Wuzhen, formerly known as Wudun and Qingdun, is located in Tongxiang, Jiaxing City, Zhejiang Province. Wuzhen was originally divided into two towns, Qing Wu, with Wuzhen in Hexi and Qingzhen in Hedong. After liberation, Wuzhen, west of Shihe River, was placed under Tongxiang County, which was called Wuzhen.

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More than 6,000 years ago, the ancestors of Wuzhen flourished here. During the Spring and Autumn Period, Wuzhen was the border between wuyue and the State of Wu stationed troops here to guard against crossing the country. Although Wuzhen has experienced thousands of years of vicissitudes, it still completely preserves the original style and pattern of the ancient water town.

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On the Lantern Festival every year, Wuzhen people have the custom of walking on the bridge together at night. This custom originated from a kind of disaster-avoidance activity which was popular in the old days. At that time, after dressing, women each took a crock for decocting medicine and walked in teams. When crossing the bridge, they threw the crock into the river, thinking that this would ensure that there would be no disease and no disaster in the new year.