Huiyang Songqiao School

Above the main entrance near the intersection of the B30 and B63 country roads, four molded characters spell out the name Songqiao School. These raised letters mark an educational shift in early twentieth-century Chayuan Village. During the Republic of China period, Ye Guozi established this private academy to educate the youth of the Ye clan. The construction funds arrived from across the sea, sent by Malaysian overseas Chinese descendants who envisioned a modern future for their rural Hakka homeland.

The building survives completely intact, a 276-square-meter rectangular structure preserving early Lingnan architectural methods. Stepping past the entrance porch, visitors enter a central open courtyard. Here, sunlight washes over the floor, illuminating the side corridors where students once gathered. On the south end, a wooden staircase leads upward to the second-floor living quarters. The structure stretches 13 meters deep and 21 meters wide, organized into two main halls and five bays. The second section opens into a spacious hall, flanked by private rooms that hold the quiet echo of early twentieth-century study sessions.

Recorded meticulously in the Huiyang Ye Family Genealogy, Songqiao School stands alongside neighboring ancestral structures like Liuzhao Tower and Xiulin Tower. In November 2012, Huiyang District recognized its historical weight, designating it a Cultural Relic Protection Unit, a status elevated by Huizhou Municipality in February 2015.

Today, inside the preserved academy walls, the air hums with new activity. Modern hands weave traditional bamboo hats and practice the rhythmic steps of the Qilin dance. The original spatial layout remains entirely unchanged, offering a physical bridge to the past. The lime and timber of the old Hakka academy continue to shelter the community, transforming a clan's private educational sanctuary into a shared space for cultural memory.