Chongqing’s largest urban village: What does Ye Shuigou look like now?

1. Where is Ye Shuigou?

After taking Line 3 and passing through Niujiaituo, you will cross the Jialing River. At the north end of Yu'ao Bridge is Huaxin Street Station.

When it comes to Huaxin Street, everyone in Chongqing knows it, but they don’t seem to be able to explain it clearly. It used to be the residence of Jiangbei District Government, and I still remember the row of jacarandas shining out of blue on the District Government Road; it has a high-rise residential area that has occupied Chongqing's largest residential area for a long time - Oriental Home; Chongqing The earliest carpet street is also here...

However, even for people like me who call themselves old Chongqing, I have basically never been to the area under the north bridge head of Yu'ao Bridge and Jialing River Bridge; As for when I went down to Yeshuigou to wander around with nothing to do, I realized that this place was completely like a fossil left over from old Chongqing.

Scenery of Yeshuigou Street

What Chongqing was like in the 1970s and 1980s, this is what it was like here.

Old residential buildings with blue bricks and black tiles, a flea market filled with slogans, an old farmer’s market that has never been renovated, and stone stairs that are dark and damp all year round and covered with moss...

2. The Stubborn World

Under the same sky, Chongqing’s precious sunshine shines generously, not because of the beautiful clouds of Guanyin Bridge, fashionable and prosperous, and the remote and dilapidated Yeshui Valley. , clinging to the past and losing half an inch of its light.

Every day, fresh fruits and vegetables welcome batches of people who come here to pick up bargains. There are often piercing loudspeakers on the roadside tirelessly repeating the misery of "clearance sales". There are a lot of people and cars coming and going, like a big rural market, urban and wild.

Stepping on the land of Yeshuigou, the increasingly strong metropolitan atmosphere of Chongqing is naturally forgotten, as if there is an invisible door, which is easy to pass through, and then fall into the embrace of the past.

Alley

Walking through the cracks in the old houses, the greenery everywhere makes people feel inexplicably moved. Above this dust, the persistence of loneliness and never giving up has the power of flexibility. Just like plants, as long as there is light and water, they can always carve out a living space for themselves.

Away from the crowded places on the road, away from the bustling trading places, the messy residential area of ????Yeshuigou always highlights a unique loneliness. Like that summer afternoon many years ago, a naughty child sneaked out of the house and got lost, but there was no panic, only curious eyes, looking freely at the quiet corner abandoned by the city.

Yeshuigou is lazy. Every time the city atmosphere tries to invade it, it stretches its body carelessly, intentionally or unintentionally. Therefore, the transformation that was not resolute in the first place retreated from the difficulties, and it continued to doze off while adhering to its own personality. This unsightly sleeping position coincidentally bears the mark of the times.

3. The profound Ye Shuigou

Those who have only glanced at Ye Shuigou cannot tell the characteristics of Ye Shuigou; those who cannot calm down cannot summarize the personality of Ye Shuigou. Only here, with piety towards the years, can we analyze the past and present lives of Ye Shuigou bit by bit through those gloomy appearances.

Old buildings in Yeshuigou

There are no new buildings in Yeshuigou. This is an architectural nursing home that houses old houses that have aged well.

The red brick walls have turned black, and the putty walls have basically peeled off. Almost every building stands face to face in front of the sight. Accept the vicissitudes of life with resignation.

The home of the ivy

The most eye-catching thing is an old building covered with ivy, which makes people wonder whether it is a residential building or a home for plants.

There are many people living in Yeshuigou, so naturally there will be many shops serving them. Here you can see the barber shop that has disappeared elsewhere. A table and a chair are all it has.

A simple small grocery store even used the tree trunk next to the store as a display cabinet, filling it with different snacks.

The tree selling snacks

In order to prevent the food from slipping, nails are set on it. I guess I couldn't find another one like this all over Chongqing.

Everywhere in the wild water ditch is unique, and the profoundness in the simplicity can be understood by experiencing it with your heart: it is life and the accommodation of existence. Underneath this slovenly appearance lies the philosophy of simplicity.

4. Yeshuigou, which is independent of the world

Yeshuigou is primitive and dilapidated, but the life in Yeshuigou is independent from the world and is engraved with symbols of leisure and tranquility.

When walking in a narrow alley, there are always buildings blocking the road ahead. If you think this road is impassable, walk boldly to the end, and through a few minutes of darkness, you will gain the true meaning of "there is no way out despite mountains and rivers, and there is another village with bright willows and flowers".

As long as you walk, there is a way

There are many naturally formed open-air gathering places in Yeshuigou. You can often see them here at the corners of the stairs, outside the shop doors, under the yellow jue trees... Old residents gathered together in twos and threes, played cards, drank tea and set up the Longmen Formation.

While traveling around casually, you can still encounter idle cats and dogs from time to time. They are calm and relaxed, and their look of taking everything lightly is really irritating.

Yeshuigou’s aloofness is engraved in his bones. No matter how big a thing is, it seems to be unworthy of mentioning.

Walking in the wild water ditch, time seems to slow down, but it passes quickly.

When the Jialing River is rippling with the golden color of the sunset, and the bleak whistles of the ships in the river sound, you have no time to pick up the time lost here, so you hurriedly embark on your return journey.

Those moments of confusion and trance will be picked up next time. I can guarantee that Ye Shuigou, a place where people live in poverty and live happily, must have a custom of "not picking up lost items on the road".

5. Untitled

Yeshuigou is now undergoing community renovation. The streets on both sides have become more standardized and tidy. With the decoration of relief graffiti, it seems that they want to turn this into an old literary street. , let more people come to check in.

I have some regrets, but a more modern and convenient life should be a future that every Chongqing person should enjoy. So if you have to change, then change.

We cannot hinder better things because of our feelings.

However, no matter how you change, idealism will never change. I don’t know how many people there will be like me, with admiration for the past and a tenacious original intention. Even if they are far away in the world, they are close to the hometown in their dreams, and their love for it is as solid as a rock.