Like millions of ordinary Chinese citizens whose families and lives were disrupted by the ten years of chaos and violence of the Chinese Cultural Revolution, the Zong Wei was left with the question, "why did this happen to us?" Equipped with the investigative skills of a former policeman and journalist, he has spent decades combing through the records to find answers. In bringing that answer to the public, Wei also brings to light many of the obscure events - some violent, some bizarre - that made this turbulent period so unpredictable and disorienting to those who lived through it.