Xiaobeimen Road: Gather the world fireworks encounter quiet time

Afternoon, walking in xiaobimen Road, the sun through the roadside trees of the leaves gently sprinkled down, fine and warm. The road is lined with rows of houses, including bun shops, barber shops and bathhouses. With the genial breeze, the rich human fireworks gradually rising, the warmth of the market is all here. 7bde84873f093f97178c40e1117f50af.jpg

The history of a road

Xiaobimen Road, which runs to Guangming East Road in the north and Jiahe Street in the south, is a historic road. Yu Kenan, an expert on xuzhou culture and history, told reporters that in the Qing Dynasty, the Small North Gate was a shortcut connecting Fengpei County. At that time, there was a pier outside the small north gate. People went out of the small north gate and took a boat to the north bank. Then they could reach there by tongpei Road.

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Jin jin of Pengcheng visited the river defense. In vain zuntan lu, into the boat day not ended. Tianguang chengcheng yingbi, Sichuan Qi Yu fei huang. Wave quietly invites god's blessing, I don't mention it." According to Yu, in the middle of the Qing Dynasty, there was no bridge over the Yellow River, and emperor Qianlong had to enter Xuzhou city by boat. The poem is about entering the North gate by boat.

This is not the only historical legend of Xiaobeimen Road. Entering Xiaobeimen Road from Jiahe Street, the first thing you see is an archaized archway inscribed "Inverted horse Well". Continue on, at the intersection of Xiaobeimen Road and Mingli Street, you will see the ancient well.

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There are different opinions about the origin of the name of the inverted horse well, some people think that it is related to qianlong, and some people think that it is related to the military horses in the ancient city school field, but it can be confirmed that this is an old well dug in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties. Passing residents told reporters, well water sweet and clear, used to be a source of water for surrounding residents. At that time, many people came here to wash clothes, wash vegetables, wash rice, queue for water, it was very lively.

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Due to its relatively well-preserved and legendary history, Inverted horse Well has not only become an important symbol of Xiaobeimen Road, but also a famous landmark of Xuzhou city. In 2018, Quanshan District launched a comprehensive renovation project to restore the luster of the ancient well.

The comprehensive renovation project not only revitalized the old well, but also gave a new look to the old buildings on both sides of Xiaobei Road. The building was a unified gray tone, add gray antique pick eaves, brown antique hollow shop recruit and flower format anti-theft window, let a person shine at the moment.

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The heritage of a store

Walk northward along xiaobeimen Road from Tongma Jing, after an uphill, "Jianmin Barber shop" on the west side of the road is particularly eye-catching. The door is a vintage glass door framed in wooden red. The letters above the door should have been a bright red, now faded and white.

Walking into the store, you will be swept away by a strong sense of nostalgia. The old cast iron barber chair, light yellow wooden long table, wall-mounted tin shampoo bucket... Time seems to stand still here, and the old objects give people a sense of time travel in the 1990s.

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The roses are in full bloom and the flowers are all over the garden

"I've been cutting hair in my family since my grandfather's generation. I've been walking around the barbershop since I was three, and this chair alone is older than me." The owner, Jian Min, is a tall, energetic man in his 70s who recalls the past with gusto.

"I used to live near here, and then I moved to Xianghe Na, but the shop has always been here." Jianmin introduced that his shop has been open for more than 50 years. At the beginning, it was a bungalow. Later, the shop changed several places, but it never left xiaobeimen Road.

Shop without exquisite decoration, no dynamic music, simple razors, clippers, scissors and other old tools can meet the needs of customers to cut hair.

Most of the customers here are jianmin's old neighbors, which also makes the shop full of human touch. In one corner of the shop, three old umbrellas hang on a rope, which jianmin says is for a rainy day. "If it rains, anyone without an umbrella can borrow it temporarily. We have been neighbors for many years.

Adjacent to jianmin barber shop is a more modern barber shop, transparent and bright glass doors, simple fashion decoration style and "old" jianmin barber shop form a sharp contrast.

Although the latter has lost its fashion through the erosion of time, it also becomes more flavor and characteristics due to the precipitation of time. It is an indelible special memory in the hearts of the residents of the small North Gate, and it is not inferior to the modern barber shop.

One shop, three generations, in this traditional craft and plain management, write a story of adherence, love and inheritance.

A Tree's Witness

At four o 'clock in the afternoon, Xiaobeimen Road is particularly lively. Cars and electric vehicles shuttle through it on the wide and narrow road. The sound of car horns and pedestrians' conversations are mixed together, showing the rich breath of life here.

Courtyard no. 23, located at the end of Xiaobeimen Road, is the former dormitory of Xuzhou Meat Joint Factory. It was built in 1974.

Different from the hustle and bustle outside, the courtyard is quiet and leisurely scene, two old people are sitting under a tree chatting. Movement and static blend together, presenting a seamless harmony.

The old man's shade tree was umbrella-shaped, verdant, luxuriant foliage, long in the middle of the road, a door can see, is a good place to enjoy the cool in summer. "It was so sweet when it bloomed a few days ago, so many people came to take photos." Zheng, who is in her 80s, is a longtime resident of courtyard 23 at The Small North Gate, where the tree was planted more than 20 years ago before she moved in.

"My daughter-in-law planted it, and now my grandson has two children." Sitting aside, Grandma CAI told reporters with a smile. Chua is 95 years old, graying, wrinkled and with faint ears, but full of energy. She has lived here for decades and is an old neighbor of Zheng's, and the two often relax in the courtyard with each other.

When talking about the past, CAI said, "Life is much better now. Before, there were dirt roads in the courtyard." The weather-beaten woman's love and appreciation for life did not diminish as the years passed. With her kind eyes and gentle voice, she described how her family had taken care of the tree. "At first it didn't flower and we thought it was a male tree." "You see, this iron frame under the tree was built by my son to prop it up and make it grow better." Smiling, CAI habitually picks up a wooden comb and combs her hair.

In the old residential buildings, such a tree accompanies the residents of courtyard no. 23 of the small North Gate through the four seasons, witnessing the death and birth of life, as well as the development and change of the city, becoming a unique symbol of memory.

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A transfer of affection

"Aunt, a dish box, please, with eggs." Xunsheng looked, a young man parked the electric car in the corner of the intersection of small north gate road and bright East Road. Look carefully, just found the corner there was a small shop.

It was a small window with a menu on the counter. Although it was a menu, it was just two lines reading "Two yuan for a dish box and three yuan for an egg." Outside the window were two big old red iron doors, and on one side was a rusty old bicycle. There is little room in the store, too. A table takes up most of the space, but one person can turn around.

The owner, Aunt Yang, who is in her 60s and has been running the shop for more than a decade, picked up a rolling pin and rolled the dough into a large circle, placed leeks and eggs, folded in half and put them into a pan. Soon, an attractive smell came.

"She has been working here for more than ten years. When the weather is not hot, she will fry meatballs and sell them. Sometimes I will help her when she is too busy." Outside a shop wearing a blue vest aunt and the owner Yang Aunt is old neighbors for many years, the relationship is very good.

For many years, the price of 2 yuan has not changed, referring to this matter, Aunt Yang smiled and answered, "can earn enough flowers, on the line."

There are many shops on the small north gate road

At the other end of Xiaobeimen Road, there is a convenient service point for repairing shoes. The old shoemaker is more than 80 years old this year. He has worked all his life as a shoemaker, and he still sticks to it even in his old age. A polished hand-operated shoe-mender and a few ponies were all his business. A crop of guests come and go, and a pair of shoes turn the decadent into magic. The old master has been sticking to xiaobeimen Road for more than ten years. In the wave of industrialization, he has won a place with his superb skills and retained the feelings and memories of a generation.