Moushi Manor is the largest, most complete and representative landlord manor in northern China. Located in Qixia City, Yantai City, Shandong Province. Mou is also known as Mou Erhei, so the manor is also known as Mou Erhei Manor.
Along the paved Qingshi Road, I came to the gate of Moushi Manor. The couplet on the door reads "Farming the world, managing the family diligently", which expresses the idea of the Mou family running the family. The prosperity of a family is inseparable from the education of future generations. Mu family is a combination of agriculture, government and Confucianism. Although the Mou family obtained a lot of official titles, or spent money to buy officials, they supported officials with agriculture and protected them with officials. However, strict family rules and good family style are also necessary factors for the prosperity of the Mu family for so many years.
Walking on the mottled ancient city wall, you can see that the building is very beautiful. The gap between each brick is very small. It is said that when building a house, Mou will give some copper coins to the workers every morning. If there is a gap between bricks, fill it with copper coins. If the craft is good, the copper coin given today will be his own. This reward system makes construction workers pay special attention to it. Moushi Manor is a masterpiece of northern architecture. Pomegranate trees in the yard still follow the laws of nature and blossom and bear fruit every year.
If the Grand View Garden in A Dream of Red Mansions is the representative of social humanities in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, then the Moushi Manor is the epitome of feudal society in the late Qing Dynasty.
Overlooking the whole manor, the layout is divided into three groups of six courtyards, each with one to three courtyards, all of which are quadrangular structures. Most of the houses are carved with beams and painted buildings, with bright columns and windows, which are very spectacular. The courtyards of the whole manor overlap neatly. Houses are dense and orderly. It not only shows the typical features of traditional residential buildings in northern China, but also shows the luxury of Moujia.
The stone wall of Moujiazhuang is as smooth as a mirror, and the cracks are as thin as lines. According to the research of architectural experts and cultural relics experts, the stone wall of the manor is the best in China traditional architecture. There is no adhesive between the two stones, and the uneven place is padded with copper coins. The blue bricks and gray tiles are soaked in bean juice to prevent weathering and fading. Therefore, although the whole manor has been eroded by wind and rain for hundreds of years, it still retains its original style.
There are countless architectural wonders of the manor, among which the "three monsters" are the most magical: the chimney is built outside the gable, the kang mouth is outside the bedroom, and the hall door is open. The rise and fall of the Mu family for more than 600 years not only reflects the changes of the times, but also deduces countless legendary stories.