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Zhongshan Lu's western arm cuts through a new, relatively tidy district before eventually heading over a tributary of the Pearl River and out of the city towards Foshan. About 2.5km from the Jiefang Lu intersection you pass under a pedestrian walkway; take the lane heading north here and follow the English signs to Chen Jia , the Chen Clan Academy (8.30am-5.30pm; Y10; Chenjia Ci metro). For an idea of the immense fortunes enjoyed by South China's late-Qing clans you need only spend an hour here, surrounded by the most garish tiles and gorgeously carved screens that money could buy in the 1890s, when the Chens were one of the wealthiest families in the kingdom. Originally an ancestral temple, then a school, the buildings now contain period decor and a continually changing "Guangdong Folk Arts Museum" exhibition, with fine Yao, Li and Miao textiles in the rear hall. Have a good look at the extraordinary brick reliefs under the eaves. One of the first, on the right as you enter, features an opera being performed to what looks like a drunken horse, squirming on the floor with mirth. Other cameos feature stories from China's "noble bandit" saga, Outlaws of the Marsh, and some of the sights around Guangzhou.
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