Muckraker. It's a weird, made up sounding word. It also happens to be the answer
This is pretty long question
Goods were scarce because the military needed them. Such as food rationing. Rubber usage etc... The military needed those more. The materials were needed for war. War isn't about technology. It's about the ability to muster resources for war.
It helped the Chinese accept sudden political changes because they believed that a dynasty would be born, rise to it's height, and then fall based on a mandate from heaven so they could accept political changes because they were believed to be divinely inspired or based on a recurring cycle.
