Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c13.s1.7

v2.c13.s1.7

In the Wei and Jin dynasties (about 3rd-4th century), trade between east and west continued. Dunhuang, a vital point on the Silk Road, was one of the gathering places of the Hu merchants and business letters of Hu merchants of Sogdiana in Central Asia have also been found here. Although in the 5ᵗʰ-6ᵗʰ centuries, China was divided among the Northern and Southern dynasties, east-west commercial transactions along the Silk Road continued to thrive. Shortly after the founding of the Northern Wei dynasty, a Chinese envoy was sent to the western regions. Envoys and merchants from Central Asian states often gathered in Pingcheng (the capital of the early Northern Wei Dynasty, now northeast of Datong, Shanxi). After moving their capital to Luoyang, it became a more important meeting place of merchants from all countries. It was said that “from the west of the Pamirs to Daqin, merchants from thousands of places