Rewriting History: The Big Jokes History Played on Us

History has never been a solemn affair. It often plays tricks on us.

You know of Yu the Great's achievements in controlling the floods, but do you know his mistakes?

You think the Shang Dynasty fell because of King Zhou's debauchery and cruelty, but is that really what happened?

Did you know the Three Kingdoms could never truly have stood as three powers?

Did you know that the tyrant Emperor Yang of Sui was actually more capable than most emperors?

Do you know the stain on the life of Li Shimin, a ruler praised throughout the ages?

Do you know of Li Bai's delusions of a political career, the poet who was supposedly so beloved that the Son of Heaven called him aboard but he refused?

Do you know the age-old injustice suffered by Pan Renmei and Chen Shimei?

Do you know that the supposedly weak Southern Song was the toughest foe the Mongols ever faced?

Did you know that Hai Rui, regarded as a misfit by the rotten bureaucracy of the Ming Dynasty, rose step by step through the ranks and even met a peaceful end?

Come along with this book and read Chinese history anew. Whether or not you agree with its views, it at least offers the possibility of breaking free of fixed assumptions and finding a new perspective on the world in the gaps between historical accounts.

It is neither official history nor unofficial history. It is, instead,