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

The scene shifts to a snowstorm as Qing troops trek arduously across the Gobi Desert.

The pacification of the Dzungar Khanate was the most significant of the Ten Great Campaigns.

Led by the renowned general Zhao Hui, they annihilated this once-powerful nomadic empire and brought the entire Xinjiang region under their control.

The pacification of the Khoja brothers was entirely Zhang's own doing; he simply let them go.

The rebellion was not too difficult to quell, but it did effectively bring control of southern Xinjiang, which can be considered a success.

The second pacification of the Gurkha was of great significance to the consolidation of Tibet. The second pacification was decisive and efficient, while the first pacification was a complete disaster.

The Sino-Burmese War was fought four times, and the country managed to drag Burma down by relying on its national strength.

As for the remaining campaigns—pacifying Lin Shuangwen, pacifying Miao Jiang, and pacifying Gansu and Hui—these all fall under the category of civil war. While they may have been meaningful for maintaining stability, can civil war be considered a meritorious act?

"Why can't we just let it go?"

Emperor Qianlong's voice was weak, and he himself realized that he lacked confidence.

If he had known that future generations would be so nitpicky, he should have included King Pingzang in the story.

That was at least a pacification of the outer vassal states, so it was a legitimate cause.

The perfect old man! The perfect old man!

Emperor Qianlong simply thought the number ten sounded nice. Who would have thought that later generations would take it so seriously, arguing about it point by point?

While Emperor Qianlong was secretly calculating his next move, people in other dynasties were already in an uproar.

The point isn't this perfect martial art, but how much money it would cost.

"The Greater and Lesser Jinchuan regions cost 78 million taels of silver? What about the Dzungar Khanate? Burma? The Gurkha Khanate?"

"My God, how much grain is that? How many soldiers could that feed?"

"The Qing Dynasty was incredibly wealthy!"

Liu Che's eyes widened like copper bells, and he tried to bend the needle with his fingers, but couldn't manage it.

The Han Dynasty was constantly at war with the Xiongnu, and the national treasury had long been depleted. They even had to use white deer hides as money.

In order to raise funds for the army, he established a salt and iron monopoly, exploiting merchants to the point of destitution.

Even so, before each expedition, Wei Qing would grit his teeth and stomp his feet while looking at the national treasury accounts.

As a result, the income from just one battle during Emperor Qianlong's reign was almost equivalent to several years' income for the Han Dynasty!

"Sang Hongyang, calculate for me how much money Emperor Qianlong spent on wars alone."

Sang Hongyang had been calculating the abacus several times, and the veins on his forehead were throbbing.

He bowed and gave an estimate: "Your Majesty, I believe it is at least 200 million or more."

"Two...two hundred million?"

Liu Che gasped and slumped back on the dragon throne.

He wasn't unfamiliar with money, but this figure was beyond his imagination.

What kind of magic formula did Emperor Qianlong use to turn stones into gold?

Taiji Palace.

Li Shimin was also silently calculating in his mind.

As the god of costs, his sensitivity to the costs of war is unparalleled.

The conquest of the Eastern Turks, Xueyantuo, and Tuyuhun were all accomplished with minimal expenditure.

Upon hearing Qianlong's bold and ambitious war proposal, Li Shimin remained motionless for a long time.

"Keming, Xuanling, how much silver does the Tang Dynasty's annual treasury revenue amount to?"

After a moment's thought, Fang Xuanling cupped his hands in reply: "In the early days of the Tang Dynasty, the annual tax revenue was only a few million strings of cash, which is equivalent to a few million taels of silver."

"Several million..."

Li Shimin muttered to himself, feeling that the Qing Dynasty was truly wealthy.

If he had two hundred million taels of silver, why would he bother with appeasement and division tactics with the Turks?

They simply threw money at the Turkic strongholds and buried them in gold!

Changsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, and the others looked at each other and discussed among themselves.

They had little interest in Emperor Qianlong, but were extremely interested in how to make money!

This is a living example of how to enrich a country and strengthen its military!

So, all things considered, the title of "Perfect Old Man" is mostly boasting, but he is certainly not perfect in every way.

There was nothing inherently wrong with martial arts skills, but Emperor Qianlong insisted on creating a perfect score for himself, so it's no wonder that others have started to criticize it.

Moreover, Emperor Qianlong was able to win so many battles primarily thanks to his grandfather and father.

Kangxi snorted coldly, finally feeling much better.

This young man still has some conscience; he didn't attribute all the credit to Hongli.

Emperor Hongli was generous with his money, but he never considered where the money came from.

Emperor Yongzheng remained expressionless, twirling two walnuts in his hands, making a crackling sound.

He reviewed memorials until the early hours of the morning every day, and managed to gradually replenish the national treasury.

The reform of the "fire tax" system was met with criticism, the rectification of officialdom was met with hatred, and the "equalization of land tax and poll tax" almost forced local officials to go on strike.

Having painstakingly accumulated this little bit of wealth, Hongli squandered it without batting an eye.

Emperor Kangxi established a fixed poll tax, quelled the Rebellion of the Three Feudatories, and initially unified the Mongolian Plateau.

If it weren't for the Dolon Nor meeting, Emperor Qianlong would never have been able to conquer the Dzungar Khanate in his lifetime.

Emperor Yongzheng rectified official corruption, implemented the policy of abolition of the tax surcharge, established the Grand Council, and promoted the integration of land tax and poll tax...

When Emperor Qianlong took over, the national treasury held 60 million taels of silver, and the officialdom was relatively clean and efficient.

At the same time, the Qing Dynasty was experiencing a period of rising national strength and a booming demographic dividend, providing it with substantial resources.

"Five-fold perfection is fine, it's better than nothing."

Emperor Qianlong shifted his position on the dragon throne, muttering reluctantly.

He can't possibly start a fight with someone hundreds of years later over something that will be judged by posterity.

After reviewing this ridiculous martial arts, shouldn't we move on to civil administration?

Emperor Qianlong rubbed his hands together and sat up straight again.

While martial arts skills may be exaggerated, civil administration is always the real deal.

Even if Tianmu said that the people's lives were not good, can he be entirely blamed?

The family business was passed down from their ancestors, and the population grew naturally. He didn't force the people to have children.

Even if they didn't achieve anything, they should at least have put in the effort, right?

Emperor Qianlong picked up his teacup and took a sip, waiting for the sky to open.

Now that we've discussed martial arts, let's talk about civil administration. As is customary, we'll start with the strengths.

Emperor Qianlong was the emperor who provided the most disaster relief and exempted the most taxes and levies in the history of the Qing Dynasty and even the entire feudal dynasties.

In his later years, he taught himself Tibetan and wrote "The Lama's Sayings," which established the Golden Urn system to resolve disputes over the reincarnation of Living Buddhas.

This system has had a profound impact and is still in use today, playing a crucial role in stabilizing Tibet.

In addition, Emperor Qianlong had an extremely high sensitivity to information.

They could judge the situation at the front from the memorials to the emperor, and see through who was lying about military intelligence and who was being perfunctory.

This intelligence analysis ability was among the best of feudal emperors.

"Drawing lots in the Golden Urn?"

Emperor Qianlong was taken aback for a moment, then his eyebrows lit up with excitement.

He hasn't figured this out yet, but Tianmu said it's something he'll be working on in the future, so it's perfect to just copy it!

An 80-year-old man taught himself Tibetan and was able to write political essays that have been passed down through generations.

This learning ability would be commendable in any era.

Heshen, below, offered his congratulations repeatedly, his lips moving swiftly: "Your Majesty is wise and mighty; even later generations follow your system. What an honor!"

Several ministers echoed this sentiment, and the Hall of Mental Cultivation was filled with praise and admiration.

Emperor Qianlong was elated, waiting for Tianmu to continue praising him.

However, after waiting for a while, the image on the screen did not move.

The Hall of Mental Cultivation fell silent.

The smile on Qianlong's face froze, gradually fading away.

The same approach was used when evaluating Zhu Yuanzhang earlier.

First praise, then remain silent, then turn hostile.

"No--"

Emperor Qianlong shouted at the sky: "I collected books from all over the country and compiled them into a book for the compilation of the Siku Quanshu. Isn't that a civil achievement?"

"And then there were the Southern Tours! I made six trips to the south to inspect river works and show my concern for the people!"

"You descendants have gone too far! Why are you so harsh on me? You treat Li Longji (Emperor Xuanzong of Tang) with more courtesy than you treat me!"

Now that we've covered the advantages, let's move on to the disadvantages.

Let's take a look at how many pitfalls Emperor Qianlong, who ruled for sixty years and was hailed as a professional emperor, dug for posterity.