The death of Qin Shi Huang did not bring stability to the Qin Dynasty, but instead caused a series of upheavals. His eldest son, Fusu, was made crown prince, but shortly after the death of Qin Shi Huang, he was poisoned by his half-brother Hu Hai, who succeeded him as Qin II. After Qin II ascended the throne, political corruption and people's livelihood were poor, which caused social turmoil.
At this time, a wave of rebellion gradually arose in the Qin state. The rebel armies responded, and large-scale anti-Qin struggles broke out in various places. Among them, the Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprisings led by Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were the most eye-catching. The revolt began in 209 BC, and the rebel army quickly captured many cities of the Qin state, posing a serious threat to the Qin dynasty.
The Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprisings spread rapidly, and many places that were originally attached to the Qin state responded and joined the ranks of the rebellion. This situation made Qin II feel deeply in crisis, and he hurriedly mobilized his army to suppress it, but it was difficult to deal effectively with it due to political corruption and internal and external difficulties. The internal turmoil in the Qin state also provided an opportunity for other anti-Qin forces.
The anti-Qin wave quickly spread to the Guanzhong region, and the Central Plains, which had been relatively stable due to the rule of Qin Shi Huang, fell into chaos. The powerful forces and the original vassal states in various places took the opportunity to restore and overthrow the centralized system established by Qin Shi Huang. The internal part of Qin was divided into a number of separatist forces, forming a situation of secession and chaos.
The effects of Chen Sheng's Wu Guang uprising even spread to the Qin Dynasty's frontier regions. Seeing the civil strife in the Qin Dynasty, the northern nomads took the opportunity to launch attacks, which exacerbated the plight of the Qin State. In the south, areas that had prospered under the influence of the economic policies of the Qin Dynasty were also affected by the turmoil, and the wealthy clans in the south began to organize a revolt.
Qin II experienced the rapid collapse of the state and the collapse of the regime in just three years. In 207 BC, he was forced to abandon the capital of Xianyang and flee to the base of Chen Sheng's Wu Guang rebel army in Liangdi. Faced with a disintegrating empire, Qin II committed suicide in a mixture of grief and anger, ending the era of great unification created by Qin Shi Huang.
After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, leaders such as Chen Sheng and Wu Guang failed to establish a lasting and stable regime, and the contradictions and infighting between them put the united front of the anti-Qin coalition in jeopardy. Powerful forces in various localities competed for territory, the separatist forces were divided, and the Guanzhong region became a battlefield of secession and chaos. This period is known in history as the "Troubled Era at the End of Qin".
In the situation after the fall of the Qin Dynasty, various forces vied with each other to seize more territory, forming a complex and changeable political pattern. Historians call this period the "transitional period of the Warring States period", because at this time, various forces tried to find their place in the chaotic situation and competed for the position of hegemon.
The political turmoil and warlord separatism of this period eventually provided an opportunity for Liu Bang's rise. Liu Bang rose to prominence in this chaotic situation, and eventually succeeded in establishing the Han Dynasty, ushering in a new era in Chinese history.
Overall, Qin Shi Huang's superstition and obsession with immortality eventually led to his personal failure, which spread throughout the Qin dynasty. His great cause of unification quickly collapsed within a few years of his death, the Qin Dynasty fell, and Chinese history entered a new phase. This history is both a contest of power and a profound reflection on human desires. In the vortex of power and desire, humanity is confronted with the transience of life and the impermanence of history.