Sights of the Ancient Capital describes how in the city of Hangzhou, which since time immemorial has been a center of crafts and commerce with a population of over a million, "the sounds of bow on string and of recitations often assailed the ear."
《都城紀勝》形容自古是手工業、商業中心，人口一直超過百萬的杭州城內，「弦誦之聲，往往相聞。」