How was the tribute system an expression of the chinese view of themselves and their relationship to the world? the tribute system required non-chinese to acknowledge chinese superiority and their own subordinate place in a chinese-centered world order. the tribute system was based on the assumptions that unity was a natural condition and that china was destined to rule the entire world. the tribute system maintained the racial purity of the chinese people by prohibiting intermarriage between chinese and non-chinese peoples. the tribute system celebrated the multicultural diversity of the chinese people and encouraged cultural borrowing?