Song Dynasty and Yuan Dynasty

In the history of China economy and culture had made considerable progress, the Qi-Lu commercial culture and the Wu Area Culture were the paragons in these respects. As early as in the Pre-Qin period and the Qin-Han period , the commercial economy in the Qi state and the Lu state took the lead in the whole country , which was related to the geographical environment , the population factor and the trade and commercial management policies adopted there . Although the land there had been exploited fairly early, due to the rolling terrain and the sandy soil, farming had proved to be hard to develop. However, the land is suitable for mulberry and flax planting, fishery and salt production. So, it was said that Qi “was a vast land had produced lots of literary talents, cloth, fish and salt” and that “in Lu there was much mulberry and flax planting”. As Sima Qian said, in the West Han period, “In Qi and Lu there were specialized households managing over 1,000 mu (1 mu=1/15 hectare ) of mulberry and flax fields”. In addition, Qi and Lu were both situated in the hubs of communication, where businessmen and travelers must pass. This geographic condition facilitated the development of trades and commerce.

　　At the outset Qi had a “sparse population” and therefore had “inadequate farming and a shortage of grains”. To suit the local condition, commodity production was enlarged. The condition of sparse population and vast territory was, on the other hand, rather favorable for growing economic plants.
Compared with Qi , Lu had a smaller territory . In the Western Han period , with the increased population , in he alluvial plain along the Zhu River and the Si River . “Land was too scare and the population was too large”. To make a living, in addition to farming, people there engaged also in trade and commerce. As was noted that the husbandry was spurred progressively. Sima Qian stated in the Trades Biographies Section of his “Records of the Historian”, that the people of the Qi and Lu states were “keener in trading earning money than the people of Zhou”.

　　The development and prosperity of the commercial economy in Qi and Lu were characterized by the great diversity of goods, the extensive circulation of currencies, the flourishing urban commerce, and the large number of traders. This region abounded in natural resources. Fish, salt, lacquer, cloth, silks, etc., produced here enriched the markets. In the Warring States period, trading of goods from different states was so developed that the “horses and dogs from the north”, the “feathers and ivory from the south” and the “leather and yak’s tail from the west” were all available in the Qi and Lu market places. The increased commodity exchanges promoted the development of currency. In the Spring-Autumn and Warring States periods the knife-shaped currency originated from the Qi State had already become an “international” currency, circulating in the Qi , Yan, Zhao and other states . Linzi of Qi state had developed into a big commercial city with 70,000 households, of which over 6,000 engaged in trade and commerce and were all well-to-do. In the reign of Wang Mang , Linzi was known as the Eastern Metropolis , on a par with Chang’an , Luoyang , Handan , Wan and Chengdu .