1. China's commercial development is characterized by stages. There are three peak periods. The ancient society of China was based on agriculture (including sideline and cottage industry), and the natural economy always occupied a dominant position. The development of ancient commerce in China was also full of ups and downs, including three climaxes: Warring States, Qin and Han Dynasties, Tang and Song Dynasties and Ming and Qing Dynasties. These climaxes are in the critical period of social change, and the development of business often plays an important role in promoting social transformation and promoting the development of commodity economy to a new stage. Each of the three climaxes has its own characteristics of the times and stages. However, between several climaxes, there have also been cases where the commodity economy has declined or suffered major setbacks due to internal and external factors, resulting in shrinking business. Second, the foundation of commercial development and prosperity is the development of agricultural productivity. Commodity economy includes commodity production and commodity circulation, and commodity circulation is commercial activity. In ancient China society, agricultural economy (including planting, breeding and gathering) was the most important social and economic sector. The division of labor between agriculture and handicrafts began to appear very early, and the exchange of products between agriculture and handicrafts finally promoted the formation and development of commodity economy. Of course, there is also the exchange of agricultural products and handicraft products, but the exchange of agricultural products and handicraft products has always been the most important content in China's ancient commercial activities. In ancient times, some people overestimated the role of commercial prosperity in social and economic development. "Qilu Wanzhou merchants are all over the world, so they are either rich or tired, and they are envious of profit." Why do rich countries use local farmers and why do people have mines? "In fact, it isn't. For ancient China, the commercial scale and commodity structure were based on the development of agriculture and handicrafts. Take the first climax of the development of commodity economy-Warring States, Qin and Han Dynasties as an example. 1. The popularization of ironware and agricultural technology during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period promoted the great development of agricultural productivity, thus ushered in the first climax of commercial development. Du Fu's poem "Recalling the Past": "Recalling the heyday of Kaiyuan, there were still thousands of small towns. Rice is fat and white, and public and private warehouses are rich. There are no wolves and tigers on the road in Kyushu, which is a good day to travel. Wan Qi and Liu Mao are holding classes, and both men and women don't lose. "There are several key words that express the prosperous times, such as' rice',' millet',' granary' and' myriad treasures and luxuries', all of which describe the wealth brought to society by the development of agricultural production, and all this is due to' men plowing and women weaving'. It was the stable development of agriculture before the Tang Dynasty 100 that became the basis of commercial prosperity. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, high-yield crops such as rice were widely planted in the south of China. The introduction and popularization of corn and sweet potato promoted the further development of agricultural productivity and laid the foundation for the third climax of commercial development. The characteristics of Chinese traditional agriculture are: one household is the main production unit, and handicraft industry is combined with household sideline. On the one hand, as individual farmers, the production scale is small, the labor productivity is not high, the space for expanding reproduction is small, and the ability to resist natural and man-made disasters is weak. Therefore, the share of surplus products provided to the market as commodity exchange is extremely limited, mainly grain, textiles and agricultural and sideline products. On the other hand, farmers also need the help of the market to exchange daily necessities, such as salt, iron and ceramics, and the mutual adjustment of grain, cloth and silk. Generally speaking, the purchasing power of farmers' markets is extremely low. Although the purchasing power of a single farmer's market is limited, and the commodity exchange to be carried out by a single farmer is scattered and small, as far as the whole country is concerned, the amount of superposition is huge. These agricultural and sideline products enter all kinds of markets at all levels, which is the basis of commercial development. Limited by the origin, salt and iron often need long-distance transportation, which has the greatest impact on the national economy and people's livelihood. For a long time, as a court monopoly industry, many private businessmen often make huge profits by operating the salt and iron industry. Therefore, the socio-economic development and commercial prosperity in ancient China were based on the development of agricultural productivity (including sideline and cottage industries). The great development of agricultural productivity will certainly bring about the great development of commerce. The three climaxes of the development of commodity economy all appeared on the basis of the great development of agricultural productivity. Third, the objective condition or premise of business development is national unity and social stability. The curve of China's ancient commercial development can be described as twists and turns. Three waves, namely the Warring States, Qin, Han, Tang, Song, Ming and Qing Dynasties; Many times, that is, during the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Five Dynasties and the Ten Kingdoms War, commerce suffered setbacks, fell from the original climax, and even declined. The first climax is the period when China finally achieved reunification from the separatist regime. The chapter of Xunzi Wang describes the national commodity circulation during the Warring States period: "There are horses and dogs barking in the North Sea, but they are made by animals; There are feather purlin, tooth leather, Zeng Qing and Dan Ganyan in the South China Sea, but China got them and made money. There are Zi Xuan in the East China Sea, fish and salt, but China has food and clothing; There are leathers and elegant products in the West Sea, but China wants to use them. Therefore, the villagers are full of trees, the villagers are full of fish, the farmers keep cutting without ploughing, but they are full of machinery, and the workers are full of millet without ploughing. "The unification of Qin and Han dynasties also promoted the further prosperity of business. The Biography of Historical Records of Huo Zhi said: "At the time of the Han Dynasty, there was a family in China that switched beams and prohibited Chishanze. Therefore, Dajia, a wealthy businessman, moves around the world every week, and the things he trades can't get what he wants. "Therefore, with the growth of businessmen's power, many large and medium-sized enterprises will become the centers of commercial trade, which is one of the most important characteristics when the first climax occurs. The second climax, based on the stable development of agriculture 100 years in the early Tang Dynasty, the social economy showed all-round prosperity. Since the late Tang Dynasty, the market system has been gradually broken, the restrictions on commerce have been gradually relaxed, the proportion of urban industrial and commercial population has increased, commerce has flourished, and the commodity structure has also changed. Yuan Zhen's poem "Guessing Guesthouse Music" vividly describes the long-distance goods trafficked by merchants: looking for pearls to drive the sea and picking jade to Jingheng. Buy Xixia horses in the north and Tibetan parrots in the west. Yanzhou cloth fire Huan, Shu brocade weaving. The fatter and smoother the maid is, the brighter her eyebrows are. Calculate the cost of food and clothes, regardless of distance. I traveled all over the world, but I went to Chang 'an. "Historical Records and Biography of Huo Zhi" has a cloud: "You don't sell firewood for a hundred miles, and you don't sell firewood for a thousand miles." Long-distance trafficking of goods operated by merchants before the Tang Dynasty, especially those luxury goods that are light and expensive, easy to transport and profitable, such as pearls, jade, horses, brocade, moon mother, Xi Tong and other Yuan Zhen's hotel music mentioned. However, due to the high cost of trafficking, the grain needed for daily life is not the main variety operated by businessmen, and the national commodity market has not yet formed. Since the late Tang dynasty, this situation has changed, and daily necessities such as grain, tea and porcelain have gradually become the bulk of commodity transactions. "Tang Shi Supplement" (Volume II) talks about the situation of commodity trading at that time: "Everything that is bribed with goods is wasted on the users, and it is impossible to win the discipline. Silk cloth is a garment, linen cloth is a bag, felt hat is a cover, leather clothing is a belt, white urn is in the inner mound, and purple inkstone is in the tail stream. Nothing in the world is universally applicable. " It's all about the types of daily necessities. After the Northern Song Dynasty. The economic development in the south is more obvious, and there are more historical materials describing the bulk transactions of daily necessities. Waterway transportation of goods, with large carrying capacity, is cheaper than land transportation. During the Northern Song Dynasty, Dasuoguo Temple in Kaifeng was actually the largest commodity trading center in China, which was opened five times a month and allowed "all surnames to be traded". (Mr. Meng: Dream of Tokyo) "The atrium can hold 10,000 people. All business transactions are in it. Those who seek to sell goods and resell other things in the capital must be because of this. " (Wang Di: A Record of Yan Yi's Conspiracy). There are many kinds of commodities traded, such as household items, saddle bows and arrows, preserved fruits, embroidered beads, steamed hats, calligraphy and painting antiques, local incense medicines, etc., most of which belong to daily necessities. The change of commodity structure is one of the most important changes in the second climax. The Ming and Qing Dynasties, where the third climax appeared, was a unified dynasty that lasted for hundreds of years. Political unity and social stability provide a good objective environment for business development. After the middle and late Ming Dynasty, the extensive cultivation of cash crops, the deepening of commercialization of agricultural and sideline products and the improvement of specialization (the formation of specialized towns and regions, the formation of specialized households in agriculture and handicrafts, etc.). ) has become a new factor in business development. Four. Restriction and Breakthrough Restriction The commerce in ancient China was subject to various restrictions and constraints. Some of these restrictions and constraints are restricted by the social and economic structural characteristics of China, such as low agricultural labor productivity, large proportion of agricultural population and dominant natural economy, while others come from the intervention of feudal countries. Such as system, system, policy measures, concept orientation, etc. China's commerce is developing and progressing in a tortuous way in the process of constantly breaking through restrictions and constraints. However, these breakthroughs have not completely broken the restrictions and constraints, which also hindered China society from finally completing the transformation to a capitalist society. The most direct restrictions are subjective and objective. As far as subjective restrictions are concerned, one is the political and social status of businessmen, and the other is the degree of market openness. Before the Tang Dynasty (including the Tang Dynasty), there were many specific measures to restrict businessmen. The most important restriction on the political and social status of businessmen is that they are not allowed to be officials (including not allowed to participate in the imperial examination). Since the Song Dynasty, it has been a great change to allow businessmen to take the imperial examinations. Donation (buying officials) became popular in the late Qing Dynasty and formed a system. Buying an official has become a formal way to enter the official career and promotion, which is another major change for businessmen. In addition to the changes in their own political and social status, the composition of businessmen is also changing, not only the classification of businessmen, but also the level of dentists (brokers) and the group of wholesalers. After the middle of the Ming Dynasty, a number of business gangs, such as Huizhou merchants and Shanxi merchants, emerged spontaneously with the region as the center and blood ties, all of which were manifestations of the changes in the composition of merchants when the business developed to a certain stage. In addition, the business methods and contents of businessmen are also changing. With the development of commodity economy and the deepening commercialization of agricultural and sideline products and handicraft products, the commodity structure is constantly changing. After the Tang and Song Dynasties, daily necessities became the bulk of merchants' business, and the business methods were also classified from merchants to merchants, and different business processes and industry classifications were formed according to each link of commodity circulation. The commercial activities in ancient China were mainly centered on the city. Historical Records recorded 19 important cities, including the capital Chang 'an. Among them, Chang 'an, Luoyang, Linzi, Nanyang, Handan and Chengdu are all national and local commercial centers. "Salt and iron. "Li Geng" says: "From the capital, east and west, north and south, through mountains and rivers, through counties and countries, everything is rich, nothing more than the five links on the street, the achievements of merchants and everything. "It has been pointed out that the development of cities is based on the prosperity of business. The typical and concentrated performance of market restrictions is the square time system. The government has strict restrictions on the time and space of market opening, and urban commerce is greatly restricted. In the late Tang Dynasty, the development of commodity economy gradually broke through the closed pattern of square market system and wall restriction. After the Northern Song Dynasty, markets, bridges and night markets were opened, and the city changed from a closed pattern to an open pattern, which gave commercial activities a broader development space and time flexibility, and other restrictions on industry and commerce were increasingly relaxed. The increasing concentration of population in large and medium-sized cities, the gradual development of commercial guilds and the prosperity of urban service industry have become important characteristics of urban commercial prosperity. Since the late Tang Dynasty, the development of southern commercial cities, large and small economic towns and various grass markets has been particularly obvious. The economic and commercial center of gravity moves to the southeast, and the city center of gravity also moves to the southeast. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, a number of towns famous for producing or distributing certain commodities appeared, such as Jingdezhen and Foshan, which were mainly concentrated in Jianghuai and Southeast China. Along the canal, along the Yangtze River, along the southeast coast and at the crossroads of land and water, it has rapidly developed into a hub town for commodity distribution. Gradually relaxing the government's control and restrictions on industry and commerce is a major trend in the development of ancient commerce in China. Objectively speaking, the development of business is limited by the form of exchange media (that is, the form of money) and the level of transportation. In ancient China, economy was dominant. For a long time, physical objects acted as the medium of exchange. In the Tang dynasty, "money and silk went hand in hand", which shows that metal coins still did not completely replace physical money. The unification of currency by Qin Shihuang and the casting of five baht by Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty not only met the practical needs of the first commercial climax, but also promoted the sustainable development of the second commercial climax. During the second climax of Tang and Song Dynasties, the earliest exchange industry appeared, such as flying money, and the earliest financial storage, custody and financial credit industry. Paper money began to appear in Song Dynasty, which was due to the promotion of commercial development to the development and change of monetary form and function, and in turn promoted the further development of commerce. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the emergence of banks and money houses made finance and credit industry an important part of business. In addition, the rise of pawnbroking industry is an important manifestation of deepening commercial development. It is very important, even crucial, that the circulation of goods is smooth and the business road is smooth. During the Warring States, Qin and Han Dynasties, there were records about commodity circulation in history books, but in fact, commercial development was still limited by means of transportation and roads. The construction of Chidao after the reunification of Qin Dynasty, the opening of beams in the early Han Dynasty, the excavation of the Grand Canal in Sui Dynasty and the improvement of the post delivery system in Tang Dynasty all illustrate the importance of transportation to commodity circulation and commercial prosperity. The southeast shift of the economic center of gravity, the crisscross and extensive waterway transportation network in the south, and the geographical advantages of coastal cities have all played an important role. " "Tang Yulin" (Volume 8) says: "All counties and cities in the southeast have tap water supply, so there are more goods and more benefits in the world. "Urban layout and population mobility, especially the shift of foreign trade focus from northwest to southeast coast, are major changes in the commercial history of China. Development and change of foreign trade (land and sea Silk Road, tribute, etc.). ), border trade (monopoly market, etc. ) Trade with ethnic areas is directly related to traffic roads. The restrictions on business in feudal society in China have always existed and cannot be completely broken. For example, the government's guidelines and policies, such as belittling commerce, restraining commerce, restricting commodity trading and markets, failing to develop paper money into a credit currency, levying unreasonably high commercial taxes, sea bans, collusion between officials and businessmen, etc. They all have a negative impact on business, and they can only continue to seek development through restrictions and breakthroughs.