The pinnacle of China's feudal dynasty was the Song Dynasty, not the Tang Dynasty. The Song Dynasty was the dynasty with the most prosperous economy, the most developed science and technology, the most prosperous culture, the highest art, and the richest people's living standards in Chinese history. The Song Dynasty was the most glorious dynasty for China and the country with the most inventions and creations in the world at that time. The Song Dynasty was also the period when China contributed the most to the world. More than half of the important inventions in Chinese history appeared in the Song Dynasty. At that time, three of China's so-called four great inventions were invented or began to be put into practical use on a large scale, including gunpowder, the compass, and the compass. Important reforms in printing, banknotes, vertical thread weaving, and porcelain craftsmanship. The navigation, shipbuilding, medicine, crafts, and agricultural technology of the Song Dynasty all reached heights unprecedented in ancient times and difficult to match in the future. The Song Dynasty also developed a new science, technical science. These brilliant achievements are directly related to the comprehensive civilization of Song Dynasty. The GDP of the Song Dynasty accounted for 50% of the world's GDP. The country's comprehensive strength, both in terms of quality and quantity, made the Song Dynasty the largest country in the world at that time. The Song Dynasty had reached the peak of the feudal dynasty, and the sprouts of capitalism had appeared.

1. The Song Dynasty was the only dynasty in ancient China that did not implement the policy of "suppressing business" for a long time. Since the founding of the Song Dynasty, it has controlled mines and organized the development of tea and salt. As a result, a large number of farmers liberated from the land invested in commercial handicrafts, and the private economy was stimulated and developed by leaps and bounds. Created unprecedented wealth and prosperity. At the beginning of the founding of the Song Dynasty, Song Taizu Zhao Jianyin called on people to "accumulate more money, sell land and houses, and leave children and grandchildren, and sing and dance girls to live their whole lives." This direction led to a prosperous business trend, rapid development of commerce, and rapid development of the bank industry. This prompted the Song Dynasty to produce the earliest banknotes and banks for the first time in world human history. Banks can provide loans and make payments in other places. During the Northern Song Dynasty, large quantities of gold, silver, copper, iron, coal and other mineral deposits were mined, and the earliest manufacturing and processing plants in world history appeared across the country. Such as shipyards, firearms factories, paper mills, printing factories, weaving factories, official kilns in various places, etc. Workers in the factory receive their wages on schedule. In the Southern Song Dynasty, there were seven to eight thousand craftsmen in the arsenal. There are more than 1,200 apprentices in the establishment of the Huihui Sub-bureau. There are more than 400 weavers in Ayajinyuan. In addition to public factories, some private factories also appeared and prospered in large numbers. Because of the unprecedented prosperity of the economy, the amount of coins minted in the Song Dynasty was very large. For example, during the reign of Emperor Shenzong of the Song Dynasty, 5.06 million coins were minted annually, while during the reign of Xuanzong, the most prosperous Tang Dynasty, 320,000 coins were minted. Copper coins and silver ingots were the standard currencies of the Song Dynasty. In the Song Dynasty, copper coins and iron coins were used together, and some Song coins contained alloy components. There are also some silver coins. The coins of the Song Dynasty are the most accomplished coins in ancient Chinese history in terms of type, quantity and quality. Most of the beautiful calligraphy inscribed on Song coins were written by famous artists and emperors. The seal script and official script are both authentic and cursive, and the ancient seal script and thin gold script are restored. All kinds of exquisite coins are addictive, and the artistic craftsmanship of Song coins is the highest. Song Qian was the favorite and strongest currency of surrounding countries at that time. Song money became the treasure of the treasury of the countries in the South China Sea. Although countries such as the Liao Kingdom and the Jin Kingdom also imitated Song coins to make money, Song coins were the most widely circulated in the Jin Kingdom. Until now, there are still the largest number of Song Dynasty coins unearthed. Today, they have been unearthed in vast areas ranging from Japan in the east to Europe and Africa in the west. This shows the prosperity and strength of Song Dynasty. In order to avoid the trouble of carrying large amounts of copper coins, the earliest paper currency "Jiaozi" appeared in the folk around the first year of Xianping in the Song Dynasty (AD 998). Later issued by the government, this kind of "Jiaozi" copper plate color printing, with birds and animals, patterns, patterns or stories printed on it, is extremely exquisite. In 1024 AD, the Song government began to print bills that could be used to transfer accounts. Such bills are like public bonds, each has its redemption date, and becomes void after redemption. Its use is becoming more and more widespread. The use of bills provided convenient conditions for business prosperity. In the first year of Tiansheng (AD 1023), the Song government opened the world's first official organization responsible for the issuance of banknotes, "Yizhou Jiaoziwu". The next year, the world's first banknotes were officially launched and issued on a demarcated basis. Initially, Jiaozi was divided into two years. When new Jiaozi was issued, the old Jiaozi was abolished and recycled. From the fifth year of Xining (AD 1072), although one circle was still issued every two years, every Jiaozi was issued. The circulation period is increased to four years. The face value of Jiaozi is a fixed face value from Yiguanwen to Shiguanwen. It is based on iron money and has issuance reserves. It basically has the characteristic elements of modern standard currency. During the Southern Song Dynasty, the government established the "Xingzaihuiziwu" in Hangzhou to specifically manage the printing of "Huizi". Huizi in six denominations were successively printed: one thousand, two thousand, three thousand, two hundred, three hundred, and five hundred. Huizi uses three years as the "boundary". When it expires, it will be discarded and the old will be replaced by the new.

From 1171 to 1240, Mao Zedong issued the Eighteen Realms Huizi. Later, the government stipulated that the 17th and 18th circles could be circulated permanently. Paper money gradually replaced copper coins as the primary medium of exchange. The rapid development of business has played a driving role. The huge fiscal revenue obtained by the Song Dynasty was the result of the rapid development of the national economy, the extreme prosperity of industry and commerce, and the improvement of productivity levels. Abundant social financial resources enable the government to ensure government revenue without demanding excessive taxes on the people. This alleviates social conflicts and enters a virtuous cycle of governing the country. The economy of the Song Dynasty, especially the secondary and tertiary industries, has been greatly developed, and people's living standards have reached unprecedented heights. In 1077 AD, the total tax revenue of the Northern Song Dynasty was 70.7 million guan, of which 21.62 million guan from agricultural taxes accounted for 30%, and 49.11 million guan from industrial and commercial taxes accounted for 70%. The main body of national fiscal revenue is no longer agriculture, but industry and commerce. The Song Dynasty has already stepped out of agricultural civilization. During the Song Dynasty, China's agricultural society was already beginning to move towards an industrial and commercial society. Copperplate printed advertisements also appeared in the handicraft industry of the Song Dynasty. It predates the printing of advertisements by Western capitalism by more than three hundred years. Shen Kuo's theory of currency circulation velocity has reached the level of modern monetary theory. The great scholar Su Dongpo once wrote an advertising poem for an old woman who made oily food, which greatly boosted her business. The earliest sprout of capitalism in China was born in the powerful commercial wave of the Song Dynasty.

The Song Dynasty was the era when the citizen class formally emerged in Chinese society. A large number of craftsmen, businessmen, and small owners formed the middle class of the Song Dynasty. They are financially wealthy and have their own independent value pursuits. The wealthy and leisure life of the citizens, as well as their aesthetic taste and life interest, contributed to the high cultural prosperity of the Song Dynasty. Opera, acrobatics, music, poetry, novels, etc. all flourished and developed in the Song Dynasty. Large-scale urbanization began in the Song Dynasty. For the first time, large cities appeared in China that were primarily centered on commerce rather than administration. The four capitals of the Song Dynasty were Kaifeng Prefecture in Tokyo, Luoyang Prefecture in Xijing, Daming Prefecture in Beijing, and Yingtian Prefecture in Nanjing. The population of large cities in the Song Dynasty was concentrated. Bianliang, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, and Lin'an, the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty, were both large cities with a population of more than one million. In the Song Dynasty, there were six counties with a population exceeding 200,000, just like Quanzhou. The number of cities with more than 100,000 households in the Song Dynasty increased from a dozen in the Tang Dynasty to forty-six. (Venice, the largest and most prosperous city in the West at the end of the Southern Song Dynasty, had a population of only 100,000.) There is an hour hand hung on the towers of all the main roads in the city. Each clock is guarded and cared for by a person. He struck the copper ring to tell the time, and the sound echoed even in the narrow alleys. Then he used words to show the time to people. The Northern Song Dynasty had been prosperous and powerful for more than 160 years. Bianliang, the capital (now Kaifeng, Henan), "had ten times more people than the capitals of the Han and Tang dynasties." Bianliang City in the Song Dynasty already used coal (called burning stone in the West) instead of wood for cooking and heating. At that time, people in the West used wood to chop firewood for cooking and heating. None of the major cities in China after liberation in 1949 have reached this point. The birth of the emerging citizen class and the prosperous and comfortable life made people in the Song Dynasty have a strong sense of consumption, which greatly stimulated the prosperity and development of tertiary industries such as tea houses, wine markets, and entertainment industries. The cities of the Song Dynasty were not like the cities of the Tang Dynasty that went dark at night. Songcheng was a brilliant city of light at night. Because the Song Dynasty did not impose a curfew like the Tang Dynasty, Song people had a nightlife. As soon as night came, people in the Song Dynasty lit up lights in their rooms, at the entrance to their homes, and at the entrance to their courtyards, so there were lights everywhere. People who travel at night carry various lanterns. So at night the whole city twinkles. At night the lights in the city are brightly lit, and the hawking goes on until dawn. Various performances were performed in fixed entertainment venues such as "Wazi" and "Goulan", and citizens gathered to watch. The restaurants are busy at night, and the streets are packed with people until the sun rises again. “There are one or two noodle shops on the main street and the Shixifang Western Noodle Shop, and they are buying and selling all night long.” “In the rest of Qiaodaofang Lane, there are also night markets selling fruit candies and other products, and there are also fortune tellers hawking on the streets. For example, market food is sold on stretchers until midnight. Even if there is heavy rain and snow in the winter months, there are also night markets selling food." "Looking back at dusk, that person is in the dim light." "When will the singing and dancing of the West Lake and the Qingshan Tower outside the mountains stop? The warm wind makes the tourists drunk, and they think Hangzhou is Bianzhou." The tourists are not just the emperor's relatives, dignitaries and other few Song people, but the vast number of citizens in the city , most Song people. Song people lived such a prosperous and happy life. The Song Dynasty did not have the poverty of "the roads are frozen to death" and the pessimism and despair of "the country is broken and the mountains and rivers are there, but the city is springy and has deep vegetation." There is only the optimism and prosperity of "When will the West Lake singing and dancing end"?

2. Song porcelain was the national symbol of China at that time. The five famous kilns in the Song Dynasty were Ru kiln, Guan kiln, Jun kiln, Ge kiln and Ding kiln. It can be said that the first commercial industry in the human world was the porcelain industry of the Song Dynasty. Song porcelain is a perfect combination of the finest art and precise craftsmanship. The ingenious integration and unification of Song porcelain's charming civilization and popular culture. Porcelain is produced in large quantities by famous kilns in various places, and is not only used by royal nobles, but also cherished and used by officials, scholars, and the citizenry. Various kiln-making methods of Song porcelain produced endless varieties of porcelain. Everyone who sees it will be amazed. Many techniques of Song porcelain have been lost. Many of the craftsmanship levels of Song porcelain are difficult to achieve even in modern times. The porcelain of the Song Dynasty was so exquisite that it can be said that almost all the famous porcelain kilns left over from the Song Dynasty are priceless. During the Song Dynasty, China's popular silk craftsmanship moved from practicality to delicacy and precision. The silk of the Song Dynasty was unusually advanced. A very cutting-edge loom with 1,800 moving parts. Various embroidery methods make Chinese silk more artistic and aesthetic. Rich foreigners wear coarse linen clothes, while Chinese common people wear soft silk and satin. Some farmers also wore silk. "The soldiers wear uniforms like soldiers, and farmers walk on silk shoes."

Shen Kuo, a famous scientist in the Northern Song Dynasty, conducted research on astronomy, calendars, medicine, mathematics, etc. Shen Kuo wrote "Mengxi Bi Tan" to record a large number of scientific and technological achievements and scientific discoveries, such as the discovery of geomagnetic angle, the record of triboelectricity phenomenon, and the discussion of optical problems, etc. Shen Kuo also put forward the idea of ??impacting the mainland, which did not appear in the West until the 19th century. "Mengxi Bi Tan" is praised by the West as the world's earliest encyclopedia of science and technology. With the development of various undertakings such as agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, sideline production, and fishery in the Song Dynasty, the Song Dynasty's view of material circulation in agricultural ecosystems is completely consistent in principle with the view of modern ecological agriculture that humans are building today. The scale and level of medicine in the Song Dynasty were greatly improved compared with those in the Tang Dynasty. Forensic medicine was also created in the Song Dynasty. "The Collection of Cleansing Wrongs" was China's first systematic forensic medicine work, more than 300 years earlier than similar monographs in the West. The Song Dynasty made extensive use of various energy sources such as petroleum, coal, and natural gas. The use of coke to smelt iron in the Song Dynasty was more than 500 years earlier than in the West.