Economic Prosperity In The Middle Ages

Economic prosperity in the middle ages affected Chinese society in a positive way. The rise of trade led to China's increase in wealth; improvements in farming methods led to population increase. China's technology, agriculture, economy, and population thrived and advanced throughout the Ming Dynasty.
To start off, China's trade had prospered throughout the middle ages. China was able to trade with many during the Song Dynasty. For example, a medicine fair in China would attract people from all over China and the world, "Here are the rich and powerful with numerous bondservants … carriages and horses in grand array, scattering clouds of dust. … They go home, their bags and boxes bulging." (The Cities of the Song). The rich are willing to pay numerous amounts of money and trade valuable items for rare goods. Trading that occurred at these types of events gave China increase in wealth.
Improvements in farming techniques made planting rice easier. For example, "water pumps and the making of dams allowed farmers to make the land suitable for growing rice." (Planting Rice). Farmers now had the technology to farm easier without having to make long trips for water. Due to easier methods of farming, China was able to produce a surplus amount of rice in the middle ages. As China's food supply grew, so did its population. Population growth leads to more people buying and consuming goods. If more people buy goods, China gains more money which leads to economic rise. China's food supply increased, which led to population increase, and eventually economic