During the period of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Silk Road developed continuously, including the Northwest Silk Road (also called the Oasis Silk Road or the Desert Silk Road), the Southwest Silk Road and the Maritime Silk Road. It was characterized by the transitional period from the Han Dynasty to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the further development of the Maritime Silk Road, and the frequent exchanges between the northern and southern regimes and the Western regions [27].
In the first year of Tai 'an (455) of Emperor Wencheng of Northern Wei, after a long break in direct contacts, Persia established direct contact with the Northern Wei Dynasty, which unified northern China. From this time until the third year of Zhengguang (522), the Book of Wei records ten Persian missions, the first five supposedly to Pingcheng (now Datong, Shanxi), the capital of the Northern Wei, and the last five to Luoyang after the capital was moved in 493, bringing glass craft to China. [28]
In the first year of the Divine Turtle (518), Song Yun and Bhikkhu Huisheng set out from Luoyang on a mission to the Western Regions along the Silk Road to worship Buddhist sutras. In the Third year of Zheng Guang (522), Song Yun and Huisheng returned to Luoyang from India and brought back 170 Mahayana Classics, which enriched the Buddhist culture of China.
Persian emissaries also followed the Silk Road further into the southern Dynasties. Middle Datong two years (530), Persia sent an envoy to offer the tooth relic. In August of the fifth year (533), he dispatched an envoy and offered his goods. In April of the first year of Datong (535), another offering was made. The passage of Persia led to the Southern Dynasty, which went from the Western Regions to Yizhou (Sichuan), then down the Yangtze River to Jiankang (today's Nanjing).
