Heijing, an ancient salt capital since Tang Dynasty
Situated in the center of Yunnan Province, about 60 kilometers west of capital Kunming, Heijing nevertheless belongs to another time and place: its streets are narrow, cobble-stoned and festooned with red lanterns; and donkey carts are still the most popular means of its transportation.
The town of Heijing (literally "black well") is also known as an ancient salt capital since Tang Dynasty (618-907). Around 4,000 years ago in the late Neolithic, a Yi ethnic girl A Zhao found a brine well under the guidance of her black cow. Since then, Heijing residents began using firewood to boil thick brine down to salt.
Heijing's salt lies deep in the mountains. As rain percolates through the mountains, it passes through the salt deposits, slowly washing out the salt. As brine – water saturated with salt – it reappears in wells just above the river's water levels. But to tap into wells commercially, miners had to dig deep shafts into the mountains and bring the waters to the surface with simple pumps. Hundreds of shafts still dot the mountains around Heijing. They are monuments to the sweat of generations.
Its salt production in turn brought prosperity to the town for centuries. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the salt industry of Heijing was in its hey-day. It is said that Heijing produced up to 70 percent of the imperial salt during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). At that time, almost all people in Heijing make a living by this salt. Heijing became one of Yunnan's richest towns. Horse caravans and salt dealers traveled to Heijing frequently and made Hejing a melting-pot of different cultures.
But it was not the porters who grew rich on salt. Salt production was in the hands of a few salt merchants who directed the mining and the caravans. The salt revenues allowed them to build splendid houses. Many – not all – have survived the upheavals the last century brought. Some are today protected, yet many more remain crumbling, threatening to collapse.
On Heijing's western side, up on the mountain to catch the early morning sun, is the Wu family mansion, preposterously built in the shape of the Chinese character 王 ("king"). It claims 108 rooms, a propitious number. The pavilions and cloisters are all connected to make all but the most adept feel as if entering a labyrinth.
Now, the Wu family mansion is the most expensive hotel in the town, and little has changed since the days of its previous owners.
But Heijing's gentry were not ungrateful. Many temples dot the town. The largest, Feilai Temple, overlooks the townscape from the west. Dalongci Shrine is the masterpiece of the ancient architectures in Heijing. What is the most impressive is a plaque hung on the ceiling of the main hall with an inscription by Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912). It reads "Ling Yuan Pu Ze," a royal praise for Hejing’s contributions to salt production bringing great benefits to the country.
The town's fortunes changed in later Qing Dynasty with the invasion of sea salt. Its last salt factory went bankrupted in 2005. Now, there is little business in Heijing. The only surviving black well salt has become tourist souvenir. Maybe it is just another chapter in Heijing's long history.
Source: China.org.cn