What if Medieval China's commercial boom had gone differently?

Song China runs on paper money, printed books, canal trade, the compass and coal-fired iron.

If it had gone differently: China's medieval takeoff stalls; paper money, the compass and gunpowder stay isolated curiosities for centuries.

1. 105Paper is invented in Han China, The world writes on skin, silk and bark for another thousand years; the written word stays a luxury.
2. 900Gunpowder weapons in China, War stays a matter of walls, horses and bows; castles and cavalry keep their thousand-year dominance.
3. 1040Movable type in Song China, Printing stays a woodblock craft for the rare classic; no template for cheap mass text reaches anyone.