Gongcheng Yao Autonomous County

The climate of Gongcheng is subtropical monsoon climate. Summer is hot, humid and long, whereas winters are dry and short. The county also receives adequate light and abundant rainfall. Annual rainfall averages 1,483.8 mm (58.42 in), and annual average humidity is 75%.

The majority of people in the county speak a Mienic language, and approximately two-fifths speak a Bunu language. Some also speak Lakkia.

Gongcheng County has four major subgroups of the Yao people: the Pan Yao, the Pingdi Yao, the Guoshan Yao, and the Sidamin Yao.[7]

The Pan Yao (盘瑶), also known as Pangu Yao (盘古瑶), is a subgroup of Yao people in Gongcheng.[7] Their autonyms are Mian (勉) and Longyan (龙岩).[7]

The Pingdi Yao (平地瑶), also known as the Bidi (比滴) in the Shangong Yao language, and the Gan (干) in the Guoshan Yao language, is a subgroup of Yao people in Gongcheng.[7] Their autonyms are Muyo (木哟) and Bingduoyou (炳多优).[7]

The Guoshan Yao (过山瑶), also known as the Guigelingmuyo (贵格令木哟) in the Pingdi Yao language, and the Gesuoxi (各索夕) in the Yao language of Sanjiang Township, is a subgroup of Yao people in Gongcheng.[7] Their autonyms are Yumian (育棉), Biaoman (标曼), and Shimen (史门).[7]

The Sidamin Yao (四大民瑶) are a Yao subgroup which, during the Qing dynasty, migrated from an area known as Yongming (永明), which corresponds to present-day Jiangyong County in Hunan.[7] The Sidamin, meaning "Four Great Peoples" historically were the Qingxi Yao (清溪瑶), the Gudiao Yao (古调瑶), the Goulan Yao (勾蓝瑶), and the Fuling Yao (扶灵瑶).[7]

During many festivals, ethnic Yao people make Babas, which are made with sticky rice, sometimes some local herbs are added, they are either sweet or salty and have sesame or peanut filling. Throughout other festivals most of the main dishes constitute of chicken, duck, fish, pork, tofu, and various kinds of vegetables.

You Cha (油茶), also known as Oil Tea, is a unique type of tea native to the region.[10] In Guilin oil tea falls into several varieties: Gongcheng Yao oil tea, Longsheng Dong oil tea and Xing’an oil tea, each having its distinct characteristics. Among all of them, the most famous one is Gongcheng oil tea made by the local Yao community. Gongcheng oil tea is typically made by pounding tea leaves, adding a special oil and boiling water, filtering out solid residue, and adding salt, caraway seed, green onion, dried rice, fried groundnuts, sliced taro and fried beans to the tea.[10] The process of beating the tea leaves is known as da youcha (打油茶), literally "beat oil tea". Oil tea is also served with local snacks and pickles. Among the locals, the custom is to present the first bowl of oil tea to the senior most member of the family and guests.

The Confucius temple of Gongcheng was built in 1477. The temple is located in the south of Gongcheng town and is one of the best-preserved building from the Ming dynasty in the area. It is also one of the four largest Confucius Temples in China, and the largest in Guangxi. This temple is also listed as one of the important units of cultural relics under national protection.

According to the records, the temple was originally located in the north side of the town and in 1447 it was moved to south of Gongcheng. The architecture was too small and simple in the beginning and over the years it was extended and renovated. The temple now covers an area of 1,300 square meters.

This temple is built according to the geography of the mountains behind the temple and the Cha River in front of the temple. In and around the temple, there are a number of historical sculptures, plaques, and patterns.

Da Cheng Gate, the last gate of the temple, resembles an ancient halberd, therefore, people also refer to it as Halberd Gate. There are 3 doors in this gate, with the centre door only opening during certain important events. There are 108 nails on each door as 108 represents a lucky number in ancient China.

The Temple of Guan Yu

Situated on the right side the Confucius Temple at about 50 meters is the Wu Temple. This temple was initially built in 1603 and rebuilt in 1720 thereafter it was destroyed during the war in 1854 and was later rebuilt again in 1862. The Wu Temple is also known as the Martial arts temple. It is a shrine built in honor of Guan Yu, a general during the Three Kingdoms period, who was also worshiped as the Sage of Martial Art in ancient China. This is the only place across China where a Confucius temple and a Martial art temple exist together. The temple is built in accordance of

The temple covers an area of 1,033 square meters. The temple has an old stage, a rain pavilion, a principal hall, a back hall and a memorial archway. There are only two side doors in the temple and no front doors, the reason behind it is not to let the aura of the outside affect the aura of the inside. On top of each door are Chinese inscriptions, stating – “Love your country and be loyal to your king. Do your best to help people”. Most of the temple's sculptures depict dragons, phoenixes, birds and fish, and are made up of clay and wood.

Inside the temple there is a stone stylobate, adorned with sculptures of flower and people. Four pillars on the top of the stylobate carry a heavy headpiece. During certain special festivals, local people sing, dance, or perform opera on the stylobate. Inside, there are depictions of two men standing next to their two horses, as tt is believed that these two horses belonged to Guan Yu and another soldier named Jiang Wei. There are also statues of two different Gods – the one on the left is believed to bring luck and the one on the right keeps people safe.

The carvings in the temple are from different ages of history The principal hall called “Xie Tian Gong”, and houses statues of Guan Yu and his soldiers. There are also two memorial archways – the Stone memorial archway and the Wooden memorial archway.

This temple is situated at about 800 meters from the Wu Temple, and commemorates Zhuo Wei, who served as an official in 999 AD. He petitioned the tax breaks, and change the land tax, advocated the establishment of schools, and the education of children.

To honour him the local people raised money and build a shrine for him. This temple was built in 1478 and later rebuilt again in 1723 and spreads over an area of 1,600 square meters. The Temple has a stage, a hall, a dorm and a gate. The brackets of the walls are shaped as honeycombs, which when grazed by an air current, makes noise. This noise acts as a natural resistant to birds and flies and prevents them from nesting there. This is considered an uncommon style of Chinese architecture.

The temple's external wall consists of thousands of timbers linked together in a series.

Hongyan is a village within Gongcheng known as a "socialist model village". Major attractions within the village include its persimmon trees, ancient bridge, bamboo rafts, and traditional cuisine. There is no direct bus from the center of Gongcheng to Hongyan Village, however, taxi services exist in the region.