The oldest existing post station in China, where Pu Songling once served as the postmaster

Traveling to Jiangsu, besides the very famous attractions and big cities, I always want to visit some hidden gem small towns. Especially the cities along the canal, many places always have unexpected surprises. For example, Gaoyou, an ancient city founded in the Qin Dynasty, has so many things worth visiting. Gaoyou Yucheng Post Station was built in the eighth year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty (1375) and is the largest and best-preserved ancient post station in the country. It is now a national key cultural relic protection unit. The existing buildings of Yucheng Post Station include the post station, post house, Qin Post Mansion, postmaster's residence, military officer's hall, horse god temple, stables, warehouses, guard rooms, and postmen's dormitories. The main buildings of Yucheng Post Station are the Huanghua Hall and the Zhujie Hall. Huanghua Hall, also known as the "Main Hall," is a five-bay Ming Dynasty building. The main hall mainly displays statistics of posts, horses, and boats, duty rosters, division of responsibilities, the "Postal Laws," etc. The hall is a reception place for officials, the east room is the signing room for handling official documents, and the west room has sculptures of post station personnel, which are vivid and lifelike. Zhujie Hall, also known as the "Rear Hall," is where the postmaster and Gaoyou state officials received various envoys and guests from all directions. It is a late Ming Dynasty structure with beams, columns, doors, windows, and furniture. Many famous people have stayed at Yucheng Post Station in history, such as Pu Songling, who served as the postmaster here, and the traveler Marco Polo, who also stayed at Yucheng Post Station for a while. Location: Guanyi Lane, South Gate Street, Gaoyou City.