In Shenyang there are at least two must-see meccas for tourists.  One is Shenyang Palace, and the other is Zhang's Hall.

At first sight, I wondered how come a palace had been built in such a bustling area and overshadowed by high-rise buildings around.  Instantly I realized that I was a little anachronistic.  The palace was built during pre-Qing era in early 17th century.  Then the ower of the palace was just the chieftain of united tribes, not yet the emperor of whole China, so it paled by comparison with the one of Beijing either in size or in architecture.  Nevertheless, it has been selected by the UNESCO as one of the world heritages.  Being the world-class heritage, it may not be allowed to further refurbishments, but I suggest its surroundings be improved to blend in with the architecture itself.  Mainland China should spend more money and spare no efforts in preserving heritages, for others will not only pay respect towards your GDP and space achievements, but also towards your endeavor to keeping the heritages sustainable, especially when you are one of the time-honored civilizations of the world.

Zhang's Hall was the office-cum-residence mansion used to belong to Zhang Zuoling, the warlord of Northeast, and his son and successor Zhang Xueliang.    The mansion is built in western style with a Chinese theme in the interior decoration.  It was a stately but not luxurious hall for the "kings" of Northeast.  Originally, Zhang Zuoling was a bandit, then was offered amnesty and enlistment by Qing Dynasty, and by degree became the most powerful man in Northeast and virtually the last head of Chinese Government before Nationists' takeover.  When fleeing back in the train to his den in 1928, he was killed by the preset bomb Japanese installed en route.   His son Zhang Xueliang succeeded him and paid homage to central government at the end of the year.  Later on Zhang Xueliang purged philo-Japanese cadres, initiated military struggle against Russian and started to build a new Northeast.  All of those events had been taken place and evidenced in Zhang's Hall. 

 馬君武《哀瀋陽》：

　　趙四風流朱五狂，翩翩蝴蝶正當行。

　　溫柔鄉是英雄冢，哪管東師入瀋陽。

　　告急軍書夜半來，開場弦管又相催。

　　瀋陽已陷休回顧，更抱佳人舞幾回。

The verse was a widely-spread poem which blamed it on Zhang Xueliang who had easily gaven up resistance against Japanese invasion and had shortly lost whole Northeast and part of inner Mongolia after 918 Incident(actually "National Disgrace") in 1931.  The taunting poem was later proved to be not a factual account of what Zhang was doing when the Incident occurred that night.  However, it is still unclear that who gave that notorious order of "non-resistance"?  Zhang Xueliang himself or Chiang Kai-shek?  CCP must say it was Chiang's order, but it is said that once Zhang admitted it was him who gave the order, not anyone else.  But how come Zhang was not disciplined for his voluntary retreat?  Anyway, the damage was done, and people in Norhteast had been enslaved since for 14 years.  All of these miseries were documented and demostrated in the Memorial Hall of 918 Incident.

I am pretty familiar with the history related to 918 Incident, so the exhibitions in the Memorial Hall didn't impressed me much except that I learnt some information about the feeble but continuous resistances led by CCP which had never been mentioned by KMT teachings.  The Hall will stand there forever, so will a tribulation-free China.