Still well preserved today, sprawling ancient residential compounds in south Anhui are a symbol of the Huishang's former prosperity.

Renowned Hui merchants (Huishang in Chinese) prospered for more than 500 years.

In an ancient land dominated by self-reliant agriculture for thousands of years, the merchants of Anhui made a unique contribution to China's development.

For more than a thousand years, Hui merchants--the collective name of Anhui merchants--created a legend through their hard work, enterprise and honesty.

Beginning as vendors selling small articles in the countryside and cities, then becoming big operations with sales networks covering the country, the success of the Huishang was matched by no other group except the merchants of Shanxi, also renowned as businesspeople.

The name Huishang was first known during the Jin Dynasty (265-420). In the following thousand years, Anhui's merchants continued to flourish and had a long period of prosperity during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.

Their sun began to set in the late Qing Dynasty due to fierce competition from foreign and domestic businessmen skilled in modern commerce.

But the unique culture created by the Hui merchants--teamwork, moral integrity, honesty, sympathy for the poor and loyalty to the country--is still remembered by the people in the province and the rest of the country.

Headquartered in Wuhu, Chery is one of the most successful homegrown auto manufacturers in China. Photos provided to China Daily

By Zhao Shijun (China Daily)