Was ancient china and ancient Mesopotamia founders of democracy?

Ancient China and Ancient Mesopotamia were not democratic, and were ruled by kings who thought they had the blessings of the gods. Commoners were sources of grain and tribute, not people whose opinions were relied upon to run the government. Democracies depend on a public that knows what is going on around them and can think about the issues. The only people who were educated at the time were those who were in families that could afford it.