He is a very outstanding politician and strategist, I think. However, he is too cruel. He only knows suppress his citizens and makes them suffered. Finally, a lot of people stand out to fight against him and his regime. The Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin, once said that the water that bears the Boat is the same that swallows it up. Actually, he just wanted to use this metaphor to describe the relationship between a emperor or a king and his citizens. In my opinion, Emperor Qin Shi Huang doesn't know this principle very well.