Zhongbao is an ancient town with a rich cultural heritage. Many literati and poets in the past dynasties were born, grew up or lived here. They left a number of masterpieces of poetry, calligraphy and painting to the ancient town and went down in history. From the third year of Yongle's reign in the Ming Dynasty (1405 AD) to the thirteenth year (AD 1415), Gao Gu (later a cabinet bachelor of the "Five Dynasties Elders") in his youth set up monasteries in Donggao and Xia Li to teach apprentices. , Jiahui Zhongbao students. Gao Gu traveled through the streets and alleys of Zhongbao, enjoyed the scenery of the two lakes, and left many poems. During the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, Bian Shoumin (1684-1753 AD), one of the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou", a calligrapher and painter from Huai'an, lived in Zhongzhuang because he admired the beautiful natural environment of Zhongbao, and built a "reed garden" beside the lake. (In the first year of Qianlong's reign in the Qing Dynasty, he also built the "Weijian Bookstore" near Junpi Bridge outside Huai'an City in his hometown). He paid attention to the living conditions of wild ducks and swan geese in the reed swamps, used it to sketch and paint, and wrote impromptu poems on the paintings. For example, it is written in "Poetry of Reed Geese": "The yellow reeds rustle, and the wild geese chirp loudly. I live in a reed house and write the sound of autumn on the grass." Bian Shoumin's painting subjects are mainly reed geese. In "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou" Be unique. The reed geese he painted in different postures are "deep and vivid, simple, ancient and elegant", and they are respectfully called "Bianyan". His paintings are collected in Zhongbao, Xinghua, Yangzhou and major museums across the country. Another representative of the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou", Li Wei, owns thousands of acres of ancestral paddy fields in Zhongbao and built his ancestral house in the town. When he lived in Zhongbao, he was influenced by the people of Bian Shou and also painted reed geese. In the 18th year of Qianlong's reign in the Qing Dynasty (AD 1753), there were also reeds and wild geese in the "Flower Screen" painted by Li Gu. His poem said: "The swallows come in the spring breeze, but they have been gone for a long time. Teach me how to draw reeds and wild geese, and I have been thinking about it for a long time before I start writing. ". Zheng Banqiao also lived in Zhongbao, and he sincerely admired the beautiful scenery of the two lakes and the rich aquatic resources in Zhongbao, saying that "half a bay of living water, thousands of rivers and moons, one grain of sand and thousands of dendrobium pearls"! In addition, Zhongbao has produced many people such as Yang Xichun, Yu Yatang, Wang Jin, Fang Guoying, Fang Shaochen, Fang Laibin and many other accomplished painters. According to the "Fang Family Genealogy", the Xinghua Fang family originated from Fang Xuanling, a famous prime minister in the Tang Dynasty. In the early Hongwu years of the Ming Dynasty, the Fang family moved from Suzhou to Zhongbao, Xinghua, and produced the painter Fang Guoying. After the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, Fang Laibin (named Hongxun, courtesy name Laibin, Shuanghu Jushi, 1894-1941), a descendant of Fang Guoying, studied under his second uncle Fang Shaochen (named De) in his early years, and worked in Beijing, Shanghai, Su, Xi, and He often sells paintings in other places to make a living. In 1914, he studied under Wu Guandai, a master of traditional Chinese painting in Wuxi (who was recommended as a court painter by Prince Chun, the biological father of Emperor Guangxu). The characters he painted, with smooth lines and green ink, are recognized by the world. He is the author of "Shuanghu Painting Album". In 1917, he was invited by industrialist Rong Desheng (father of former Vice President Rong Yiren) to Wuxi Meiyuan to paint. In addition, many Xinghua painters, such as Xu Zijian, Wang Molin, calligrapher Li Zonghai, etc., once lived in Zhongbao.