"One of the greatest emperors in Chinese history, Liu Che (157 BC-87 BC) is known posthumously as Emperor Wu. Under his reign China expanded its territory dramatically. Liu Che consolidated China's power under a strong central government founded on Confucian principles. This book, based largely on the writings of China's ancient historian, Sima Qian, summarizes the development of the Han Dynasty and the reign of Emperor Wu"--

Hing Hing Ming reviews some of the major episodes of the Han Dynasty, from its founding by Liu Bang to the Lü Clan Disturbance and subsequent diplomatic overtures and military campaigns against the minor Chinese kingdoms, the Mongols, and Gojoseon (the ancient Korean Kingdom).

The story chronicles Wu Zhao's humble beginnings as the daughter of a provincial official and follows her path to the inner palace, where she improbably rose from a fifth-ranked concubine to emperor. Using Buddhist rhetoric, architecture, court rituals, and a network of "cruel officials" to cow her many opponents in court, Wu Zhao inaugurated a new dynasty in 690, the Zhou. She ruled as emperor for fifteen years, proving eminently competent in the art of governance, balancing factions in court, staving off the encroachment of Turks and Tibetans, and fostering the state's economic growth.

Drawn from Chinese classics of history, Hung Hing Ming's biographies introduce China's most emblematic historical figures and the cultural attributes fostered by China's ancient chronicles. This book is about one of the greatest emperors in Chinese history, Zhao Kuang Yin, founder of the Song Dynasty (960–1279). He is honored for having unified China in the extremely chaotic period of 'Five Dynasties and Ten States'. This enjoyable book introduces more of China's heroes and villains, highlighting a modest man yet a great emperor who brought peace and stability to the realm and saved the people from great suffering. Interwoven into the narrative of battles fought and alliances forged or flouted, we find examples of good leadership and bad, hot-headed fighters and disciplined warriors, and lessons on how to assess — and win — people's loyalty.

Chinese emperors guaranteed male successors by taking multiple wives, in some cases hundreds and even thousands. Women Shall Not Rule offers a fascinating history of imperial wives and concubines, especially in light of the greatest challenges to polygamous harmony—rivalry between women and their attempts to engage in politics. Besides ambitious empresses and concubines, these vivid stories of the imperial polygamous family are also populated with prolific emperors, wanton women, libertine men, cunning eunuchs, and bizarre cases of intrigue and scandal among rival wives. Keith McMahon, a leading expert on the history of gender in China, draws upon decades of research to describe the values and ideals of imperial polygamy and the ways in which it worked and did not work in real life. His rich sources are both historical and fictional, including poetic accounts and sensational stories told in pornographic detail. Displaying rare historical breadth, his lively and fascinating study will be invaluable as a comprehensive and authoritative resource for all readers interested in the domestic life of royal palaces across the world.

This book argues that regional food culture is intrinsic to how Chinese connect to the past, live in the present, and imagine their future. It focuses on Shanghai?a food lover's paradise?and identifies the importance of regional food culture at pivotal moments in the city's history, and in Chinese history more generally.

Reprint. Originally published: 2007. Reissued 2009.

This provocative study explores issues of gender in Tang-dynasty literature and culture, and their meaning for society as a whole. Drawing on a comprehensive range of historical, literary, and social texts, Jowen R. Tung unravels the complex mechanisms of one of the world's oldest patriarchal systems. With remarkable depth and originality of analysis, the author persuasively applies contemporary feminist theory to Tang dynasty poetry, narrative, and anecdotal literature. Interpreting both well-known and obscure works in fresh ways, Tung sheds light on areas long left shadowed or ignored. In the process, she paints a far darker picture of a period traditionally known as the 'golden age.'