In ancient times, Qinhuai River was a tributary of the Yangtze River. In the new era, the dense population and developed economy along the coast gave birth to the ancient culture of Nanjing, which is called "the mother river of Nanjing".

Qinhuai River is the cradle of ancient civilization in Nanjing. As early as the Stone Age, there were human activities in the basin.

From Dongshuiguan to Xishuiguan, the river bank has been a residential area in the bustling business district since Dongwu.

Since the Southern Dynasties, Qinhuai River has become a settlement of noble families.

There are many restaurants on both sides of the strait, full of wine and melodious music, and countless merchant ships shuttle across the river day and night. Many singers stayed in it, singing and dancing lightly, and literati lingered among them. The story of beautiful women has been passed down through the ages.

During the Six Dynasties, Qinhuai River and Confucius Temple became the gathering places of literati, and Wuyi Lane, Zhuque Bridge and Taoyedu on both sides of the strait became romantic and picturesque, which was passed down for thousands of years.

Wuyi Lane was the romantic center of Qinhuai during the Six Dynasties. In the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Wang Dao lived with Xie An and became famous all over the world.

After Sui and Tang Dynasties, Qinhuai River gradually declined, but it attracted numerous literati and poets to pay their respects here. Confucianism flourished. Jiangnan Gongyuan, built in the Southern Song Dynasty, became the largest imperial examination room in ancient China, so Qinhuai gradually recovered as the cultural center of Jiangnan.

The Ming and Qing Dynasties were the heyday of Shili Qinhuai, with rich people and brothels, and the original painter Ling Bo became the land of beautiful women in the south of the Yangtze River.

Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty ordered 10,000 small lanterns to be set off on the Qinhuai River during the Lantern Festival. Splendid lanterns and gold powder towers on both sides of Qinhuai River were originally painted by Ling Bo.

In the Qing Dynasty, there were 58 top high school students in Gongyuan Examination Area in Jiangnan, accounting for 52% of the total number of top high school students in Qing Dynasty.

Celebrities in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, such as Wu Cheng'en, Wu, Weng Tonghe and Zhang Jian, all came from here.