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Wangcun is an ancient town with a history of two thousand years, located on the banks of the You River, 51 kilometers from the county seat. It was originally the seat of Youyang County in the Western Han Dynasty. Thanks to the convenience of boat transport on the You River, it connected to Sichuan and Guizhou upstream and reached Dongting downstream, and since ancient times it was a trading port for Yongshun, known as the "thoroughfare between Chu and Shu." It enjoys the reputation of "the mighty town of Youyang," one of the "Four Great Famous Towns" of Xiangxi, and "Little Nanjing." Because all the exterior scenes of the famous film Hibiscus Town were shot here, it is also known as "Hibiscus Town."
Hibiscus Town is not only an ancient town with a long history of a thousand years, but also a tourist destination that blends natural scenery with quaint ethnic customs. It is also the gateway to the Mengdong River Scenic Area and a best spot for seeking tranquility and exploring the past. Surrounded by green mountains and clear waters, the town area features winding and deep alleys, Tujia stilted wooden houses nestling by the water, and a five-li-long street paved with bluestone slabs. Everywhere one can perceive the honest and simple Tujia folk customs, leaving visitors full of praise and reluctant to leave. After touring the Mengdong River and Wangcun, Mr. Hu Jiwei wrote a ci poem in praise: "Wuling's mountains are elegant, the waters deep and serene, / Three Gorges descend to Xizhou. / Cliffs stand steep, lushly green, / Gently drifts the splendid boat. / Fresh fish cooked, monkeys at play, / Immortals roam the Dragon Cave, / Hibiscus ancient town's stilted houses, / Tujia warmth runs deep."
It houses over three hundred cultural relics of the Tujia people, with a rich cultural atmosphere; the ancient architecture is the best testimony to Tujia civilization. The nationally famous singer Song Zuying completed the filming of the "Little Back Basket" MTV in the ancient town and at this building. CCTV reporters have interviewed here multiple times, and Hunan TV program host Li Bing conducted a comprehensive interview about this building.
Hibiscus Town not only has beautiful scenery and rich ethnic customs, but also boasts cultural landscapes such as the "Xizhou Bronze Pillar," a national key protected cultural relic that records Tujia political and military history, and the filming location of the movie Hibiscus Town.
Looking at the ancient town's stone-slab street from afar, one always feels that Hibiscus Town's five-li bluestone street is like the spine of a thread-bound ancient book, its pages opened by the hand of heaven, quietly and steadily spread out by the banks of the You River. The stilted houses soaring above those pages, and the joys and sorrows that unfolded within and around them, move with the years, unfolding many resonant, warm, and dramatic stories.
This seemingly ordinary village of Hibiscus Town in Xiangxi was originally the royal capital of the Tujia kings during the Qin and Han dynasties, anciently called Youyang, and during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period called Xizhou. Later, because the film Hibiscus Town was shot here, people came to call this place Hibiscus Town.
Climbing up the steps, the mountain path is quite steep. The stone steps extending upward from the dock form a bluestone-slab road five li long that runs through the ancient town. It has no name, so people simply call it the Five-Li Long Street. Stepping onto the ancient street is like treading on fragments left behind by the long passage of time. Unconsciously one arrives before the folk museum with the plaque reading "Tujia Waterfall-Viewing Stilted House." From hand-cranked and foot-pedaled cotton gins and pig-castrating horns to carved marriage beds passed down through generations, nearly a hundred folk implements redolent of rural life display the ancient and rich history of the Tujia people. The caretaker said these were collected by a young Tujia man who traveled over mountains and rivers, quietly telling of this small village's ancient past. This three-story building has half of it resting on the riverbank, while the other half is supported by concrete pillars that plunge straight to the riverbed. Though the water washes day and night, the small stilted house stands firmly there, letting time pass. What clever Tujia people, ingeniously borrowing a stretch of water to build such a charming dwelling.
On both sides, black-tiled wooden houses line up row upon row, arranged in picturesque disorder following the mountain terrain. Several brocade shops have already opened. To call them shops is less accurate than workshops, because the main area of the shops is occupied by weaving looms, while colorful shoulder bags, wall hangings, and bedding are hung on the walls. Tourists can not only stop to admire the elegance of the girls' hands and shuttles flying over the looms, but also slowly appreciate the artistic features of the displayed items. It is said that local girls originally only threaded needles for their relatives and sweethearts, but now they produce dazzling Tujia brocade to sell to strangers. From "not for sale" items bound up with emotion to commodities that are purely a display of skill, this leap in lifestyle and emotion seems to have happened overnight.
Interestingly, rice tofu is found all along the street, and every shop hangs up a still from the film Hibiscus Town to show that theirs is the authentic version. In fact, long before the film was made, rice tofu was already a specialty here. Why rely on that fictional story? Twenty years ago, a film brought this small town — "hidden deep in the boudoir, unknown to the world" — out from the map and placed it before the eyes of the world, and then it would influence generations here, even penetrating to their very marrow. Since then, the once-isolated tranquility was broken, and this profound influence probably began with a bowl of rice tofu.
Evening had barely arrived when the snack shops along the long street lit up their dim lights one after another. These family-run shops are all run by locals who have set aside a corner of their own homes. The fresh and sweet mandarin fish, and the plump and delicious "Number One Snail in the World," like the rice tofu, have become the most unforgettable delicacies there. Beside a chastity archway in the village, another refreshing delicacy was discovered — chilled homemade Tujia glutinous rice wine. The clever and capable Tujia people are self-sufficient, living freely and leisurely: the men fish outside, the women weave at home, generation after generation, immersed in their own culture.
