Zhongshan is a historical and cultural city from which countless celebrities have emerged, whose thoughts are connected with ancient times, blending the East and the West. Among them, the most influential one was Zheng Guanying, an enlightening thinker and industrialist in the late Qing Dynasty. He enlightened Chinese people to see the outside world, and was therefore called "the first person to see the world in an all-round way".

▲Zheng Guanying's former residence. Photo/Yu Zhaoyu@Zhongshan Daily

During the late Qing Dynasty, China was suffering from both internal and external problems. As a young man, Zheng Guanying chose to give up his studies and became a businessman, engaging in the fashionable profession of comprador at that moment in a foreign bank in Shanghai. During this period, he witnessed and experienced the invasion of China by the great powers and the enslavement of the Chinese people, and planted the seeds in his heart to resist foreign aggression and save the country. He put forward the famous idea of "commercial war", and had a long-cherished wish to make China rich and strong, and had been tirelessly striving for his ideals and ambitions.

▲Yongmo Village in Sanxiang Town. Photo/Yu Zhaoyu@Zhongshan Daily

In his later years, the patriot chose to live in seclusion in Macao for six years, and put his rich practical experience and his thoughts into words by writing and publishing the book Words of Warning to a Prosperous Age. In the book, he proposed to introduce and learn advanced science and technology from the West to develop the country's industry and commerce, and to carry out reforms in other fields accordingly.

Zheng's theory of "commercial was" was refreshing to Chinese people at that time, and the book Words of Warning to a Prosperous Age was enlightening. His ideas had a great influence and even awakened an era, directly influencing a large number of elites fighting for the revitalization of the Chinese nation, including Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao, Sun Yat-sen and Mao Zedong.

▲Zheng Guanying's former residence.

Times are changing, but when we walk into Zheng Guanying's former residence in Zhongshan, we can still feel the strong voices from that era.

Zheng Guanying's former residence in Yongmo Village, Sanxiang Town was funded and built in 1903 by himself in honor of his father Zheng Wenrui. The building faces south and is a brick and wood structure bungalow. There are two courtyards. The small one in the front is the "Xiufeng Family School", the name of which was handwritten by Zheng Guanying himself.

Going forward and stepping into the back courtyard, which is also the hall, you can see the hollowed-out wooden shrine of antique beauty, carved with figures, flowers, birds, lions and other patterns. These are typical sculpture art of the Qing Dynasty. 

▲Zheng Guanying's former residence. Photo/Yu Zhaoyu@Zhongshan Daily

At Zheng Guanying's former residence, we can listen to his magnificent life story and feel his patriotism to save the country.

▲An exhibition about Zheng Guanying. Photo/Yu Zhaoyu@Zhongshan Daily