How many times have there been troubled times in Chinese history? Which periods were they? What is the definition of troubled times?

There have been many troubled times in Chinese history, with varying durations, all of which caused significant damage to society and profoundly affected the course of history. For example, the Peasant War at the end of the Qin Dynasty (including the Chu-Han War), a series of wars from the end of the Western Han Dynasty (Wang Mang's new dynasty) to the early Eastern Han Dynasty, and the formal formation of the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu and Wu from the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty (the beginning of the Yellow Turban Uprising in 184) (Sun Quan said in 222 Emperor) during this period, the Rebellion of the Eight Kings of the Western Jin Dynasty and the Five Husbands Rebellion in China, the Sixteen Kingdoms, the Peasant Uprising at the end of the Sui Dynasty and the Unification War of the Tang Dynasty, the Anshi Rebellion and the pattern of vassal towns, the changes of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, the turn of the Song Dynasty (the southern invasion and resistance of the Jin people) Jin War), the peasant uprising in the late Yuan Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty's extermination of the heroes, the peasant war in the late Ming Dynasty and the Manchu Qing's entry into the Central Plains. Without destruction or establishment, troubled times are also the prelude to governance and even prosperity.

The Warring States Period (475 BC, some say 403 BC to 221 BC), or the Warring States Period, or the Warring States Period for short, was a historical period belonging to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty before the Qin Dynasty unified China. Historians have different disputes about when the Warring States Period began. "Historical Records" dates the beginning of the Warring States Period to 475 BC (the first year of King Zhou Yuan), and "Zi Zhi Tong Jian" dates the beginning of the Warring States Period to 403 BC (the three families of Han, Zhao and Wei were divided into Jin). The Warring States Period ended with Qin's unification of China (221 BC), see the Battle of Qin's Unification of China. The name of the Warring States Period comes from the "Warring States Policy" compiled by Liu Xiang of the Western Han Dynasty.

During the Warring States Period, the feudal lords fought and the society was very unstable. In the early Warring States period, there were still more than a dozen countries in China, but the smaller ones were quickly annexed. The remaining seven great powers, Qin, Chu, Han, Zhao, Wei, Qi and Yan, are called the Seven Heroes of the Warring States Period. Reference: Spring and Autumn Period

During the Warring States Period, feudal lords annexed land and wars replaced the political hegemony competition in the Spring and Autumn Period. During this period, iron tools replaced stone and bronze tools. The well field system in the Spring and Autumn Period was cancelled, and cattle were used to plow the land. . Commercial trade between countries developed. The progress of handicraft industry is also rapid.

These developments also caused changes in the social structure. The hereditary hierarchy was dismantled, and some former nobles lost their status, while other commoners at that time became rich through business or other opportunities, and even became important figures in political groups. The bureaucracy has changed.

In order to cope with these changes, various countries adopted different reforms. Qin's Shang Yang's reform created conditions for Qin to annex the other six countries, which is known as Shang Yang's reform in history.

During the Warring States Period, hundreds of schools of thought emerged. This was a golden period for the development of Chinese thought and scholarship, known in history as the contention of a hundred schools of thought. Mozi's Mohism, Han Fei's Legalism, Zhuangzi developed Laozi's Taoism, and Mencius laid the foundation for Confucianism's status after Qin Dynasty.

The ethnic minorities on the border of the Central Plains are also closely related to the development of the Central Plains. The threat from the Xiongnu led to the construction of the Great Wall during the Warring States Period. Shu, Yue became part of China.

The years of melee fighting during the Warring States Period led to rapid development of military theory and technology. "Sun Bin's Art of War" appeared at this time.

Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907-979)

At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the disaster of Laizhen, the eunuch rebellion, the Huangchao uprising, and the crony disputes brought the glorious Tang Empire to its final collapse. What replaced it was another period of great division in China following the Spring and Autumn Period, the Warring States Period, the Three Kingdoms, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties. From the end of the Tang Dynasty, Zhu Quanzhong usurped the Tang Dynasty and established itself. He changed the name of the country to Liang and established his capital in Kaifeng. After Zhu Liang, the following dynasties were Tang, Jin, Han, and Zhou, which together with Liang were called the Five Dynasties. In addition to the Five Dynasties, there were many other separatist forces in southern China at that time, namely the ten dynasties of Wu, Chu, Min, Wuyue, Qian Shu, Hou Shu, Southern Han, Southern Tang, Jingnan, and Northern Han, collectively referred to as the Ten Dynasties. country. It is called the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms in history, but there are actually more than ten countries.

The first dynasty of the Five Dynasties was the Zhuliang Dynasty established by Zhu Quanzhong who usurped the Tang Dynasty. It improved some of the political malpractices of the Tang Dynasty. Later Liang Dynasty was destroyed by the Later Tang Dynasty of the feudal Li Cunxu.

In the later Tang Dynasty, the more enlightened emperor Tang Mingzong Li Siyuan implemented many policies that benefited the country and the people, making the society a well-off situation. However, his successors were criticized by his son-in-law Shi Jingtang as the Yanyun Sixteenth Emperor. The state was destroyed by borrowing troops from the Khitans in the north at the cost.

Shi Jingtang recognized the Khitan Emperor, who was younger than him, as his father. He was canonized by the Khitan Emperor as the Emperor of the Jin Dynasty and made Kaifeng his capital. However, an endless stream of wealth flowed into the treasury of the Khitan people, so much so that Shi Jingtang's adopted son Shi Chonggui was unwilling to do so. On the advice of Minister Jing Yanguang, he used the excuse of calling the Khitan "grandson" instead of becoming a minister, in an attempt to change his dependence on the Khitan. However, the Khitans responded by sending their troops south to destroy the Later Jin Dynasty, capturing Shi Chonggui, and established the Liao Dynasty in Kaifeng, with Yelv Deguang proclaiming himself emperor.

After the Jin Dynasty was destroyed, the Liao regime was unable to gain a foothold in the Central Plains, so it withdrew to the north and established Li Congyi as the lord of the Central Plains. Liu Zhiyuan of Taiyuan killed Li Congyi, seized the Central Plains, proclaimed himself emperor, and established the Han Empire.

His son Liu Chengyou was replaced by Guo Wei as the Great Zhou Dynasty because he failed to kill the general Guo Wei. Guo Wei and his adopted son Guo Rong were the wise kings of the Five Dynasties in the Later Zhou Dynasty. Under their management, the Later Zhou Dynasty gradually became stronger. And gradually unified China, but Guo Rong's successor was a seven-year-old child and was unable to take charge of the world. In the end, general Zhao Kuangyin was added to the throne by his subordinates in yellow robes in Chenqiao, and replaced Zhou Lisong. Later, under the management of Zhao Kuangyin, the Song Dynasty finally unified China and ended the great split during the Five Dynasties.