The main scenery of Qiyang Wenchang Tower

Qiyang Wenchang Tower is one of the well-preserved Wenchang Towers in China and has very representative cultural functions. It is also the only masonry tower with a four-sided building-like structure in Hunan Province. The Wenchang Tower faces the southeast and northwest. It is a seven-level, eight-sided pavilion-style masonry structure with a height of 36.68 meters, a base diameter of 18.2 meters, and a length of 7 meters on each side. The bottom floor is based on bluestone, and the second floor and above are built with blue bricks. From bottom to top, it is retracted layer by layer, with a vault inside. Each floor has different heights, and each floor is equipped with four true, four false and eight doors. The whole tower has 26 alleys, 1 dead alley, 51 open doors, 2 false doors, and winding stone steps, like a well-designed maze. First-time visitors often get lost when entering the tower and cannot find their way up and down the tower. entrances and exits, making the tower tour more interesting.

There are fine relief carvings on the lintels of the entire pagoda and various shrines. The main entrance on the first floor is inlaid with a three-dimensional hollow relief stone carving of "Two Dragons Playing with Pearls" and the three characters "Wenchang Pagoda" are engraved on it. The other floors are also on the inner walls. There are couplets, pagoda building records and other inscriptions embedded on it. There are corridors in all directions outside the second to fourth floors, surrounded by sandstone railings. The stone railings are carved with the heads of turtles and tigers. The rest are equipped with waist eaves. The edges of the platforms on each floor are warped and have stone dragons with bronze bells in their mouths. When the wind blows, they make a tinkling sound, which is melodious and can be heard far away. There are six floors of central hall in the tower, all of which are equipped with shrines. There is a treasure gourd phase wheel on the top of the tower, which is made of iron and weighs 11 tons. The entire tower has arches, eaves, stone railings and stone tiles, which is a typical Ming Dynasty style. Due to years of disrepair, the tower has tilted eastward. After an overhaul in 2002, it is now in good condition. The central halls on the first to sixth floors of the pagoda are respectively dedicated to Emperor Wenchang, Guanyin Bodhisattva, Taishang Laojun, Wencai Shen, Guan Dijun, and Kuixing, six gods who govern literary fortunes or are related to the rise and fall of articles. Therefore, they have been the focus of local literati since ancient times. It is a holy place for students or those who have students in their families to worship. Wenchang Tower stands high on the Gaofu by the river. Every time the sunset comes, the clouds rise and the moon sets, you can see it from a distance. It is majestic and dynamic, which makes people fascinated. The towering stone cliff on which the tower stands is called the "Ten Thousand Volumes of Books Cliff" because looking towards this cliff from the Xiangjiang River, it is like seeing vast, smoke-like books stacked one after another to form a high cliff. It is said that a Feng Shui expert suggested building a tower on this book cliff to hold the books and keep the literary spirit intact, thus ensuring the prosperity of Qiyang's literary style and the prosperity of its talents. What's even more surprising is that on the left front of the tower, where the "Wanjuanshu Cliff" is close to the river, a square boulder standing on it is naturally sunken into a regular square pit in the center, which looks like a huge inkstone with an inkstone on it. Later generations added the three characters "不grinding inkstone". Therefore, there have always been the "Four Treasures of the Study" that are miraculously formed by the locals - the Xiangjiang River is ink, the boulders are inkstones, the towers are pens, and the cliffs are paper; generations of people have continued to write great articles that span the world. In front of the right side of the tower, a rectangular boulder is engraved with the four characters "Shuyan Tianbang" inscribed by a calligrapher. The heroic spirit of the creation of heaven and earth and the gathering of culture and spirit can be seen. The trees beside the tower are lush and graceful, and the rocks are either handsome and tall or interesting. It is close to the Yijiang River and the waves are rolling on the shore. It is a rare place to enjoy the cool air and live in peace. There is an ancient plum blossom cave hidden in the book cliff under the tower. It is said that the sage Deng Qiu once studied "The Book of Changes" in the cave and wrote "The Purpose of Neo-Confucianism" and other books here.

Qiyang has a strong culture of advocating literature and promoting religion, and talented people emerge in large numbers; during the imperial examination period, as many as 142 people passed the imperial examination in the county. Since the tower was built, there have been famous figures such as the Minister of Household Affairs in the Ming Dynasty and the Governor of the River Channel Chen Jian, the Qing Military Minister Chen Damou, and the famous anti-French general Ouyang Lijian. Since modern times, a generation of celebrities such as Tao Zhu, the outstanding leader of the Communist Party of China, Liu Jinxuan, and General Zhou Yucheng have emerged here.