New, network-based perspective on the genesis of ancient empires and their long-term impact, which can be applied to other cases of imperial state formation as well as in the comparative study of empires. First English-language monograph that extensively uses the recently published archival documents from Liye, a uniquely detailed source that sheds light on the early stages of Chinese imperial rule in southern East Asia. Integrates the recent breakthroughs in archaeological and historical research on specific regions of southern East Asia with the analysis of political-economic dynamics of ancient Chinese empires. First study that focuses on the southern frontier zone as a crucial stage of institutional innovation in ancient Chinese empire. The concept of "imperial network" proposed in the present study contributes to the debates about the applicability of world-system model for interpreting long-distance economic interactions in premodern world.