A Different Dali - Midu Mizhi 'Little River Flowing' Scenic Area - Wensheng Street Ancient Tea Horse Road

In the early winter of 2024, I came to Dali for the third time and started a different journey in Dali. The first stop was Midu County, located in the southern part of Dali Prefecture, about 60 kilometers from Xiaguan. It is one of the sources of the Red River, formerly known as 'the throat of the six Zhaos'. It is also a nationally renowned hometown of lanterns and folk songs. The famous lantern songs 'Midu Mountain Song', 'Embroidered Lotus Bag', 'Top Ten Sisters', and the folk song 'Little River Flowing', known as the Oriental Nocturne, all come from Midu. The arranger, lyricist, and organizer of 'Little River Flowing', Yin Yigong, was born in Wensheng Street, Mizhi Town, Midu County. We visited Yin Yigong's former residence to learn about the past and present of this work. The voice of the famous female singer echoed in our ears. Unfortunately, the original female singer is no longer there, and we can no longer enjoy the original folk song singing. Mizhi has also been a necessary route for the 'Kainan Ancient Post Road' in western Yunnan since the Tang and Nanzhao periods. It is an important post station on the ancient Tea Horse Road between Yunnan and Tibet. The Wensheng Street Tea Horse Ancient Post Road is more than 700 meters long. The so-called horse-leading stone is made of stone strips about one meter long and thirty centimeters wide, connected end to end, with irregular loose stones on both sides. It is a typical road paving style on the Tea Horse Road. Such a road is not for visual effects, but is very practical when transporting goods by horse. The old houses on both sides of the ancient street are many of the former horse team rest horse shop ruins. The mottled mud walls and tilted wooden pillars seem to be telling the bustling past of merchants gathering and horse teams shuttling. On the Yaxi River south of Wensheng Street is the Phoenix Bridge, which is one of the most famous ancient bridges on the Mizhi Tea Horse Road. It is exquisitely shaped and is a rare physical material for studying ancient bridge architecture and the history and culture of the Tea Horse Road. It is listed as the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units by the State Council. On the west side of the Phoenix Bridge deck is a 'four unlike' (neither lion, tiger, kirin, nor other animals) unicorn stone carving that has experienced wind and rain. It is 1.8 meters high and weighs a thousand catties. It is a water-controlling beast that Mizhi people use to subdue water disasters and bless peace. Next to the Phoenix Bridge is the Civilization Pavilion, originally named the God of Wealth Pavilion, which has a history of more than 1,400 years. The Tea Horse Road passes through it, perhaps it was the hope of the horse team in the past that they could bring them wealth after a long journey. The houses next to the Phoenix Bridge were once the filming location of the TV series 'Go to the Place with Wind'. Walking past the Phoenix Bridge, a square ancient well appears in front of you, named Pearl Spring. There are strings of white bubbles from time to time, like crystal clear pearls, gurgling out from the bottom of the well, creating a fascinating natural wonder. The different journey in Dali, to be slowly recorded later.