Deyang: Under the Industrial Framework, Feel the Gentle Pulse of a City
As people speed along the Chengdu-Chongqing expressway, Deyang often appears as a quiet footnote on road signs. It is not as bustling as Chengdu, nor as technologically cutting-edge as Mianyang. It quietly rests at the northern edge of the western Sichuan Plain, like a reserved craftsman, hiding its stories within hard metal and gentle time.
Your journey in Deyang might begin with a silent "conversation."
Step into the Deyang Stone Carving Art Wall, and you will feel a striking contrast. On that thousand-meter-long red sandstone wall, life, wisdom, history, and legend are carved with overwhelming power. Strong oxen, galloping horses, thoughtful sages... they are not delicate decorations but carry a raw, rugged vitality, as if breaking free from the stone to rush toward you.
You quietly walk beneath the wall, touching the deep carvings with your hand. At that moment, you will feel that this is not just a wall but the beating, art-filled soul of this industrial city. It tells you that Deyang’s essence is not only the precision of workshops but also a flowing stream of art.
If the stone carvings feel too grand, then take a stroll by Jinghu Lake.
The lake is like a mirror, reflecting the city’s calmness. Egrets gracefully pace along the water’s edge, citizens jog and fish along the greenway, and time seems to slow down here. It’s hard to imagine that this city, famous for heavy machinery, harbors such a soft wetland at its heart. The industrial framework and the tenderness of life achieve a wonderful harmony here.
And the flavor of Deyang is hidden in its streets and alleys.
When night falls, you must lose yourself in the lively eateries. Amid the noisy chatter, the owner will bring you a plate of Luojiang Bean Chicken. It’s not actually chicken but a brilliant creation of tofu skin wrapped around a secret filling. The first bite is the chewy tofu skin, followed by layers of numbing, spicy, fresh, and fragrant flavors unfolding in your mouth. This complex taste, like Deyang itself, hides a fascinating depth beneath its simple exterior.
Of course, there is also a bowl of clear Jiannanchun liquor. Produced in Mianzhu under Deyang’s jurisdiction, the wine carries the millennia-old terroir of Shu. A small sip warms your throat and heart with its mellow aroma, and you will understand the boldness and elegance of “Li Bai loosening his fur coat to continue drinking.”
Finally, you can travel a bit farther to the Guanghan Sanxingdui.
Although it has become an independent city, the cultural ties remain close. Standing before those mysterious bronze divine trees and large masks, the shock of crossing thousands of years will make you reconsider the land beneath your feet. It turns out that this land in the Land of Abundance where Deyang lies once blossomed with such brilliant and extraordinary civilization in ancient times.
So, don’t just think of Deyang as an industrial city.
It is a storyteller craftsman, holding cold steel in one hand and warm wine and stone carvings in the other. It is not in a hurry to speak but waits for you to slowly feel its gentle pulse of strength and softness—in the shimmering waves of Jinghu Lake, in the aroma of bean chicken, in the silence of stone carvings. Here, you will discover how industry and life, history and the present, can coexist in such harmonious unity.