Taking the fate of Zhao Tuo, a young man from Zhaodi, as a thread, it connects the magnificent history from Qin's unification of the six kingdoms to the rise of Han Dynasty.
Carrying family secrets, Zhao Tuo fled to Xianyang from the war in Handan and sneaked into Qin as a blacksmith. However, he was involved in the torrent of the times because of his forging talent. He witnessed the Qin Dynasty's pro-government and the Lao-Ai Rebellion, followed the Qin army to the east to destroy the six kingdoms, witnessed the First Emperor establishing the system and building the Great Wall, and also witnessed the political intrigues of the Qin court and the suffering of the people.
From weapons supervisor to Shaofu Cheng, Zhao Tuo struggled between loyalty and conscience. He secretly helped Fu Su but was unable to prevent the Sand Dune Revolution. After the fall of Qin, he took Qin Dian to the Han Dynasty, helped Xiao He organize the system, and warned future generations with "Qin Jian": The foundation of unification is not force, but lenient governance and peace of mind.
In the end, the white-haired old man stood by the Wei River, watching the Han Dynasty inherit the Qin system and overturn its shortcomings, and understand that the continuation of China's fire is not the rise and fall of a dynasty, but the symbiosis of the ideal of "great unification" and the wisdom of people's livelihood.
