★Subverting the illusion of history, 126 fun stories reveal little-known truths, such as the secret of Duke Huan of Qi starving to death.

★Read Chinese history with interest like watching a drama! Small details capture a broad perspective, connecting the past and present to the world. With 12 different angles, you can rigorously unlock the true face of history.

★Quoting authoritative classics such as "The Twenty-Four Histories", developing the ability to observe reality in historical learning, and cultivating critical thinking.

This book focuses on Chinese history and reveals the truth of subversive cognition through 126 narratives and 12 perspectives, such as "Duke Huan of Qi, the hegemon of the Spring and Autumn Period, was starved to death" and "Guan Gong did not use the Green Dragon Crescent Blade", combining fun and rigor.

The references include classics such as "The Twenty-Four Histories" and "Collected Works of Arts and Literature", emphasizing the enlightenment of "small details revealing big truths" and "historical thinking", designed in an ancient style with both pictures and text.

Imperial Curiosities
• King Wen of Zhou Was Nearsighted
• Duke Huan of Qi, Spring-Autumn Hegemon, Starved to Death
• Duke Jing of Jin: Died in a Latrine Fall
• Qin Shi Huang Was Only Three Years Older than Liu Bang
• Emperor Xuan of Han: Raised Inside a Prison
• Shi Le of Later Zhao: From Slave to Emperor
• Song Gongdi: Last Emperor Turned Buddhist Master
• Tang Dynasty: Eating Carp Brought the Rod
• A Khitan Emperor Mummified
• Emperor Zhenzong Ruined the Fengshan Rites
• Emperor Taizong of Jin: Drunk and Spanked by Ministers
• Ming Emperors’ Names Solved the Periodic Table Puzzle
• The Jiajing Emperor: Almost Strangled by Palace Maids
• The Wanli Emperor: An Ultra-Homebody
• “By Mandate of Heaven, the Edict Declares…” Was Mostly Fake
• A Son of Zhu Yuanzhang Became a Botanist
• Qing Dynasty Had No Word for “Imperial Father”
• Emperor Kangxi Tasted Chocolate
• Kangxi’s Favorite Memo Annotation—What Was It?

History Could Also Be Like This
• “Going to Court” Began in the Western Zhou
• Why Did the King of Qin Spare the State of Wei?
• Qin Law: Were Short People Exempt from Punishment?
• Why Did Song Officials Wear Two Long Wings on Their Hats?
• Where Was the Real Capital of the Southern Song?
• The Kingdom of Ziqi: Middleman Profiteers Extraordinaire
• Compiling the Siku Quanshu Destroyed Countless Books
• Did Ancient Chinese Suffer from Depression?
• How Many Peasant Rebellions Actually Succeeded?
• Ming Civil Officials Who Also Commanded Armies

The Lesser-Known Faces of Celebrities
• Shang Yang Arrested Over an “ID Certificate”
• Lord Ye: Slandered by an Idiom for Two Millennia
• Mozi: Head of the Warring States’ Largest “Gang”?
• Did Sima Xiangru Betray Zhuo Wenjun?
• Cai Lun, Paper Sage and Power Broker
• Wei-Jin Celebs Were Into Skincare Too
• Guan Yu Never Wielded the Green-Dragon Crescent Blade
• Liu Ling: Famous Drinker, Low Alcohol Tolerance
• “Memorial to Yueyang Tower” Was Pure Imagination
• Poet-General Xin Qiji Was Fierce in Battle
• Did Liu Yong and Ji Xiaolan Ever Meet?
• Li Hongzhang: Qing Envoy on a Grand Tour of Europe and America

The Human Comedy
• China’s Real Valentine’s Day Was Not Qixi
• Killing a Cow Could Land You in Jail
• Tang Dynasty Already Had Pirated Books
• Song Dynasty Enjoyed 100+ Public Holidays a Year
• Song China Had a “Leftover Men & Women” Craze
• Does “Flattery” Really Come from Patting Horse Rears?
• Journey to the West Was Once Banned
• Mandarin Ducks Were First Used to Describe Brotherhood
• “Clothes and Beasts” Was Originally a Compliment

Chinese Cuisine Through the Ages
• Chinese Have Eaten Sashimi for Over 3,000 Years
• Tang Tea Recipes: Salt, Scallions, and Ginger
• Song Crab Craze: How Deep Did It Go?
• Before the Northern Song, Stir-Fry Was Rare
• Song Dynasty Already Had Ice Cream
• Take-Out Was Big in the Song Streets
• National Breakfast: “Deep-Fried Dough Sticks” (You Tiao)
• Sichuan Had No Chili Peppers in Ancient Times

Ingenious Ancient Chinese Inventions
• A Warring States “Refrigerator”
• Sun Bin, Unable to Stand, Invented Leather Boots
• Was the Writing Brush Really Invented by Meng Tian?
• Zhuge Liang, Prime Minister and Inventor of Mantou
• Emperor Hongzhi Created the Toothbrush
• Wan Hu of the Ming Dynasty Attempted Manned Rocket Flight

Chinese history is a long and mysterious scroll, filled with many familiar knowledge. It is these widely circulated historical knowledge that cultivate our simple understanding of history. History is recorded and passed down through various forms such as literature, relics, legends, etc. It is interpreted and interpreted, allowing us to trace back to the past, gain insight into the present, and foresee the future. However, the long scroll of history is also vast, and there are always many details that we are unfamiliar with or have only a partial understanding of. It is this ambiguous sense of distance that blurs our vision, making it difficult for us to see the true faces of many events and figures. To some extent, misconceptions about certain histories are inevitable because they are rooted in the limitations of people's cognition and the complexity of history. However, we can analyze history from as many perspectives as possible and uncover some corners hidden by the long scroll of history.

In this ancient and vast land of China, the footprints of history are everywhere. However, with the passage of time and changes in the landscape, many documents have been submerged in the river of time, making it difficult to distinguish between true and false. As a result, there have inevitably been some omissions in the recording and dissemination of the 5,000-year civilization. As the ancient saying goes, "It is better to have no book than only to believe in books." Taking this as the starting point, this book examines familiar historical figures and events, exploring the overlooked parts of the historical knowledge we have already "mastered". The aim is to provide readers with a new perspective for interpreting historical figures and events, and to restore a more three-dimensional and intuitive historical picture.

Since the beginning of the traceable history of Chinese civilization, there have been few historical records dating back to this ancient civilization. According to "Annals of Lüshi: An Overview of the First Knowledge", the last ruler of the Xia Dynasty, Jie, was tyrannical and despotic. The imperial censor in the court tried to persuade him but to no avail, so he went to the Shang tribe. From this, we can boldly speculate that there were positions dedicated to recording history as early as the Xia Dynasty, and since then, "historians" have continued to exist. At the same time, folk accounts of the wonders and changes of various dynasties have emerged like mushrooms after rain, jointly depicting the glorious historical trajectory of the Chinese nation for five thousand years.

However, with the passage of time, thousands of years have flown by in an instant. Looking back on the past, people in later generations often find that the historical landscape woven by numerous clues is different from people's common sense, and even vastly different. The illusion of many surprises and questions fills our minds. This book contains more than 60 "true faces of Chinese history", covering a long period from the Shang and Zhou dynasties to modern times. The content covers multiple fields such as royalty and celebrities, daily life and food, and technological inventions. It aims to help readers further open up their cognitive thinking while reading history, so as to read history, learn history, and understand history.

In the process of writing this book, the author referred to numerous historical documents and research results of experts and scholars, striving to achieve rich and accurate content. I hope that every reader can gain knowledge and enjoyment while reading this book. The vast sea of history, if there are any flaws in the book, we kindly ask readers to criticize and correct them, and work together to assist in the study of Chinese history.