How did the silk road connect the east and the west?

The silk road is the route which connected China, with Asia Minor and the Mediterranean. It was a great means of joining these different civilizations together, it's main role was economic but its social role appeared as a consequence.

Spread of Islam to these regions was so unique..

Asians and Chinese civilizations are well established and strong in basement, not a recent or new society.. They were well known with their wisdom and spiritual sciences and tradtions. So, they could be considered a developed society with a great deal of knowledge, reason and good discrimination.

So, with their relations with the Arab merchants, they throughly tested their morals and understood their personalities, they are not silly or foolish to deal with dishonest individuals, they are very well experienced merchants and know exactly were they put their money.

The Muslim merchants were among the direct reasons to spread Islam, due to their great Islamic morals in their behaviours. Islam has too many principles & laws to follow in this Field of life as in all the fields of life, this reflects on the Muslim merchants & establishes the Islamic ethics of business which had contributed much in increasing the number of Muslims, the examples on these ethics are too many but I'll give you some :

1. Cheating is forbidden in everything in Islam, including trade. The Prophet Muhammad PBUH said " من غشنا فليس منا",which means " he who cheats does not belong to us " i.e. to Muslims. The story of this saying is that the prophet wanted to rebuke a man who was selling grains & had put the some of them at the bottom of the tumble so that they would be hidden, Muhammad PBUH asked him about the reason behind such a deed, & he said that those grains were wet due to the rain drops & he wanted to harbour them. Then the prophet asked him to put them at the top of the tumble so not to cheat or deceive people & said that great saying.

2. Muhammad PBUH also said ( رحم الله عبداً سمحاً إذا باع، سمحاً إذا اشترى، سمحاً إذا اقتضى)

What means: "Allah be merciful and forgiving for His servant who is tolerant when selling, tolerant when purchasing, forgiving when necessary"

3. Allah says in the Holy Quran what means :

"Allah doth command you to render back your Trusts to those to whom they are due; And when ye judge between man and man, that ye judge with justice: Verily how Excellent is the teaching which He giveth you! For Allah is He Who heareth and seeth all things. "

( Quran : chapter 4 : verse 58 )An-Nisa' (Women)

4. Allah says in the Holy Quran what means:

" 1. Woe to those that deal in fraud,-2. Those who, when they have to receive by measure from men, exact full measure,3. But when they have to give by measure or weight to men, give less than due.4. Do they not think that they will be called to account?-5. On a Mighty Day,6. A Day when (all) mankind will stand before the Lord of the Worlds? "

( Quran : chapter 83 : verses 1 - 6 ) Al-Mutaffifin (Defrauding, The Cheats, Cheating)

5. Allah says in the Holy Quran what means:

"O ye who believe! Fear Allah and be with those who are true (in Word and deed)"

( Quran : chapter 9 : verse 119 ) At-Tawba (Repentance, Dispensation)

Also, it's good to remind that Muhammad PBUH was called in Mecca by all the people " the sincere, the honest" even before his prophecy.

6. Refer to the questions listed below for more information on Quran Golden Rules and Islam morals.

The Silk road was only a means that let different civilizations meet, Islamic morals of the Muslim merchants was the principal factor in the spread of Islam along the countries which that road passed by.