The entire courtyard of this guesthouse is a key cultural relic protection unit, some of which is a provincial cultural relics protection unit. It has a history of more than 400 years, and the total area is more than 2,000 square meters, which is the typical Ming and Qing Dynasties building Jinshang compound (three halls and two halls) in the ancient city of Pingyao. Located near the ancient city of Pingyao, Shangximen (Yongdingmen), is located in Pingyao ancient city, at 38 South Street of Shangximen. It is only a 5-minute walk from the Pingyao Theatre and the Yongdingmen parking lot, and about 10 minutes walk from the county government, making travel very convenient. You can choose to walk the ancient city or take a taxi to visit the ancient town. There are a variety of room types arranged, following the traditional layout of Ming and Qing Dynasty, which is quaint and elegant, and full of functions, which can meet the needs of individual trips, family trips, and unit reunions. The guesthouse can provide services such as Chinese weddings, conferences and exhibitions, cultural exchange and so on. The entire courtyard is built on a central axis. The gatehouse is wooden, with a single-sided tile roof, and is hanging high on the highly gabled outside wall with horse stones each in the center and left. The plaque, which says "purely imperfect," is stiff and beautiful, and a pair of lion guards squat in front of the gate, which is solemn. Step up four stone steps, cross a threshold 1.1 m wide and 50 cm high, and enter a 6 m long foyer. There is a ceiling above the foyer, which is painted in oil. On both sides of the hall are two main hall (inside and outside suites) for the elderly to live or wedding and funeral. The single-slope wooden structure has a tiled-roofed house with wooden shutters and wooden windows, which are also decorated with lively oil paint.
The inner and outer courtyards are made of north-facing south-arched brick structure cave dwellings (which belongs to the oldest building in Fan Zhai, and has been studied as a building in the late Ming Dynasty. The rest are buildings built during the Qing Dynasty) the aisles are separated, connected, and decorated with heavy flowers. Two doors are commonly known as two street doors. On each side of the aisle are two caves and two corners, the corners are the same as the inner and outer yards. The tall and strong gatehouse is erected in the middle of the back wall of the cave. Under the gatehouse are two thick gold pillars with eaves. Under the gold pillar is a drumstone relief. At the top of the gate is a wooden structure with a single slope tile roof. The tile animals are complete. The wooden dragons and dragons of all sizes live. A pair of lion guards were majestic and solemn. The plaque bore the words "Xiao Wei" and hung a red 楹联 "A flower laughed to know your friend, half a book opened to the ancient people." The cave stone walls on each side of the doorway were surrounded by bricks into two brick shadow walls of the same size, with bricks carved into the ground hall and the temple hall respectively. The arches of the cave are flattened with yellow earth, and the roof is thick with brick, which is warm in winter and cool in summer. The roof is surrounded by flower-walled walls, the original feng shui terrace, which was built in fine art during the Cultural Revolution and was now no longer present. A front porch with a single-slope hard hilltop was built before the cave, which is intact. Under the four large gold pillars is a sculpture of drumstone, and there is a large red 楹联, "I am trying to communicate with a friend, and I am thinking of drinking a little to announce the flower." The arched doors and windows, the front door of the Second Street Gate, is only accessible for marriages and funerals, and usually goes between the caves, where the folk customs are very strong. There are three rooms in the east and west of the courtyard, which are wooden structures with single slope tiles, commonly known as doorways inside and outside. The middle hall is a functional room which can be used for meetings, tea drinking, and office work. Through the middle hall the two sides are bedrooms. There is a toilet, a earthen kang, a stove in front of the kang for heating in winter. There is one small wall cabinet on the wall, antique doors and windows, both bright and dark, and wood carving flowers and decorations of various kinds. There are oil-colored paintings on sawn boards above the doors and windows. Stone carvings on the windowsill stand are particularly remarkable, including 'Double Dragon Balls' and 'Lions Rolling Embroidery Balls'. Even more striking is the presence of an elaborate stone carving on the windowsills, commonly known as 'Carved Shankstone'. The top of the roof chimney is uniquely shaped as a grey loft, which was specifically burned when wealthy families built their homes. On both sides of the roof, the spinal animals are fully equipped and are largely preserved. The main building of the inner court is a five-storey cave with an arched brick structure. The arches are flattened with yellow earthen mats. The cave roof is thick. On the cave is built a wooden structure with two floors of five rooms, which sits on a hilltop. It is the highest point of the entire court, and the plaque is high in the middle. In front of the kiln, a front porch was built on a single slope, with wood carvings of flowers, playing chess, writing and painting, elaborate carvings, wood carving dragons large and small, majestic and solemn, four large gold pillars with eaves, drum and stone carvings. There are Beaugou flowers, and on the front porch there is a plaque titled "Greeting Hall" (the "Greeting hall" is the name of the ticket number started by Fan Zhonglin), and three large red 楹联s, "Follow the past and continue to prosper in the world, before the light and after the long-term happiness of the future", reflect the cultural taste of the mansion owner and show the beauty of the mansions owner in the past. There are two steps on the upper floor. The five connected halls of the cave pass through each side, and the middle cave is separated by a wooden curtain a little over half. Fan Shichang, a descendant of his, opened the historical exhibition hall of his ancestors who operated the Yongyuan Changbu Zhuang Zhuang. The large and small dragons in the entire courtyard are beautifully carved, the cat's head is dripping, the corrugated is complete, the drumstone is sculptured, the Beaugou flowers are especially embroidered on the window sills with a lion rolling embroidery, and the richness continues to be first and foremost. The patterns are elaborate. Security facilities are very strict throughout the compound. Five doors allow access to the inner courtyard. There are wire meshes in various corners of the roof, and bells are hung on the net to act as a burglar alarm. The most interesting thing is that there is a mechanism in the gate, and outsiders can only enter and cannot exit. There is a room in the east of the cave, which is the passage of the inner courtyard and the backyard, and the backyard is equipped with a mill, a kitchen, a food room, a cellar, and a bathroom. The backyard has a separate back door, which goes out to the south wall, which used to be used as a passageway for the transport of fuelwood. Behind the cave is a well-made photo wall with rich moral content. Fan Zhai was identified by the Pingyao County People's Government in 1994 as "key cultural relics protection units" belonging to the earlier group, In the 1980s, when the ancient city of Pingyao was declared a national historical and cultural city and a world cultural heritage, many experts and scholars, friends from abroad, and United Nations officials visited the city and gave high ratings. The Fan Mansion was restored by his descendants Fan Shichang, and today it is the most beautiful harmonious courtyard with Jinshang culture and Ming and Qing dynasty residences, and is an ideal residence for visiting the ancient city of Pingyao. We welcome friends from all walks of life to stay here, sleep on earthen beds, use ancient objects, taste folk customs, see business history, learn integrity and become a successful businessman.
