n was the source of the legends surrounding Lao-Tzu, or "Old Tan;" there is some reason to believe that he had nothing to do with what later became Taoism, but was in fact an arch-conservative expert in the traditional rites (Graham, 1981, p. 126-28). But whatever the facts are (if any) about Lao-Tzu, Taoism took on its distinctive classical form within the next few centuries, in the exposition of Chaung-tzu (c. 369-286 BC).
Still other philosophical schools appeared in the three or four centuries after Confucius. Confucianism itself received reinforcement and further definition from Mencius, who lived between 372 and 289 BC. Mohism, derived from Mo-tzu (c. 470-391 BC), thrived as an active school for some centuries, though it later vanished, leaving little trace in the subsequent development of Chinese thought (Michael, 1986, p. 53). Legalism, derived from the writings of Hsun-tzu, Han Fei-tzu, and Li Ssu, all in the third century BC, was adopted in substantial measure as the "official" school of Ch'in Shih Huang-ti, the founder of the Chinese Empir
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