Qianyuan Garden is located on Jianshe Road in Huzhou. It is built in the same garden as Lianhuazhuang. On the east side of the gate of Qianyuan Garden, there are two large characters ‘Qianyuan’ written by Chen Congzhou, a professor at Tongji University, on the blue tile and white wall. Entering the gate, there is a rockery made of more than a thousand tons of Taihu stones. On the south side of the mountain, there is a small pavilion with wooden pillars and brown tiles. In the pavilion, there are three characters ‘Xiao Penglai’ written by Tan Jiancheng, a famous calligrapher from Huzhou. On the east side of the rockery is the Lu’s Book Donation Stele to commemorate Lu Xinyuan’s achievements in donating books. There are also long corridors with抱轩 (a name that I’m not entirely sure how to translate accurately), stone shoots, flowers, plantain trees, camphor trees and other plants in the park. There is also a pool. There are five Taihu stones standing on the edge of the pool. One of them is ‘Lianhuafeng’ and it has now been listed as a cultural relic protection site in the city. Looking at the whole garden, it is extremely elegant with many exquisite sceneries. It is a place for sightseeing and rest.
Background knowledge: It was built in the early years of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty. It is a private garden built by Lu Xinyuan, a book collector. Hence, it is named ‘Lu Family Garden’. Later, because Lu Xinyuan called himself ‘the old man of Qianyuan’, it was renamed ‘Qianyuan Garden’. After the February Revolution, Dai Jitao once lived here and lived a secluded life like in a paradise. When Qianyuan Garden was first built, there were 16 scenic spots such as ‘Shouxian Pavilion’, ‘Sihai Jingshe’, and ‘Wushi thatched cottage’. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, most of the buildings were destroyed. Opening hours: From April 1st to November 30th, it is open from 06:00 to 22:00; from December 1st to March 31st, it is open from 06:00 to 20:00. The specific business status is subject to the opening situation on that day.
