Tsingyi

Tsingyi 青衣市 Qīngyī shì
City
Clockwise from top: Tsingyi skyline, Lao's Chocolate Museum, Hanyao Water Town
Tsingyi Map of Monsilva with Tsingyi highlighted
Country	Monsilva
State	Luhai
Settled	10th century BCE
Declared city	12 May 1426
Luhai state est.	1 July 1984
Government
• Body	Tsingyi City Council
• Mayor	Jiang Tao (FDP)
Population  (July 2022)
• Total	800,179
Time zone	AMT+13 (Monsilvan Eastern Time, MET)
ISO 3166 code	MS-LUH-T
Major airports	Tsingyi City Airport (TCA)
Transit System(s)	MRA Luhai Metro
Police	Tsingyi Metropolitan Police
Ambulance	Luhai State Ambulance
Fire	Luhai Fire Service

Tsingyi (Monsilvan: 青衣市; pinyin: Qīngyī shì), is a city in Monsilva in the state of Luhai. It is the largest city on mainland Monsilva that is not a state capital and is the second largest city in the state of Luhai. The city is located in the west of the state and sits upon the Chun River and is surrounded by the hilly plains of Luhai and Leibo. The city has an estimated population of 800,179 (July 2022). Tsingyi is Monsilva's 15th most-populous city, placing ahead of Baoan but behind Huiyong. The city holds 13% of the state of Luhai's population, with the other 87% living in Luhai City or in the many towns situated around the state.

Tsingyi is located on the Chun River which flows from the mountains of Leibo through Haimao towards Tsingyi where it continues onwards towards its mouth which is located in Luhai City. The city is located on an area of flat land surrounded by the hilly terrain which fills the rest of Luhai. Tsingyi has been inhabited for thousands of years and was originally inhabited by tribes which would later move north. Tsingyi had already become a somewhat large settlement when the Qin dynasty was created in 792 BCE. The city had always been overshadowed by Luhai City during its history, with the city often being called Luhai's 'cheap copy' or '廉价仿制'. However in recent history this phrase has fallen out of fashion with the city claiming a name for itself through its large publishing and media industry.

The city has many attractions including Hanyao Water Town, Yao's Chocolate Factory and Tsingyi City Zoo. Education is good in Tsingyi, with many education institutions in the city. The University of Tsingyi is a well regarded university which has one of the highest student satisfaction rates in Monsilva. The city is served by the Luhai Metro which runs between Luhai City and Tsingyi as well as around both cities. As well as this, the Monsilvan Railways Administration operates national railway services out of the city towards cities such as Haimao, Menchi, Qianzhen and Taoyuan.

Toponymy

The name, Tsingyi comes from the WG Pinyin of the Monsilvan "青衣", (Qīngyī). The character "青" (qīng) sounds like "tsing" in many languages that use the Iberic script which is the reason behind the swap between the HY pinyin 'q' for 'ts'. "青" as a word means "green", "blue" or "black" while "衣" (yī) means "clothes". However together the word originated from the name for a type of dark coloured fish which resides in the Chun River.

History

Early history and dynastic eras

Tsingyi has one of the earliest confirmed settlement dates in Monsilvan history. However, many of its original residents' descendents can be found much further north. This is due to the large migration of prehistoric Monsilvans northwards. Much later on in the 8th century BCE, Tsingyi was a large settlement in the Qin dynasty which occupied most of modern-day Luhai, Leibo and Meixian.

The city had steady growth throughout its early history thanks to the flat land it resided upon. Most of the city back then was made up of collections of smaller towns surrounded by farming space. During the Zhou dynasty, many castles were constructed in and around the city to fortify against more aggressive neighbours. However many of these were destroyed during the Beining Crisis under the Beining Heavenly Kingdom which occupied a large portion of northern Monsilva including Tsingyi during the last 150 or so years of the Zhou dynasty.

Empire and Civil War period

During the Empire of Baltanla after the Zhou dynasty ceded itself to the empire in 1568, Tsingyi served as an important secondary economic center for northern Monsilva (Kingdom of Great Shan during this period). The city saw its largest growth during the Great Shan, but unlike most cities in the country, its industry remained focused on agriculture which hindered its growth in comparison to nearby cities such as Luhai and Menchi.

Tsingyi was one of the first stronghold cities for the Liberate Monsilva Movement during the Monsilvan Civil War from 1824 to 1830. It was one of the least damaged cities during the war due to its long distance away from where most fighting took place and its inland position prevented any naval bombardment. However, the people of Tsingyi saw plenty of economic trouble during the war, as a lack of centralized government allowed scamming and crime to take hold in the city. Many people entered severe poverty in the city during the war.

Post-civil war and modern Monsilva

After the civil war, the Kingdom of Monsilva was established, and tackling the crime problem in Tsingyi was part of the many recovery efforts the government underwent during the next couple of decades after the war. The city was also placed in a position whereby its agricultural capabilities were no longer required and it needed to develop a new and more modern industry to keep up with the rest of the country. During the early 20th century is when Tsingyi began developing its media and publishing industry which is now one of the largest in the country.

During martial law in Monsilva, Tsingyi's publishing industry was completely stopped and acquired entirely by the government and forced to print government propaganda and approved articles as the freedom of the press was completely removed by the laws introduced by Shao Yaoting. The industry was stopped once again during the strikes in the early 1970s where many workers would choose not to print any propaganda and instead would print anti-government propaganda leading to high numbers of workers in Tsingyi being arrested.

After the 1978 Monsilvan protests and the establishment of the Monsilvan Republic, Tsingyi's free publishing industry was able to return to its pre-martial law level.

Government

Local government

Tsingyi has its own city council, the head of which is the Mayor of Tsingyi. The city council serves as a replacement for the county councils which would exist for the counties that make up the city if Tsingyi was not a multiple-county city. The council is currently lead by the Freedom and Democracy Party.

State government

Tsingyi contributes several municipalities via members of the Luhai State Parliament, a 132-seat unicameral legislature which serves the entire state of Luhai, including Tsingyi.

Geography

Tsingyi is located on the western plains around the Chun River which flows from Leibo to Luhai City. The city developed upon well irrigated farmland which has historically lead to frequent flooding in the city, however anti-flooding measures developed over the city's long history have since prevented major floods from hitting the city. Although the city is mostly flat, it is surrounded by hilly land which gets higher in the west but is much lower in the east towards Luhai City.

Tsingyi has a cool but dry climate, with temperatures barely reaching freezing in the winter but getting to the low 30 degrees celcius temperatures in the summer.

Cityscape

View of Tsingyi's skyline

Demography

As of 2022, there are just over 1.5 million people living within Tsingyi's metropolitan area, making it Monsilva's ninth-largest city by population, sitting ahead of Waiping but behind Chishang. Tsingyi is a somewhat dense city, with its city centre being surrounded by compact residential districts as the city's suburbs have been limited in size due to the hilly nature of the city's edges. As with most urban areas in Monsilva, the city has a somewhat diverse population. Although the majority of Tsingyi's residents are Monsilvan, there is a noticeable diaspora of TBC country who make up around a third of the city's population.

Most residents of Tsingyi are unaffiliated, however traces of the native Monsilvan folk religion and Buddhism are still found amongst many of the city's Monsilvan residents.

Education

Tsingyi has many educational institutions around the city, from elementary schools to universities. The city is home to Tsingyi University, which has one of the highest student satisfaction rates of any university in Monsilva. However, the university has developed a reputation known as "绿京落选者大学" which roughly translates as "University of Amking and Luhai rejections". The reputation is thanks to the high number of applicants to the University of Luhai or Central Amking University who have been rejected ending up at Tsingyi's University. According to Luhai state law, education in Tsingyi is mandatory up to the age of 18.

Culture

Sport

Sport is a huge part of Luhainese culture, and this does not exclude Tsingyi. Football is by far the most popular sport, and the city is home to Tsingyi City F.C., which is currently one of the top teams in the Monsilvan Super League. In distant second place for popularity is yuchio, which has most of its popularity amongst schoolchildren who play it during thier sports lessons and during extra-curriculars.

Tourism

Tsingyi is home to many tourist attractions including:

• Hanyao Water Tower
• Lao's Chocolate Factory
• Tsingyi City Zoo
• Shengli Shopping Centre

Travel

Tsingyi is served by the Luhai Metro which runs around Tsingyi and between the city and Luhai City. It is also served by the Monsilvan Railways Administration which operates services to cities such as Haimao, Menchi, Qianzhen and Taoyuan. The city also has Tsingyi City Airport, which is Monsilva's 12th busiest airport.

See also

• Outline of Monsilva