Scenes of ancient China and quotes from Sun Tzu s "Art of War". Around 2,000 years ago, China was in turmoil. A series of wars left the leaders in search of a new way of governing. Confucius and Lao Tzu had developed their solutions but Sun Tzu s philosophy, born of his direct experience of war and life and death struggle, also gained a popular following amongst the ruling class. In The Art of War, Sun Tzu recommended a strategic method to win that rarely required actual war.