Series / King's War

King's War (Chinese: 楚汉传奇, Chu Han Chuan Qi, also called Legend of Chu and Han) is a Chinese series starring Chen Daoming as Liu Bang, Peter Ho as Xiang Yu and Li Yixiao as Lady Yu. The series is set during the final years of the chaotic Qin dynasty, and traces the origins of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu: one, a middle-aged hooligan who nonetheless has his personal charm; the other, a young grandson of a famous general of Chu during the Warring States and anxious to restore his destroyed kingdom. After the death of Qin Shihuang, Qin quickly descended into chaos, and the stage is set for the two men to rise to prominence, but ultimately, only one man can become the next emperor of China...

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King's War contains examples of:

• Arrogant Kungfu Guy: Xiang Yu, who only knows how to fight and win wars, but is largely useless in politics and governance. Ultimately, Liu Bang defeated him by using good advice and obtaining the support of the masses, resulting in a battlefield advantage which even Xiang could not overcome.
  • Over at Liu Bang's side, Han Xin is another example. His utter failure at managing his relationship with Liu Bang was one major reason why Liu took action against him after the Han Dynasty was established.
• Artistic License – History: Princess Chen Xi was a character created for the series; Fusu's family details were not recorded down or had been lost to history.
  • Historically, Zhang Liang's assassination attempt on Shi Huangdi at Bolangsha only consists of him hiring the strong man to throw a massive hammer at one of the emperor's carriages. In-series, Bolangsha became a Big Badass Battle Sequence, complete with Zhang Liang pulling off a fantastical escape.
  • Historically, there were no records of Yong Chi joining the Chu army, nor was he recorded to be present at the Feast of Hong Gate; it was Xiang Yu himself who revealed to Liu Bang Cao Wushang's role in the whole affair. Also, after Yong Chi's failed attempt to ally with Wei, he had defected to Zhao before surrendering to Liu Bang.
  • Historically, while Lady Bo was indeed a concubine of Wei Bao ^note at least, according to sources other than the Book of Han before she met Liu Bang, there were no records indicating that she ever gave Wei any advice. ^note In history, she was best noted for her wisdom in lying low while Liu Bang was alive; after Liu Bang's death, she and her son managed to escape Lü Zhi's wrath. Her son, the later Emperor Wen, was also noted for his filial piety towards her.
  • Historically, Sima Xin killed himself along with Cao Jiu after Chenggao fell.
  • Historically, Xiang Zhuang's activities were not recorded after his participation in the Feast of Hong Gate; similarly, records on Ding Gong were limited to him letting Liu Bang off near Peng city, and Liu killing him later.
• Because You Were Nice to Me: After excusing himself during the feast of Hong Gate, Liu Bang was quite literally caught with his pants down by Yong Chi who is now an officer of Xiang Yu's camp. Given the knowledge Xiang Yu wants to kill Liu Bang was known throughout his staff, Yong Chi could've easily dragged him back to face execution. However because Liu Bang sparred Yong Chi when he was still the Duke of Pei, Yong Chi allowed him to escape and even showed him the way out.
• Composite Character: Lady Cao is an amalgamation of the historical Lady Cao (mother of Liu Fei) and one/two inn owners who allowed Liu Bang to have meals on credit. ^note While Lady Wang is firmly established to be female according to Sima Qian, there is controversy on Wu Fu's gender.
• Dated History: While Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian did indicate that Ziying was Fusu's son, modern historians have disputed this, arguing that if Ziying did discuss with his sons the plan to assassinate Zhao Gao, him being Fusu's son would have made him too young for this scenario.
  • While depicted as a eunuch, Zhao Gao's official status within the Qin Dynasty has no clear consensus. Historians prior to Eastern Han do not explicitly call him one while historian Li Kaiyuan claims a eunuch could never reach a position in government as high as Zhao Gao achieved. Similarly his motives behind causing the collapse of the Qin is unknown, with a theory being that, as a royal descendant of the conquered state of Zhao, it was an act of vengeance.
• Despair Event Horizon: After Princess Chenxi committed suicide, Zhang Han became noticeably more temperamental in waging war against Chu. It wouldn't be until the news arrived that Huhai was forced to commit suicide by Zhao Gao that Zhang Han's faith in the Qin Empire was crushed so he surrendered to Xiang Yu. Even when offered by Xiang Yu to lead the captured Qin soldiers against him for one last battle for glory, Zhang Han refused the offer and claimed he was done with fighting.
• Drives Like Crazy: Xiahou Ying, when Liu Bang was in danger; he later became Minister Coachman ("Taipu", 太僕) ^note Also known as the Grand Coachman, he was responsible for the maintenance of imperial stables, horses, carriages and coachhouses for the emperor and his palace attendants, and for the supply of horses for the armed forces.
• Doomed by Canon: Knowing the historical fates of the various characters can spoil the story to a certain extent.
• The Fellowship Has Ended: After becoming emperor, Liu Bang's relationships with his comrades had to change due to his new status. However, he remained cordial with those who posed no threat to him. ^note Just like in the series, Liu Bang took action against the various non-Liu vassal kings, among them Han Xin, Peng Yue, Lu Wan and Ying Bu. While Xiao He was indeed imprisoned for a time after Liu Bang became emperor, he was eventually released, and passed away about 2 years after Liu's death.
• Fire-Forged Friends: Liu Bang and his buddies from Pei county, who joined him very early in his rebellion and all contributed greatly to the establishment of the Han. ^note After them, Zhou Bo's son Zhou Yafu was instrumental in helping Liu Bang's grandson Emperor Jing to put down the Rebellion of the Seven States.
• Historical Hero Upgrade: Liu Bang, who in historical sources was an even bigger asshole than he was in-series for the incidents listed below.
  • The fight between him and Xiahou Ying was historically a prank played by him on Xiahou, which injured Xiahou. When the authorities were notified, Liu Bang lied and Xiahou Ying covered up for Liu. Later, when Xiahou was discovered to have lied, he was given several hundred lashes and imprisoned for more than a year, while Liu was off the hook.
  • During Li Yiji's initial audience with Liu Bang, Liu was said to have two maids washing his feet for him.
  • While not depicted in the series, Liu Bang actually had Ding Gong killed after Xiang Yu was defeated, and this was after Ding had approached Liu expecting a reward for the leniency shown at Peng city.
• Historical In-Joke: Fan Zeng dying while lying on his back is a nod to his historical death from a subcutaneous ulcer on his back.
  • Lady Qi's admonition to her son Ruyi to fight for the title of crown prince was the main reason why mother and son later died horribly after Liu Bang's death. ^note Out of Liu Bang's sons, only the later Emperor Wen and his mother Lady Bo escaped Lv Zhi's wrath; Liu Chang, the only other surviving son at the time of Lv's death, had lost his mother Lady Zhao soon after his birth, for Zhao had killed herself in prison. Even Liu Ying (Emperor Hui) himself was shocked by his own mother's cruelty against Lady Qi and Ruyi, and spent the rest of his short life "enjoying" himself to death.
• Historical Villain Upgrade: Liu Bang, during his initial occupation of Xianyang. Historical sources indicated that he did not cause any disturbance in the city at all, left everything untouched ^note Just like in the series, Xiao He did make off with the maps and other record books of the Qin empire, a move which would help Liu Bang greatly in the years to come. and returned to Ba Shang with the troops.
  • Historically, while Xiao He was indeed imprisoned for a time during the last years of Liu Bang's reign, the series did not depict his eventual release. ^note Xiao passed away about 2 years after Liu's death, while remaining in the post of chancellor.
• Iron Lady: Lv Zhi, keeping the Liu household afloat while Liu Bang was away. Once Liu became King of Han, she graduates to The High Queen, as she had a keen sense for politics, and was well-liked by Liu Bang's various generals from Pei county. ^note Historically, Lv graduated to God Save Us from the Queen! after Liu Bang's death; she dominated court politics for 15 years, until her own death.
• It Is Beyond Saving: Despite his (correct) tactical assessments being ignored by his superiors officers, Han Xin's breaking point was after learning of Xiang Yu executing the 200,000 surrendered Qin soldiers and drunk himself into a stupor before trying to resign from his position in Xiang Yu's camp.
• Lovable Rogue: Liu Bang, as he is depicted as the kind-hearted ringleader of a band of rascals.
• Magnetic Hero: Liu Bang, more so than Xiang Yu. Along the way, most of Xiang Yu's followers were either driven away from him via Han schemes or outright joined Liu Bang. ^note While not depicted in-series, after Xiang Yu's death, Ji Bu eventually surrendered to the Han Dynasty, while Zhongli Mo sought refuge under Han Xin, but was later killed by Han. In contrast, most of those who joined Liu stayed with him until Xiang was defeated.
• Mood Whiplash: Han Xin before and after the Time Skip, from his moment of triumph to his downfall in a span of a few minutes. ^note While the series did depict the main reason of Han's downfall, i.e. his utter failure at managing his relationship with Liu Bang, the series left out the trigger, which is his association with Zhongli Mo. Zhongli had sought refuge under Han after Xiang Yu's death; Han then decided to kill Zhongli in order to curry favour with Liu Bang. This ultimately backfired, and Han Xin was demoted to Marquis of Huai Yin as seen in-series after the Time Skip.
• Obfuscating Insanity: Ziying initially roamed his family's ancestral county as a mad man in order to avoid being executed by Huhai after ascending to the throne but out of fear kept up the act for years. Huhai would also attempt to feign madness but Zhao Gao saw right through the ploy.
• One-Steve Limit: Averted. Over at Liu Bang's side, there are 2 persons with the names "Ying" ^note surnames are Xiahou and Guan and "Yiji" ^note surnames are Li and Shen respectively. A bigger example is that there are 2 persons with the exact same name of Han Xin during this period. ^note One is the general under Liu Bang, the other is a king of Han; the latter is often called "Han Wang Xin" ("Xin, King of Han") to distinguish him from the general.
• Prophecy Twist: Wei Bao automatically assumed that he would be the father to the "Son of Heaven" mentioned by the soothsayer; those who know their history would know that this son of Lady Bo's was Emperor Wen of Han, and the father would be Liu Bang.
• Puppet King: Huhai and King Huai of Chu. As expected, Zhao Gao and Xiang Yu disposed of them once they had outlived their usefulness.
• Pyrrhic Victory: Liu Bang putting down the various non-Liu vassal kings. Not only did it earn him a wound which would eventually kill him, the Liu vassal kings eventually proved to be unreliable as well. ^note During Liu Bang's grandson Emperor Jing's reign, a rebellion of 7 vassal kings (all surnamed Liu and led by Liu Pi, a nephew of Liu Bang) broke out; the issue of powerful vassal kingdoms would not be resolved until Jing's son Emperor Wu's reign. Wu tackled the issue once and for all by allowing all sons of vassal kings to inherit land after their father's death; previously, only one son could inherit, and said son would inherit the entire kingdom. Even so, the Western Jin gave the system of vassal kingdoms another try; the utter failure led to the War of the Eight Princes. About a millennium later, Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang again created vassal kingdoms; the result was that his son Zhu Di launched the Jingnan campaign and crowned himself emperor.
• "Reason You Suck" Speech: Han Sheng did not hold back in admonishing Xiang Yu for wanting to eventually abandon Xianyang and return to his home state, even going so far as to insult the people of Chu despite knowing he'd be put to death.
• Regent for Life: Zhao Gao tried to enforce this after Shi Huangdi's death. He succeeded in killing Huhai, but fell to Ziying.
• Sibling Murder: After ascending the throne, Huhai killed tens of his brothers and sisters.
• The Spymaster: Chen Ping, who used misinformation to devastate Xiang Yu's ranks. ^note Historically, it was more outrageous as not only did Liu Bang grant him the huge sum of money he requested, Liu added no further conditions.
• There Is No Kill Like Overkill: After the Feast of Hong Gate, once Cao Wushang admitted that he had betrayed Liu Bang, Liu's officers descended upon him and essentially reduced him to meat paste. ^note Historically, it was not recorded how Cao died, only that the first thing Liu Bang did after returning from the feast was to kill him.
• Time Skip: The series skips over the majority of Liu Bang's reign as emperor. The scene of Han Xin returning to his hometown of Huai Yin took place around 202 B.C., when he was the newly minted King of Chu. The next scene, where news of Chen Xi's rebellion being put down was announced, took place in around 196 B.C.; by this time, Han Xin was already demoted to the Marquis of Huai Yin.
• We Used to Be Friends: Liu Bang and Lu Wan. As Liu removed the various non-Liu vassal kings one by one, Lu eventually rebelled, but failed and escaped north to the Xiongnu; Lu eventually died in exile.
  • Downplayed with Xiao He and Cao Can; although they did drift apart, they were still professional enough to work together for the Han. ^note It was a historical mystery why their personal relationship broke down, although historians have speculated that Cao was unhappy that Xiao was given the honor of being the one who contributed the most to the establishment of the Han, instead of himself.
• What the Hell, Hero?: During his initial occupation of Xianyang, Liu Bang's officers grew increasingly frustrated with his indulgence in food and women while their soldiers terrorized the conquered populace. Zhang Liang threatened to abandon his army, claiming he was no better than any other opportunist of the age. Fortunately he got better by the third day of occupation.
  • Similarly after occupying Xianyang, Xiang Yu partook in increasingly brutal measures from allowing his and the vassal kings armies to pillage the city, executed all members of the Qin royal family, and then assassinated the vassal kings who showed cowardice during the rebellion. The destruction of Xianyang struck a particular cord with Fan Zheng and Liu Bang.
• Won the War, Lost the Peace: While Xiang Yu won almost every battle he fought, his lack of wisdom and governance ultimately turned the masses and many of his followers against him. ^note While not depicted in-series, after Xiang Yu's death, Ji Bu eventually surrendered to the Han Dynasty.
• Young Future Famous People: Lady Bo would later become empress dowager after the death of Lv Zhi and the ascension of her son (Emperor Wen); all subsequent Han emperors were descended from her and Liu Bang.
  • Liu Bang's grandson Liu Xiang, seen as a kid in the last episode, would later help his grandfather's comrades to put down the Lv clan after Lv Zhi's death in 180 B.C..

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