Blast from the past

TVB dramas may lead viewers to become more dramatic, exaggerating minor events in their lives to make it seem like the end of the world.  However, the period dramas can be really educational, since they tell the stories of people in the past, be it from the Three Kingdoms era or the turbulent early 20th century.

one interesting take-away from The Confidant was that our knowledge/perception of certain historical figures is really heavily dependent on what is written in the history books/folklore.  For better or worse, certain traits of people may be exaggerated for different reasons.  This drama showed that perhaps Empress Dowager Cixi was not that much of a despot after all, or head enuch Li Lian Ying could have been a righteous guy, both who wanted the best for the Qing Dynasty, but having to ruthless measures in order to stay in power in order to achieve these grander goals.

A more pertinent example is how Zhuge Liang is often painted as a wonder strategist, who always managed to win battles even when the odds were stacked against him.  A closer look reveals that Zhou Yu was probably more accomplished, not only being the main brains behind the victory at Red Cliffs, but also being a warrior-strategist at that.

Besides that, history offers valuable lessons for us today.  Towards the end of the Qing Dynasty, Cixi and other officials made a belated effort to reform the government and save the regime.  Although China had adopted Western technologies, they were resistant to institutional and social reform, which impeded the progress of the country.  This is something very relevant to us today, where the need for ideological change within the political leadership is needed to ensure that society remains cohesive and the country continues to prosper.