(The following is the conclusion of the project：)
　　The Silk Road held great influence over daily life in the regions in passed through...where it was once virtually impossible to obtain luxuries and items from faraway lands, now, merchants were able to travel along the Silk Road and return with strange and bizarre foods and objects from mysterious lands, wares beyond their wildest dreams. Communication also became more convenient, and news spread much more quickly along the Silk Road. The cities contained wider varieties of cultures and customs, and no doubt wealth for some areas increased at an astonishing rate. Technology in certain civilization also advanced, as they learned from older civilizations now that contact with foreign lands was easier. Even in countless aspects of daily life, the effects of this pathway between so many worlds could be seen. The world had suddenly become a smaller place for our ancestors, although there was (and still is) much to learn about the many diverse people that exist in this ever-changing dome that we call home.
　　The management of the present-day Silk Road mainly focuses on the influences of political and economical policies of China. Today, the Silk Road is made up of paved roads and railways abridged between the east and the west. The oil policy, opening of transport passageways, and regional cooperation caused China to begin engaging in trade again, to form better access to Central Asia, and to create a stability that's similar to the ancient trade route. This ensured safe boundaries and so the Silk Road reopened for trade. The Silk Road now stretches from Xi'an at the eastern end to as far west as the Kashgar, which then leads on to the western areas of Xinjiang. From here, a railway leads south through the Karakoram Ranges, which joins China to India. Although the Silk Road no longer exists as a trade route, sites along its path remain the towns of Dunhuang, Kashi, and Turpan. China brought in a bountiful amount of foreign currency especially when the government opened to foreign tourism. People from all over the world were fascinated by the damaged caverns and ruined cities. Others were attracted by the livelihood of the minority people. Some were enthralled by the mysterious cities that preserve the ancient Silk Road spirit where people with many different ethnic groups sell a variety of items. Because there's much potential of making the Silk Road into a tourist attraction, China is persuaded to protect and restore what remains of the ancient Silk Road. Even with the government's strong effort to restore this historical target, however the old Silk Road is not completely opened. This is a result of the harsh climate, geography, or the fact of the rocket launching and unclear bomb testing. Even so, many civilians from all over the world come to China to tour and sightsee the Silk Road. Due to the current political and economic situations of China, the organization of the current Silk Road is almost whole once again.

When the emperors received the finalized results of the 742 A.D. year census, his advisors were stunned, and the emperor smiled. What was this great event that put a rare smile reached 2 million! With a population census showing 2 million people in Chang'an, the center of the world, it was predicted that in twelve years, foreign influence and trade would cause the population of foreigners to rise to about three thousand. Expectations are well exceeded: the foreign population this year of 744 A,D., twelve years from 742 Ad., has reached 5 thousand! Another rare smile was seen on the triumph emperor's face.　Like all other people living in the city, you must've　seen the streets grow more and more crowed each day, heard the ever growing shrieks and laughter of lithe children running around the streets markets, bargaining and selling strange and exotic goods. Rurks, , Iranians, Indians, Japanese, Koreans, and Malays from all over the world reside in Chang'an currently. By record, chang'an is now the largest and one of the most international cities ever! It will be put down in history as the center of the world, the bridge connecting the East and West...!!!

Folks, I'm sure you'll all agree with me when I say the silk road has played a major role in our city's economy, as well as in our daily lives as civilians in the glorious city of Chang'an the beginning of the Silk Road. Before the Silk Road was constructed, our nation remained fairly isolated from other civilizations and did not trade much with others which prevented out economy from really being able to expand to its greatest. After the Chang'an began trading on the Silk Road, economy and wealth increased rapidly, and the prosperity of our empire soared sky high. Our relations with other civi8lizations and foreign cultures improved, and there's no doubt in my mind that some of us are a great deal richer today than before. Now, our exquisite Chinese silk is in great demand in distant lands, and our income has enlarged now that we have so many eager customers in other countries, as only we hold the key to the secret of making silk. To tell you the truth, who wouldn't long for such precious material? Silk is both delicate, yet sturdy and long-lasting...some claim the gods and goddesses themselves wear garments made from this magical cloth. Would they believe that such luxurious cloth actually comes from silkworms? I've heard that the Romans have gone as far as to believe that our silk comes from trees! Another Chinese product in great demand is our porcelain; it , like silk, is both famed for its beauty as well as its durability.. A step up from the traditional ceramic jars in China. Although the perilous path along the Silk Road may be capable of claiming an unfortunate merchant's life, the rewards once the end is reached may be well worth the risk in terms of valuable and exotic goods. The whimsical and mysterious items and foods brought back to Chang'an boggle the minds of even the most imaginative. In exchange for furs, ceramics, spices, jade, silk, bronze and lacquer objects and iron, we important gold, silver, gems, ivory, glass, perfumes, dyes, other spices, textiles, and magnificent horses from various lands, including India, the Roman Empire (later Byzatine), Persia, Syria as well as other nations and regions in Central Asia. All in all, the Silk Road has made great contributions in making Chang'an one of the greatest and more prosperous cities on the face of the earth.

The emperor should immediately ban all foreigners from Chang'an! Already, I've felt the downward decline of the center of the world. These foreigners are barbarians, completely uncivilized, with no knowledge whatsoever of the traditional customs of pure Chinese. Their whimsical beliefs and atrocious accents would only influence the original citizens for the bad, with completely no good in it. "Gain knowledge of other countries," you say? I don't see any reason at all why we should gain more knowledge about other countries--after all, Chang'an IS the center of the world, where all the foreigners come to trade. It should be they who gain knowledge of us, not the other way around. When our children, and the generation after them become influenced by the barbaric habits the foreigners have, annihilation of any form of restraint would occur, and once the center of the world collapses, it wont be long before the rest of the world collapses too!!! Heed my warning!

An Expanding Empire

I, for one, am very proud and pleased of how the conquest of the world in going. I realized that the emperor is very sly and crafty; by making Chang'an as the center of the world. When the rest of the world, i.e. foreigners, visit and trade at Chang'an, they are undeniably influenced by the Chinese culture travels with them and influences other countries. Soon, the ways of the Chinese will be spread about the whole globe, and in a secret way, the soul of the world will convert to Chinese. An empire is the land ruled by an emperor; if the emperor can control the culture of the world, does it not count as being ruled?

It is well known that silk is discovered in China as one of the best materials for clothing-it has a look and feeling of richness that no other materials can match. However, every few people know when or where or how it is discovered. Actually, it could date back to the 30th Century BC when Huang Di (Yellow Emperor) came into power. There are many legends about the discovery of silk; some of them are both romantic and mysterious. Legends has it that once there lived a father with his daughter, they had a magic horse, which could not only fly in the sky but also understand human language. One day, the father went out on business and did not come back for quite some time. The daughter made him a promise: If the horse could find her father, she would marry him. Finally her father came back with the horse, but he was shocked at his daughter's promise.
Unwilling to let his daughter marry a horse, he killed the innocent horse. And then miracle happened! The horse's skin carried the girl flying away. They flew and flew, at last, they stopped on a tree, and the moment the girl touched the tree, she turned into a silk worm. Everyday, she spit long and thin silks. The silks just represented her feeling of missing him. Another less romantic but more convincing explanation is that some ancient Chinese women found this wonderful silk by chance. When they were picking up fruits from the trees, they found a special kind of fruit, white but too hard to eat, so they boiled the fruit in hot water but they still could hardly eat it. At last, they lost their patience and began to beat them with big sticks. In this wayWay, silks and silkworms were discovered. And the white hard fruit is a cocoon.
To this day, silk is still viewed as a one of the finest clothing material around. It is soft and delicate, with an air of elegance when made into clothing. Silk is a common good for trading in the Silk Road.

Get the scoop in the looks that all the nobles and royals are carrying! Like what he's wearing? Love her clothes? Well, now you can get the look, too! Sit back; relax, as the fashion horse carriage takes you through the daily fashion scoop!
-FOR: LADIES-
Ladies- here's good news! Silk still ranks number one as the must-have material in order to fabulous. The most popular kinds nowadays are the colorful, lustrous, and elegantly patterned silk. The most welcoming patterns in stock are those of the phoenix, peacock, parrot, mandarin duck and hoopoe in embroidering, printing and dyeing! These patterns will mix beautifully with bees, butterflies, moths, dragonflies, and insects. Flowers and peony designs will also add a nice feminine touch to your clothing! The number one key to beautiful clothing is the look of elegance, poise, and nobility. To have an attractive look, your attire must be distinctive and natural, displaying the beauty, grace, and freedom of people from heaven. The "best look" calls for a shirt with short sleeves and a long flowing skirt; or a loose-sleeved shirt, long skirt, and one of those simple, yet gorgeous shawls. So pull those shirts and skirts out of your closet, mix-match, and voila! There you have yourself a perfect outfit! Step onto a pair of fine silk shoes and you're ready to go!

For you gentlemen out there the wide belt rule is still the deal. Don't forget: officials lower than the first rank may wear a sword or knife, officials and generals higher than the third rank may wear jade belts, official of the fourth and fifth rank may wear gold belts, and the six-and seventh-ranking officials may wear silver belts. As for you ordinary folks only a small bronze or iron knife is allowed. Sorry, but no can do. Rules are rules. However, you can always try to draw other people's attentions from your belt to your handsome robes! The best choices are the heavy, lace ones which hang down and stays where they are in case a wind comes! Be sure to choose fine patterns and designs to make you stand out more! For those who can't afford to get the fine silk and lace have no fear! You can look great, too! Wearing a simple cloth-made skirt or robe will do, as long as the designs attract others attention away from the material itself! Then, throw on a slime short-sleeved shirt and top it with a coat! Who said you needed shawls and accessories to look excellent? Simplicity does it!
That's it for today, fashion princes and princesses! Until next time!

Silk Times Reporter: why did you come to Chang'an?
Shirl merchant: I came here to trade some goods from my homeland in India.
Reporter: have you encountered any dangers?
Shirl: Yes, plenty! The silk road isn't a safe place, you know. There are pirates, robbers, and besides those, there are desert sand storms, and unpredictable weather! But fortunately, I have survived with most of my items.
Reporter: did you require any aid to bring so many camels and items here?
Shirl: The tribes that guard the oases allow us to hire them for a small fee. They're very useful, though their small fee is quite a lot. However, I suggest that if you were to travel through the Silk Road, yes, you should definitely hire the aid of those oasis tribesmen.
Reporter: Oh, any financial support?
Shirl: not really. There are banking and loaning system.
Where we can invest in things and such. There are a few investments, but I'd rather not use those financial aids.
Reporter: What do you plan on taking back to India, assuming that you get through alive?
Shirl: I'm going to the markets to look for silks, rice, porcelain, bronze, and probably some art pieces.
Reporter: Thank you for your time and consideration

The Silk Road originated in the 2nd century BC from a desire for military and political purpose instead of for trade. In order to seek allies to against Xiongnu repeated invasion, a court official named Zhang Qian was sent by Han Wudi to the Western Regions. However, on the way to the western Regions, the Xiongnu captured Zhang and detained him for ten years. Escaped from Xiongnu's detention, Zhang Qian continued his journey to the Central Asia. While at that time, the local rulers were satisfied with their status and refused to ally with Han Empire. Although the mission failed in its original purpose, the information Zhang Qian conveyed to China about Central Asia, and vice versa, made people in each area desire goods produced in the other. Silk that was favored by Persians and Romans, inaugurated the trade along the Silk Road.

The Chinese traveler Xuan Zhuang crossed the region on his way to obtain Buddhist scriptures from India. He followed the northern branch round the Taklimakan on his outward journey, and the southern route on his return; he carefully recorded the cultures and styles of Buddhism along the way. On his return to the Tang capital at Chagn-an, he was permitted to build the "Great Goose Pagoda" in the southern half of the city, to house the more than 600 scriptures that he had brought back from India. He is still seen by us as an important influence in the development of Buddhism in China, and his travels were dramatized by the popular classic "Tales of a Journey to the West".
The art and civilization of the Silk Road has achieved its highest point. Chang-an, as the starting point of the route, as well as the capital of the dynasty, developed into one of the largest and most cosmopolitan cities of the time. By 747 A.D., the population had reached almost two million. This year's census showed that five thousand foreigners lived in the city; Turks, Iranians, Indians and others from along the Road, as well as Japanese, Koreans and Malays from the east. Many were missionaries, merchants or pilgrims, but every other occupation was also represented. Rare plants, medicines, spices and other goods from the west were to be found in the bazaars of the city. It is quite clear, however, despite the exotic imports, that the Chinese regarded all foreigners as barbarians; the gifts provided for the Emperors by foreign rulers were simply considered as tribute from vassal states.