History repeats itself.

(tldr; at bottom)

This is my summary of the history of the first king who united all of China. The parallel to what’s happening in modern times is striking. This occurred during the Qin empire. (Search Youtube for “Qin Empire Epic”).

Lu Buwei was a man of careful cunning. Through careful planning, luck, and friendship with the royal family, he managed to gain more power than anyone else in the country. But he wasn’t the real king, and he was loath to the idea that one day when the King became old enough, he would have to hand over the power of state. The real king’s name was Ying Zheng. But we’ll just call him the real king, and Lu Buwei we will call the fake king, since he wasn’t technically a king. The fake king maintained his power through cooperation with the Royal Mother, and by “balancing powers” underneath of him, which equates to pitting those with power against each other.

The fake king, not wanting to give up his power, delayed the coming-to-power ceremony for the real king by 2 years - from when the king turned 20, to when he turned 22. He likely hoped that during the delay he would find a way to somehow retain power, even if he had to transfer the power in-name. The real king realized he needed a plan, some way to seize power back from the fake king. But this would not be an easy task - the fake king’s power had grown deep roots, and he was too careful to allow any mistakes.

So the king turned to a wise adviser, and concocted a strategy so deep that even the extremely suspicious and calculating fake king didn’t see it coming, until it was too late.

There came a man, Lao Ai, favored by the Royal Mother. This man was originally a subordinate of the fake king, but the fake king gave him to the Royal Mother. He was a useless man who understood nothing of ruling. He cared not for the country, but only for himself, and his whole world was filled with corruption and collusion. Whenever this man’s power increased, other countries would rejoice and send people to be “friends” with him, and bribe him. He loved bribes, and would party all the time, and constantly give power and positions to people that didn't deserve it, simply to exchange favors.

This man pretended to be a Eunuch, but had illegitimate children with the Royal Mother. He used these children as leverage over the Royal Mother. Under the guidance of the wise adviser, the real king allowed Lao Ai to amass more and more power. The King prevented anyone from revealing Lao Ai’s corruption, even going so far as to chop off the arm of his uncle to prevent the secrets from coming out until the time is ripe.

The fake king eventually realized what was happening, and that he would receive some of the blame for the Lao Ai’s actions, since Lao Ai was originally a subordinate of the fake king. So the fake king cornered Lao Ai, and tried to execute judgment on him according to his "house-rules" (as was allowed at the time). However, the real king intervened and rescued Lao Ai.

So, this corrupt guy continued to gain more and more power. The Royal Mother gave him power to act as her proxy. Anything she could do, he too could do in her name. Then came the time for the real king’s delayed coming-to-power ceremony. Lao Ai grew afraid, because he knew his vices (and secret children!) would be revealed as soon as the real king took the throne. So he had to do something. So while the king was having his crowning ceremony, Lao Ai replaced all the guards around the palace and capital city with his own men. Then, with a small military contingent, he easily took over the capital city. Little did he know, this was all playing out according to the plan of the real king and his wise adviser.

Lao Ai used his connections to send out the military under some corrupt generals to kill the king during his ceremony. But a couple of good people realized what was happening, informed a non-corrupt general, who rushed in and killed the military leaders that were on their way to kill the king.

As soon as the real king’s ceremony concluded, he issued his first command - an edict to all the citizens. It went something like - “Lao Ai has rebelled! Rise up and fight to save your country!” The real king, having been raised a hostage in a foreign country through his childhood, was a down-to-earth person that captured the hearts of the citizens, so they listened to him and joined the resistance, and quashed the rebellion. The fake king, seeing this, went on the offensive with his own forces against Lao Ai, so that when the real king came back, his life might be spared.

The fake king was sent away to manage his own lands, and the Royal Mother was sent away to live alone in a nearby city (Yongcheng).

The real king went on to live a legendary life, and unite all countries in China under one rule.

Addendum - Back before the king gained real power, two political groups were trying to get the king to marry a person of their choosing, for political reasons. But the king was wise, and he couldn't bear all the trouble that was caused to kings of the past by their harem and Royal Mothers interfering in politics. So, before making a decision on this marriage, he talked with his wise adviser and made a decision. To avoid problems that would be caused by showing favoritism to any political party, he married both wives, but he only married them as concubines, not as real Queens. At the moment he made the declaration that his country would never again have queens, because Queens tend to cause too much trouble. This really upset the Royal Mother, but there was nothing she could do.

tldr; In order for the legitimate king to seize power from the guy in charge, who is effectively a "false king", the legitimate king allows a subordinate of the "false king" to run amok, and have a "power trip", to collude with other nations, to grow in power, ego, and vice. This corrupt guy creates a division among the current powers, weakening the false king's hold on politics. The corrupt guy gets afraid of having his crimes revealed. So when the rightful king is having his coming-to-power ceremony, the corrupt guy stages a rebellion in the capital and tries to kill the king. But the king is prepared and calls for his citizens to rise up and fight back. Since the citizens actually supported this king, they fought back and defeated the corrupt guy. The false king originally maintained power through support of the royal mother and powerful clans. However, the corrupt guy created enough division that when the time of the power transfer came, the "false king" couldn't prevent it from happening. The real king went on to conquer and unite all countries in China under one rule.

History repeats itself.

(tldr; at bottom)

This is my summary of the history of the first king who united all of China. The parallel to what’s happening in modern times is striking. This occurred during the Qin empire. (Search Youtube for “Qin Empire Epic”).

Lu Buwei was a man of careful cunning. Through careful planning, luck, and friendship with the royal family, he managed to gain more power than anyone else in the country. But he wasn’t the real king, and he was loath to the idea that one day when the King became old enough, he would have to hand over the power of state. The real king’s name was Ying Zheng. But we’ll just call him the real king, and Lu Buwei we will call the fake king, since he wasn’t technically a king. The fake king maintained his power through cooperation with the Royal Mother, and by “balancing powers” underneath of him, which equates to pitting those with power against each other.

The fake king, not wanting to give up his power, delayed the coming-to-power ceremony for the real king by 2 years - from when the king turned 20, to when he turned 22. He likely hoped that during the delay he would find a way to somehow retain power, even if he had to transfer the power in-name. The real king realized he needed a plan, some way to seize power back from the fake king. But this would not be an easy task - the fake king’s power had grown deep roots, and he was too careful to allow any mistakes.

So the king turned to a wise adviser, and concocted a strategy so deep that even the extremely suspicious and calculating fake king didn’t see it coming, until it was too late.

There came a man, Lao Ai, favored by the Royal Mother. This man was originally a subordinate of the fake king, but the fake king gave him to the Royal Mother. He was a useless man who understood nothing of ruling. He cared not for the country, but only for himself, and his whole world was filled with corruption and collusion. Whenever this man’s power increased, other countries would rejoice and send people to be “friends” with him, and bribe him. He loved bribes, and would party all the time, and constantly give power and positions to people that didn't deserve it, simply to exchange favors.

This man pretended to be a Eunuch, but had illegitimate children with the Royal Mother. He used these children as leverage over the Royal Mother. Under the guidance of the wise adviser, the real king allowed Lao Ai to amass more and more power. The King prevented anyone from revealing Lao Ai’s corruption, even going so far as to chop off the arm of his uncle to prevent the secrets from coming out until the time is ripe.

The fake king eventually realized what was happening, and that he would receive some of the blame for the Lao Ai’s actions, since Lao Ai was originally a subordinate of the fake king. So the fake king cornered Lao Ai, and tried to execute judgment on him according to his "house-rules" (as was allowed at the time). However, the real king intervened and rescued Lao Ai.

So, this corrupt guy continued to gain more and more power. The Royal Mother gave him power to act as her proxy. Anything she could do, he too could do in her name. Then came the time for the real king’s delayed coming-to-power ceremony. Lao Ai grew afraid, because he knew his vices (and secret children!) would be revealed as soon as the real king took the throne. So he had to do something. So while the king was having his crowning ceremony, Lao Ai replaced all the guards around the palace and capital city with his own men. Then, with a small military contingent, he easily took over the capital city. Little did he know, this was all playing out according to the plan of the real king and his wise adviser.

Lao Ai used his connections to send out the military under some corrupt generals to kill the king during his ceremony. But a couple of good people realized what was happening, informed a non-corrupt general, who rushed in and killed the military leaders that were on their way to kill the king.

As soon as the real king’s ceremony concluded, he issued his first command - an edict to all the citizens. It went something like - “Lao Ai has rebelled! Rise up and fight to save your country!” The real king, having been raised a hostage in a foreign country through his childhood, was a down-to-earth person that captured the hearts of the citizens, so they listened to him and joined the resistance, and quashed the rebellion. The fake king, seeing this, went on the offensive with his own forces against Lao Ai, so that when the real king came back, his life might be spared.

The fake king was sent away to manage his own lands, and the Royal Mother was sent away to live alone in a nearby city (Yongcheng).

The real king went on to live a legendary life, and unite all countries in China under one rule.

Addendum - Back before the king gained real power, two political groups were trying to get the king to marry a person of their choosing, for political reasons. But the king was wise, and he couldn't bear all the trouble that was caused to kings of the past by their harem and Royal Mothers interfering in politics. So, before making a decision on this marriage, he talked with his wise adviser and made a decision. To avoid problems that would be caused by showing favoritism to any political party, he married both wives, but he only married them as concubines, not as real Queens. At the moment he made the declaration that his country would never again have queens, because Queens tend to cause too much trouble. This really upset the Royal Mother, but there was nothing she could do.

tldr; In order for the legitimate king to seize power from the guy in charge, who is effectively a "false king", the legitimate king allows a subordinate of the "false king" to run amok, and have a "power trip", to collude with other nations, to grow in power, ego, and vice. This corrupt guy creates a division among the current powers, weakening the false king's hold on politics. The corrupt guy gets afraid of having his crimes revealed. So when the rightful king is having his coming-to-power ceremony, the corrupt guy stages a rebellion in the capital and tries to kill the king. But the king is prepared and calls for his citizens to rise up and fight back. Since the citizens actually supported this king, they fought back and defeated the corrupt guy. The false king originally maintained power through support of the royal mother and powerful clans. However, the corrupt guy created enough division that when the time of the power transfer came, the "false king" couldn't prevent it from happening. The king went on to conquer and unite all countries in China under one rule.

History repeats itself.

(tldr; at bottom)

This is my summary of the history of the first king who united all of China. The parallel to what’s happening in modern times is striking. This occurred during the Qin empire. (Search Youtube for “Qin Empire Epic”).

Lu Buwei was a man of careful cunning. Through careful planning, luck, and friendship with the royal family, he managed to gain more power than anyone else in the country. But he wasn’t the real king, and he was loath to the idea that one day when the King became old enough, he would have to hand over the power of state. The real king’s name was Ying Zheng. But we’ll just call him the real king, and Lu Buwei we will call the fake king, since he wasn’t technically a king. The fake king maintained his power through cooperation with the Royal Mother, and by “balancing powers” underneath of him, which equates to pitting those with power against each other.

The fake king, not wanting to give up his power, delayed the coming-to-power ceremony for the real king by 2 years - from when the king turned 20, to when he turned 22. He likely hoped that during the delay he would find a way to somehow retain power, even if he had to transfer the power in-name. The real king realized he needed a plan, some way to seize power back from the fake king. But this would not be an easy task - the fake king’s power had grown deep roots, and he was too careful to allow any mistakes.

So the king turned to a wise adviser, and concocted a strategy so deep that even the extremely suspicious and calculating fake king didn’t see it coming, until it was too late.

There came a man, Lao Ai, favored by the Royal Mother. This man was originally a subordinate of the fake king, but the fake king gave him to the Royal Mother. He was a useless man who understood nothing of ruling. He cared not for the country, but only for himself, and his whole world was filled with corruption and collusion. Whenever this man’s power increased, other countries would rejoice and send people to be “friends” with him, and bribe him. He loved bribes, and would party all the time, and constantly give power and positions to people that didn't deserve it, simply to exchange favors.

This man pretended to be a Eunuch, but had illegitimate children with the Royal Mother. He used these children as leverage over the Royal Mother. Under the guidance of the wise adviser, the real king allowed Lao Ai to amass more and more power. The King prevented anyone from revealing Lao Ai’s corruption, even going so far as to chop off the arm of his uncle to prevent the secrets from coming out until the time is ripe.

The fake king eventually realized what was happening, and that he would receive some of the blame for the Lao Ai’s actions, since Lao Ai was originally a subordinate of the fake king. So the fake king cornered Lao Ai, and tried to execute judgment on him according to his "house-rules" (as was allowed at the time). However, the real king intervened and rescued Lao Ai.

So, this corrupt guy continued to gain more and more power. The Royal Mother gave him power to act as her proxy. Anything she could do, he too could do in her name. Then came the time for the real king’s delayed coming-to-power ceremony. Lao Ai grew afraid, because he knew his vices (and secret children!) would be revealed as soon as the real king took the throne. So he had to do something. So while the king was having his crowning ceremony, Lao Ai replaced all the guards around the palace and capital city with his own men. Then, with a small military contingent, he easily took over the capital city. Little did he know, this was all playing out according to the plan of the real king and his wise adviser.

Lao Ai used his connections to send out the military under some corrupt generals to kill the king during his ceremony. But a couple of good people realized what was happening, informed a non-corrupt general, who rushed in and killed the military leaders that were on their way to kill the king.

As soon as the real king’s ceremony concluded, he issued his first command - an edict to all the citizens. It went something like - “Lao Ai has rebelled! Rise up and fight to save your country!” The real king, having been raised a hostage in a foreign country through his childhood, was a down-to-earth person that captured the hearts of the citizens, so they listened to him and joined the resistance, and quashed the rebellion. The fake king, seeing this, went on the offensive with his own forces against Lao Ai, so that when the real king came back, his life might be spared.

The fake king was sent away to manage his own lands, and the Royal Mother was sent away to live alone in a nearby city (Yongcheng).

The real king went on to live a legendary life, and unite all countries in China under one rule.

Addendum - Back before the king gained real power, two political groups were trying to get the king to marry a person of their choosing, for political reasons. But the king was wise, and he couldn't bear all the trouble that was caused to kings of the past by their harem and Royal Mothers interfering in politics. So, before making a decision on this marriage, he talked with his wise adviser and made a decision. To avoid problems that would be caused by showing favoritism to any political party, he married both wives, but he only married them as concubines, not as real Queens. At the moment he made the declaration that his country would never again have queens, because Queens tend to cause too much trouble. This really upset the Royal Mother, but there was nothing she could do.

tldr; In order for the legitimate king to seize power from the guy in charge, who is effectively a "false king", the legitimate king allows a subordinate of the "false king" to run amok, and have a "power trip", to collude with other nations, to grow in power, ego, and vice. This corrupt guy creates a division among the current powers, weakening the false king's hold on politics. The corrupt guy gets afraid of having his crimes revealed. So when the rightful king is having his coming-to-power ceremony, the corrupt guy stages a rebellion in the capital and tries to kill the king. But the king is prepared and calls for his citizens to rise up and fight back. Since the citizens actually supported this king, they fought back and defeated the corrupt guy. The false king originally maintained power through support of the royal mother and powerful clans. However, the corrupt guy created enough division that when the time of the power transfer came, the "false king" couldn't prevent it from happening.

History repeats itself.

(tldr; at bottom)

This is my summary of the history of the first king who united all of China. The parallel to what’s happening in modern times is striking. This occurred during the Qin empire. (Search Youtube for “Qin Empire Epic”).

Lu Buwei was a man of careful cunning. Through careful planning, luck, and friendship with the royal family, he managed to gain more power than anyone else in the country. But he wasn’t the real king, and he was loath to the idea that one day when the King became old enough, he would have to hand over the power of state. The real king’s name was Ying Zheng. But we’ll just call him the real king, and Lu Buwei we will call the fake king, since he wasn’t technically a king. The fake king maintained his power through cooperation with the Royal Mother, and by “balancing powers” underneath of him, which equates to pitting those with power against each other.

The fake king, not wanting to give up his power, delayed the coming-to-power ceremony for the real king by 2 years - from when the king turned 20, to when he turned 22. He likely hoped that during the delay he would find a way to somehow retain power, even if he had to transfer the power in-name. The real king realized he needed a plan, some way to seize power back from the fake king. But this would not be an easy task - the fake king’s power had grown deep roots, and he was too careful to allow any mistakes.

So the king turned to a wise adviser, and concocted a strategy so deep that even the extremely suspicious and calculating fake king didn’t see it coming, until it was too late.

There came a man, Lao Ai, favored by the Royal Mother. This man was originally a subordinate of the fake king, but the fake king gave him to the Royal Mother. He was a useless man who understood nothing of ruling. He cared not for the country, but only for himself, and his whole world was filled with corruption and collusion. Whenever this man’s power increased, other countries would rejoice and send people to be “friends” with him, and bribe him. He loved bribes, and would party all the time, and constantly give power and positions to people that didn't deserve it, simply to exchange favors.

This man pretended to be a Eunuch, but had illegitimate children with the Royal Mother. He used these children as leverage over the Royal Mother. Under the guidance of the wise adviser, the real king allowed Lao Ai to amass more and more power. The King prevented anyone from revealing Lao Ai’s corruption, even going so far as to chop off the arm of his uncle to prevent the secrets from coming out until the time is ripe.

The fake king eventually realized what was happening, and that he would receive some of the blame for the Lao Ai’s actions, since Lao Ai was originally a subordinate of the fake king. So the fake king cornered Lao Ai, and tried to execute judgment on him according to his "house-rules" (as was allowed at the time). However, the real king intervened and rescued Lao Ai.

So, this corrupt guy continued to gain more and more power. The Royal Mother gave him power to act as her proxy. Anything she could do, he too could do in her name. Then came the time for the real king’s delayed coming-to-power ceremony. Lao Ai grew afraid, because he knew his vices (and secret children!) would be revealed as soon as the real king took the throne. So he had to do something. So while the king was having his crowning ceremony, Lao Ai replaced all the guards around the palace and capital city with his own men. Then, with a small military contingent, he easily took over the capital city. Little did he know, this was all playing out according to the plan of the real king and his wise adviser.

Lao Ai used his connections to send out the military under some corrupt generals to kill the king during his ceremony. But a couple of good people realized what was happening, informed a non-corrupt general, who rushed in and killed the military leaders that were on their way to kill the king.

As soon as the real king’s ceremony concluded, he issued his first command - an edict to all the citizens. It went something like - “Lao Ai has rebelled! Rise up and fight to save your country!” The real king, having been raised a hostage in a foreign country through his childhood, was a down-to-earth person that captured the hearts of the citizens, so they listened to him and joined the resistance, and quashed the rebellion. The fake king, seeing this, went on the offensive with his own forces against Lao Ai, so that when the real king came back, his life might be spared.

The fake king was sent away to manage his own lands, and the Royal Mother was sent away to live alone in a nearby city (Yongcheng).

Addendum - Back before the king gained real power, two political groups were trying to get the king to marry a person of their choosing, for political reasons. But the king was wise, and he couldn't bear all the trouble that was caused to kings of the past by their harem and Royal Mothers interfering in politics. So, before making a decision on this marriage, he talked with his wise adviser and made a decision. To avoid problems that would be caused by showing favoritism to any political party, he married both wives, but he only married them as concubines, not as real Queens. At the moment he made the declaration that his country would never again have queens, because Queens tend to cause too much trouble. This really upset the Royal Mother, but there was nothing she could do.

tldr; In order for the legitimate king to seize power from the guy in charge, who is effectively a "false king", the legitimate king allows a subordinate of the "false king" to run amok, and have a "power trip", to collude with other nations, to grow in power, ego, and vice. This corrupt guy creates a division among the current powers, weakening the false king's hold on politics. The corrupt guy gets afraid of having his crimes revealed. So when the rightful king is having his coming-to-power ceremony, the corrupt guy stages a rebellion in the capital and tries to kill the king. But the king is prepared and calls for his citizens to rise up and fight back. Since the citizens actually supported this king, they fought back and defeated the corrupt guy. The false king originally maintained power through support of the royal mother and powerful clans. However, the corrupt guy created enough division that when the time of the power transfer came, the "false king" couldn't prevent it from happening.