Sunrise at Fuyue Village, a moment through a century

At five in the morning, I stand in the middle of the rice fields of Fuyue Village. The thin mist is like gauze, Fifteen Western-style buildings quietly stand in the morning light, Mountain flowers bloom and fall on their own, A white egret flies past the arched window of a century-old house— At that moment, I seem to hear the breath of time. 📌 This is not a European town, It is the southern end of Taishan, Guangdong, A “secret homeland of overseas Chinese” hidden for a hundred years: Fuyue Village. And 20 kilometers away, Another forgotten legend is quietly awakening— 🎬 The filming location of "Let the Bullets Fly," Mei Family Courtyard. Today, let me take you into these two villages that speak, To see the most heartfelt confession of the Chinese people: > We left our hometown far away, But brought the whole hometown, Into the bricks and corridor pillars. --- 🌾 Fuyue Village | 15 Western-style buildings, writing a “family letter history” At the end of the 19th century, people from Taishan crossed the ocean to the United States to build railways and mine gold. After surviving against all odds, When they returned, They didn’t bring back a wealth myth, But did the most romantic thing— Built a “miniature American dream” in their hometown. ✅ Fifteen villas blending Chinese and Western styles are scattered around, Roman columns paired with Lingnan gray carvings, Red lanterns hang under French domes, Every brick is engraved with “I miss you.” 📌 The most touching is “Zhongshan Pavilion”: The Chen brothers worked hard in the U.S. for thirty years, Returned home to build the pavilion commemorating Sun Yat-sen, And also commemorating their own wandering lives. Now the plaque is weathered, But the moss on the stone steps Still remembers the year they knelt and kowtowed: “Dad, I’m back.” There are few tourists, occasionally photographers waiting for sunrise; Villagers still plant rice and raise chickens, If you say “check-in,” they smile: “This is our home.” --- 🎬 Mei Family Courtyard | One street, acting out a century of joys and sorrows Seven rows of arcade buildings form a square, Blue bricks, wooden doors, narrow alleys, The ground is as uneven as if gnawed by time. This was once a place where overseas Chinese waited for letters, money, and people, And also the “waiting husband tower” that countless women guarded for a lifetime. ✅ Jiang Wen filmed "Let the Bullets Fly" here, Tourists flocked in, But locals say: “The movie is gone, we are still waiting.” 📌 At six in the morning, an old lady sits at the door frying youtiao, The aroma passes through the century-old corridor; At noon, several children jump rope on the steps of Huang Silang’s “mansion”; In the evening, a returning elder touches the door frame and murmurs: “Mom, I’m late coming back…” 📌 No tickets are sold here, no antique performances staged, It is living history itself. --- 📸 Check-in Guide | How to truly appreciate the affection ✅ Recommended route: 📍 Morning: Fuyue Village (7:00-9:00 for the most beautiful light and shadow) → 🚗 20-minute drive → 📍 Afternoon: Mei Family Courtyard (avoid the noon crowd) → 📍 Evening: Return to Taicheng for a bowl of authentic “beef brisket noodles” ✅ Must-shoot spots: 📷 Fuyue Village: rice field perspective capturing the reflection of the Western-style buildings (best with a drone) 📷 Mei Family Courtyard: corner balcony on the second floor of the third row, where Jiang Wen once stood ✅ Hidden experiences: 🔹 Send a postcard at the Mei Family Courtyard post office, stamped with the “Overseas Chinese Hometown Century” commemorative seal 🔹 Brew a pot of Dancong tea with a local elder, listen to a Cantonese nursery rhyme: “Bright moonlight, shining on the ground…” 🔹 Bring an old book and finish reading it on a stone bench in Fuyue Village --- 💬 Comments that moved millions to tears: - “Grandpa said before he passed, ‘I want to see the old house one last time,’ I didn’t take it seriously. Now standing here, I understand what ‘forever losing my love’ means.” - “I’ve photographed the Northern Lights in Iceland and towns in Italy, but the moment that made my hands tremble the most was the old man with a cane turning back at dusk in Mei Family Courtyard.” - “I earned 300,000 yuan a year in Shenzhen, quit this year to open a guesthouse back home. It’s not sentimentality, I suddenly understood—some roots, once broken, can never be reconnected.” --- 🌱 Conclusion: Don’t let “hometown” become “old ground” These villages don’t cry out in pain, But when you see: ✅ The younger generation of Fuyue Village moving to the city, old houses gradually emptying ✅ The walls of Mei Family Courtyard peeling, no one repairing You know— True cultural heritage Is not bricks and tiles, But whether memories continue to be told. 📌 So, please come once. Not for likes on social media, But to tell those souls who travel far and return: “Your story, I have always remembered.” --- 🎁 “A sentence to my hometown” | Exclusive fan event 👉 Comment: “If I could return to that old place, I want to say to it __________” The first 300 likes will receive: ✅ A handwritten letter + a special Taishan “Overseas Chinese hometown tea bag” mailed to you ✅ A vintage badge: “I come from a place with stories” --- 🌾 No matter how far you go, Don’t forget who is waiting for you under the light.