At No. 123 Yu'er Road in Dali Ancient City, the whitewashed walls of the Jiang Gong Shrine catch the high Yunnan sun. Built in 1905 under imperial decree, this 1,100-square-meter complex honors Jiang Zonghan, a Heqing native who rose to become the Governor of Guizhou and Yunnan. Jiang was a man of iron and stone. He fought at the Battle of Zhennan Pass and personally funded the Jinlong Bridge over the Jinsha River, buying eighteen massive iron chains that each weighed a ton to span the gorge.

Step through the three-bay main gate, where ink-wash paintings decorate the plaster. The layout follows the classic Bai ethnic style of four joints and five courtyards. In the quiet of the second courtyard, the main hall stands fourteen meters wide and ten meters deep. Its timber frame combines post-and-beam and column-and-tie systems, holding up a single-eave gable roof. Here, the chisel marks of local stonemasons remain visible on the gates, spelling out characters that praise Jiang's service to the state and his mountain-moving spirit.

The shrine has lived many lives. After the Xinhai Revolution, it became the Heqing Guild Hall. Decades later, the laughter of children filled the courtyards when it served as the Zhonghe Kindergarten.Today, the complex serves as the Dali Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum, established on December 30, 2012. The air inside the halls carries the faint scent of dried tea leaves and indigo dye. More than 535 artifacts fill the rooms, showcasing local paper-cutting, embroidery, and the ancient rituals of Benzhu deity worship. The heavy timber columns, once raised to glorify a single general, now shelter the collective memory of the Bai people.