秦二世 / 胡亥 / Qin Er Shi
秦二世 / 胡亥 / Qin Er Shi appears in 《资治通鉴·周纪》71丨荀子的性本恶论 as a comparison case in 司马光’s Xunzi-backed ruler warning. The source groups him with 齐湣王 and 宋康王 / 宋君偃 as rulers whose situations became so bad that they could not simply step down and live safely as commoners.
This page is source-scoped. The episode does not narrate Hu Hai’s reign; it uses him as a later dynastic example for the same political-security principle behind 荀子王霸三分法: occupying supreme power magnifies both success and ruin, so rule by coercion or deception can make retreat impossible once support collapses.