Yúnlóng

Yunlong lies in the steep river valleys west of Dali, where salt wells have sustained settlements for centuries. Brine from the Bi River valley was boiled with timber from the surrounding mountains, and salt traveled along paths linking the wells with distant markets. During the Wanli reign of the Ming, the seat of Yunlong Prefecture was moved to Baofeng, the site of a salt office. The move brought the prefectural administration close to the industry on which so much local life depended.