Magnolia season has arrived, and the magnolias at Chaotian Palace are at the height of their beauty.

Chaotian Palace is a place I visit at least three times a year:
once when the magnolias bloom,
once when the ginkgo leaves turn golden,
and once when it rains.

The first two need no explanation.
But rain?
Linger for a moment and you will understand—misty Jinling, where the echoes of the Six Dynasties drift away like flowing water.

As a child, I lived in Chaotian Palace for several years. My clearest memory is the slide in front of the main hall—perhaps the most famous slide in all of Nanjing, carrying countless childhood memories.

If Chaotian Palace in late autumn and early winter is a canvas of rich, layered colors,
then in early spring it breathes a quiet, refined fragrance into the air.
One Chaotian Palace is half the history of Nandu.
Within this 2,600-year-old palace complex, it feels as if you can touch both the past and present of Nanjing.
The centuries-old halls remain unchanged, while the magnolias return year after year, bearing witness to the endless cycles of spring.

The best place to admire them is Chongsheng Hall.
Magnolia trees on either side of the grand hall sway gently in the breeze, like celestial maidens scattering flowers, ethereal and otherworldly.

A beautiful encounter is happening right now.
Miss it, and you will have to wait another year.