We begin our journey along the ancient Silk Road where it all began: in mulberry tree orchards of the Hangzhou province a short drive to the southwest of Shanghai. Around 5,000 years ago, farmers there discovered that the cocoons woven from silkworms produced expensive fabric. Sumnima Udas discovers the vibrant e-commerce trade, discusses modernization with silk manufacturers, and visits Xi'an on this episode of The Silk Road: Past, Present, Future.

Originally released by CNN, 2015. Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on March 28, 2019.

China: Introduction (1:27); --China's Silk Capital (3:33); -- Zhejang Province (5:02); -- Hangzhou (3:07); -- Online Sales (3:23); -- Xi'an (6:10); .