The Ninth Pass of the World--Niangziguan Pass

Niangziguan Pass is a famous pass of the Great Wall of China, located at the foot of Mianshan Mountain in the northeast of Pingding County, Yangquan City, Shanxi Province. The ancient castle is built by the mountain and near the water, overlooking from a high position, with two gates. The castle is divided into the upper and lower passes, the east is the upper pass, engraved with the horizontal inscription 'Niangziguan'; The west is the lower pass, with a pavilion on it, titled 'The Place Where Princess Pingyang of Tang Stationed Troops', and the door plaque reads 'Qin Jin Shield'. It was rebuilt during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty. The east gate of the castle is a common brick arch gate, with the title 'Zhili Niangziguan', and there are platform battlements on it; The south gate is made of limestone arch, with the title 'Jingji Fan Screen', and 'Sujiang Building' is built on it. There are two famous couplets engraved on the stone pillars: 'Who is the best among the 102 strong passes, and this is also famous among the 3000 main roads'; 'The ancient fortress is next to the tower, the green mountains outside the city and the river under the city'. On the southeast side of the castle, there is only a 45-degree stone slope ancient road in front of the gate.