Romance of the Ten Kingdoms: Rivalry Among the Realms

This book tells of the famous Huang Chao peasant uprising, which broke out in Caozhou, Shandong, at the end of the Tang dynasty. As regional warlords fought to crush the rebels, they steadily expanded their power and territory, scheming and warring against one another for the throne. The strong preyed on the weak: the victors became kings, and the defeated were branded bandits. Thus, the Central Plains saw the rise of five short-lived dynasties: Later Liang, Later Tang, Later Jin, Later Han, and Later Zhou, collectively known as the Five Dynasties. In the south and the Hedong region, ten separate kingdoms arose in succession: Wu, Chu, Min, Southern Tang, Wuyue, Southern Han, Former Shu, Later Shu, Jingnan, and Northern Han, collectively known as the Ten Kingdoms. Meanwhile, the Khitan in the north grew steadily stronger and established the Liao dynasty. It was a historical era of rival powers, warlord conflicts, clashing blades, and rivers of blood.