In the Qin and Han eras, a tingzhang was responsible for local security and receiving travelers.
Tips
history
Under the Qin and Han, every ten li (about 4 km) of countryside had a 亭 - a small post handling security, courier mail, and traveler lodging. The 亭长 ran it. Most famously, Han founder Liu Bang (刘邦) was a Sishui tingzhang before his rebellion.
culture
By the late Eastern Han the role faded; by the Tang it survived only as a minor clerical title in the imperial Department of State Affairs (尚书省) - the door-keeper and message-runner.
