The Origins of the Eastern People

In the beginning, Heaven and Earth were divided, and spiritual roots gradually began to sprout. From the first signs among the dawn apes, through countless tribulations, humanity took shape. Across the Yuanmou, Lantian, and Peking eras, people lived in groups, but had yet to establish clans.

By the late Paleolithic, the people of Zhoukoudian had emerged. Kinship ties took shape, and clans began to form. The Three Sovereigns rose one after another, with Youchao founding his title; the Five Emperors followed, and Youyu inherited the throne. The Xia dynasty flourished, and many clans stood side by side. Tang of Shang overthrew the old regime, and the former order gradually crumbled.

When King Wu finally established his capital, the Zhou dynasty set up its institutions. The patriarchal clan system took shape and clans declined; rites and music spread, and uncivilized customs vanished.

From the first humble emergence of primates to the founding of the early Zhou dynasty, tens of millions of years passed. This book lays out the transformations of humanity's ancestors and the evolution of human society, from beginning to end, as a reliable account of antiquity.

This book follows the format of a literary chronicle, carrying on the orthodox tradition of the pioneering work The Legend of Ai, Daughter of the Waters, which Stirred Up Ripples of Intrigue. It avoids vulgarity and fabricated tales, preserving the truth of remote antiquity alone.

This book incorporates the ancient geological eras, terrain, climate, human species, and flora and fauna of Asia as a whole and of China in particular. It brings together the celestial phenomena, geography, peoples, and beasts of The Classic of Mountains and Seas. The book contains 423 entries, arranged into around 420 independent volumes.