Shuozhen Guangwu

I traveled to Yanbei with friends, leaving Ying County and entering Guangwu, Shanyin County. Hengshan Mountain extends westward, forming a natural barrier that separates the Xinding Basin and the Datong Basin, and Guangwu has become an important strategic military defense line in history. It is nestled together with Yanmen Pass, jointly guarding the security of the Central Plains, and is known as the "Key to the North Gate". The Guangwu Great Wall, Guangwu Wu's Tomb, and the Old and New Guangwu City are Guangwu's three national-level cultural relics, which constitute a complete Ming Dynasty border defense system. Known as the "living fossil of the Ming Great Wall", the Guangwu Great Wall winds for more than 40 miles. Unlike other restored and rebuilt Great Walls, it retains its original ancient appearance. To see the best view of the Ming Great Wall and to comprehend and touch the original history that has been deposited over the years, go to the Moon Gate. The "Moon Gate" is a remnant of an arrow tower archway. It offers a panoramic view of the crisscrossing fields on the Shanyin plains, perfectly matching the frontier scenery in people's minds. The main body of the Guangwu Great Wall was built during the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty, but as a three-dimensional fortification it dates back far beyond the Ming Dynasty. From an important place of Zhao State in the Warring States Period, to Yinguan County in the Han and Wei Dynasties, and then to Guangwu City founded by the Northern Qi Dynasty, this place has experienced two thousand years of war and battles. This section of the Great Wall has been accustomed to the rumbling war drums from the barbarians outside the Great Wall, and now when you stop here, you can still feel the blood and fire behind the peaceful times. Li Guang, Wei Qing and Huo Qubing set out from here and defeated the Huns. "Peace messengers" such as Wang Zhaojun and Cai Wenji went out of the border from here, and its cultural stories are unique. "Meeting Guangwu City with late spring, the returning traveler in the sunset wets his handkerchief with tears. Petals fall, mountain birds cry silently, willows are green and people cross the river." The Guangwu Great Wall, extraordinary charm amidst vicissitudes, tenacity amidst ruins. The Guangwuhan Tombs are located backed by towering mountains in the south and connected to the plains of Shuozhou in the north. It is 8 kilometers long from north to south and 4 kilometers wide from east to west, with a total of 298 burial mounds. Gazing from the Moon Gate, the tombs are shaped like hills, scattered across the area, undulating and rolling, as if time has gone back and thousands of years of history are condensed in the thick loess. Guangwu consists of two cities, the old and new cities. The old city was built in the Liao and Jin Dynasties, and the old Guangwu was built in the seventh year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty. The two cities are 2.5 kilometers apart. "The new Guangwu is not new, the old Guangwu is not old" is a local saying. The different preservation states of the intact old ancient city and the new ancient city hidden among dead grass and ruins reflect the changes in historical evolution.