Sky Curtain: My Great Qin must have an aircraft carrier!

Lu Li leaned against the headboard, his fingers constantly swiping the screen.

When Meng Cheng walked in, he couldn't take it anymore. "How long have you been sitting here? I came back from two classes and you're still in the same position."

"If you don't get up and eat right now, you're going to be eating compressed biscuits!"

"No, Godfather!"

Lu Li slumped onto the bed, drawing out his words, "Godfather, could you please bring me one?"

"You've already called me godfather, what can I say?"

Despite his verbal complaints, Meng Cheng nimbly turned and left.

Less than ten minutes later, Meng Cheng returned with a bowl of braised pork rice.

"I will never forget my godfather's immense kindness and virtue!"

Lu Li slid down the ladder and opened the lunchbox lid.

Looking at the dark reddish-brown chunks of meat, Li Shimin swallowed hard, then glanced at the imperial dishes on the table.

The steamed buns, stewed chicken, and millet porridge that I usually enjoyed suddenly tasted bland and tasteless.

Is this what ordinary people eat in later generations? Even the imperial banquets in the palace are no better than this.

Is the national strength of the new China truly this powerful?

Even the daily meals of an ordinary person can surpass the imperial cuisine of the emperor.

"I wish I could be born in the next life."

Li Shimin muttered to himself as he picked up a piece of chicken with his chopsticks, but hesitated to put it in his mouth.

Spices were scarce in the Tang Dynasty, and they were usually stewed with ginger and salt.

Whether he ate or not was irrelevant; he wouldn't break down over a little food. He was just amazed by the wealth of later generations.

While he was still in a daze, Cheng Yaojin leaned close to his ear and lowered his voice.

"Your Majesty, my old ox wandered off at night and accidentally broke its leg and died."

"If you'd like to try some, I'll have someone send some over later."

Li Shimin turned to look at Chen Yaojin, his expression somewhat subtle.

"If I remember correctly, your family also lost a cow last month."

"Uh...yes."

"The month before last, another one of your family members fell to their death. Is your Duke Lu's mansion built on a cliff or something?"

Cheng Yaojin remained calm and composed, scratching the back of his head as he argued, "My family's cattle pen has been in disrepair for many years, and the old oxen are not very agile; it's common for them to fall and die."

"It's so cold outside, it'd be a shame to leave the beef out for too long. Shall I bring you some?"

Li Shimin's lips twitched; he didn't know how to refute it.

The laws of the Tang Dynasty strictly prohibited the private slaughter of oxen, but accidental deaths were not included.

Cheng Yaojin discovered this, and his family's oxen always seemed to have some kind of accident.

However... the taste of beef is truly something to miss.

Li Shimin lowered his voice: "Hurry up and have someone bring it in, before that stubborn old man Wei Zheng sees it!"

During the Song Dynasty, Su Shi, who was demoted to a certain place, was sitting in his own courtyard, tasting the newly made Dongpo pork.

Just as I picked up a piece to put in my mouth, I happened to see the braised pork rice bowl on the sky.

Su Shi's chopsticks froze in mid-air, his eyes wide with surprise.

What kind of meat is that?

Its color is deeper than that of Dongpo pork, the sauce looks thicker, and every piece of meat is glistening!

"Wonderful! The cooking methods of later generations are truly exquisite!"

Su Shi swallowed the meat, his eyes filled with longing. "If I could just have a taste, I would gladly be banished three thousand miles away!"

Su Shi looked at the sky with great longing.

No, I need to do some research later to see how to make the meat look like a canopy.

Lu Li had already eaten about half full, and took out his phone to continue scrolling through short videos.

As you swipe your finger, a new title appears on the screen.

Why didn't ordinary people in ancient times go fishing or hunting even when they were starving?

"What the heck?"

Countless farmers who were working stared at the headline for a long time, then spat in annoyance.

"Do you think we're fools? We're starving, how could we possibly have the strength to fight wild boars up in the mountains?"

"Is that fish even edible? The fishy smell is even stronger than a rotten pickle jar that hasn't been changed in three years!"

"We don't even have a river here. Every year, people fight tooth and nail for water. Where would we get fish?"

"Leaving aside the ferocious beasts and venomous snakes, those mountains and forests were mostly owned by landlords. If you went in to poach and got caught, you'd be beaten half to death!"

The people were all complaining and venting their frustrations at the sky.

This question is infuriating; it's practically a parody of "Why don't they eat meat porridge?"

They're just ignorant, not stupid!

They've already tried to solve the problems you can think of; it's simply not worth it to explain them!

Outside the Qianqing Palace in the Forbidden City.

Zhu Youjian looked at the title on the sky and instructed Wang Chengen, "Bring a chair over."

Wang Chengen dared not delay and quickly brought over a carved pear wood chair.

Zhu Youjian sat down, but his gaze did not leave the sky.

He also wanted to know why.

People often ask, "In ancient times, when there was a famine, people always ate tree bark, clay, and grass roots to fill their stomachs."

But the ancient ecosystem was quite good, with rivers in many places. Why didn't they catch some fish to eat?

"Where's the environment good? You're just spouting nonsense!"

Upon hearing that the ecological environment was good, Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't contain himself.

When he conquered Nanjing, he wanted to repair and expand the palace, but he found that there wasn't even a small tree to be found nearby.

In the end, they forced the Ministry of Works to travel hundreds of miles to the deep mountains and forests to bring back a few towering trees.

Not to mention that people's daily lives are inseparable from firewood.

Let alone near the city, there are hardly any forests within a radius of several miles. Where does the good ecology come from?

The city in later generations was full of lush greenery, which Zhu Yuanzhang envied so much that he ended up missing the ancient times.

"Biao'er, do you think people in later generations are too well-fed and completely ignorant of human suffering?"

Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but complain, "Our son must not be raised to be like this."

Zhu Biao's lips moved slightly, but he did not refute.

If ancient times were really that good, there would be no need for people to flee famine or escape disasters!

Let's switch places, and I'll show you what true cruelty is!

First of all, everyone should understand that famine in ancient times was usually caused by drought, floods, or locusts.

First, let's talk about drought. If it can be called drought, it means that it hasn't rained for several years, there's no water in the rivers, so where can you catch fish?

Some people have said, "If there's a flood, won't there be so many fish that we can't eat them all?"

The fish aren't stupid. Floods cause water quality to deteriorate, so the fish will either migrate early or become corpses.

Everyone should understand that animal carcasses are a major source of plague.

In this situation, eating fish is basically tantamount to courting death.

In fact, even before the Qin Dynasty, people had already realized that human and animal corpses could lead to major epidemics.

Eating grass roots might allow one to survive, but eating corpses will quickly lead to illness and death.

"A major disaster is always followed by a major epidemic."

Ying Zheng nodded slightly, agreeing with Tian Mu's words.

When the law was drafted, it was stipulated that the carcasses of livestock that died of disease must be buried deep or kept away from the source.

Anyone who takes dead animals without authorization in an epidemic area will be punished for spreading the disease.

"But even in the event of a natural disaster, the imperial court can still provide relief, right?"

Ying Zheng quickly realized something, his expression showing a hint of suspicion.

The heavenly curtain repeatedly emphasizes the difficulties caused by natural disasters, so where is the imperial court?

We can't just watch the people starve to death and then rebel because we can't stand it anymore, can we?