The threat of invasion and the even

The threat of invasion and the eventual loss of Northern Song territory created a massive influx of people seeking prosperity in the south. The flow of people to the south led to a massive development of southern agriculture. Previously the less populated south would send goods to the north, now with a much more condensed population and development of wet field rice cultivation the farmland in the south was worked to its full potential. These developments led to a “national market place to trade goods” . The government would release illustrated guides to farmers to encourage maximum productivity, “Owning a great deal of emptiness is less desirable than reaping from a narrow patch of land” . In the past an