Although the area of the canal is limited, its influence permeates the daily "rice, oil, salt, sauce and vinegar tea". Although the city is not near the sea and does not produce salt, it is the center of salt industry operation and management.

Even earlier in the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court set up a salt transportation department in Yangzhou to supervise the sales of salt, and released the management right of salt through the "salt introduction system", so a large number of salt merchants gathered in Yangzhou. Salt merchants monopolize business, buy cheap and sell expensive, and make huge profits. The government also relies on salt tax to obtain fiscal revenue. In the 12th year of Daoguang reign (1832), salt merchants began to decline.

This dependence and monopoly between salt merchants and the government is very unfavorable to the development of market economy. Salt merchants hoarded personal wealth to build private houses, and the famous garden was founded by Huang Zhijun, general manager of salt merchants in Qing Dynasty, in the former site of Shouzhi Garden in Ming Dynasty. In addition, there are several salt merchant buildings in Yangzhou, such as Huashi Garden (Huayou Mei Jian), Jienan Bookstore (built by Ma Yueyan) and Dongrong Garden. Although Geyuan is only a relatively complete private garden in Dongguan Street, it is far from being able to reproduce the overall grand occasion of salt industry in Ming and Qing Dynasties. But from its scale as a private house and its intention of beautification, it is enough to imagine the economic strength and cultural taste of salt merchants. Dongguan Street, where Ge Yuan is located, is the place where the wealth of salt merchants has accumulated and displayed.

Therefore, Yangzhou, which has an ancient canal outside and Liancheng District inside, has won the reputation of "the first commercial port in Southeast China" since the Tang Dynasty. Du Mu once sang, "It is better to roll a bead curtain and take Yangzhou Road to wear the spring breeze." Dongguan Street is not only a bustling business, but also a tourist destination for literati. At present, many old commercial brands established in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China in Dongguan Street are not only crowded shops for consumption, but also silently convey historical information and memories, and also inherit the intangible cultural heritage on the canal.

Yangzhou, known as "Yancheng" in ancient times, is also called "Lane Town". It is said that there are 366 old streets and alleys in Yangzhou. Even if you search one every day, there is still one in a normal year. Due to the developed salt industry in Yangzhou in Yuan Dynasty, "draw drums and clear flutes to estimate passenger ships and build bamboo poles and green curtains in restaurants". Hundreds of thousands of houses in four cities are still the first state in Huainan. "Yuan poet Wu Shidao wrote some exaggerated literary rhetoric in the poem" Four Poems of Yangzhou "(the first poem), but look at the names of streets and lanes related to salt industry, such as Yunsi Street, Yunsi Gongyi, Yuanda Street, Yin Shi Street, Nanhexia, Bazongmen, Anjiaxiang, Zhangsu Street and Kangshan Street.

In Yangzhou, there are more than a dozen hutongs called "General Gates", such as General Bian Gate, General Ting Xie Gate, General Ma Gate in Gengzi Street and General Ba Gate. , which is mainly concentrated in the "new towns", except "the side street Xie Jiangjun Gate". The main entrance is not a public street, but a passageway for the extended family. Most of these big families are businessmen who moved their families to Yangzhou and lived under the same roof for generations. Generally, houses and gardens are built after their children and grandchildren get married and live in separate rooms. In order to make it convenient for guests and servants to go in and out without going through the hall, side doors are set at each entrance, which are connected by doors and also used for fire prevention and isolation. The main entrance is generally narrow and long, and the whole wall does not open windows. In some main doors, there are wells for fire fighting. If there is a load-bearing wall above the water surface, the way to build a wall at the root of the wall becomes an arch coupon structure, which shows the wisdom of the ancients. The most famous of all generals should be Bazongmen, which is the mansion of Ba Weizu and Ba Yuanmao, Huizhou salt merchants. It is located on the east side of Yin Shi Street and was originally used for salt trading. According to Volume 739 (Records of the Emperor Gaozong in Qing Dynasty), Bazongmen "specializes in luring nests, and when the selling price of Jiangguang rises at sunrise, the price of its nests can also soar, which can bring double benefits". Calaque L Autour, a Frenchman who witnessed the Yuanmingyuan disaster in Kloc-0/860, wrote in his memoir China and China: "The salt business is one of the oldest sources of income in this country.

Not many people may know Wuben Lane now, but many people may have heard of Wuben Hall's reputation, which is also related to Huizhou merchants who managed salt industry in the Qing Dynasty, but now it exists in name only, so the address has passed away with the canal water. What is a "service book"? For Huizhou merchants, doing business is business. Therefore, among the salt merchants in Yangzhou, Huizhou merchants occupy more than half of the country and almost monopolize all aspects of salt industry from production, transportation to sales. Wubentang is used to manage all the entry and exit expenses of Huai 'an and Huai 'an salt affairs, including official tribute, supporting officials to keep clean and entertaining.

"Businessmen are good at Confucianism" is the reason why Huizhou businessmen especially admire Confucian culture. Wu Bentang in Yangzhou also set up a "monthly discount" system to help orphans help the poor and relieve the descendants who are short of business, showing a humanistic feeling and business philosophy of helping each other in the same boat, which is probably the fundamental reason why Huizhou merchants can stand on their own feet in Yangzhou.