Jǐngyán

Jingyan's salt wells tied local production to the fiscal demands of successive Chinese governments. In 1403 the Ministry of Revenue reported that small bamboo-tube wells at Daluopian could be opened for boiling brine. Two years later, the Fuxing and Si'an wells were reported to be falling short of their prescribed output as their brine weakened. Officials proposed opening the Beihe well, where saline water and convenient fuel supplies promised additional production.

During the Wanli reign an inspection recorded twenty old wells, sixty-nine salt-producing households and 661 registered workers. Further small wells were authorised to contribute additional tax payments. Wells could flourish or decline, and actual conditions did not always match official registers. Jingyan's salt industry consequently depended on changing underground supplies and access to fuel, while households and officials negotiated the production needed to meet state quotas.