During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, there were several monetary systems.

During the Warring States Period, the coins of Qin, Chu, Qi, Yan, Zhao, Wei and Han were composed of cloth coins, knife coins, ring coins and ant nose coins (grimace coins). It was the four major monetary systems in the Warring States period.

Cloth coins, shovel-shaped, evolved from agricultural tools "money" and "shovel" in farming economy, which is why money is called "money". "Cloth" is a foreign word for "Qi". The circulation scope of cloth coins is mainly in the agricultural economic areas in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, such as South Korea, Zhao, Wei and Yan.

Knife coin, knife-shaped, originated from fishing and hunting economic tools. Mainly distributed in the eastern vassal States of the Yellow River Basin, such as Qi, Yan and Zhao. Knife coins from different countries vary in size and shape, among which Qi's knife coins are the most simple and exquisite.

Hey, money, round hole, also called ring money. Spinning wheel or ring, originated from handicraft economic tools, mainly spread in Qin, Wei and South Korea. After the mid-Warring States period, Qin first used square holes to round money, and later Qi and Yan followed suit.

Ant nose money, also known as grimace money, is a kind of copper coin cast by Chu State in the south. It is an irregular oval with inscriptions. There is a kind of Qian Wen that is like an ant crawling on a person's nose, so it is named Ant Nose Money. The other is like an ugly ghost face, so it is named grimace money. It is more convenient to use when calculating the value by pieces.