Financial resources, together with political rule, military control, and transportation networks, constituted the main factors

for the establishment and division of administrative divisions in China. Salt has been one of the important financial resources in ancient Chinese society. During the Yuan and Ming dynasties, salt resources had a certain impact on the geopolitical pattern of western Yunnan, and played an important role in the pluralistic relationship between the central and local governments and the change of regional boundaries. The rulers of the Yuan and Ming dynasties adjusted the political establishment of western Yunnan, set up officials in the salt-producing areas, and incorporated the frontier salt resources into the dynastic financial system, which not only strengthened the control over the salt resources, but also further improved the strategy of frontier policy.