Cleopatra VII Philopator (Late 69 BC – August 12, 30 BC), known to history as Cleopatra, was the last pharaoh of Ancient Egypt and the last ruler of the Macedonian dynasty, founded by Alexander the Great's general, by 42 BC, Augustus and his allies had gained the upper hand. They divided the Roman Empire between them. Augustus took Rome, and Marc Antony took Egypt. Marc Antony fell in love with Cleopatra soon after they first met. Captivated, he decided to stay with her in Egypt. The news spread quickly and worried many Romans. They believed that Cleopatra was planning the unthinkable and wanted to rule Rome for herself. Rumors then spread that Marc Antony and Cleopatra had married. In truth, this is unlikely: he was already married – to Augustus’ sister, Octavia – and it was illegal for a citizen to marry somebody who was not. But to many, the rumors seemed to confirm that Marc Antony had fallen for the worst possible type of woman and switched sides. Relations between Augustus and Marc Antony disintegrated. In Rome, Augustus let loose a barrage of negative publicity about the couple. He then revealed that Marc Antony had made arrangements to leave large gifts and royal titles in his will to his illegitimate children by Cleopatra. This was widely seen as definitive proof that Antony and Cleopatra were leaders of a rival empire and wanted to invade Italy and conquer Rome for themselves. Augustus urged the Senate to strip Antony of his powers and declared war on Cleopatra. In 31 BC, Augustus’ army and navy clashed with Antony and Cleopatra's Egyptian forces at Actium in Greece, in what Virgil would later depict as an epic struggle of eastern barbarians against western civilization.
Qin Shi Huang Di's side
Thinking in character's position:
Meng Tian
Meng Tian was a general of the Qin Dynasty who distinguished himself in campaigns against the Xiongnu and in the construction of the Great Wall. By the time the Qin Dynasty conquered the other six states and began its reign over a unified China in 221 B.C., the nomadic Xiongnu had grown into a powerful invading force in the north and started expanding both east and west. Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty, sent a 100,000-strong army headed by General Meng Tian to drive the Xiongnu northward for 1,000 li (about 416 km) and began work on what has become known as the Great Wall to guard against invasion. When Prince Fusu, Qin Shi Huang's eldest son and the then-crown prince, was exiled to work at the northern border for disputing his father's policies, Meng Tian was ordered to assist the prince — a task he had accomplished loyally. When the Qin Shi Huang died, Meng's death was brought about through the plotting of Zhao Gao. He was forced to commit suicide in prison, and his family was killed. Three years after his death, the Qin Dynasty collapsed.
Li Zhi
Li Zhi was a prominent Chinese philosopher, historian and writer of the late Ming Dynasty. Li Zhi's philosophy was based upon Neo-Confucianism, though he was a staunch critic of the orthodox Cheng Zhu School, and indeed identified himself as a heretic. He can be seen as having been influenced by Wang Yangming, as well as the Taizhou School, and preached a form of moral relativism. He denied that women were inferior to men in native intelligence, and that many historical women such as Empress Wu were actually superior. However, he did not believe women should be emancipated and commended widows who chose suicide over remarriage. His philosophical works included A Book to Hide and A Book to Burn. In A Book to Hide he evaluate about 800 historical figures very differently with conventional books which is opposite to Confucianism. Li Zhi strongly commended Qin Shi Huang Di, called him "the best emperor for thousand years".