The Silk Road and the Sino-Western Trade Silk Road are a commercial artery that spans Asia and Europe, and also a road for political, economic and cultural exchanges between eastern and western countries, among which international trade was the most prominent at that time. "The Biography of the Western Regions in the Later Han Dynasty" said: "There is no end to attacking the post station; Businessmen sell customers, and the Japanese money is stuffed ",which reflects the situation that envoys come and go constantly and vendors keep coming and going." "China silk is the main commodity of the Silk Road. China is the first country in the world to raise silkworms, reeling and weaving. During the Yin and Zhou Dynasties, the working people had woven colorful dark silk and colorful embroidery. Later, Luo yarn and brocade were invented. The silk-making technology in the Han Dynasty has been greatly improved, as evidenced by the exquisite silk preserved in Mawangdui Han Tomb in Changsha. China's silk export began in the Warring States Period. In the 4th century BC, the Greeks called China the country of silk, indicating that Asian businessmen had shipped silk to Europe. From the Western Han Dynasty to the Southern and Northern Dynasties, China silk was shipped to the west in large quantities. In order to ensure economic exchanges, the Han Dynasty also took necessary political measures, such as sending envoys and setting up post stations, so as to keep the trade routes smooth.

China's silk was regarded as a treasure in ancient Central Asia, West Asia, Africa and Europe. After the exchange between Korea and the Western Regions, silk became popular in Central Asia and West Asia. Rest in peace, especially the princes and queens of Seleucus and Ptolemy. Temples all over the country are also heavily decorated with silk. During the Roman Empire, China silk was widely used in Europe. In Rome, the center of western Rome, and Constantinople, the center of eastern Rome, emperors, senators and even powerful families are proud to wear China silk. The vestments, sacrificial clothes, curtains and altars of Christian churches are all made of silk. State officials wear special forms of silk robes, while secular rich people generally wear ordinary silk robes. A Roman writer in the 3rd century A.D. said: Silk people make precious silk, its color is as beautiful as wild flowers, and its material is as slender as spider silk.

China not only exports silk in large quantities, but also exports iron, nickel, precious metals, bronzes, lacquerware, apricots and sugar cane to Central Asia, West Asia and even Rome. China imports woolen goods, glass, precious stones, agates, spices and cosmetics from the west of Central Asia, especially Dawan. Plants from Central Asian countries, such as grapes, alfalfa, broad beans, pomegranate, crocus, sesame, carrots and cucumbers, have all spread to China. From the Western Regions and Iran, other musical instruments, such as Zan, Pipa and Zan, as well as painting, sculpture and pattern design techniques were introduced to China. Rest and Roman wool and glass also come from the East. The number of trade envoys from Dawan to the West reaches more than ten times a year. They went to Sogdian, Daxia, India to rest in peace, and even went west.

The popularity of China silk and other countries' commodities and the huge profits gained from them have made countries in Central Asia, West Asia, North Africa and Southern Europe struggle for a long time to control trade routes and monopolize trade. Central Asia is at the crossroads of the Silk Road, and the main brokers in Central Asia are the Sogdians. Sogdian, with Malakun (now Samarkand) as its capital, is also called Kangju in China's historical records. They have always been famous for their international trade, and they have made great profits in the re-export trade. But the Sogdians are too young to control and monopolize the Silk Road. After the division of the Alexander Empire, the Silk Road was always in the hands of the Selugu Dynasty until the independence of Daxia and Rest in Peace. This monopoly income plays an important role in Seleucu's finance and economy. After independence, it controlled Central Asia and West Asia and monopolized the transit trade of the Silk Road. At this time Seleucus was embarrassed and lost the hegemony of international trade. Rest in peace has benefited a lot from entrepot trade and export trade. According to "The Biography of the Western Regions in the Later Han Dynasty", it is ten times more profitable. After Anning's death, Sasan controlled the international trade of the Silk Road to Persia, forbidding Sogdian merchants to cross the border and preventing Roman merchants from selling silk in an attempt to monopolize the patent. However, oriental goods still flow to Rome. The Romans imported a lot of goods from India, China and West Asia every year. These goods are sold in Rome at a price 100 times more expensive than in India. Silk is worth as much as gold of the same weight. It can be seen that businessmen in international trade at that time could make huge profits from it.

Since the opening of the Silk Road and the Sino-foreign Friendship Silk Road, the friendly exchanges between China and various ethnic groups in Central Asia, West Asia and Southern Europe have been endless and increasingly close.

In the 2nd century BC, Zhang Qian made his first mission to the Western Regions (from 138 BC to 126 BC), and traveled to Dawan, Kangju and Da Yue. After returning home, he reported to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty about the countries in the Western Regions. In BC 12 1 and BC 1 19, Huo Qubing and Wei Qing defeated Xiongnu twice, took control of Hexi Corridor and forced Xiongnu to leave Mobei. At this time, Zhang Qian went to the Western Regions for the second time (from 1 19 BC to15 BC), led a delegation of 300 people to Wusun, and sent envoys from Wusun to visit Dawan, Kangju, Da Yue, Daxia and other countries. China's envoys went to rest, and the king sent generals to lead twenty thousand cavalry to the eastern border to meet them. When Ambassador China returned to China, he also gave the big bird eggs (ostrich eggs) and Li (Roman acrobat) to Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty. Other countries also send envoys to communicate with each other; China's friendly relations with foreign countries began with diplomatic envoys, business trips and non-governmental exchanges.

At the end of 1 BC, Dayue introduced Indian Buddhism to China through the Silk Road. According to records, in the second year BC, "Dr. Yue Wang gave a pagoda sutra" ("The Biography of Wei Luxi Rong"). In the first year of Zhanghe, Emperor Zhao of Han Dynasty (AD 87), the latter sent envoys to China to offer lions and Fu Ba (Biography of the Western Regions in the Later Han Dynasty). In the 13th year of Han Yongyuan (A.D. 10 1), King Manqu sent envoys to China to offer lions and big birds (rest birds). In A.D. 148, An Qing, a resting monk, came to China to spread Buddhism. From 148 to 17 1, he translated Buddhist scriptures in Luoyang, and successively translated 35 Buddhist scriptures in 4 1 volumes. He not only spread Buddhist culture, but also played a very important role in the development of translated literature in China. Since then, the envoys have become more closely linked with the people. From the Southern and Northern Dynasties to the Tang Dynasty, Iranian Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism and Christianity (Nestorianism) were first introduced to China. /kloc-in 0/05, Cai Lun improved papermaking. About forty or fifty years later, Sogdian merchants transported the tattered paper made in China to Central Asia. In the 12th year of Han Yongyuan (A.D. 100), "Monzi (Macedonia) and Dur (Thrace) from the Western Regions sent envoys to China" (recorded in Ji of the Later Han Dynasty) was the beginning of direct communication between China and Europe. In the ninth year of Emperor Huan of the Eastern Han Dynasty (A.D. 166), the Roman emperor sent envoys to China to present ivory and other gifts. In the Five Years of Sun Quan in the Three Kingdoms Period (A.D. 226), Roman businessmen went to Jianye to welcome Sun Quan and other activities are recorded in historical records. All these have directly promoted mutual understanding and economic and cultural exchanges between China and European countries.

But it also has some negative effects:

1, the opening of the Silk Road has enabled China and western countries to have a road passage, which carries almost all trade and exchanges. However, as a big country with a long coastline, relying only on road traffic seems to mean that this ancient eastern country will be bullied in the era of great navigation in the19th century. Because of the existence of the Silk Road, China's communication with foreign countries is mainly based on road transportation, and the main countries of communication are limited to Persia in the Middle East, as well as our neighbor India and so on. The singleness of foreign culture also influenced China's closed-door policy. In the Middle Ages, Europe, Spain and Britain actively developed their navies, while China did not pay enough attention to the development of maritime traffic because of its arrogance and complacency. Despite the history of Zheng He's voyage to the West, it only stayed in the form of formal diplomatic relations, which did not make much contribution to the real culture and positive communication.

2. It indirectly contributed to the collapse of the Roman Empire and the rise of nomadic people. The specific reason is nothing more than the massive outflow of gold from the Roman Empire. Economic collapse directly led to political and military degradation. Finally, the Roman Empire's empty shelf finally collapsed under the impact of nomadic people. But this collapse in turn accelerated the Moslemization of Persia, the transit country of the Silk Road. China's ignorant export of luxury goods such as silk can only make western countries with huge foreign trade deficits desperately look for a "good prescription" for plundering at sea and increasing their wealth. The Crusade was a kind of plunder, and the later era of great navigation was even more naked plunder.

So the so-called maritime rules appeared, which were unfair to China and made China fall into a semi-colonial state in 100.

3. Silk is an absolute agricultural product, which is undoubtedly a hint to China's feudal finance dominated by farming economy: all commercial activities and foreign trade activities are meaningless. Only by persisting in agricultural weaving can the people have food, live and work in peace and contentment, the country become rich and strong, and the foreign trade of the Silk Road can continue to bring endless wealth to China. Therefore, China has always discouraged or even discriminated against commercial activities, scholars, farmers and businessmen, which makes businessmen have no status forever. Therefore, it has also fixed the pure nature of China as a big agricultural country, which is accompanied by complacency, arrogance and unwillingness to communicate. In the end, in this self-deception pride, it was caught up by the west and finally defeated by the poor.