While China boasted some of the world's largest cities, more than 85 percent of the country remained rural from the period from the Song to the Ming, with the __________________ at the top of the local structure of power and influence, a hierarchy reinforced by an array of sumptuary laws.

Question

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The scholar-gentry class was at the top of the local structure of power and influence in China from the Song to the Ming dynasty. This class was made up of educated individuals who had passed the civil service examinations. They played a key role in governance and administration, reinforcing their status through sumptuary laws that regulated the consumption of luxury goods and the display of wealth according to one's social status.

While China Boasted Some of the World's Largest Cities, More