Video spoilers history, starting with the blitzkrieg on Poland

Outside the sky.

Shang Dynasty.

When Emperor Xin saw how ridiculous the fall of the Zhou Dynasty was, he couldn't help but find it amusing.

"Heh heh, you Zhou people, how dare you usurp my Great Shang!"

"No matter what happened to my Great Shang Dynasty, it still perished in a spectacular fashion."

"Unlike you, Emperor Zhou, who lived such a miserable life, becoming a laughingstock!"

"Even the Zhou emperor himself was heavily in debt and became a defaulter."

"Now that you have offended the Qin state, the Qin people will definitely retaliate."

"Looking at the map, the Qin state occupies such a large area, so its national strength must be extremely strong."

"Resistance is practically impossible."

"So, how will Zhou respond to Qin's retaliatory army?"

"With their strength, they probably wouldn't even have the point of resisting, would they?"

"I'm delighted to hear this, haha."

Di Xin, thoroughly enjoying the story, sat contentedly in his chair, ready to read the rest of the tale of the Zhou Dynasty's demise.

The narration continues:

[As we can see, at this time, the Zhou emperor possessed neither land, power, nor money.]

This emperor is so incredibly frustrated.

Soon, the Qin army arrived.

There's nothing left to resist; we have no choice but to surrender.

With such a small territory and limited military strength, coupled with the emperor's utterly ruined reputation, what resistance could the Western Zhou state possibly offer?

[Just lie down and relax!]

The Duke of Western Zhou, being the de facto ruler, wisely went to the State of Qin and surrendered, offering up territory.

[The Western Zhou state and the meager territory and cities under the name of the Zhou emperor were all handed over to the Qin state in one fell swoop.]

What about the Qin state?

Looking at the Zhou emperor before me, I felt like I was crushing an ant—there was no sense of accomplishment whatsoever.

[Perhaps considering the historical value of the "Zhou" name, this was a way to showcase the grandeur of a great power.]

Or perhaps they're simply too lazy to eradicate them completely.

They released the Duke of Western Zhou again, and even symbolically left him a small territory, without immediately declaring the complete annihilation of the state.

However, in the same year, 256 BC...

Perhaps it was exhaustion, or perhaps it was overwhelming shame.

King Nan of Zhou and the Duke of Western Zhou, these two unfortunate brothers, passed away one after the other.

This is a complete disaster.

There isn't even a nominal heir left.

The Western Zhou state instantly descended into anarchy.

The local officials and residents were astonished to find that even a lord had suddenly disappeared.

I can't live like this anymore.

Rather than waiting to be ravaged by chaotic armies or swallowed up by other warlords, it's better to take the initiative.

After discussing it, they directly petitioned the Qin state: "Great sir! Please take us in! Please annex us! Please take this land!"

The Qin state, upon seeing this, exclaimed, "Wow, such a good thing!"

[Taking advantage of the situation, they formally annexed the Western Zhou state and the "Eastern Zhou Dynasty" it represented, which had long since become a mere shell of its former self.]

Thus, in 256 BC, the core of the Zhou Dynasty—the Zhou emperor and the Western Zhou state—symbolizing legitimacy, came to a complete end.

[There's also a little tail.]

Back then, wasn't there still an independent Eastern Zhou state, hiding nearby?

After Qin had dealt with the Western Zhou state and its emperor, it had a few years to spare and then easily pushed them aside with its troops.

[They also destroyed this last remaining remnant—the Eastern Zhou state.] [So, who was being destroyed in the historical record when it says, "In 249 BC, the Qin state destroyed the Eastern Zhou"?]

Look carefully!

The state that Qin ultimately destroyed was that small, independent vassal state of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty!

The Zhou Dynasty, which once represented the entire realm, effectively and legally collapsed several years ago with the death of King Nan of Zhou and the voluntary ceding of territory by the Western Zhou state.

If we calculate it this way...

The Eastern Zhou Dynasty also fell to the Qin state, though the process was not as barbaric.

[There were those who perished together, but no one who died a heroic death for their country.]

[The story is filled with dark humor and a sense of apocalyptic absurdity, depicting a life of dependence on others, borrowing money to fight, allied forces failing to deliver supplies, being forced to climb high platforms by creditors, voluntarily surrendering land, and the people begging for annexation.]

Rather than being conquered by force, it was more accurate to say that it silently "died" amidst the indifference of the people and its own decay.

[And even before this, everyone had long been dissatisfied with Zhou.]

Therefore, Qin's conquest of the Eastern Zhou was no different from the conquest of another vassal state.

Even without the Qin state, the Zhou royal family would have ended due to internal divisions and external pressures; the Qin state's role was more like that of a "corpse collector."

[They used force to complete a historically predetermined ending.]

The commenters also chimed in with their own criticisms:
Qin Ying! You horse-breeding slave!

Horse breeders were quite well-off back then; they were essentially tank dealers.

"The Zhou dynasty itself was destroyed!"

"King Zhou lost his territory in Guanzhong, and now he has to borrow money for his son's weddings, house construction, and funerals—it's absolutely terrible!"

After the Zhou dynasty rulers suffered a major defeat at the hands of Duke Zhuang of Zheng, they lost much of their authority, and people only gave them face afterward.

The lesson history teaches us from beginning to end is... strength reigns supreme; those lacking strength will only be replaced.

"King Wen pulled his chariot for 800 steps, and the Zhou Dynasty lasted for 800 years; this was the will of Heaven."

The Qin people were originally descendants of merchants; their ancestors served as officials in the Shang Dynasty. Their downfall of the Zhou Dynasty was, in a way, divinely ordained.

The Qin Dynasty had several investors: the eldest protected the Shang, the second protected the Zhou, and its own faction remained neutral, neither helping the Zhou nor the Shang.

A nationwide referendum: The Great Zhou Dynasty is dissolved, and the Great Qin Dynasty is joined.

King Nan of Zhou reigned for 59 years, enduring the nightmares of two generations of Qin kings.

"If King Nan of Zhou hadn't acted recklessly and had lived a few more years, he might have become a historically significant emperor who could have surpassed even the Qianlong and Kangxi emperors..."

Fun Fact: In the year King Nan of Zhou abdicated, Liu Bang was born, and Lord Xinling went into seclusion.

Wasn't it the Eastern Zhou state that Lü Buwei destroyed?

Therefore, the Eastern Zhou Dynasty was not actually destroyed by the Qin state, but rather it naturally perished because King Nan of Zhou was too lazy to establish a new emperor after his death.

If the Zhou emperor had already designated a successor, would the Qin dynasty have spared the Zhou's rule out the possibility of destroying it?

But outside the sky.

Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yuanzhang watched the entire story told through the celestial screen with great interest.

Although Zhu Yuanzhang already knew about the fall of the Zhou Dynasty as described in the story told in the story, Tianmu was already aware of it.

But watching the special performance on the backdrop was still very exciting.

At the same time, Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but sigh:
"It is said that the Zhou Dynasty perished because they kept enfeoffing people until there was nothing left to divide."

"However, if it were not for enfeoffing kings, the Zhou Dynasty would not have been able to enjoy an 800-year reign."

"While I was managing the prefectures and counties, I also enfeoffed princes."

"It is the best choice we have made, having learned from the lessons of the Zhou and Qin dynasties."

"We don't expect the Ming Dynasty to live for eight hundred years like the Zhou Dynasty, but with the guidance of the Heavenly Curtain, it should be possible to live for five hundred years."

"Heh, wishful thinking."

Zhu Yuanzhang naturally knew that even 500 years would be difficult.

But thinking about it, it makes sense. (End of Chapter)