Chapter 3 Section 3 Commerce in the Western Zhou Dynasty

Commerce in the Western Zhou Dynasty was listed as one of the "Nine Jobs", the purpose of which was to communicate the treasures of the Quartet and mainly serve the ruling class.The main commodities in the market are nothing more than slaves, cattle and horses, and treasures.The country has a set of management system for the market, which stipulates that ritual weapons and weapons that reflect the status and authority of the nobility are not allowed to enter the market; nobles can only buy things through their stewards and servants, and cannot enter the market themselves, so as not to lose their status. .The city sets up full-time officials-"sishi" to manage. The following are: "Xu Shi" who manages the districts and distinguishes the authenticity of goods, "Jia Shi" who is in charge of prices, and "si xun" who maintains order. ", the "sector" who inspects the thieves, verifies the "quality agent" (contract), and manages the "pledge" of weights and measures, and the "person of 㻛 [chan cicada, urban real estate]" who collects commercial taxes. There is a detailed record of this in the book "Zhou Li".The purpose of government management of the market is to standardize transactions, prevent theft, robbery, fraud, etc., maintain social order, maintain price stability, and better meet the ruling class's demand for "bribery with goods and rare animals".But also pay attention to whether the weights and measures are fair, and whether the quality specifications are Chinese, which is also good for ordinary consumers.This set of practices has been imitated by later generations and has a long-lasting influence.

In the Western Zhou Dynasty, a large amount of copper was used to cast ritual vessels, weapons, tools, agricultural tools and currency (copper coins that imitate agricultural tools are called "cloth", "Chi Chi of the gangster, holding cloth trade silk", this cloth is the cloth coin), so the The need for copper materials is very urgent. "Great embezzlement of Nanjin", "Jin Daoxi Xing" ("Poetry Lu Song Panshui" and Jin Wen Zeng Bofu [fu Fu, ancient food utensils, bronze] inscription), the transaction or tribute of copper and tin has always been the same as that of the South ( Jing Yang, Huai Yi) the main content of material exchanges.During the time of King Zhao of Zhou, the tribes of Fang State in the south led by Chu State rebelled against the Zhou Dynasty. King Zhao led his troops to attack Chu. ", the sixth division died.This matter is economically related to the competition for copper resources, which also shows that copper plays an important role in daily transactions.The rulers are also very interested in beautiful jade, which can be used as precious ornaments and double as "shangcoin".During the reign of King Mu, the dog army was powerful, which hindered the communication between the Zhou Dynasty and the tribes of the Northwest Kingdom. King Mu conquered the dog army and reopened the road to the Northwest. Asia.This great tourist "Zaibeiwanpeng" exchanged jade from Kunlun (now Hotan and Yarkand), and developed the commercial relationship between the Central Plains and the West.

While Zhao and Mu were wantonly searching for copper, jade, and rare square objects, the slaves fled, the fields were barren, and the rule of slavery was in crisis.Some petty aristocrats switched to the feudal exploitation method of rent collection, reclaimed private land, and became rich through farming.Others (mostly transferred from small officials in charge of government-run industry and commerce) recruited people to develop Chuanze and became emerging industrial and commercial entrepreneurs. "The high bank is the valley, and the deep valley is the mausoleum" ("Poetry·October Turn"), the old nobles fell and went bankrupt, and the new property owners exploded and flourished—they were called "rich people" and "rich sons".The change of style and elegance is a reflection of the new changes in class relations in the middle and late Western Zhou Dynasty.The promotion and use of ironware was the opportunity for these emerging agricultural and industrial and commercial operators to switch to feudal exploitation.The germs of feudalism within the slave society were not accidental.

Emerging agricultural and industrial and commercial people with low status constitute a major part of the "country people", which makes the supreme ruler both envious and worried.King Zhou Li, who loves wealth, decided to strengthen his control over agriculture, industry, commerce, and mountains in order to curb the growth of the economic power of these common surname families.The interests of mountains and rivers (including the development and utilization of iron in the middle) are more completely controlled, and private individuals are not allowed to get involved.This comprehensive monopoly "patent" policy has harmed the interests of emerging industrial and commercial owners, and has a direct and adverse impact on a large number of handicraftsmen, merchants, and users related to the emerging ironware manufacturing industry.People from the common people to the small and medium-sized nobles rose up to oppose it. In 841 BC, the famous Chinese riots in history finally broke out. The "tyrannical, extravagant and arrogant" King Zhou Li fled in embarrassment, and finally died in the land of Zhu (now Huo County, Shanxi).This national uprising was just a contest between the new agricultural operators and industrial and commercial owners with feudal elements and the old slave owners and nobles, which accelerated the demise of slavery in the Western Zhou Dynasty.