

05

I came to Yongning again and again, but I left regrets again and again.

When I first came here, I stayed for more than a month and didn't go to see the famous Gold Coast. That summer, I met a typhoon day in Yongning. Because at the seaside, I first heard the sound of the wind whistling so clearly at night. It is as sharp as a sword, piercing the deep night. I went to Yongning Old Street for the last time after the Spring Festival, but I didn't take a look at Gusao Tower in a hurry. Perhaps the regret left inadvertently will be the reason for revisiting the old place one day in the future.

One side of the soil and water support one side of the people, Yongning people are warm and generous, more generous, like an endless sea. From Yongning Youth Hostel to Xibaolou Public Library, there are several young people running. What makes these young people want to stay in this town? What makes more and more people become frequent visitors here?

Maybe it's a group of friends who never forget, maybe it's the feelings that this town deserves their trust, maybe it's guarding and looking back at their hometown, maybe this land has brought them lingering heartache. They stop here, go back and forth, and never go far.

06

The vision of defending the hometown of southern Fujian has been supported by more and more people, and backpackers from all over the country have begun to appear in the streets of Yongning, bringing stories from all sides. People keep donating books and money to public libraries, and public libraries have become a small cultural gathering place. People spend one leisure weekend after another in Yongning, quietly blowing the sea breeze, visiting the lively seaside food stalls, and watching the sunset fade away. A cup of green tea is the most comfortable and cozy.

The humanistic care of a city depends on one warm window after another, and the land of Quanzhou always brings me casual touch. There are always a group of people who spontaneously guard their hometown culture, welcome tourists from all over the world with the truest heart, tell the story of Quanzhou, and bring the cultural charm of the ancient city of Erythrina to the distance.

I have a lot of feelings for the elderly, and the misty rain has passed. A turn, a memory, everyone who is willing to take the story away is welcome here.