After the completion of the house garden, Shi claimed to have thousands of books, so he named the garden "Wanjuantang" and built a garden opposite the gate, which means boating on five lakes and renamed it "Fishing Hidden". There is a hall and a library in Shi's garden.
The entrance hall is located at the main entrance of the residential part of Master Wang's Garden, which is the same as the residential door of the ordinary scholar-bureaucrat family at that time. These are two opposite doors, painted with big black paint. There are alley doors on the east and west sides of the door, and there are tall zhaobi on the opposite side.
There were four old Sophora japonica trees in front of the door, which were planted by stones, and then two of them died. This custom of planting Sophora japonica flowers in front of the door has a long history in Suzhou.
There is a hall on the original site of the library, also known as Wanjuan Hall, to commemorate the library built here by history.
Later, the Wanjuan Temple built by the stone was destroyed and abandoned, and was bought by a Ding Shi family in Changzhou, becoming a grain field for hoarding grain. During the 500 years from the Song Dynasty to the end of Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of Ming Dynasty, the owners of Wanjuantang changed again and again, but none of them were rebuilt.
In the Qing Dynasty 1785, Zongyuan, Song Shaoqing of Guanglu Temple, retired to Suzhou, bought the former site of Wanjuan Hall and re-planned the layout. Song Zongyuan built 12 scenes in it. After reconstruction, it was first named "Netscape House" and later named "Netscape Garden".
Song Zongyuan compared himself to a fisherman and named the garden after him. On the one hand, he borrowed the original intention of Shi Shi, the assistant minister of the official department, to "live in seclusion and fish" in the flower garden, and on the other hand, because there is an alley next to the flower garden, he called it homophonic.
According to historical records, Netscape Garden built by Song Zongyuan has pavilions, mountains, water, ponds, buildings and pavilions, but most of them are wooden buildings, which are easy to be abandoned. After the death of Song Zongyuan, most of the gardens collapsed.
There are still brick-carved gatehouses and other relics built by Song Zongyuan. The brick-carved gatehouse is exquisitely carved. After hundreds of years of vicissitudes, it is still simple and fresh, complete and exquisite, and enjoys the reputation of the first gatehouse in Jiangnan.
The brick-carved gatehouse is located between the foyer and the hall, with a height of about 6 meters, a width of about 3 meters and a thickness of 1 meter. On the east and west sides of the gatehouse are wind and fire walls with tile roofs, which are antique. At the top is a cornice semi-pavilion, with a single cornice and a sloping corner, covered with small black tiles. The shape is light and chic, tall and handsome, and full of gas field.
The garage door under the eaves is assembled on the wooden door with square blue bricks and inlaid with plum blossom-shaped copper rivets, which is both beautiful and generous, and firm and practical.
On the south side of the gatehouse, there is a brick-carved family hall, which is dedicated to the five-character plaque of "Master of Heaven and Earth", which is extremely beautiful. The north of the gatehouse is the main body, and all the dripping tiles are made of water mill blue bricks, which is not only the roof support, but also the decoration of the gatehouse.
The horizontal plaque in the middle of the gatehouse is a picture of creeping weeds. Creeping plants flourish and grow continuously, symbolizing prosperity and long-term good luck. Brick column flower baskets are hung upside down at both ends of the horizontal plaque, engraved with lion rolling hydrangea and Shuanglong playing beads, and the ribbons are light. Outside the edge of the horizontal plaque, it hangs lightly, and the overall carving is exquisite and exquisite, which is amazing.
On the brick forehead of the gatehouse, there are four characters of "algal bloom". "Algae" is the general term for aquatic plants. "Prosperity" means literary talent flying. "Gao Xiang" means flying high. On both sides are Dou Du, engraved with operas of "Longevity of Guo Ziyi" and "Zhou Wenwang Visiting the Sage" respectively.
Carved on the left is a three-dimensional opera picture of "Guo Ziyi Longevity". In the picture, Guo Ziyi is sitting on the purlin, with his beard hanging over his chest, and he is amiable. About eight civil and military officials stood in turn, some with tributes and some with weapons. There are potted flowers in the hall and a pair of stone lions in front of the door, which are very imposing.
According to legend, when Guo Ziyi was in Tang Suzong, he made great contributions to pacify the chaos in An Lushan and Shi Siming, and was named King of Fenyang, and later became the Minister of War. He lived to be 84 years old, and his eight sons and seven sons-in-law were all court officials. History books praise Guo Ziyi as a "rich man" and a "great virtue", so this dramatic picture means "both longevity and happiness".
On the right, there is a three-dimensional opera painting of "Zhou Wenwang visiting immortals", which depicts Zhou Wenwang's visit to Jiang Ziya. In the picture, Jiang Ziya, with a long beard and a chest, sits solemnly by the Weihe River. Zhou Wenwang knelt down and prayed for virtue. The ministers of civil and military affairs were crowding round, some holding horses and some holding weapons. Zhou Wenwang, whose virtue is loved by the people, is the king of virtue, and Jiang Ziya, whose martial arts are superior, is known as the Great Sage. This painting "Wang Wen's Visit to the Sage" means "both morality and virtue".
There are three circular "shou" characters on the horizontal plaque on the lower side of the gate, and the light gray water mill blue bricks around the "shou" characters are engraved with bats flying with wings and clouds flying in the air.
In the word "bat", "bat" and "fu" are homophonic, symbolizing longevity and good luck. The three-star pattern of "Fu", "Lu" and "Shou" on the whole gate is meaningful, which means that Samsung is shining high, happy and wonderful, and has a long life.
The brick carving on the gatehouse is carved with chisels and planers on exquisite blue bricks by artistic methods such as flat carving, relief carving, carving and through carving. Historical figures are lifelike, and the images of birds, animals and flowers are vivid.
The charm of carving art and the charm of historical stories permeate each other, solemn and quaint, shining with the brilliant light of Wu culture and folk art, and enriching the traditional cultural connotation of gardens with its unique style.
This combination of decorative function and blessing function is also a unique way of thinking in China classical culture.
On the first door leading from the residential area to the garden area, there is an inscription "Wang Shi Zhu Xiao", which was named by Song Zongyuan, the first generation founder of the garden.
The narrow gate and the word "small building" make people who enter the park naturally have a word "small" in their hearts. But as soon as I entered the door, my eyes suddenly opened up, and I suddenly felt that the mountains were high and the water was wide, and the flowers were clustered, which reflected the greatness of the garden.
Master Wang Garden covers a total area of more than 5,000 square meters. It's not big, but the design is clever. Through various means, it expands its sensory space, causing shock and shock with unexpected contrast, thus enhancing the momentum of the landscape.
In addition, the entrance of Zhu Xiao, the stationmaster, is located in the corner of the rectangular garden, diagonally opposite, using the longest diagonal line in the line of sight. On this diagonal line, Yellowstone is stacked into a "Yungang", which covers most of the large pool occupying the center of the garden. A small hall was built in front of Yungang, making it only exposed in a corner, hidden and not exposed, which is more complicated and tortuous.
Song Zongyuan named this garden as the Master Garden, which is said to be related to fisherman Wang Si's father and daughter.
It is said that Song Zongyuan got a son in his later years, named Shuangxi. Shuangxi has been smart and lively since childhood and often plays around.
On one occasion, Shuangxi went fishing in the battle platform and accidentally fell into the lake. Fortunately, fisherman Wang Si and his daughter Gui Zhi passed by and saved him, shaking him home.
When Song Zongyuan learned of this incident, he named this garden after the fisherman's respectful name "Master Wang" in order to repay Wang Si's father and daughter for saving their lives.
Summer scenery of Master Wang's garden