All through the feudal history, Chinese emperors kept the thrones for their male siblings. Interestingly, the earliest Chinese emperors did not chose their successors by consanguinity but by election. Their successors were elected because of their outstanding ability and high moral standard.

The first Chinese emperor in history was said to be Yao. When he turned old, he called up the chiefs all over the country to discuss about his successor. Some suggested his son, but was refused by Yao. His reason was his son was not morally sufficient for the throne, because he loves quarrelling with others. Another man called Gonggong was named for the throne because he performed very well in the irrigation work. The suggestion was again turned down by Yao, because he found Gonggong was modest in front of people but acting the other way round in behind. So there was no result in the first consultation.

After a while, Emperor Yao called up another meeting. This time many chiefs recommended an obscure young man named Shun. He was named for his filial piety and good moral record. Although his blind father and stepmother and stepbrother treated him badly, but he remained a filial son and a loving elder brother. Yao decided to find out about the young man himself. He married his two daughters to Shun and gave him a granary of grain and a herd of sheep, which was considered a treasure at the time. This made Shun's family very envious. The blind father, the stepmother and the stepbrother began to think of ways to kill Shun and take his treasures.

They took away the ladder and set fire to the granary when Shun was working on its top. Fortunately Shun got away from the granary with the help of two wide-rimmed bamboo hats. Another time, they ask Shun to work under a well. When Shun got down into it, they threw stones into the well until it was filled up. Again, smart Shun dug tunnel from the wall of the well and escaped. He returned home and treated his father and brother just as usual, without even mention the incidents. At last his family gave up killing him.

After close observation, Emperor Yao nominated Shun as his successor. The Emperor Shun was still modest and worked just as hard alongside his people. When he got old, he chose the very able and widely respected Yu as the throne successor, much in the same way Yao chose himself.

It was believed that there was no power struggles at the times of Emperors Yao, Shun and Yu and emperors lived just as happily and simply as the normal people. Chinese historians call their ways of choosing successors Throne Abdication.