Special supplement: Tourism abounds today at ancient crossroads Zhenyuan

At a location central to relations between the empires of the past and the ethnic peoples of Guizhou for thousands of years, the small city of Zhenyuan is now a hot tourism destination in the southwestern province.

Zhenyuan was among the earliest regions in Guizhou under the jurisdiction of imperial governments. It became a county in 202 BC during the early years of the powerful Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD220).

In Chinese, Zhenyuan means "pacifying the remote regions", illustrating it was a stronghold and springboard for central empires to spread their influence and strengthen their control of Guizhou and the neighboring regions.