The Hongshui (Red Water) River, which runs through Hechi, has many strange stones along its 1,000-plus kilometers, which attract a lot of attention from around the world. The best-known are the colored jade of Dahua county, patterned stone of Tian’e county, and the garden stone of Du’an county. Some stones bring wealth to local people and some others are an expression of the local culture.

The people of Hechi were relatively early birds in exploiting their strange stones, with a history of more than 20 years in tapping its resources. And, the number of people looking for stones, collect them, and enjoying their charm is growing and they are fond of holding stone appreciation events. This has helped the development of the strange stone culture and industry in Hechi and the idea of it as the “Hometown of Stone Appreciation” has grown along with the industry.