The building of the Ling canal provided a transportation route for Emperor Qin's crusade of southern China, thus making it possible for him to unify the whole country. It also links Xiang River of the Yangtze System with Li River, which belongs to the Pearl River system.

 

Ling Canal is divided into the northern and the southern sections, with a total length of 34 km. The dividing point is a V-shaped dyke in the east of the county seat, commonly known as Tianping (The balance). The sharp point of the dyke is called Huazui (Plough Share), which bifurcates the oceanic water from the upper reach of Xiang River into two parts, of which one part, 30% of the whole flow, goes to the Li River, and the remaining 70% to Xiang River. The major spots for sightseeing are the "Plough Share", the "Balance", "Qin Dyke", and "Windfall Rock", etc.

 

The canal was once an important means of transports serving the region before railways and roads were constructed. This canal still serves purposes by irrigating about 2700 hectare of agricultural land.