Among many Jiangnan water towns, Luzhi is a typical Jiangnan water town. The ancient town has a history of more than 2,500 years, with scenic spots and historical sites all over every corner of the town, densely covered with water lanes, criss-crossing river networks, surrounded by clear water and facing small bridges and flowing water. Some houses in Qing Dynasty are still well preserved, and streets are mostly paved with pebbles and granite. Walking in the ancient streets and lanes, mottled white walls, gloomy tile houses, moss in the corner and brown dust on the eaves all indicate the long time and feel like entering a country town of the Republic of China.

My first understanding of the ancient town began in the late 1970s, when I left home and went to Luzhi Middle School in the ancient town. At that time, due to the inconvenient transportation, it took more than an hour to walk to the dock at the entrance of Gaodian Village and about two hours by boat. We entered the river channel of the town along Wusong River, and what we saw along the river was nothing but old houses and streets, and there was nothing new. Only the clear river flows leisurely, injecting vitality into life. After abandoning the ship and going ashore, I walked in the narrow street, only to see that the houses scattered on both sides of the river kept their natural shapes. Some shops are daily necessities, and the doors and windows are faded old wooden boards, which are dull, but they look old and simple. The school is located at the eastern end of the town, near Nangang, Kunshan. The vast campus is empty and quiet, most of the teaching buildings are old, the trees on the roadside are lush and vibrant, the playground is overgrown with weeds, and there are only basketball stands at both ends of the playground. Occasionally, I go for a walk in the town after school, and everywhere I see are some old shops and houses, as well as bridges across streets and banks, connecting people passing by. The impression of the town is generally the same, and the memory stays in the depths of my mind, sometimes flashing familiar and slightly unfamiliar memories.

Now, it is precisely because of historical changes that the so-called older historical sites have become the folk characteristics of displaying regional culture, which is the charm of a small town, competing to attract tourists with freshness and arouse their nostalgia. Taking this opportunity, the local government spared no effort to collect celebrities and events related to this issue, set up a memorial hall, repair the former residence, show the objects they used, and preserve their original appearance and characteristics as much as possible as a memorial to them. This is also their glorious course and achievement.

Of course, the ancient town has its natural and unique water features different from other places. Some buildings still maintain the form at that time, with unique folk traditions in rural areas in the south of the Yangtze River. In particular, many stone bridges with different shapes and postures can best represent the history of the ancient town, and it is no exaggeration to be called "Bridge Capital". There are many river forks in the town, and the history of bridges can be traced back to the Song Dynasty. Most of them are slab bridges and arch bridges, as well as small single-hole stone bridges, narrow flat-topped bridges and double bridges with unique decoration, also known as sister bridges. There is a large porous stone bridge outside the town. The bridge is unique and its shape has different postures. Some big stone bridges have stone beasts at both ends, and there are stone carvings with different patterns on the bridge railings, which is really a museum of the bridge. Walking in the street and boating in the river, the stone bridge ridge and river water can be seen everywhere, the mottled and somewhat incomplete bridge body, the moss weeds growing between the bridge joints, and the skew defect of the stone bench on the bridge railing are all symbols of the age of this bridge.

Most of the alleys in ancient towns are narrow and deep. Some old houses can be traced back to the Ming dynasty, and most of their buildings in the Qing dynasty are intact. The deepest alley 150 meters is really like "listening to the spring rain in the alley all night and selling the apricot flowers deep in the alley of the Ming Dynasty". Walking in a deep alley, stepping on the blue brick slab, footsteps will echo in the alley, especially in rainy days, water drips from the eaves and stone steps, and the sound is crisp and pleasant. Looking at the end of the alley, the rain and fog are hazy and infinite. Decorative walls and tiles are another feature of the ancient town. The patterns of various colors are clear and have experienced the simplicity and quietness of the times. A careful study of nostalgia appears for no reason.

The traditional culture of this area is best reflected in the costumes of local women, whose costumes have a complete local style from beginning to end. Women follow the costumes of the early countryside, with their hair tied in knots at the back of their heads, covered with net bags, wearing hairpins and headscarves. Generally, blue stone forest cloth is used, and the two sharp corners at the back are spelled into other colors, forming a figure of eight under the bun, and the front is bent from forehead to ear, setting off a simple face. Most blouses are Chinese-style diagonal buttons with rolled buttons. The blouse is longer than the hips and wrists, and the waist is tied with a skirt. Most of them are made of blue printed fabrics. The back waist has a four-finger wide belt with various embroidery patterns on it. The embroidery process is particularly exquisite and the stitches are particularly fine, which can best reflect the beauty and intelligence of rural women. The embroidery patterns are mostly peony, rose, dragon and phoenix, flowers and birds, and the line colors are red, yellow, blue and purple. After completion, it is tied to the waist with a waist seal, and tassels are hung on the waist head, which gently swings when walking or in the breeze, and also flutters like weak willows in the breeze. The toe of cloth socks and embroidered shoes are embroidered with flower-and-bird patterns, and the fineness of hand-sewing reflects women's cleverness and dexterity. When they wear such costumes and walk on the ancient streets, it is a flowing landscape. They rowed boats, loaded with tourists, rocked boats and shuttled through the river, singing soft folk songs of Wu Nong, which will definitely make you forget your original troubles and immerse yourself in the ancient streets and rivers, as if you had traveled back to the distant past through time and space.

The food in the ancient town can also satisfy your appetite. The sauce made of Fuli hoof oil is not greasy, the entrance is soft, and the red color of the sauce attracts your eye. Dried radish has a local flavor. We choose the unique local traditional pickling technology, select all kinds of radishes, and pickle different flavors with different technologies. It is salty, but not astringent. It is hard to imagine the complexity of the pickling process, otherwise it will have such a taste. Other kinds of folk food, some of which are made and sold in shops, can be seen in the making process, and the fresh entrance should have a special flavor.

There are many kinds of goods in the ancient street, most of which are local products. Some handicrafts are simple and steady, and foreign craft ornaments make the goods on the ancient street colorful and full of local scenery. Some shops also display farming tools, such as plows, rakes and shovels, which are rarely seen by young people nowadays, let alone how to use them. There are also hand-cranked wind valley cars and bellows, which have been used as rare agricultural instruments for tourists to enjoy.

Straight straw sandals are also unique to the local countryside. They are mainly worn when working in the fields. There are many pairs of woven straw sandals hanging in a shop. You can see the craftsmanship and process of the old farmer weaving straw sandals. Of course, no one wears them now, and some tourists will take several pairs as souvenirs when they look at novelty. When you are tired, you can rest on the stone bench by the river, watch the boatwoman rocking the boat and singing slowly away from your eyes in the river.

The ancient town is also a generation of celebrities. The tomb of Lu Guimeng, a poet in the late Tang Dynasty, is located in the west of the town, and there are also many relics to be discovered. The old gentleman is as poor as a church mouse and does not bow to the powerful. It is said that he invented the cow plough, which was also called Fu Li at that time, and was honored as "Mr. Fu Li". Mr. Ye Shengtao, a contemporary educator, lived in Luzhi for a period of time in 1930s and 1940s, and realized the hardships and helplessness of cultivators. Taking the local rural area as the background, the scene at that time seems to be found on the pier and stone bridge beside the "Wansheng Mihang" river in the town. Now "Wansheng Mihang" has become a tourist attraction in the ancient town, and some of the utensils in it are said to have been used that year.

Zhenxi Baosheng Temple was built in Tian Liang prison during the Southern and Northern Dynasties. It belongs to one of the "480 halls of Southern Dynasties" and has a history of 1500 years. It has really experienced thousands of years of wind and frost, and has been destroyed and abandoned many times. Some arhat sculptures are still well preserved. The nine Luohan clay sculptures of Luohantang were created by Yang Huizhi, a famous sculptor in the Tang Dynasty. The statue is a whole, with rocks, clouds, waves and a fairyland on the sea. Many scenes are vivid and really a paradise. Two Buddha statues are discussing Buddhist scriptures, while the others sit in groups. Some of them close their eyes and meditate, some lie on their side, and some lie on their side. Their expressions are vivid and natural, which fully embodies the wisdom and talent of sculpture art at that time and becomes the treasure of Buddhist culture. There are four ginkgo trees in the temple, which are 50 meters high and tall. It is said that they are 1300 years old. The crown is like a canopy, the roots are coiled, and the stems are old and stretched. For thousands of years, they have witnessed the changes of the world and the vicissitudes of history and become the historical symbols of the ancient town.

Although the ancient town is small, it can concentrate human history, small bridges and flowing water, and former residences on this land, and find traces of history from brick to brick. Ancestors created not only these remaining traces, but also a spiritual transmission. Long rivers, winding rivers, narrow streets, curved bridges, long alleys, colorful white walls and heavy tiles may all echo the heavy footsteps of history. Those forgotten have passed away with the river, and the history in memory will be rooted in people's hearts for a long time and become immortal historical treasures.