Fujian is a province with colorful culture. The most special one is Quanzhou City, located in the southern Fujian region. This tourist city full of scenic spots was very prosperous as early as the Northern Song Dynasty more than 1,000 years ago. Among the many ancient streets and modern streets in Quanzhou, the most famous are West Street and Zhongshan Road. If you explore carefully, you will find it is a Goldfish Alley. This street has almost no reputation, and I encountered it by accident.

Goldfish Alley is very short, and its width is not uniform. The entrance of the alley is almost ten meters, and the narrowest part of the alley is only two or three meters. According to locals, the width of the alley was expanded in the early 20th century, and the two or three meters was the original width of this small alley.

Goldfish Lane intersects with Zhongshan Road, the famous arcade commercial street in Quanzhou, and is nearby the Confucian Temple Square, a landmark in Quanzhou. The streets and alleys are filled with low-rise buildings, a mixture of traditional Minnan architecture and modern buildings, and some have modified the Minnan architecture. The alley is very quiet, with almost no tourists. Although it is close to Zhongshan Road Commercial Street, the commercial atmosphere is not strong. There are only a few small shops here, continuing the human atmosphere of the old city.

As the name suggests, does Goldfish Lane get its name because many people sell goldfish here? This reasoning seems reasonable, but it is far from the real reason.

Goldfish Lane got its name because Xie Zhonggui, the transfer envoy to Fujian Province in the Song Dynasty, once built a house here, and his descendants built an ancestral hall on the same site with a plaque saying "Goldfish Generation". The word "goldfish" here refers to the fish bag worn by ancient officials. This fish bag is not used to hold fish, but is a handmade jewelry that can only be worn by those who meet the standards.

Since the Tang Dynasty, officials of the fifth rank and above can wear fish bags. Officials of the third rank and above wear purple robes and can wear goldfish bags. This kind of fish bag is the ID card of ancient officials. Most people recognize it by the color of their official uniforms. , style, whether there is a fish bag, or the style of the fish bag worn can determine the official rank.

The goldfish bag is an exquisite small purse. Although the system of each dynasty is different, and the shape and content of the purse also change, the wearing principle is basically the same. In this sense, Goldfish Alley was actually an alley for the rich and powerful in history.

In the early years of the Republic of China, the Daguangming Cinema was built at the entrance of Jinyu Alley. The business was booming, which boosted nearby businesses. Many small vendors made a fortune here, and Southern Fujian delicacies such as four-fruit soup sold well. This situation of prosperity and prosperity now only exists in the memory of the older generation. As time goes by, everything will eventually become blurred, and new stories are constantly being interpreted.