Once the "king of silver", now the "bronze"
From Taiyuan Wusu Airport and Taiyuan South Station, a few steps to the east, it is Jinzhong. As a neighbor of Taiyuan, the provincial capital, the relationship between Jinzhong and Taiyuan is extremely delicate, which means that "cutting is not stopped":
At the beginning of the Northern Song Dynasty, Taiyuan Administrative Office moved to Jinzhong for several years, and counties (districts) such as Yuci, Qixian, Pingyao and Taigu in Jinzhong were once under the jurisdiction of Taiyuan. This relationship of "you have me and I have you" is still clear until now: Shanxi University Town and Longcheng Street, located between Jinzhong and Taiyuan, are closely tied together in culture and transportation.
Aside from these superficial phenomena, Yuci, Qixian, Taigu and Pingyao, which once belonged to Taiyuan and now belong to Jinzhong, are the real ties between Jinzhong and Taiyuan. They used to be the commercial centers of Shanxi and even China, which had an inestimable influence on the economic development of China.
Why does "Baiyin Valley" appear in Jinzhong?
Jinzhong is located in the east of central Shanxi, bordering Taihang Mountain in the east and Hebei Province in the east. It borders Yangquan in the northeast, Lvliang in the southwest, Taiyuan in the northwest and Changzhi and Linfen in the south.
Because there are no "lineages" in the two districts and eight counties under the jurisdiction of Jinzhong and the county-level cities entrusted with management, Jinzhong people often laugh at themselves that "Jinzhong is a collection". Geographically, Jinzhong has a strong sense of "collectivity":
The overall topography of China is high in the west and low in the east, while Jinzhong is just the opposite, with high in the east and low in the west. Taiyue Mountain, starting from the middle of Jinzhong in the west, roughly divides Jinzhong into Yellow River system and Haihe River system, and also divides Jinzhong into two parts:
The ups and downs of Taihang Mountain in the east hinder the entry of humid climate in the southeast, making the rainfall between Taihang Mountain and Taiyue Mountain scarce and changeable. The average altitude of1500-2000m, as well as the landscape of mountains, hills and basins, provide a paradise for animals and plants, but for local people, it is tantamount to "adding insult to injury".
Poverty and backwardness seem to be the eternal theme in eastern Jinzhong.
The Fenhe River in the west is vast, spanning 128km. After the rivers such as Xiaohe River and Yu Xiang River were merged, they were alluvial in Jinzhong Basin (also known as Taiyuan Basin) to form flat and fertile fertile farmland. Counties (cities) in Jinzhong, east of Fenhe River, make full use of the benefits of river irrigation to develop agriculture, which is the area where Shanxi's agricultural civilization started earlier. Taigu's cakes, Pingyao's beef and Yuci's soju are all famous.
This place has been rich in Shanxi since ancient times.
At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, "opening China to the law" was implemented (the Ming and Qing governments implemented the policy of China Merchants to transport rations, horses and other materials through salt tea). Shanxi people seized this historical opportunity and became the first batch of salt and iron merchants in China, with Shanxi as an important town in the north and bordering economically developed areas.
By the middle and late Qing Dynasty, after nearly 400 years of accumulation, these Shanxi people had been doing business all over the country, even out of China, and began to do business with foreigners. They are called "Shanxi merchants" because of their local blood relationship.
Jinzhong, because it is located in the middle of Shanxi, has become an important economic center for North-South exchanges. Taking advantage of this advantage, Jinzhong people gradually developed and became the mainstay of Shanxi merchants in the early Qing Dynasty. They set out from the east bank of Fenhe River and traveled all over the country. After several generations of efforts, they finally turned this place into the richest place in Shanxi and even China.
How was "Rich as an Enemy" made?
The western part of Jinzhong is the core area of Shanxi merchants and their culture in Ming and Qing Dynasties.
In the past, there was a folk proverb "Jin Taigu, Yuci County, Yin Qi, which can't finish eating rice noodles" in Jinzhong. Nowadays, the endless courtyard of Shanxi merchants is distributed in counties (cities, districts) in Jinzhong. It is no exaggeration to say that it was once "as rich as an enemy".
How much influence does Jinzhong have on all parts of China?
The spread of film and television dramas such as Qiao Family Courtyard, Raise the Red Lantern and Silver Empire has enabled people to get a glimpse of Shanxi merchants' residential buildings and their lives on the screen. The first two film and television dramas were filmed in Qiao Family Courtyard in Qixian County, and Qiao Family is the leading wealthy businessman in Jinzhong.
At the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, there were more than 300 grain stores in Beijing, one third of which were run by Qixian people. But Qixian's "business empire" is not in Beijing, but in Inner Mongolia. The Qiao family monopolized the commercial economy of Baotou and Hohhot with the business of "duplicate name", and there were more than 1 000 shops and properties in Baotou, which greatly promoted the rise of Baotou city. Therefore, there is a saying that "enriching the people first, then Baotou City".
Coincidentally, this phenomenon of "building a city by one family" is also reflected in Taigu Cao Shi-"Cao Shi has a house number first, then Chaoyang County"-Taigu Cao Shi developed business in the three pagodas area of Jehol, which promoted local development. The Qing government established Chaoyang County, the predecessor of Shuangta District in Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province today.
"Where there are sparrows, there are Shanxi people." Shanxi Shanxi merchants, with Jinzhong merchants as the core, used the magic of commerce to rise the city, and also donated money together to establish more than 500 "Shanxi Guilds", where their business traces can reach. These halls are not only their business stops in other places, but also their physical and mental homes during their journey.
Jinzhong is the starting point of China's financial industry.
With the expansion of Jinzhong people's "commercial empire territory", wagons of gold and silver are continuously transported back from all directions to Qixian, Taigu, Yuci, Jiexiu, Pingyao and other counties, and Shanxi merchants' courtyards have sprung up in Jinzhong, and every household has connected lanes. "I don't know how many tens of millions have fallen." As a result, the ancient city stayed in Jinzhong between Fenhe River and Taihang Mountain.
The high development of commercial economy has promoted the rise of financial industry. 1824, Rishengchang, the first bank in China, was established in Pingyao, ranking first in national finance, and soon even Suzhou's finance was monopolized. Rishengchang branch is located in more than 30 cities all over the country, as far away as Europe, America, Southeast Asia and other regions. It is famous for "connecting the world and benefiting Kyushu", and Pingyao is also known as "China's Wall Street".
The emergence of banks conforms to the trend of economic development and brings great convenience to businessmen, so large firms in Taigu, Qixian and Yuci counties have joined the banking industry. The eight richest people in Shanxi Draft Bank: Li of Pingyao and Mao Shi: Jiexiu Jia and Ji Jia; Yuci Wang Jia and Changjia; The composers and skillful artists in Qixian County are all in Jinzhong.
Among them, Taigu County has the largest number of banks, with more than 700 banks. The ticket number in turn stimulated Taigu's business. Major firms in Taigu set up offices in foreign commercial ports, and sent special personnel to purchase goods: silks and satins from Suzhou and Hangzhou, medicinal materials from Sichuan and Guangzhou, summer cloth from Sichuan, fur from the Great Wall, tea from Hubei and Hunan, and foreign goods from Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai ... These goods were transported back to Taigu in large quantities and then wholesale to businessmen from all over the world. Goods from Taiyuan, the provincial capital, also depend on Taigu's supply.
After the Revolution of 1911, the banking industry was gradually replaced by the national bank. Coupled with the warlord regime, the war continued, the domestic market was greatly damaged, and Shanxi merchants and foreign firms closed down one after another. Shanxi merchants' own conformism also made them miss the train of modern industry and commerce. Jinzhong, after hundreds of years of glory, has finally gradually become ordinary or even declining.
Jinzhong, where should we go?
When the "Baiyin Valley" in the west declined, the barren land in the east, the other side of the contradiction in Jinzhong, stepped onto the stage of history.
During the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression period, the eastern part of Jinzhong became an important fortress for Shanxi to resist the enemy because of its complex and diverse terrain. The Yang Guang ambush between Xiyang and Shouyang made great contributions to defending Taiyuan, the provincial capital, and even the whole Shanxi.
After War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression entered the stage of strategic stalemate, the Eighth Route Army kicked off the Hundred Regiments War in Lujiazhuang, Shouyang, and the number of participants in Jinzhong reached more than 90,000. The largest and longest-lasting battle launched by the Eighth Route Army in North China greatly inspired the confidence of the anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians and left a glorious chapter for the history of Jinzhong.
Jinzhong has made indelible contributions to the victory of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the War of Liberation, but years of war have made Jinzhong's already declining economy even more depressed. Fortunately, Shitai, Taijiao, Nantong Pudong and Nantong Pudong railways meet in Jinzhong, which promotes the industrial development of Jinzhong. Only the GDP of Jiexiu and Lingshi industrial cities in 20 19 is one eighth of that of Taiyuan, the provincial capital. But compared with the past glory, the gap is still very big.
The once glorious prosperity in the west is gone, and the poverty in the east is still there. Where is the way out for Jinzhong? "Yu Tai integration" is the most urgent voice of Jinzhong people; Enthusiastic netizens are also anxious to eat melons, and give the "Raiders" of "Three Points in Jinzhong".
They think that killing two birds with one stone is good for both Jinzhong and Taiyuan: Taiyuan can expand the city scale to the south and give better play to the leading role of the provincial capital city; Jinzhong is merged into the counties and districts of Taiyuan, and the economy can also develop better. To this end, they specially take Chaohu Lake and Hefei, Xianyang and Xi 'an as examples to prove their foresight.
"Taiyuan-Yushu integration" may be one of the ways out for Jinzhong, but it is unknown. If you pin all your hopes on this, you are naive. Jinzhong people may still have a long way to go if they want to truly realize their former glory.
-End-
Wen Zhen Zheng Li
Figure | Wang Jiale
Map editing | F50BB
Seal the picture | Jiao Xiaoxiang