Complex, he is a self-made model, and his life experience is legendary.

Li Yimin was a famous rich man in Guangxi during the reign of Yongzheng and Qianlong, but he was also a poor vendor who sponsored his life alone. He can be said to be a model of starting from scratch, and his life experience is quite legendary.

Li Yimin, Chen Dan, was born in Linchuan in Qing Dynasty. The ancestors were six governments, and they were born as scholars in Chongzhen. He used to be the magistrate of Leiyang and Shunchang, and had a reputation as an official in Lian Po. His great-grandfather, Li Ridi, lived in Huangshan with his family in order to avoid the scourge of thieves in the late Ming Dynasty, and loved reading and writing. When Li Yimin arrived, his family was in decline.

Li Yimin lost his father when he was very young, lived in his uncle's house and was adopted by an outdoor family. He studied for several years, but because of financial difficulties, he gave up the idea of imperial examination. In order to make a living, he went to Hankou, Hubei Province, thousands of miles away to do business. At first, I could only be a small apprentice, and my salary was meager, so it was difficult to make a living. So he moved to Guilin, Guangxi with his pen and umbrella. At that time, he was penniless and had to write letters to others for a living. He writes well, so he leads a decent life and makes some friends. Later, with a little savings, I went to the minority areas of Taiping Tusi with my friends to sell goods. The process is very hard, the journey is quite hard, but the profit is extremely considerable. On one occasion, they were poisoned on the way, killing five people in a row. Only Li Yimin survived. Li Yimin almost exhausted all his savings and arranged several coffins to transport the bodies of five people back to Guilin for burial, thus preventing his friends from being abandoned in the wild. This incident made Li Yimin's reputation higher and higher. Later, Li Yimin's business grew bigger and bigger, and he became a leader among local businessmen.

During the reign of Kangxi, the Qing government launched a war to suppress "Guyi" in Guangxi. Li Yimin helped the county magistrate to adjust his salary, so that the military task was successfully completed, and Li Yimin was also appreciated by the county magistrate.

During the Yongzheng period, the court reformed the salt laws of Guangdong and Guangxi, collected salt for official sale, and set up the Chongyun Department in various places. Local officials believe that Li Yimin is reliable, so they entrust him with relevant matters. Soon, he was in charge of the official salt transportation in Guilin, Liuzhou, Zhou Xun, Taiping and Zhen 'an. At this time, Li Yimin actually became the largest salt merchant of the Guangxi government.

In twenty-five years, the Guangxi government asked officials to change salt into commercial transportation. But businessmen have doubts and want to wait and see the situation, so no one dares to respond. Because of Li Yimin's great influence and good reputation, Li Yimin was finally elected as the leader. Li Yimin is so serious and methodical that other local governments invite him to transport and sell salt. In this way, step by step, invisibly, he already has a huge network of contacts, rich capital accumulation and rich experience, and has become the leader of salt industry in Guangxi.

Later, the government increased the salt tax, and all the former cooperative businessmen withdrew. The government hopes to let the private sector operate through investment promotion. Objectively speaking, Li Yimin has this condition, and for Li Yimin, this is an opportunity. At this point, Li Yimin sole proprietorship marketing, become a millionaire. Li Yimin believes that maintaining a good relationship with the government is conducive to doing business, so he often helps the government when it is in trouble. In this way, Li Yimin had a close relationship with this official, and every state and county hired him as the competent secretary and archivist.

Li Yimin has been engaged in salt industry in Guangxi for decades, from a poor businessman to a rich official and businessman, but he is generous, kind and tireless. He donated money to repair ancestral temples, buy farmland, build schools and public places, and guide and educate villagers. In addition, he often sends money to help the poor among his relatives, and sends money and food to those who cannot get married and have no support every month.

Li Yimin knew that in order to achieve greater development, his descendants must have genuine talent and practical learning, so he attached great importance to the cultivation of their descendants, which was also very successful. Most of Li's descendants are high-ranking officials and dignitaries. Li Renjiang, the son of Li Renjiang, was a criminal officer, a doctor in charge of water management in the Ministry of Industry, a grandson as a left assistant minister in the Ministry of Industry, a great-grandson from Fujian and an official in Dali Temple. In addition, Li Shanshi is good at painting and writing, and is also known as "the three wonders of Guilin".

In this way, through the efforts of its descendants, "Linchuan Li" has developed into a famous family with "rich as an enemy and half a city in gardens". Although the Li family in Linchuan, Guilin declined during Daoguang period, "until the end of the Qing Dynasty, there were still outstanding people, which shows its profound cultural heritage and lasting charm".