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

Han Dynasty

"Is this the Reign of Zhenguan?"

Liu Che remained silent for a long time; he did not understand.

Why did the amount of money in Li Shimin's treasury increase with each transaction, and why did the number of households also increase?

Does this mean that Li Shimin didn't spend money on wars and that none of his soldiers died in battle?

Liu Che looked at the glaring household registration figures on the sky, the smiles on the faces of the people of Chang'an, and their high spirits and positive energy.

He thought of the emaciated, poorly clothed children he had seen in villages near Chang'an during his recent inspection tour. Their eyes lacked the vitality of the people of Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty; instead, they were filled with lifelessness and numbness.

"Sang Hongyang, how many households were there in the Han Dynasty when I first ascended the throne?"

After a long silence, Liu Che finally spoke with difficulty, asking the Grand Minister of Agriculture, Sang Hongyang, a question.

Sang Hongyang was in charge of the nation's household registration and finances, and he knew all the figures by heart. After a moment's thought:

"When Your Majesty first ascended the throne, the population of the Han Dynasty was approximately 7.2 million households."

"And now?"

Sang Hongyang swallowed hard, forcing out a sentence:

"Around four million households!"

Liu Che knew that the population of the Han Dynasty was declining, but he didn't care.

All of this was for the purpose of striking at the Xiongnu.

Three hundred thousand Xiongnu archers gazed longingly at the prosperous Central Plains from the grasslands.

If the Xiongnu are not dealt with, the Han Dynasty will suffer the same fate as the Ming Dynasty in later generations.

Liu Che had no regrets. Exhausting the nation's resources and the copper coins accumulated by generations of Han emperors in the treasury—it was all worth it if it could completely annihilate the Xiongnu!

But now the Xiongnu have been destroyed.

Liu Che seemed to see again the lifeless eyes of the children in the village.

It's time to stop the war and let the people rest!

During the Kaihuang era of the Sui Dynasty,

The atmosphere inside the hall was extremely somber. Yang Jian sat high on the dragon throne, staring blankly at the sky.

"Lord Dugu, what is the current population of the Sui Dynasty?"

Dugu Gong, also known as Gao Jiong, served as the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel during the Kaihuang era, in charge of the nation's population.

Gao Jiong's expression was solemn.

"Eight million seven hundred thousand households!"

During the Kaihuang era, in order to investigate and identify the population that had fled or hidden across the country, a large-scale search and registration process was carried out, resulting in a rapid increase in the number of households.

Yang Jian remained silent for a long time after hearing this number.

From the Kaihuang era to the early Zhenguan era, a mere thirty-odd years, the population and number of households decreased by nearly two-thirds.

He knew that in times of chaos, most people fled into the mountains to escape war and taxes, and were not on the government's register.

However, Yang Jian did not believe that Li Shimin, with his abilities, would fail to conduct a thorough population check.

In other words, Yang Guang transformed the Sui Dynasty, with eight million households and over forty million people, into a mere two million households and twenty million people in less than twenty years.

When Li Yuan saw that Li Shimin had destroyed the Eastern Turks in just three years and even had Jieli dance in front of him, he must have been very pleased.

Follow-up comment: How can a person be this awesome!

Follow-up comment: Li Yuan: You rascal, you're awesome! You've brought people back to life, it's New Year's!

Follow-up comment: Stay away from your lousy Jixiang Village!

At that moment, Li Yuan saw Li Shimin bring Jieli to court and all the nations came to pay tribute, and he felt completely relieved.

Follow-up comment: Historically, it was indeed at this time that Li Shimin came to terms with it. He was building the Yong'an Palace for Li Yuan when Li Yuan passed away before it was completed.

Li Shimin longed for a single word of approval from Li Yuan his entire life.

Follow-up comment: Li Shimin wanted to prove one thing: his abilities were superior to his elder brother's! The throne should belong to him!!

During the Zhenguan era of the Tang Dynasty,

Li Shimin looked cautiously at his father, Li Yuan, standing before him.

He didn't know if, after seeing his future achievements, Aye would acknowledge him as the message in the sky suggested.

He opened his mouth as if to ask a question, but the words caught in his throat as he couldn't find the right words to say.

It is an undeniable fact that I killed my elder brother and Li Yuanji; what is said on the screen is merely speculation.

Are you suggesting we make him ask a question?

Father, I killed my elder brother, didn't I?

The hall was silent for a long time. Afterward, Li Yuan, supporting his aged body, slowly walked to the entrance of the hall, looked up at the sky, and his gray eyes were filled with complex emotions.

Wouldn't it have been better to pass the crown prince position directly to Erlang at that time? Then all the subsequent events would have been avoided.

"Erlang, you did a great job as emperor!"

"Better than Dad, and better than your older brother!"

A hoarse voice, tinged with relief and regret, entered Li Shimin's ears.

"Waaah~"

Li Shimin covered his face and wept bitterly, tears streaming down his face through his fingers.

He waited for it; he finally got his father's approval.

Emperor Taizong of Song regarded the Treaty of Wei River as a disgrace, while Emperor Zhenzong of Song regarded the Treaty of Chanyuan as an honor and performed the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai.

Follow-up comment: When it comes to shamelessness, I would call Emperor Zhenzong of Song the most shameless!

Follow-up comment: They've really lost all sense of shame!

Song Dynasty

Emperor Zhenzong's face darkened immediately. He only wanted to perform the Fengshan ceremony; what had he done wrong?

Was there anything wrong with the Treaty of Chanyuan? What's wrong with exchanging a small amount of money for lasting peace on the border?!

These descendants don't understand at all. The money and food consumed in the war far exceeded the "rewards" given to Liao!

"Wang Qinruo!!!"

"You treacherous villain!! Offering such a wicked scheme as the Fengshan ceremony, you just want to make the emperor infamous for eternity, don't you?!"

Taking this opportunity, Sun Shi launched into a tirade against Wang Qinruo.

He intended to take advantage of the opportunity presented by the evaluation of the descendants of Tianmu to dispel Zhao Heng's desire to perform the Fengshan ceremony.

Wasn't Zhao Heng's trip to perform the Fengshan ceremony precisely to salvage his reputation?

What now?

"Your Majesty, shall we still perform the Fengshan ceremony?"

Wang Dan spoke with a tone of relief, even a hint of schadenfreude in his eyes.

He was already strongly dissatisfied with the Fengshan ceremony. Otherwise, if Zhao Heng hadn't summoned him to the palace, pleaded with him, and even given him a jar of pearls, he wouldn't have compromised!

Forced into a corner, he took the lead in submitting a petition requesting the Fengshan ceremony.

"I'm not going! I'm not going!!!"

"I'll never go to the Fengshan ceremony again in my life!!"

Zhao Heng was unable to abolish the Treaty of Chanyuan, or rather, he did not want to.

But the Fengshan ceremony is possible.

If it weren't for Wang Qinruo, Ding Wei and others constantly urging me to perform the Fengshan ceremony, would I have even considered it?

It's all their fault!!

Ming Hongwu

"Li Shimin can indeed be considered a virtuous and wise ruler!"

Zhu Yuanzhang, as a ruler who fought his way to power through war, recognized and admired Li Shimin's military and political abilities.

"Let's not discuss private morality, but it's a pity there's one thing," Zhu Yuanzhang said with great regret.

"He doesn't seem to be very good at raising his son!"

"Treat his own eldest son, who is also the crown prince, this way, no wonder Li Chengqian ultimately did what he did!"

To be honest, aside from some shortcomings in his personal morality, Li Shimin really didn't have any problems, right?

Follow-up comment: That's true, but this private morality... well, how should I put it, is a big problem. It sets a very bad precedent.

Follow-up comment: Li Shimin probably never expected that Li Chenggan would be so similar to him; they were practically identical.

Is this praising Cheng Gan?

Li Shimin's eyes flashed. Isn't it a good thing that his son resembles his father?

Why did Tianmu sound so regretful? It was as if Li Chenggan being like him was something bad.

Four emperors of unparalleled historical significance couldn't produce a single crown prince.

Follow-up comment: Let's not even talk about emperors of all time. Which crown princes in history have successfully succeeded to the throne?

Follow-up comment: Li Shimin, wasn't he the crown prince himself?

Follow-up comment: You didn't mention Li Jiancheng at all!!

[Fusu was forced to commit suicide by Huhai with a forged imperial edict; Liu Ju was forced to death by Emperor Wu of Han due to the witchcraft scandal; Li Chenggan was exiled for plotting a rebellion; Zhu Biao died suddenly from illness.]

Follow-up comment: Being a crown prince is truly a dangerous profession!!

Follow-up comment: The first crown prince was Emperor Hui of Han, Liu Ying, whose fate was not good either. Although he ascended the throne, he died young.

The words displayed on the celestial screen caused a great uproar. Whether it was the emperor, court officials, or ordinary people, everyone was in utter shock, trying to process the information.

Did Emperor Taizong of Tang's crown prince rebel?!