Salt appeared in ancient times because it is a necessity for human lifeSalt was used as a seasoning in ancient China. In ancient China, natural salt was called "brine", and only salt that had been processed by human hands was called "salt". The earliest discovery and utilization of natural salt in ancient China was in the flood era, and it was out of physiological instincts, just like the animals' licking of rock salt and salt water. In ancient China, there are records of "white deer drinking from springs", "oxen licking the ground to produce salt", "monkeys licking the ground", "billy goats licking the soil", and in North America, there are records of the "white deer licking the ground". The records of "White Deer Drinking Spring", "Ox Licking Salt", "Monkeys Licking Ground", "Billy Goats Licking Earth", and the Conawar Salt Licking Ground in Virginia of North America all illustrate this. Related records: "Shangshu?6?1 said life" has: "bitter and soup, Er but salt and plum" record, indicating that in the Shang Dynasty people already know that the use of salt as a condiment, used to prepare delicious soup. Then linked to the "Shangshu?6.1 Yugong", there is a record of Qingzhou, "the tribute salt Xi", that is, before the Shang Dynasty Xia Dynasty, there is a "tribute" to the slave-owning countries of the salt. This kind of salt was used for seasoning, and it was extremely precious, and was handed over as tribute. Thus, the earliest record of salt consumption in China can be traced back to the Xia Dynasty. By the Zhou Dynasty, people have been salty as one of the "five flavors" (sour, bitter, pungent, salty, sweet), and used to cure diseases.