One strand of Chinese philosophy which is less talked about is the Legalist school, championed by Han Feizi. As detailed in the book, Han Feizi was a stuttering Prince of Han in the time of the warring states. He developed a pragmatic philosophy of statecraft which Europeans would call Machiavellian. It eschewed 'virtue' and respect for ancient traditions in favour of strict rewards and penalties, tight control of people and ministers, with power as the highest goal. You don't feel virtuous reading this stuff as you do with The Analects or the Tao Teh Ching for example. This is the realpolitik world, it takes no prisoners, views mercy as weakness. Han Feizi died in a Qin prison. However the Qin emperor liked his philosophy and may have taken it to heart; he unified China and established a (relatively short) dynasty. ( )