Cats go about their business at the Shentong Temple ruins area in Jinan. [Photo/WeChat account: jinanjinan521]

The Shentong Temple ruins area in Licheng district, Jinan has become a sensation thanks to its feline residents.

"The first cats appeared in 2017, and there were only three of them at that time," said Chen, the caretaker of the nearby pagoda forest.

"Now there are about fifty or sixty."

According to Chen, some of the cats are descendants of the original three cats, some came from nearby, and some were abandoned.

Shentong Temple is the oldest Buddhist temple in the Qilu region. It was the Buddhist center of Shandong from the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420) to the Sui and Tang dynasties (581-907).

After more than 1600 years, only the ruins of the temple remain, but many precious cultural relics have been preserved, such as Simen Tower - the only surviving Sui Dynasty stone pagoda in China, the pagoda forest, Longhu Tower, and the Qianfo Cliff with 240 Buddha statues carved into it.

The cats have helped attract more visitors to the scenic spot.

A visitor feeds a cat at the Shentong Temple ruins area in Jinan. [Photo/WeChat account: jinanjinan521]