The second largest city in the Northern Song Dynasty, but now it has been "sleeping" in Hebei for thousands of years, and few people know it!

Some time ago, I went to Hebei, and I originally planned to go to see the Xiangtangshan Grottoes and the Wa Palace, and appreciate the majestic landscape of the northern country.

On the way to the car, the navigation indicated that I was about to pass Handan, so I decided to go to Handan first to feel the historical heritage of this 3,000-year-old city.

Once in Handan, I took a break at the hotel and couldn't wait to start exploring the city.

There are many historic sites in Handan, the most famous of which is the place where the allusion to "Handan toddler" took place - the toddler bridge.

Standing on this stone bridge that has gone through thousands of years of wind and rain, it seems that you can still feel the funny appearance of the Handan people back then, which makes people laugh.

Leaving the toddler bridge, I drove to the ancient city of Guangfu, known as the "Water City of Northern China" and known for its unique moat system and well-preserved Ming and Qing dynasty buildings.

Walking on the ancient city wall and looking at the sparkling moat, it is as if you have traveled back to that war-torn era, which is full of emotion.

At the end of my two-day trip to Handan, I was preparing to drive to Shijiazhuang to continue my trip to Hebei.

At this moment, a street sign on the side of the road that read "Daimyo's Mansion" immediately aroused my curiosity.

Daimyofu, this name sounds familiar, as if I have heard it somewhere, think carefully, this is not the "Beijing" of the Song Dynasty!

It is said that this place was no less prosperous than Kaifeng back then, and it was the second largest city in the Northern Song Dynasty.

As soon as my curiosity came up, I had to figure it out, so I immediately decided to change my itinerary and go to this daimyo's mansion to find out!

It takes more than an hour to drive from Handan downtown, and not long after getting off the highway, you can see the city gate building, gray bricks and green tiles, tall and majestic, quite a bit of the style of the past.

After entering the city gate, walk along a straight avenue, there are antique buildings on both sides, shops are lined up, people come and go, and it is quite lively.

But to be honest, I was still a little guilty at first, after all, compared to the fame of this famous mansion and its current situation, the gap is a bit big, it can't be the kind of overdeveloped antique street, right?

As a result, after walking around, I realized that I was completely wrong!

This famous mansion is really not an "embroidered pillow", it really retains a large number of historical relics of the Song Dynasty, but many of them have not yet had time to develop, so quietly "sleeping", waiting for people to discover.

For example, when I was walking around the city, I stumbled upon a stone tablet with the words "Five Rites Monument" written on it, and I almost thought I had crossed over.

This stone tablet is mottled all over and the handwriting is blurred, and it looks like it is some years old.

I curiously took a closer look, and the inscription recorded the etiquette system promulgated by the imperial court in the Northern Song Dynasty, and the inscription "Cai Jingshu" was written on the place.

Cai Jing?

That's the great calligrapher of the Northern Song Dynasty!

I was immediately in awe of this stele, and when I checked the information, I realized that this stele has a history of more than 900 years!

Can you believe that such a precious cultural relic is standing on the side of the road like this, and there is not even a fence!

There is even more exaggerated, I wandered around a residential area and saw a quaint ancestral hall, and the stone tablet at the door reads "Di Renjie Ancestral Hall Tablet"!

Di Renjie, that is a famous minister of the Tang Dynasty, and he is in the same era as Wu Zetian, how can this ancestral hall have a history of hundreds of years, right?

I walked into the ancestral hall, only to see the ancient trees in the courtyard towering to the sky, the environment is quiet, the main hall is dedicated to the statue of Di Renjie, the demeanor is majestic, and it is awe-inspiring.

I inquired with the administrator of the ancestral hall, and learned that this ancestral hall was built by the local people in the Song Dynasty to commemorate Di Renjie's achievements in governing Weizhou (now the Daimyo's Mansion), which has been more than a thousand years ago!

Good guy, this is a serious Song Dynasty building!

In addition to these historical sites, the folk culture of the Daimyofu is also particularly interesting.

I walked to an old neighborhood and saw a long queue at the door of a baked cake shop.

When I asked, I found out that this is called "Guo Ba Burning Fire", which is a traditional local snack, which is said to have been sold since the Song Dynasty, using ancestral secret recipes, no wonder it is so popular！

I'm a person, just this ancient taste, I immediately queued up to buy one, took a bite, the skin is crispy, the inside is soft, and there is a faint sesame fragrance, it really deserves to be a centuries-old brand!

In addition to the baked cakes, I also tried the local specialty snack mutton steamed dumplings, golden and crispy steamed dumplings, accompanied by fragrant mutton soup, which is also a must！

After a few days of strolling around the Daimyo's Mansion, I felt like I had traveled back in time to the Song Dynasty and experienced the charm of a thousand-year-old city.

There are no bustling tour groups, no over-commercial development, just the precipitation of history and cultural inheritance, as well as the simple smiles and warm hospitality of the locals.

When I left the Daimyofu, I made a special trip to the Daimyofu Museum to systematically learn about the city's thousand-year-old history.

Looking at those exquisite cultural relics and historical materials, my heart was full of awe and emotion.

Although this once glorious city of the Northern Song Dynasty has been "sleeping" for thousands of years, its history and culture are still alive and waiting for us to discover and inherit.

If you also like history and culture and want to experience the authentic atmosphere of the old city, then the Daimyo Mansion is definitely a place worth visiting!