Only in the context of intellectual history can we carry forward the discussion on “Marx and justice”. From Aristotle to Scottish thinkers’ interpretation in the 17th century, distributive justice has been narrowly understood as the justice of distribution according to contribution (labor), which is required in the logic of the bourgeoisie to justify private property right. By examining this change, we find that Marx does not deny distributive justice. This requires us to understand the real connotation of “bringing one’s ability into full play and allocating according to one’s needs”. The construction of socialism with Chinese characteristics needs to deal with the tension between these two kinds of distributive justice practically and wisely, which has gradually formed a “China’s road” different from the approach of “seeking justice by combining liberalism and socialism”, “market justice” and the “third path”.