During the Qin Dynasty, Qin Shi Emperor unified the six countries and established the first unified centralized state in Chinese history, the Qin Dynasty was not satisfied with unifying Chinese mainland, they also had ambitions to include the surrounding areas into the Chinese territory, the story of Xu Fu of the Qin Dynasty went to sea has attracted much attention, and it is interesting that Xu Fu went to sea not to find a elixir, but to include Japan in the Chinese territory.
Xu Fu was an official during the Qin Dynasty, he was sent to the sea to find the elixir, the elixir has always been a dream pursued by mankind, hoping to prolong life and even achieve immortality, the ruler of the Qin Dynasty, Qin Shi Huang, also longed for immortality, so he sent Xu Fu to the sea, but Xu Fu had his own plan.
Before setting off, Xu Fu made clear his true purpose: to include Japan in the Chinese territory, and he knew that Japan's geographical location was very important to China, because Japan was China's natural barrier against foreign invasion, and Japan also had rich resources, especially timber and mineral resources, which were of great strategic importance to the Qin Dynasty.
Xu Fu's fleet arrived in Japan soon after departure, they successfully landed using the seafaring technology of the time, and made contact with local leaders, Xu Fu demonstrated China's cultural and military prowess, and showed the Japanese how strong China was, and they told the Japanese that only by joining the Chinese territory could Japan truly develop and prosper.
Japan's leaders began to consider the proposal, realizing that an alliance with China would allow them to gain protection and benefit from China's technology and resources, and they also realized that if they rejected China's proposal, they could face armed aggression from China.
The Japanese leaders agreed to China's proposal to include Japan in China's territory, Xu Fu became China's ruler over Japan, he was appointed governor of Japan, responsible for managing Japan's affairs, and over time, China's cultural and political system gradually penetrated into Japan, and Japan gradually became a vassal state of China.
Although Xu Fu's actions did not find an elixir, they fulfilled the Qin Dynasty's desire to include Japan in China's territory, and this story tells us that Xu Fu's actions to the sea were not only for personal pursuits, but also for the interests and strategic considerations of the country, and his actions demonstrated the Qin Dynasty's ambition and desire to control its neighbors.
The story has also sparked some controversy, with some arguing that Xu Fu's actions were an invasion of Japan, a form of disrespect and plundering of other countries, and that China should respect the sovereignty and independence of other countries, rather than trying to incorporate them into China's territory.