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

Liu Bei was already in tears, sobbing and weeping.

He couldn't understand why, even in later generations when the country was powerful and wealthy, the lives of ordinary people remained so impoverished.

He built such a massive palace because of his own selfish desires.

With time running out and the task so demanding, the only option left was to sacrifice the lives of ordinary people.

Liu Bei watched in anguish as the people in the sky fell one by one, pecked at by vultures and crows, and piled up haphazardly.

I wish I could go back to the Sui Dynasty myself to save these people.

Even saving just one person would be helpful!

Zhuge Liang also looked sorrowful, feeling sorry for the people in the sky.

He did the math carefully: if the mortality rate was this high, and if the number of able-bodied men was to remain above two million every month, then at least three million people would have been conscripted in total.

The entire Shu region had only about 200,000 registered households, with a population of nearly one million men and women.

This still includes men, women, young and old.

However, Emperor Yang of Sui conscripted far more able-bodied men than that number.

If the people's strength is not cherished to such an extent, then no matter how much grain is in the national treasury, it is all in vain, and the people's hearts have long been lost!

There's a saying online: "Anyone can criticize Yang Guang, but scholars cannot, because Yang Guang implemented the imperial examination system, which provided scholars with a path to advancement."

This is utter nonsense. First of all, the prototype of the imperial examination system appeared as early as the reign of Emperor Wen of Sui. Emperor Wen selected officials through examinations, while Emperor Guang only established the Jinshi examination subject.

Furthermore, only thirteen scholars were admitted to the imperial examinations in fourteen years. How could this be considered providing a path for advancement or giving opportunities?

Moreover, to participate in the exam, one needed a recommendation from an official of the fifth rank or above; none of the high-ranking officials in the six ministries came from humble backgrounds.

Xue Daoheng, the foremost scholar of the Sui Dynasty, was driven to suicide by Emperor Yang Guang, who was jealous of his literary talent.

"Well said!!"

The scholars and literati of the Song Dynasty cheered in unison, saying that the heavens had finally spoken a fair word.

They almost vomited when they saw the flattering words displayed on the sky.

Later generations said that the Song Dynasty was weak, and they accepted that; it was indeed true that they couldn't defeat those foreign tribes.

But why should Yang Guang be treated with such leniency?

They even said that only scholars can't be criticized, but scholars are the ones who should be criticizing Yang Guang!

"Wei Zheng was too lenient!"

Ouyang Xiu shook his head and sighed, saying that the Book of Sui, edited by Wei Zheng, was incredibly lenient towards Yang Guang.

After that, neither rural literati nor official historical records offered any praise for Yang Guang.

But is simply recounting what Yang Guang did considered defaming him?

Let's return to the Grand Canal, which has been praised by countless people as a case of "crimes in the present, but merits for future generations."

The Grand Canal we know today is the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, built during the reign of Kublai Khan, the Yuan Dynasty emperor. The Grand Canal built by Emperor Yang Guang was the Sui-Tang Grand Canal.

[Leaving aside the fact that Emperor Wen of Sui had previously constructed some branch projects, Yang Guang completed the Grand Canal, which is more than 2,700 kilometers long, in just six years.]

From the first year of the Daye era (1064), when more than one million people were conscripted from Henan and Huaibei to dig the Tongji Canal, to the completion of the Yongji Canal in the north in the seventh year of the Daye era (1075), this Grand Canal was built in six years.

However, this canal is basically built using existing canal channels, rather than being constructed from scratch.

The construction of the Tongji Canal and the Yongji Canal required the conscription of over a million men. Even during the construction of the Yongji Canal, the country still lacked sufficient male laborers, leading to the forced conscription of women into service.

"The Tongji Canal, built in the first year of the Daye era, conscripted over a million able-bodied men."

"In the first year of the Daye era, the eastern capital Luoyang was still under construction, with more than two million people still needed."

Liu Bang's expression grew increasingly horrified, while Xiao He continued talking.

"Moreover, these two projects require the constant replenishment of able-bodied men, plus other labor services, roughly adding it all up..."

"Within a year, Yang Guang conscripted more than half of the able-bodied men in the country, and at least two or three out of ten of them died."

"Hiss~"

"Hiss~"

Someone meticulously listed the number of able-bodied men conscripted by Emperor Yang of Sui in a year. The courtiers and Liu Bang in the hall all gasped in shock, and the temperature in the hall dropped several degrees.

"You originally thought that the Qin Dynasty's conscription of able-bodied men for service was cruel and arduous enough."

"Yang Guang was even worse!!"

Liu Bang, unusually, toned down his unruly demeanor and slammed his hand heavily on the table.

"damn it!"

"If your father sees this brat, he'll skin him alive!!"

Liu Bang witnessed firsthand the devastation of the late Qin Dynasty, a time of utter desolation with corpses lying along the roadside, and not even a stray dog ​​in sight!

"Big brother!! I'm skilled, let me do it!!"

Fan Kuai spoke angrily, his beard and hair bristling, and he brandished his hand like a knife, searching for the familiar feeling from back then.

If Liu Bang hadn't led them in an uprising, they probably would have been conscripted into the army sooner or later.

"Even women were conscripted for labor, which shows that the people's strength had been exploited to the limit!"

As the prime minister in charge of the entire Han Dynasty, Xiao He naturally had a deep understanding of this situation.

When Liu Bang fought against Xiang Yu, he suffered multiple defeats, ran out of food, and lost many soldiers.

If it weren't for Xiao He's timely allocation of grain and replenishment of troops, Liu Bang's predicament would have been self-evident.

"If Yang Guang had built this canal and it truly benefited future generations, as later generations have said, then we could at least make up for it a little."

"But judging from Yang Guang's current attitude, he probably had other purposes in building the canal."

Zhang Liang spoke softly, immediately putting Liu Bang and the others on edge.

[It is said that this canal will benefit future generations, but by the end of the Sui Dynasty, the canal was already severely blocked, and the Tang Dynasty spent a great deal of effort to dredge it.]

[Such a massive project was abandoned in just a few years; wasn't this a waste of public resources?]

Moreover, Yang Guang's purpose in building this canal was not entirely pure.

[It's now said that the canal did indeed serve to consolidate the north and south, and this objectively achieved the desired result. But was this Yang Guang's subjective intention?]

This outcome does not equate to Yang Guang having such a motive.

Anyway, after the canal was completed, Yang Guang had a great time.

[Starting from the first year of the Daye era, giant dragon boats were built, extremely luxurious, with a fleet of boats stretching over two hundred li and employing more than 80,000 boatmen.]

[After that, rare treasures, grains, and silks from Jiangnan were continuously transported to Luoyang to satisfy Yang Guang's insatiable desires.]

Every dynasty in ancient China built canals, from King Fuchai of Wu to the Ming and Qing dynasties. Yang Guang was the first emperor to bring about the downfall of his country by building canals.

Three million people were used, and by the end of the Sui Dynasty, the roads were blocked?

If I remember correctly, it was completed in the sixth year of the Daye era. The entire Daye era lasted only fourteen years.

Was a project that benefited three million people completed in less than ten years?

It would take a lot of effort from the Tang Dynasty to repair it later.

Could it be that this canal was only used by Emperor Yang of Sui and then abandoned?

Isn't this a waste of national strength and a pointless sacrifice of so many able-bodied men's lives?

The common people and officials of the early Tang Dynasty nodded frantically, their faces filled with lingering fear.

Some people, still harboring resentment, picked up stones from the ground and threw them into the air.

That canal is so clogged, and they still have the nerve to say it benefits future generations?

We don't find it convenient at all.

It wasn't you who fixed it!!