The ancient Poplar Bazaar stands on the ruins of a Sogdian merchant dynasty, the Kang family. They dug sweet …
The ancient Poplar Bazaar stands on the ruins of a Sogdian merchant dynasty, the Kang family.
They dug sweet wells to gather riches, displayed gold and jade to dazzle onlookers. Trade routes connected north and south; canals stretched east and west. Thus the place earned its nickname, "Land of Gold," its fame echoing across the land.
Yet the Bodchens' wars razed jade halls and jeweled pavilions. Desert gales buried phoenix flutes and ivory clappers. Sweet wells ran dry, its windlass left dangling. Brocade tents and fine carpets withered to weeds and thorns. No golden rain falls from the sky now, only dust and ash fill the view.
Bearing the old tales of Kang Zhenzhu, I sought out hidden depths and glimpsed the settlement's former glory.
One barely living well. One poplar tree. For future travelers to glimpse the stories of the past.