Sky Curtain: The Overlord Charges into Battle, Shocking Emperors of All Dynasties

Han Dynasty

Emperor Wen of Han, Liu Heng, was unusually angry.

"That's incredibly stingy!!"

"With such a lack of love for the people, it's no wonder the Sui Dynasty perished after only two generations!"

"Even if you accumulate vast amounts of grain and wealth, if you lose the hearts of the people, in the end you'll only be working for someone else's benefit!"

As a role model for later emperors, Liu Heng deeply understood that an emperor must love his people, even if it was just in appearance.

Therefore, he set an example by personally cultivating the land and reducing his punishment.

Liu Heng originally thought that Emperor Wen of Sui was so talented that he must be a wise and virtuous ruler, but his successor and the source of his throne were a hindrance.

As stated on the screen, for an emperor, the legitimacy of the throne, or rather, the emperor's morality, is not as important as his talent.

For example, Li Shimin, Zhu Di, and even Emperor Wen of Han, Liu Heng.

Liu Heng was enthroned as emperor by ministers such as Chen Ping and Zhou Bo. Within three months of ascending the throne, his original queen and four sons all died of illness, and the cause of death, their names, and burial places are all unknown.

An emperor can be ruthless and suspicious, but he cannot appear to disregard the people.

Whether or not an emperor loved his people could be considered the highest standard for judging an emperor in ancient China.

Thinking of this, Liu Heng thought of his grandson, Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, who decisively defeated the Xiongnu and wiped away the shame of the Han dynasty.

He doesn't seem to care about the people either!

During the Kaihuang era,

Yang Jian looked at the sky with a solemn expression, then lowered his eyes and thought for a moment. It seemed that this was indeed something that his personality would lead him to do.

There was no other way; he was terrified of being poor.

He dared not touch a single bushel of those grains!

Food is the lifeblood of a nation. If we don't accumulate enough, we won't leave a substantial fortune for the next emperor.

What if I want to do something big in the future but don't have the money to support it?

Fighting the Turks requires money, quelling the southern rebellion requires money, the Great Suomaoyue campaign requires money, and building the canal also requires money.

Yang Jian also worked on canals, but he only built some short-distance canals.

If we don't spend money wisely on everything, what will we do?

Yang Jian's frugality and stinginess had a remarkable effect; very few dynasties in ancient China could rival the wealth of the Sui Dynasty.

Yang Jian concentrated all the wealth of society in the hands of the state, creating a situation in the Sui Dynasty where the country was rich but the people were poor.

The Sui Dynasty was so wealthy that it bestowed tens of thousands of bolts of silk upon the Turks on each occasion.

To showcase the wealth of the Sui Dynasty to envoys from the Western Regions, Emperor Yang of Sui held a grand variety show in Luoyang, providing the envoys with free food and drink. He also had all the trees in Luoyang wrapped in expensive silk, and ordinary people in Luoyang could watch the performances without paying an entrance fee.

In ancient times, people of all social status and position would curse loudly upon seeing this scene.

The emperor berated Emperor Yang of Sui for his unrestrained spending, saying that their own treasury was almost empty enough for mice to run through.

How could Emperor Yang of Sui be so lucky to have a father who could save money for him!

"The brat sells his grandfather's land without a second thought!!"

Zhu Yuanzhang retorted sourly, "He's heartbroken!"

So much silk, and they even gave the people of Luoyang free theater performances—all of this is assets from the national treasury!

If the Ming Dynasty were that wealthy, it would have sent a large army to wipe out the Northern Yuan long ago.

"Dad, you have to make us proud!!"

Zhu Di feigned profundity, adopting an air of wishing his father would become a dragon among men.

"Save more money for your older brother, otherwise he'll have to worry about not having enough money to do anything big in the future!"

Zhu Yuanzhang raised an eyebrow and said, "Didn't I build up a fortune for them?"

"Shut your mother..."

Zhu Yuanzhang realized something was wrong and quickly shut his mouth; this was something he couldn't say.

"Didn't I leave you with a fortune? If you need money, go print more!!"

"Just print the money, and spend as much as you want!!"

Zhu Yuanzhang, hands on his hips, said matter-of-factly.

Zhu Biao smiled helplessly after hearing this, "Do you still want to print as many copies as you want?"

The value of paper money now is less than half of what it used to be.

From now on, it'll only be good for wiping your butt!

Yang Jian used harsh methods and a frugal attitude to quickly pull the Sui Dynasty out of the weakness that had persisted for centuries of chaos. Within two or three decades, the country achieved unification, economic prosperity, and a surge in population.

Although he was indeed stingy and suspicious, this cannot overshadow his achievements.

When the Sui Dynasty was first established, the country had only about 359 million households and 2900 million people. Thirty-eight years later, in the fifth year of Emperor Yang of Sui's reign, the number of households reached 890 million and the population reached 4600 million.

This certainly included the purpose of a nationwide census and a thorough search of household registrations, but Emperor Wen of Sui's role cannot be ignored.

The Sui Dynasty built a vast grain storage system throughout the country. Despite the extravagance of Emperor Yang of Sui, the grain reserves at the end of the Sui Dynasty could still supply the country for fifty or sixty years. Even more than twenty years after the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, the grain in the Sui Dynasty's granaries was still not exhausted.

The Three Departments and Six Ministries system, along with the examination and selection of talent, laid a solid foundation for the initial construction of the Grand Canal.

A safe and stable external environment, an army full of fierce generals, a court full of capable ministers, a large population, ample food reserves, and advanced weaponry.

This is the substantial legacy that Yang Jian left to the second emperor of the Sui Dynasty. In Chinese history, no founding emperor has ever left as much wealth to his second emperor as the Sui Dynasty.

I'm envious.

So enviable!

The eyes of emperors from all dynasties had turned into lemons, sour and astringent.

They had never enjoyed such a large fortune before.

Either their emperor father left behind a mess, and they said they would solve it themselves, trusting in the wisdom of future generations.

Either the treasury is full, but the external environment is dangerous.

There have only been two cases like this in history!

...

There wasn't a trace of bitterness in Qianlong's eyes; in fact, he seemed quite pleased with himself.

The fortune his father, Emperor Yongzheng, had amassed for him was far greater than that of Emperor Yang of Sui.

"Emperor Yang of Sui? A complete spendthrift!!"

"They squandered the vast wealth Emperor Wen of Sui had accumulated for them, and couldn't even conquer Goguryeo!"

"When I pacified the Dzungars and the Greater and Lesser Jinchuan, which time did I not achieve victory?"

"Family assets are meant to be spent, but they must be spent wisely!"

"I have not wasted the national treasury left to me by the late emperor!"

Emperor Qianlong never considered the issue of money; if there was a shortage, he would simply take money from the national treasury and increase taxes on the people.

Even if all else fails, I still have a piggy bank, right?

Ying Zheng clutched his chest; he felt a sharp pain in his heart.

The difference between the Sui Dynasty and the Qin Dynasty in later generations was surprisingly great.

Logically speaking, even knowing that Emperor Wen of Sui left such a vast fortune to his second emperor, Qin Shi Huang should have understood why the Sui Dynasty still only lasted two generations.

I wouldn't say I'm extremely happy, but I certainly shouldn't be depressed.

However, Ying Zheng realized a problem.

It's not the juxtaposition of things that's scary, but the comparison.

Emperor Wen of Sui left such a rich legacy to the Second Emperor, but what about him?

In comparison,

Doesn't that just show his incompetence as the founding emperor?

Look at Fusu's eyes!

Fusu stood obediently in place, his eyes filled with envy as he gazed at the sky, wishing he could take his place!

A short while later, Fusu lowered his head, gently shook his head, and looked at Ying Zheng with expectant eyes.

Father, you must live up to your expectations!