We have two siheyuan compounds in total
Both of them were left unused for over 20 years
They had to be renovated
I think a family needs such a place
For gathering
The compounds are located in the western part of Beijing
They’re surrounded by mountains and waters
Our family have been living here for generations
After we separated
One compound became the home of my aunt and uncle in law
And now it belongs to my brother
Another compound was left to my father
To me
The compound is the symbol of our happy family
We wanted to turn them into a guesthouse
While keeping our life experiences here
The house owner wrote me a letter of 20,000 words
To introduce how she grew up in the siheyuan
Seen from the satellite pictures
Its biggest feature is the small size
It’s as wide as only 9m
And as long as 20m
And its depth is no more than 3m
It’s a mix of old and new
It has its own style
We took down the collapsed henhouse
And storage house
The original courtyard was turned into a garden
Where mint, purple perilla and rosemary are grown
The plants have varied heights
They’re not only something to see
They can be eaten
And they form a kind of protection to people
As you enter into the gate, you’ll see a screen wall
Which was built in around 1970s
I didn’t paint it white
The inscription on it has also become slightly indistinct
But you can still recognize the line ‘The wind of early spring is sharp as scissor blade’
The left path leads to an attic adapted from a storage house
There was the pinnacle of the old house
It elevated the house
We made a wooden staircase
And you would feel wrapped up living there
Children really enjoy climb up and down
The difficulty lies in the over-200-year-old cellar
The entrance is hidden under a seat in the kitchen
The cellar contains jars and pots
Which were used by my grandmother
They are sort of antiques
We also designed a pulley
A basket is used to lift food
Both adults and kids like the design
There’s a glass room between two courtyards
You would feel like sleeping outdoor
The most special part is the bathroom
Where a transparent glass roof is over your head
When you look up, you can see the blue sky and white clouds
The small living room is for entertainment
There’re some old objects
The cabinets and sewing machine are over decades old
And the lamps and ceiling fan
They were also bought during the period of the Republic of China
The record player still works
The northern room is the most special one
It was built by my grandfather after the war
The clay bed has been remade for three times
The old edges are kept
The water pot which was used for cooking has been embedded into the ground
The compounds are our home
We don’t care so much about making a profit
I usually work and live in the city
And I return here on my days off
To take care of the plants
We sometimes also turn on the projector
It’s pretty cool to watch a movie here
99% of the people around me think we should take the compounds down and rebuild a house
Only we insist the idea
That they should be strengthened and renovated
We have a place to gather together
Instead of scattering around the city
I think all the efforts are worthwhile