Departing from the county town of Jiangyong County, walking along the Yongming River, the tributary of the Xiaoshui River, to Daoxian County in the northeast for about 20 minutes, you will come to a town named Shangjiangxu Town. Walking west into a village lane for 4 kilometers or so, the Yongming River appears again at the entrance to another village, Tongkou Village.
- According to the record on the family tree of the Lu clan, in the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127AD), an official called Lu Shaoji, moved to Dao County with his family from Qufu City, Shandong Province. One of his sons had his eye on the village with Dupang Mountain at the back and Yongming River at the front, a branch of the Xiaojiang River. Then they went in for large-scale construction and settled down in the village. Ming and Qing Dynasties had witnessed the prime time of the village, but it was not until recent years that the ancient village in deep mountains was “discovered” and attracted attentions.
Tongkou Village, located in the west bank of the Xiaoshui River, retains until today over 100 ancient homesteads built in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, featuring the cornice and rake angle over the wall, the blue bricks and gray tiles. Nestling in the luxuriantly green Dupang Mountain, the ancient architectural complex was built in the early years of last century, or a couple of centuries ago.
- The place where the old lady stood is the doorway of the Lu clan. Over the walkway is a precious dome shaped in the pattern of the Eight Diagrams. Keep going straight you will come to the hall, which is the public room for local villagers to have parties and banquets. Through the small doors on the right or left, you can get access to the residential area.
- Following the doorway is the most famous Mingfeng Ancestral Hall (Singing Phoenix Ancestral Temple). The crimson red Ruyi (lucky) bucket arch under the eaves of the temple is made up of pieces of bentwood which look like upraised arms. One layer of bucket arch is supported by another. Approximately 200 years has past (the last renovation of the temple was in the first year of the reign of Emperor Daoguang, i.e. the year of 1821.), but the arms are still strong enough.
- Mingfeng Ancestral Hall is the place where the Lu clan got together and offered sacrifices to their forefathers. There are many wooden carvings of phoenix and sparrow in the hall.
- In Tongkou, many phoenix reliefs and pavilions named after phoenix can be found.
It is the typical characteristics of the Tongkou Village to worship the legendary phoenix bird and other birds. The ornaments of Mingfeng Pavilion (Singing Phoenix Pavilion), Mingfeng Ancestral Hall and the doorway of the ancient residents are mainly characterized with phoenix and bird reliefs. Window frame and window grille are decorated with phoenix, peacock, sparrow reliefs. The stone block on both sides of the gate, are phoenix and Panhu reliefs. (Panhu is a kind of totem image, and is the main character in the legend of Panhu)
- The clean blue stone slab of the lane in Tongkou Village revealed from time to time to visitors the youthful vigor of this ancient village of Ming and Qing Dynasties. The eaves and columns of any randomly selected residence can be compared with a stately poem.