Xīngxiàn

Xing County lies among the loess hills of western Shanxi, where the Lanyi River runs towards the Yellow River. At Heiyukou, a ferry and landing connected Shanxi with Shaanxi across the water. During the Ming and Qing, it became a busy meeting place for merchants and goods moving by river and land. The early Ming reduced the former Xingzhou to a county in 1369 and later placed it under Kelan department.