Backstreet Dinghai Road

□? Lake? Mountain

1

In the autumn of 2014, I moved from Minhang to Yangpu and lived adjacent to Dinghai Road. Shanghainese call Dinghai Road "Xiazhijiao", which means the area where the poor live. Somewhat self-deprecatingly, there used to be a shop here called "Shimojikaku Grocery Store".

Dinghai Road is quite famous in Shanghai, and its fame is also related to poverty. In the 1980s, Shanghai female writer Cheng Naishan wrote a novel "Slum Street". The novel was adapted into a TV series of the same name. The filming location of the TV series was on Dinghai Road. After this TV series was broadcast, it became a sensation in Shanghai, and Dinghai Road became famous and became synonymous with "Slum Street".

Some people often say that Dinghai Road is the place least like Shanghai. The 890-meter-long Dinghai Road starts from Dinghai Bridge on the Huangpu River in the south and ends at the intersection of Pingliang Road and Aiguo Road in the north. The houses on both sides of the street are low, dilapidated, uneven, and crowded together. They have all been turned into small shops. The shops are close to each other. From the street to the end of the street, the appearance of backstreets is everywhere. , forming a huge contrast with the surrounding high-rise buildings, it is difficult to believe that this is in urban Shanghai, as if the entire Dinghai Road, like the I-shaped cement poles on the roadside, has been frozen in time forever in 1922 .

Early every morning is the busiest time on Dinghai Road. The streets are bustling with people coming and going, and bicycles, battery carts, and delivery carts are slowly passing through the crowd. The shops on the street each have their own business, and the hawking sounds come and go, with southern and northern accents, making it a busy scene. Breakfast restaurants are all open on the left side of the street. Each restaurant's breakfast is different, including sesame seed fried dough sticks, steamed buns, wonton dumplings, all steaming hot. A time-honored fried dumpling shop with a small and inconspicuous appearance, but its business is booming. People have to wait in line to buy fried dumplings. Occasionally, when you walk slowly through the door of the store, the aroma of fried dumplings fills your nostrils, giving you the warmth of city life.

Living near Dinghai Road, it is most convenient to buy side dishes. Fresh vegetables, seasonal fruits, aquatic products and meats are all available on the street, so it is called a street market. The price of vegetables on Dinghai Road is also cheaper than elsewhere. The merchants on the street are warm and honest. Since they are dealing with repeat customers, the transactions are clearly priced and they will not be short-changed. The reputation has always been very good. Even so, the budget-conscious Shanghainese always have to bargain, which seems to have become a living habit of the locals. Although those small traders and hawkers make small profits, they sometimes wipe out a little change in the hope that customers will come again. When encountering the more acrimonious Shanghainese, they will retort tepidly: "It's so cheap, why do you still have to bargain?"

Not only do nearby residents come to visit Dinghai Road, Buy some side dishes and sometimes you can find some bargains. Pots, basins, dishes, quilts and sheets, underwear and outerwear are surprisingly cheap. Jeans cost 30 yuan a piece, and velvet suits cost 50 yuan a piece. Compared with the items sold in the supermarket for 100 yuan or 200 yuan, the workmanship and quality are not bad at all. If you visit the old leather shoe store on Boyang Road, you can buy leather shoes for 100 yuan. They are completely handmade, the style is not outdated at all, and they are authentic first-layer cowhide.

To outsiders, the shanty towns on Dinghai Road seem a bit mysterious. Entering through the dark entrance of Wuqi, there is a cave inside. The narrow alley can only accommodate one person pushing a cart through. There are low shacks on both sides. Most of these dilapidated shacks are private houses built before liberation. The gray cement exterior wall is densely printed with small advertisements, like patches of psoriasis on the human body.

In Shanghai, where land is at a premium, the area of ​​each shack is not large, so the alley space outside the house is fully utilized to the extreme. Many people have a pool built next to their door. The pool is used for washing vegetables and laundry, and also for washing mops. The mops are hung outside the windows. The other side of the entrance door is used to park bicycles and battery scooters, or place a washing machine. The slightly wider corner of the lane is also used to store sundries. Some families with a certain temperament will plant some flowers and bonsais to embellish their ordinary life. Looking up, there is an air conditioner installed under the eaves, and the wires above the head are in a mess.

Between the parallel shacks, a bright sliver of sky shines through. Clothing poles protruding from the houses are drying clothes and bedding from each house. The clothes to be dried are fluttering in the wind, like colorful national flags. Walking further inside, there are twists and turns in the alleys, and the lanes are connected to the lanes. It is like entering a trance circle, and it is completely impossible to distinguish the east, west, and northwest.

Two

Lane 449, Dinghai Road, is a legendary old community.

In the 1920s, the Japanese-owned Yufeng Cotton Mill expanded its recruitment efforts. Many underage girls left their hometowns and came to Shanghai from rural areas in northern Jiangsu to make a living and work as bonded workers in the cotton mills. In order to meet the ever-expanding housing demand, the factory built dozens of dormitories for bonded workers on the farmland along the side of Dinghai. These houses were collectively called Yufeng Workhouses. After liberation, they became the dormitories of the 17th National Cotton Factory.

Entering Lane 449 from Pingliang Road, the two sides of the road are completely different. On one side is a new-style community with tall buildings, and on the other side is a decaying and dilapidated courtyard. There are all kinds of workshops, arranged horizontally in rows and rows, with two main lanes in different directions, leading directly to Dinghai Road and Pingliang Road, and fifteen small branch lanes connected together, forming a pattern of large lanes within small lanes, and main lanes within branch lanes. . The alley between the front and rear workshops is only two meters wide, and the distance between them is somewhat inhumane. The spacious main lane has become a parking lot for residents, and it is very troublesome and laborious for cars to turn around there.

This large complex with dense housing is home to more than 1,600 households crowded together. Each house is not big, and some people only have a living area of ​​9 square meters. In a cramped indoor space, there is a bed on the bed, a bunk on the floor, and a dojo in a screw shell. Men, women, old and young live in the same room, with almost no personal privacy. In order to expand their living space, everyone had to build illegally, so various creative ideas emerged. In front of the house, behind the house, and on both sides of the alley, there is a kitchen built with random furniture. The construction is obviously against the rules, but it is said clearly and rationally. It is said to be for safety, so as to prevent the elderly from forgetting to turn off the gas and causing a tragedy of human life. There are also some families whose children are getting married when they grow up, and their parents cannot afford a house, so they want to change things when they are poor and build a loft as a wedding room.

The living conditions in these former bonded labor dormitories were very poor, with extremely poor lighting and ventilation conditions. People who live upstairs will naturally feel lucky. If they live downstairs, they will have a miserable state of mind. The ground floor of the workshop was very damp. During the humid weather in June and July, the room was dank and damp, exuding a musty smell. If there is a heavy rain, the sewer drainage is not smooth, and water will overflow into the room. No matter whether they live upstairs or downstairs, there is no bathroom in the house, and they eat, drink, and relieve themselves inside. The first thing the residents do when they get up every day is to go outside and line up to empty the toilet with their "red lanterns."

The residents of Lane 449 are looking forward to demolition every day. On the main street of Pingliang Road, banners are hung all year round. On the banners with black characters on a white background, there are words calling for demolition. The problem of demolition has not been solved for a long time, so the old aunts beat gongs and drums in the community to attract the attention of the above.

The residents living in Lane 449 are living a different kind of Shanghainese life. The main lane of the courtyard has become the living room of the residents of the community. During their free time after tea and meals, the neighbors gather at the edge of the lane to visit Gashan Hu. Old neighbors and old colleagues are like a family, with a warm and unrestrained relationship with each other. The ladies who were sitting and chatting crossed their slender legs and joked while playing on their mobile phones. The unkempt uncles, wearing vests, shorts and slippers, stood aside and puffed away. They chatted loudly and grandly, as if no one else was around. They talked about family affairs, gossip, funny jokes, wins and losses at the card table, and all kinds of topics. They didn't have the reserve and reserve that Shanghainese talk at all.

Compared to other communities in Shanghai, this place is more like a small society of folks. For many residents living here, if you go back three generations, their ancestors came from rural areas in northern Jiangsu. For more than half a century, the common language in the Dinghaiqiao area has not been authentic Shanghainese, but Yancheng and Huai'an. Even some local old Shanghainese can speak a few words in Northern Jiangsu dialect. Many of them inherited their father's business from their sons and their mothers from their daughters. Some families have been textile workers for several generations.

They seem to have a tradition of intermarriage within the industry. Employees of many surrounding textile companies are somewhat related to Lane 449. They have lived together for decades and have a similar lifestyle. They are good at playing mahjong, eating old wine, and fighting crickets. They are famous in Yangpu District.

In the minds of old Shanghainese, no one can offend Lane 449. They have the physique of industrial workers, the arrogant genes of northern Jiangsu people, the ruffian spirit influenced by city life, and the traditional cohesion of being single-minded to the outside world. They live in mean streets and consider themselves "barefooted and not afraid of those wearing shoes." They are accustomed to using their fists to make peace, and are notorious for not risking their lives in fights. There was a rumor that the gangsters in Shanghai looked at Yangpu, the gangsters in Yangpu looked at Dinghai, and the gangsters in Dinghai looked at Lane 449. The gangsters and thugs in old Shanghai would be so frightened that they ran away when they heard that they were from Dinghaiqiao. Even Ah Hun from Hongzhen Old Street didn't dare to act wild in front of them.

Don’t underestimate Lane 449 because of these bad things. This place used to have many celebrities. It is such a small place that not only produced famous national model workers and famous football stars, but also produced rebel commanders during the Cultural Revolution, as well as Shanghai's wealthy and wealthy tycoons. Life is unpredictable, history is turbulent, and those celebrities who were famous in the past, after being famous for a while, everything fell silent again. Few people mentioned the silence, because everyone felt that they had nothing to do with their own lives.

Three

The Dinghai Bridge at the southern end of Dinghai Road is the landmark building here. Traditionally, people refer to Dinghai Road, as well as the surrounding Boyang Road and Guiyang Road, collectively as Dinghai Bridge. The Dinghai Bridge, which is less than 100 meters long, is the first bridge on the Huangpu River in Shanghai. The Chinese and English nameplate on the bridge shows the words "built in 1927". The mottled old bridge spans the Fuxing Island Canal, connecting Dinghai Road and Fuxing Island. The outside of the bridge is the Huangpu River.

The Dinghai Bridge area is the cradle of China’s modern industry. The superior geographical location, convenient water transportation, and golden waterways leading to the river and the sea make this place a geomantic treasure place for investment and factory establishment. At the beginning of the 20th century, with the influx of foreign capital, a wave of investment and development boom flourished in this land. More than ten kilometers of riverside coastline were dotted with various factories, making it China's The birthplace of industrial civilization. Here, not only China's earliest foreign-funded enterprises were born, but also China's earliest water plants, power plants and gas plants were born, creating many firsts in national industry and thus unfolding the face of Chinese people's modern life. Standing on the Dinghai Bridge, you can see the Yangshupu Power Plant, which was once the largest thermal power plant in Asia. Its tall chimney still stands like a milestone of an era.

No. 2866 Yangshupu Road is the former site of the 17th Shanghai National Cotton Factory. This is Shanghai's largest textile company, with tens of thousands of employees in its heyday. The leading fine cloth produced by the factory is famous both at home and abroad for its excellent quality. In the wave of reform and opening up, the textile industry was the first to bear the brunt. The old factories that had been glorious for half a century were eliminated during the industrial adjustment. The workshops were shut down and stopped, workers were laid off and diverted, and the equipment was transferred to northern Jiangsu. The once bustling labor scenes, the deafening roar of machines, and the busy figures of female textile workers have long become a historical memory.

The former site of the 17th National Cotton Factory was transformed into the Shanghai International Fashion Center. The zigzag-shaped factory building of Qingshui red bricks has been completely preserved. The interior is completely the core of modern fashion. The contrast and fusion of history and fashion reflect the unique artistry and make it avant-garde. There is Asia's largest show venue, the world's tallest glass T stage, Shanghai Fashion Week, large music festivals, fashion carnivals, brand launches, and large-scale international auto shows. You can sing and I will appear. The riverside wharf that used to transport cotton yarn raw materials has been transformed into a water-friendly platform for leisure and entertainment. The old factory in Phoenix is ​​being transformed into a new global fashion capital.

Walking across Dinghai Bridge from the north end is the Qingqing Road of Fuxing Island. At the intersection of the bridge and the Dinghai Road Ferry Terminal, ferries still run day and night, going directly to Jinqiao in Pudong. Next to the ferry is the Dinghai Road Street Office, and not far from the street office is the famous Zhonghua Shipyard.

Along the camphor-shaded Yongqing Road, you can walk to Fuxing Island Park. The park is small and is the only Japanese-style garden in Shanghai. It is lush with trees, peaceful and quiet, and you can hear the chirping of birds from time to time. The White House Villa in the park once served as Chiang Kai-shek's palace. It was from here that the Chiang family and his son fled the mainland in panic by boat during the roar of the liberation of Shanghai.

Four

The expectations year after year have finally become a reality. A large-scale renovation plan has been launched with great fanfare. The old communities around Dinghai Road have been included in the scope of renovation. Red banners mobilizing for demolition are hung all over every street and alley.

On Dinghai Road, which is counting down to demolition, the old houses on both sides of the street have the word "demolition" written on them. Many shops on the street have closed their doors and are closing one after another. The once bustling old street has gradually become deserted. In the past, the number of people who went shopping to buy groceries, without knowing where they went, suddenly decreased a lot. The businesses that have not yet moved out are not as good as before, and they are making preparations to retreat.

On Boyang Road, which is connected to Dinghai Road, the demolition team has moved in. Dust is flying everywhere on the road. Some of the old houses have had their roofs ripped off, and some doors and windows have all been removed. Only a broken body was left. The last back streets are about to disappear by the Dinghai Bridge.

News of the demolition of Dinghai Road quickly spread throughout Shanghai. Waves of self-media people came here from all directions. They took cameras and walked around the streets to conduct interviews, claiming that they would conduct rescue photography on the last slums. Live reports are published on self-media platforms. Some people even suggested that the demolition of Dinghai Road should be stopped and the original flavor should be preserved to leave the most authentic and natural market style in Shanghai. Regarding this point, the uncles and aunts on Dinghai Road are very clear about it. This is not the Shikumen in Huangpu District, and there is no value in retaining it at all.

At this moment, those who clamored for demolition became worried about gains and losses. Because they know that demolition is nothing more than two options: either monetary compensation, paid according to the area of ​​​​the property certificate; or they will give you a house and relocate to the suburbs. For them, Dinghai Road is their hometown in their hearts, and everyone has a feeling that it is hard to leave their homeland. What's more, this is a well-established location, making it very convenient for work and life, children's studies, or living at home. However, they have no more choice: if they want to live more spaciously, they can only move to the suburbs. If you want to stay in the same place, your house is so small, and with the little compensation you get, you can't afford a house in the city.

Backstreets are about to become history. After reconstruction, Dinghai Road will definitely no longer be the same as Xiazhijiao. I am looking forward to the new look of the old place, and I also miss the backstreets that have given me the convenience of life, and reminisce about its real human fireworks and its rich market style.