Huamingtang Yan Family Tomb | A Tragic Love Story Sealed for 600 Years

Zhu Yuanzhang's Original Wife Was Surprisingly Not Empress Ma The tomb owner is Miss Yan, who was never married to Zhu Yuanzhang, buried according to the rank of a first-rank lady. 👉Love Story: At the end of the Yuan and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, near Huamingtang Village, there was a place called Yanjiawa, home to a wealthy Yan family, locally known as "Yan Family Tower." The Yan family had a daughter who was well-educated, sensible, and beautiful, famous as a great lady in the Xiaoxi area. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang joined Guo Zixing's peasant uprising army in Fengyang. During a battle with Yuan forces, Zhu Yuanzhang was injured and fled to "Yan Family Tower," where Miss Yan hid him in a skirt basket and saved him, then took him to the embroidery building to recover. Over time, Zhu and Yan fell in love, became betrothed but never married. After the Ming Dynasty was established, persuaded by Liu Bowen, Zhu Yuanzhang and Miss Yan never fulfilled their wish to marry. Miss Yan waited sadly for 16 years and died of depression. Zhu Yuanzhang was heartbroken and generously rewarded the Yan family, giving her a grand burial with the status of a first-rank lady. Because Miss Yan died unmarried, only a phoenix bird was carved on the tombstone's tablet, and a wordless stele was erected. The Huamingtang Yan Family Tomb was first built in the 7th year of the Ming Hongwu period (1374), covering an area of 1,500 square meters, once featuring a five-bay hall. The tomb faces south and is located at the southern end of Dagong Mountain. It is adjacent to a hill with an open view to the south, making it a feng shui treasure site. ✅ Spirit Way: 30 meters long ✅ Exquisite Stone Statues The Spirit Way stone carvings include a pair of watch pillars, a pair of stone tigers, a pair of stone sheep, and a pair of stone statues of officials (one civil and one military). The stone statues represent civil officials and military generals. ✅ Wordless Stele In the center of the Spirit Way in front of the tomb mound, there is a Spirit Way stele with no inscription, resting on a turtle pedestal, commonly called the "Wordless Stele." ✅ Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units ⛳️Address: 500 meters southeast of Huamingtang Village, Xiaoxi Town, Wuhe County, Bengbu City, Anhui Province, beside National Highway 104 🏛 Admission: Free