Dezhou () is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. It borders the provincial capital of Jinan to the southeast, Liaocheng to the southwest, Binzhou to the northeast, and the province of Hebei to the north. History Sulu Royal Family The King of Sulu Paduka Pahala from the first royal family on Sulu before the Hashemites went on a tribute mission to the Ming dynasty Yongle Emperor. He died of natural causes in China and his two sons and wife were left in the care of Hui Muslims in Dezhou, Shandong. The two families descended from the two sons were given the surnames An and Wen by the Ming Emperors. They lived through the Ming and Qing dynasties and still live in Dezhou today. The Kingdom of Sulu was converted to Islam, and the Hashemite Sharif ul-Hāshim of Sulu arrived in Sulu and married a princess of the previous non-Hashemite royal family, founding the Sulu Sultanate. Tausug delegations from Sulu have visited Dezhou to see the descendants of the previous royal family. Death of Empress Xiaoxianchun Qianlong's first empress, Empress Xiaoxianchun, died on the 8th day of the 3rd month of the 13th year of Qianlong at the age of 37, on board a boat in Dezhou under circumstances that were not well documented by historical sources. Administration The municipality of Dezhou comprises thirteen county-level sub divisions: Districts Decheng District (). The government of the prefecture-level city is located in this sub division. Lingcheng District () Cities Cities ( xianji shi) administered by Dezhou are: Leling () Yucheng () Counties Counties (县 xian) administered by Dezhou are: Pingyuan () Xiajin () Wucheng () Qihe () Linyi () Ningjin () Qingyun () Development zones Dezhou Economic Development District () Dezhou Yunhe Economic Development District () Climate Transport Historical The Yellow river and the Grand Canal runs through Dezhou, making it an important hub for cargo transit since antient times. It was described as "Junction of Nine Arteries" () and "Portal of the Capital" (). Modern Era Dezhou is connected via the Shijiazhuang-Dezhou railway, Shijiazhuang-Ji'nan HSR, Beijing-Shanghai railway, Beijing-Shanghai HSR. A small, single-track railway connects Dezhou with Dongying city as well. The main expressway passing Dezhou is the G3 Beijing-Taipei Expressway, running north–south from it; other provincial expressways, as well as National Highway 104 and 105 offer connections in other directions for Dezhou Tourism Dezhou's biggest historical attraction