According to traditional accounts recorded in the 9th-century Tang dynasty text Yuanhe Xing Zuan, after Yu the Great founded the Xia dynasty, he enfeoffed Juan, a descendant of the Yellow Emperor, at the settlement of Li (modern Licheng Village 郦城村, Neixiang County, Henan), establishing the Li state [zh].

[2][3] At the end of the Northern Song dynasty, Li Hong (郦洪) was a general fighting the Jurchen invaders.

His son, Li Lun (郦伦), served as the governor of Shaoxing (in modern Zhejiang province), and his family lived in nearby Zhuji.

On their way back, Li Hong died in Danyang (in modern Jiangsu province).

Deyi and De'er buried the bodies of their father and grandfather, and decided to settle down in Danyang to guard their tombs.