Nianbadu Ancient Town

Opened by Huang Chao's rebel army on the Xianxia Road, Fengling Pass guards the throat between Zhejiang and Fujian, long contested as a spot one man could hold against thousands.

Huizhou horse-head walls, southern Fujian swallowtail ridges and Zhejiang carved beams combine in this grand Wenchang Pavilion, adorned with elegant painted murals.

Nianbadu is home to 142 surnames and 13 dialects, and the Jiang family mansion here has three halls and two courtyards carved with dragons and phoenixes.

Porters and pack horses switched between land and water at this busy pier on the Xianxia Trail, a junction that earned the town fame as a dream lost in the mountains.

Part of Nianbadu Ancient Town's history: Huang Chao Rebellion. Salt trader from Caozhou who joined Wang Xianzhi's revolt in 875, took Chang'an and proclaimed the state of Great Qi before Tang and Shatuo forces drove him out

Part of Nianbadu Ancient Town's history: Huang Chao Rebellion. Emperor Xizong of Tang, enthroned at eleven by eunuchs, who fled to Sichuan when Huang Chao took Chang'an and fled again when governors marched on the capital

Huang Chao Rebellion

The Huang Chao rebellion lasted nearly a decade and spread across much of Tang territory, devastating the capital region and accelerating the dynasty's late decline.

In 878, Huang Chao's rebel army advanced toward Fujian, leaving the Xianxia Ridge route associated with this historical march.

During the Qing, Nianbadu and the Xianxia route entered a long period of prosperity shaped by garrisons, migration, and trade.