The QingYan Ancient Town is located in Huaxi district in the southern suburbs of Guiyang city. It was first established as a town more than 600 years ago in 1378 during the Ming Dynasty, when it was called QingYan Station. In 1381, the Ming Emperor, Zhuyuanzhang, sent an army of 300,000 soldiers to conquer Yunnan and Guizhou provinces. After the victorious campaigns, the soldiers remained or were stationed in the conquered territories, some in QingYan Station. Since then, the town was enlarged several times by construction and reconstruction, developing into what it is now. Today, a few thousand people still live in the QingYan Ancient Town, including Han, Miao and Buyi nationalities. Many of the buildings in the town retain the architectural styles from the Ming and Qing dynasties.