Caota Old Street: The Nearest Old Street to Zhuji City, Virtually Tourist-Free

In Shaoxing, Zhuji, there is an incredibly simple and peaceful old street, one of the most historically rich places in Zhuji, carrying the memories of generations of Caota people. From snacks, hardware, and food to handicrafts, it has everything. Many locals still live here, simple, quiet, and full of traces of time. Along the entrance under the ancient trees, the blue sky, white clouds, and quaint buildings come into view. The black tiles and white walls, flying eaves, and layers upon layers of buildings make people can't help but speed up their pace to explore. Further inside, this is the ancient street, with narrow alleys, historic shops, children playing in the water, and old people chatting and drinking tea. They all seem to be telling the story of the old town's glory. Caota Town is one of the "Three Ancient Towns" of Zhuji, located in the west of Zhuji City, 10 km from the city center. According to legend, when their ancestors first arrived, they lived in thatched huts and cultivated the wilderness, so they called the place Caota (meaning "grass pagoda"). Caota Town has a long history, rich cultural and tourism resources, and convenient transportation. The remnants of the Song Dynasty royal family were able to live in seclusion and pass on their heritage here. Once, merchants gathered here, and people came and went. Ancient houses, ancient temples, ancient streets, and ancient pagodas, all the buildings in Caota seem to have a gentle filter added after being immersed in a thousand years of time. Along the bluestone road of Caota Old Street, the quaint old houses are lined up on both sides, and the canal water flows slowly in the center of the road. In the large stone mortar at the corner of the street, lotus leaves dance in the wind. Because of the moisture of the water, the alley wind that blows carries a hint of coolness. This old street once carried the prosperity of Caota and is also the growing memory of generations of Caota people. At that time, the Caota people's food, clothing, housing, and transportation were all solved on this street. The morning of the Caota people is often awakened by a bowl of hot mutton bones, dan noodles, and wontons. At four or five in the morning, when the sky was just dawning, merchants selling rice cakes, shaomai, wontons, and glutinous rice began to get up and prepare breakfast. As the rooster crowed, mothers hurriedly called their children to wash up, prepared a few coins to buy breakfast, and hurried to work in the factory... After getting off work and passing by the old street, they would buy a pair of sandals for their children and go to the watch shop to fix the inaccurate watch. The water street is the most representative historical legacy of this ancient town. Almost the entire town is surrounded by underground water systems. In the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty, the canals of Caota Old Street were built. The water of the Wu Xie River in the north passes through the town through the water network and finally flows into the Duxi River in the south. However, with the passage of time, some of the water networks became blocked, and with the direct discharge of sewage, the canals and ponds in the town became stagnant water, and the water street style no longer existed. Fortunately, now that the ancient town has been rebuilt, we can finally witness the landscape that once made all sides sigh.