Zhenyuan Ancient City

Clinging to the cliff face, this hanging complex of Taoist, Buddhist and Confucian halls is hailed as the Hanging Temple of the South.

First built in the Hongwu reign over the Wuyang River, the bridge carries a lofty Kuixing Pavilion and once guarded the post road linking Hunan, Guizhou and Yunnan.

Curving in an S shape, the Wuyang River splits the old town in two like a natural yin-yang symbol, with nine hills embracing a single stream.

Crowning Shiping Mountain, this Ming city wall, dubbed a frontier Great Wall of the east, looks down on the town's yin-yang layout lit up at night.

Founded in 1388, Zhenyuan's Qinglong Cave complex later developed into a cliffside group blending Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian buildings.

In the Qing, Zhenyuan's water-land routes made it a distribution center in eastern Guizhou, where merchant groups established eight guild halls.