Shanghai Daily news

A trip to Zhangyan Town can prove to be an unexpected adventure. Exploring the ancient town will help understand its history and leave a haunting impression.
On a recent snowy day, strolling with an umbrella along the old lanes past the wooden houses proved to be an amazing experience.
Located in Jinshan District, the earliest record of Zhangyan dates back to the Spring and Autumn Period (770-467 BC). At that time, it was said to be a small village. It later developed into a market town of some size during the Wei (220-265 AD) and Jin (265-420 AD) dynasties.
The town reached its apex during the Yuan (1271-1368 AD) and Ming (1368-1644 AD) dynasties. It was then that the area's booming economy flourished with various merchants and businesses.
During its most prosperous period, shops could be found everywhere along the alleys and boats were in abundance along the rivers around the town.
Today, Zhangyan's commercial life co-exists side by side with the old simple life in the town. Wondering among the narrow streets and tiny lanes flanked with dim sum shops or teahouses built in Ming or Qing style, one will feel like they are walking through a tunnel back in history.
However, it may be difficult for people to relate the quiet township to the birthplace of many famous figures and chapters of history.
From the Yuan to the Qing (1644-1911 AD) dynasties, Zhangyan produced a group of imperial officials, political figures, doctors and artists.
Gao tianmei (1877-1925), organizer of Nanshe (a literary association), was a native son.
As the Qing languished, dissident groups debated the future of the country. Gao believed the ruling tradition could not be preserved in a traditional monarchy.
The patriotic young intellectual met with Dr Sun Yat-sen while studying in Japan and joined his Tongmenghui  (Chinese Revolutionary League) with the aim of overthrowing the Qing regime.
Tongmenghui, the first bourgeois revolutionary party of China, marked the start of a new stage in the Chinese bourgeois democratic revolution.
At the time, Gao was the head of the Jiangsu branch of Tongmenghui . Later, he founded the Nanshe in 1909 with other intellectuals in the town, including Liu Yazi and Yao Shizi. The Nanshe was sometimes called the "literary arm" of Tongmenghui , publishing many volumes of poetry.
The related government department is now taking measures and specific plans are being discussed to set up a memorial hall to mark Nanshe in the former residence of Yao Shizi.
Poetry belonging to the Nanshe will be collected and displayed in the hall, harking back to the years of political fanaticism and making it a historic monument for the region.
The former residence of Yao was a two-story, rectangular wooden structure compound, intricately carved and ornately decorated. The complexity of the details bespoke craftsmanship that was found only in South China.
The spreading and development of religion has been over 600 years in the town. Not far away from Yao's residence was the Baijia Catholic Church constructed in 1933.
It was closed in 1953 but has now been handed back to the church where it has become the major religious site to give spiritual solace in Jinshan District.
However, in this ancient township, a large part of the typical residential houses have been demolished for many reasons.
Today, how to preserve the remainder and balance between historical protection and modern development has posed a big challenge for the township government. "It is necessary for us to grapple with the conflict and find ways to deal with the problems," said Shi Wenquan, an official from the township government.