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How did the Dian Kingdom become part of Han territory?
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Yunnan
Pavilion atop Yulongxue (āJade Dragon Snowā) Mountain, near Lijiang, Yunnan province, China.
The Dian Kingdom became part of Han territory in 109 BCE during the reign of the Xi (Western) Han emperor Wudi. Following its incorporation, the region was reorganized as the Yizhou prefecture, with Dianchi county serving as its administrative seat.1
This integration was part of a broader period of territorial expansion under Wudi, during which Han armies advanced into the southwest, as well as the northeast and south, to establish commanderies and extend imperial governance over previously unassimilated regions. Once incorporated, the area became a significant traffic center, linking China's hinterland to the southern branch of the Silk Road and connecting present-day Sichuan to Vietnam.21