Amid the mist-shrouded mountains, on a tiger-back-shaped ridge stands an ancient tea-horse town built with blue stones and slabs. The passage of time, wars, and turmoil have erased its former prosperity and bustle, but they cannot erase its deeply accumulated history and engraved memories.

The glory buried by time—Yibang Ancient Tea Mountain, recorded in numerous ancient texts and once the political, military, economic, and transportation hub of the 'Six Ancient Tea Mountains,' seems to be regaining its past fame as people gradually pay more attention to Pu'er tea. During the early and mid-Qing Dynasty, hundreds of dan of tribute tea sent to the imperial court were primarily from Yibang. The fame of Pu'er tea can be said to have started from Yibang. In the early Qing Dynasty, Yibang was at its peak, with grand government offices, temples, and halls built magnificently. The area was bustling with trade, filled with the sounds of people and pack horses crowding the roads, and lit up at night like a city that never slept. Speaking of Yibang tribute tea, one cannot forget Cao Dangzhai, the first official appointed by the Qing government to procure tribute tea. He was the highest administrator of the Six Great Tea Mountains, under whose governance social order gradually stabilized, ethnic harmony was achieved, and merchants and residents thrived, leading to the sustained prosperity of Pu'er tea. By the mid-to-late Qing Dynasty, the production and trade center of Pu'er tea shifted to Yiwu. With the outbreak of the War of Resistance against Japan, all tea houses ceased operations, and tea merchants and farmers gradually moved away or closed their businesses. The vibrant Yibang, which had flourished for over 200 years, fell into silence and decline. Yet, its historical status as a key town on the tea-horse road has been firmly recorded in history. The ancient and profound history of the tea mountains is gradually becoming known to the world.

Yibang Ancient Tea Mountain is located in the eastern part of Xiangming Township, Mengla County, at the junction of the Six Ancient Tea Mountains of Pu'er and the Simao Office of Pu'er Prefecture, serving as the central hub at the source of the Yunnan-Tibet Ancient Tea-Horse Road. During the Longqing era of the Ming Dynasty, the Cheli Xuanweishi divided the governed area into 12 administrative regions called 'Xishuangbanna.' Yibang was designated as one of the twelve, known as 'Banna Yibang.' Due to its abundant tea production, it was also called 'Mola Yibang,' which in Dai language means 'a place with tea trees and water wells,' uniformly governing the Six Great Tea Mountains at that time.

Yibang Tea Mountain primarily cultivates small-leaf tea varieties, preserving the traditional sweetness and softness of small-leaf tea while incorporating the wild charm of Yunnan's tea regions. It was designated as tribute tea during the Qing Dynasty, thanks to Yibang's unique geographical environment—high altitude, misty surroundings, ample rainfall, and year-round temperate climate, providing excellent conditions for tea tree growth. It can be described as an ecological ancient tea garden for small-leaf varieties.