This chapter, serving as the introduction, begins by posing a series of pivotal questions to engage the reader and by providing a summary of the key points. The section on institutional divergence paints a broad, motivating picture of the divergence in institutions since the late nineteenth century between Japan on the one side, and Russia and China on the other. Both Russia and China initially emulated Japan’s efforts toward a constitutional monarchy. After outlining the nature of China’s institutional evolution, the chapter then emphasizes how the concept of institutional genes, stemming from both China's imperial legacy and the institutional genes transplanted from Soviet Russia, can be utilized to explain the rise and development of communist totalitarianism in China.