Yuncheng,

is located in the southwest of Shanxi and east of the Yellow River.

It has been known as the Hedong Civilization since ancient times.

It can be traced back to Yan, the ancestor of China. Huang Di, Yao, Shun and Yu,

down to the ancient sages Liu Zongyuan and Sima Guang,

outstanding people and places, heroes emerged in large numbers.

In the state of Lu, Confucius, a literary sage, was famous throughout the ages,

and Guan Yu, a martial sage,

His hometown is Jie (hai) Liang, Hedong,

— — It is now Yuncheng, Shanxi.

Photography and writing: Zhao Leyuan (SSSSwagger)

The Shape of Salt

How did the water and soil in Yuncheng acquire such unique abilities and become a treasure land of outstanding people and places? In addition to the good weather brought by the Yellow River like a mother, can you think of the ordinary salt, but it is an indispensable finishing touch.

Yuncheng Salt Lake, as one of the oldest salt lakes in China, gives this city a unique life. The name "Yuncheng" is also derived from the "City of Salt Transport".

"Chi You's Blood"

Yuncheng Salt Lake, also known as Salt Lake and Silver Lake.

It borders Zhongtiao Mountain in the south and Emei Mountains in the north.

It borders Anyi in the east and Jiezhou in the west.

It is long from east to west and narrow from north to south.

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The circumference is about 60 kilometers,

The total area is 132 square kilometers.

The birth of Yuncheng Salt Lake has a scientific explanation of orogeny and crustal changes; but when I visited the salt pond in person, I was actually more willing to believe in myths and legends: the gorgeous scenery of the salt lake is said to be built by a sacred cow, and it is also sent by a unicorn. Zi said.

The most vivid and bizarre one is the saying of "Chi You's blood". "Mengxi Bi Tan" writes: According to legend, the Yellow Emperor and Chi You fought in the Central Plains. After Chi You's defeat, his head was disintegrated in a pool, and his blood was The salty smell turns into salt brine.

And such a ghostly legend has a sequel. According to legend, during the Dazhong Xiangfu period of the Song Dynasty (1008-1016), the Jiezhou salt pond was drying up day by day, and green-faced monsters appeared in the nearby area, harming the people. People at that time believed that all kinds of monsters were caused by the resurrection of Chi You, so they prayed to Guan Gong every day to subdue the monster. After subduing the demon, within a few days, the water in the salt pond will surge again as before. The stories of gods and ghosts continue to unfold on this magical lake.

"Ancient Jiechi, a Scenic Spot in the World"

Salt can be divided into coarse and fine, and the salt pond also has more than just a rough and desolate side. Yuncheng Salt Pond has a more high-profile nickname: "China's Dead Sea", but in my opinion, it is alive, like the pupils of the earth, changing colors when it closes and opens, giving visitors a psychedelic look.

Among the five tastes, salty is the first; and the precise collision of colors and shapes of Yuncheng Salt Pond is like a collision of taste buds, allowing visitors to enjoy a visual feast. Since ancient times, people have marveled at this landscape and admired the artistic work of nature.

Zeng Lengxiong crosses the sea light tower, and the bright colors cross the sky and the rain collects.

The sound of playing the piano and the sound of the wind blowing, and the gathering of the bamboo basket and the clear air floating in the air.

This place is so extraordinary that there is no need to cross the sea to find Yingzhou.

——(Ming Dynasty) Zhu Zhi'ao's "Salt Pond"

Or it may be sparkling, and the water light in a mirror looks like a hazy girl holding a pipa with her face half-covered; or it may be overwhelmingly beautiful. , hot and boiling, like a red-faced Guan Yunchang riding alone for thousands of miles. Yin and Yang intersect, and all things are endless.

"Yankai River for Eastward Transport"

Yuncheng is adjacent to the Salt Lake and has been a salt-producing center in the country since ancient times. According to legend, when Emperor Shun was in power, people had begun to mine salt in the salt lake. After exposure to sunlight and repeated refining, the salt in Yuncheng was pure in color and white in quality. In "Compendium of Materia Medica", there is a record that "there are many kinds of salts with different colors, and those from Hedong are the best. People say that the salt grown in it is the most exquisite." "It softens the skin and can be used for all kinds of diseases."

In ancient times when sea salt was far from popular, Jiezhou’s salt had long been famous in the Central Plains, extending from Qinlong in the west, Fan and Deng in the south, the Yan Dynasty in the Arctic, and the Zhou and Song Dynasties in the east. It was known as "the great treasure of the country". The salt pond brought abundant harvests to Yuncheng and was regarded as a gift from the gods.

The wealth brought by the salt ponds is inseparable from the hard-working salt collectors. Liu Zongyuan once described the scene of diverting water from the reclamation fields to dry salt in "Jin Wen": "The ditches and riversides are interlaced in groups, like crops. If there are fish in the garden, there are fish scales, and there are many branches, but I don’t know their roots.” You can imagine the prosperity of salt mining in those years.

As time goes by and technology soars, in the modern world, Yanchi has become the origin of many chemical raw materials, injecting continuous vitality into the city. As we spend time with Yanchi day and night, we gradually become one with nature and man. Yuncheng is inseparable from the well-proportioned salt ponds, and the salt ponds have long been inseparable from the small city of Yuncheng.

Yuncheng, Shanxi,

"It can be salty or sweet",

The salt pond is destined to be salty,

but life is sweet.

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