''The Qin Empire III'' is a 2017 Chinese television series based on Sun Haohui's novel of the same Chinese title, which romanticizes the events in China during the

Warring States period The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...

primarily from the perspective of the

Qin state Qin () was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty. Traditionally dated to 897 BC, it took its origin in a reconquest of western lands previously lost to the Rong; its position at the western edge of Chinese civilization permitted ex ...

under King Zhaoxiang. It was first aired on

CCTV-1 CCTV-1 (CCTV General Channel) is the primary channel of CCTV, the national flagship terrestrial television network of the People's Republic of China. It broadcasts a range of programs from CCTV Headquarters at East 3rd Ring Road in Beijing and ...

in mainland China in 2017. It was preceded by ''

The Qin Empire The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), the ...

'' (2009) and '' The Qin Empire II: Alliance'' (2012) and followed by '' The Qin Empire IV'' (2019), which were also based on Sun Haohui's novels.

Plot

The series is set in the late fourth century BC to the mid-third century BC during the

of China. In 305 BC, a young Ying Ji (King Zhaoxiang) becomes the ruler of the

in western China after the sudden death of his brother, Ying Dang (King Wu). As he is still underage then, his mother

Queen Dowager Xuan Queen Dowager Xuan of Qin (; 338(?)–265 BC), also known as Mi Bazi (羋八子), was the first queen dowager in Chinese history. A concubine of King Huiwen of Qin and the mother of King Zhaoxiang of Qin, Queen Dowager Xuan acted as regent for h ...

and maternal uncle

Wei Ran Wei or WEI may refer to: States * Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States * Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...

rule on his behalf as regents until he comes to of age. With the aid of the minister

Fan Ju Fan commonly refers to: * Fan (machine), a machine for producing airflow, often used for cooling ** Hand fan, an implement held and waved by hand to move air for cooling * Fan (person), short for fanatic; an enthusiast or supporter, especially wit ...

and general

Bai Qi Bai Qi (; – 257 BC), also known as Gongsun Qi (), was a Chinese military general of the Qin state during the Warring States period. Born in Mei (present-day Mei County, Shaanxi), Bai Qi served as the commander of the Qin army for more than 3 ...

, King Zhaoxiang starts making aggressive advances against the other six states in the east. Under his rule, the Qin state destroys the Yiqu state, builds a section of the

Great Wall The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' wall") is a series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against various nomadic groups ...

, defeats the Qi and Chu states in battle, forces the Wei and

Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...

states into submission, and inflicts a devastating defeat on the Zhao state at the Battle of Changping. After demonstrating its military power through its victories, in 256 BC the Qin state finally puts an end to the

Eastern Zhou dynasty The Eastern Zhou (; zh, c=, p=Dōngzhōu, w=Tung1-chou1, t= ; 771–256 BC) was a royal dynasty of China and the second half of the Zhou dynasty. It was divided into two periods: the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States. History In 770 ...

, the nominal suzerain power over the warring states. These events paved the way for the Qin state's eventual unification of China under the

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ; zh, c=秦朝, p=Qín cháo, w=), or Ch'in dynasty in Wade–Giles romanization ( zh, c=, p=, w=Ch'in ch'ao), was the first dynasty of Imperial China. Named for its heartland in Qin state (modern Gansu and Shaanxi), ...

within the next half-century.

Cast

; Main cast *

Ning Jing Ning Jing (; born April 27, 1972) is a Chinese actress and singer. She is best known for playing Milan in ''In the Heat of the Sun'' (1994), Danzhu in '' Red River Valley'' (1997), Angel in '' Lover's Grief over the Yellow River'' (1999) and Emp ...

of Qin * Zhang Bo as Ying Ji (King Zhaoxiang of Qin) * Xing Jiadong as

* Lu Ning as Queen Yeyang of Qin * Zhao Chunyang as

* Shen Jiani as Zhao Man * Wu Liansheng as

* Wang Huichun as

King Min of Qi King Min of Qi () (323–284 BC, ruled 300–284 BC) was a notoriously unsuccessful king of the northeastern Chinese state of Qi during the Warring States period. "Famous for his paranoia and megalomania, the king was the archetype of the unworth ...

* Wang Shuangbao as

Lian Po Lian Po (; – 243 BC), was a prominent general of the Zhao state in the Warring States period of Chinese history. He was named by Chinese historians as one of the four greatest generals of the late Warring States period, along with Bai Qi, W ...

* Chen Hao as King of Yiqu * Peng Bo as

King Huai of Chu King Huai of Chu (, died 296 BC) was from 328 to 299 BC the king of the state of Chu during the Warring States period of ancient China. He was born Xiong Huai () and King Huai (懷, a different Chinese character) was his posthumous title. Kin ...

* Yang Zhigang as Mi Yuan * Zheng Tianyong as Zhao Yang * Wang Xiaoyi as

Su Qin Su Qin (380–284 BCE) was a Chinese political consultant and philosopher who was an influential political strategist during the Warring States period. He was born in Chengxuan Village, Luoyang in present-day Henan Province. According to legend S ...

* Huo Qing as Lord Mengchang of Qi ;Other cast * Fu Dalong as

King Huiwen of Qin King Huiwen of Qin (; 356–311 BC), also known as Lord Huiwen of Qin () or King Hui of Qin (), given name Si (駟), was the ruler of the Qin state from 338 to 311 BC during the Warring States period of Chinese history and likely an ancestor of Em ...

* Fu Miao as Queen Huiwen of Qin * Wang Zitong as Wei Lingyou * Ma Xiaoning as Wei Youzhan * Yuan Yu as Tang Bazi * Zhou Bo as Ying Ji (Chuli Ji) * Sun Qiang as Gan Mao * Ying Qiang as Mi Rong * Ji Yongqing as Sima Cuo * Jin Shengyu as Meng Ao * Yin Jing as Wang Ji * Sui Tangyang as Wang He * Wu Yuze as Wei Choufu * Peng Guobin as Ying Shi * Zhang Jingwei as Ying Kui * Lu Jia as Zheng Anping * Shen Baoping as Li Bing * He Shubiao as Li Erlang * Hu Jiaxu as Ying Zhuo * Qiu Donghong as

Hushang Hushang Help:IPA/English">hʊ'ʃəŋ.html" ;"title="Help:IPA/English.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Help:IPA/English">hʊ'ʃəŋ">Help:IPA/English.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Help:IPA/English">hʊ'ʃəŋor Hōshang (in ), Middle Persian 𐭤𐭥𐭱𐭭𐭢 ...

* Sun Rong as King Zhaoxiang of Yan * Wang Di as Jihu * Dang Hao as

Yue Yi Yue Yi (), enfeoffed as Lord of Changguo (), was a prominent military leader of the State of Yan during the Warring States period of ancient China. He was the son of the prime minister of the state of Zhongshan, but when Zhongshan was destroyed by ...

* Chen Liang as Jiming * Ma Sai as Goudao * Li Zonghan as Tian Jian * Gao Jin as Lord Xinling of Wei * Wu Hongwu as King Zhao of Wei * Liu Zhongyuan as Wei Yu (King Anxi of Wei) * Di Jianqing as Wei Qi * Yao Runhao as Xu Gu * Yan Yichang as Hou Ying * Jiao Junxiang as

Lin Xiangru Lin Xiangru () (died July 260 BCE) was a politician and general of the Warring States period, who served the state of Zhao. He figures prominently in two stories of the period, namely the episode and the namesake ''chengyu'' of " Returning the Jad ...

* Li Huailong as

King Huiwen of Zhao King Huiwen of Zhao () (born 310 BCE - died 266 BCE, reigned 298 BCE – 266 BCE) reigned in the State of Zhao during the Warring States period of Chinese history. During his reign, the Zhao state reached its apogee, with famous administrators and ...

* Zhang Di as Zhao Dan (King Xiaocheng of Zhao) * Liu Naiyi as Lord Pingyuan of Zhao * Song Chongdong as Lord Pingyang of Zhao * Zhou Le as Lord Fengyang of Zhao * Qi Tao as

Zhao She Zhao She ( 3rd century BC; zh, 趙奢) was a Chinese bureaucrat and general for the State of Zhao during the Warring States period. Biography Zhao She's origins and early life were unknown, other than he was initially employed as a land tax co ...

* Zhang Yiwen as

Zhao Kuo Zhao Kuo (; died 260 BCE) was a general of the state of Zhao during the Warring States period in ancient China. He lost the epic Battle of Changping between the states of Zhao and Qin."Records of the Grand Historian", vol. ''Han Dynasty I'', tr ...

* Gao Ying as Zhao Kuo's mother * Ma Xiaoning as Lou Huan * Liu Jun as Yu Qing * Luo Tianyou as Mao Sui * Chen Zhou as King Xi of Han * Ren Xuehai as Gongzhong Chi * Yang Tieran as Feng Ting * Liao Wei as Xiong Heng (King Qingxiang of Chu) * Lu Siyu as Xiong Wan (King Kaolie of Chu) * Wei Hua as Zilan * Xiahou Bin as Jin Shang * Xu Dongsheng as Lord Chunshen of Chu * Jin Song as Nao Chi *

Chen Xiao Chen Xiao (, born 5 July 1987) is a Chinese actor and model. He is best known for his roles in ''Swordsman'' (2013), '' Legend of Lu Zhen'' (2013), ''The Romance of the Condor Heroes'' (2014), ''Who Sleeps My Bro'' (2015), '' Nothing Gold Can S ...

as Mi Yan

Broadcasts

Rating

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External links

*
''The Qin Empire III'' official page
on CCTV's website {{DEFAULTSORT:Qin Empire III, The 2017 Chinese television series debuts 2017 Chinese television series endings Television series set in the Zhou dynasty Television shows based on Chinese novels Chinese historical television series The Qin Empire (TV series) Television series set in the 4th century BC Television series set in the 3rd century BC