In 1162, deep in the heart of Asia, a child was born. He was clutching a blood clot(血块), a sign from heaven that he was destined to be a great warrior. His life was to become a legend, his name---Genghis Khan.

Many believe his story is simple, that he was the incarnation of evil, a brutal barbarian who butchered millions. But the real character of Genghis Khan is far more intriguing. How did this illiterate outcast turn the feuding tribes of Mongolia into a powerful nation and how did he transform the Mongol hordes into a ruthless and disciplined fighting machine, an army with revolutionary tactics and ingenious weapons that ultimately stood poised to conquer Europe. And why on his deathbed, did he believe his divine mission remained unfulfilled?

Soon I will know death, but I will never know my destiny.

Shortly after his death, his heirs gathered their memories into an epic account of his life. They called it the Secret History of the Mongols(蒙古秘史). Evidence from Chinese and Persian sources, the work of leading scholars and the Secret History allow this to be the most complete television portrait of Genghis Khan ever made. The characters are all real historical figures and the words of Genghis Khan are rooted in the great speeches of the Secret History. This is the story of how that tiny fist turned to iron and came to rule the largest land empire ever known to man.

In 1215, the Mongol warrior Genghis Khan led his army to Beijing, capital of Northern China. After fighting his way across Asia, the city stood before him. But Beijing was protected by formidable defenses. Surrounding it was a wall 12 meters high and 30 kilometers long. Behind the wall was one of the world's most advanced armies. First, Genghis Khan besieged the city. Then he ordered an audacious attack. He forced enemy prisoners to fill his front lines. He built new weapons to attack the city's defenses. Finally, having endured the Chinese arrows and bombs, he commanded his Mongol warriors to scale the walls. Genghis Khan sensed victory was within his grasp. Beijing was fighting for its life.

A poor nomad from the remote Mongol steppe, Genghis Khan had made an extraordinary journey. The boy, who would become Genghis Khan, was called Temujin(铁木真). He was the son of a tribal warrior chief. When he was only nine years old, he received news that was to change his life.

incarnation: the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form

butcher: kill,slaughter

disciplined: showing a controlled form of behaviour

deathbed: the bed where someone is dying or has died

on his deathbed: while he lay dying, right before he died