The Chinese believed that emperors were chosen by god, which is why emperors are also called the Son of Heaven. Emperors were in charge of the civilization and were honoured for their intelligence and bravery.
The Chinese people can easily tell the difference between a good emperor and a bad emperor, though nowadays we know that it won’t work. Emperors were expected to act in the interest of the people. The Chinese believed that ancestors in heaven brought protection and good luck if the emperor was kind and fair; otherwise, ancestors will bring in natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes. If many natural disasters happened during a short period of time, the people will rebel and choose a new emperor, even if the emperor has done nothing wrong. They called this the Mandate of Heaven.
Emperors always tried their best to protect himself and his people, afraid of natural disasters that might come and destroy his position. They tried to be best so the ancestors, according to the Mandate of Heaven, will give protection and good luck to their people. That is how most emperors felt.
All the “god-chosen” emperors were either totally kind to his people or just plain hungry for power.