My life is like walking on thin ice

Chapter 531 Fengchan?

Liu Rong was not qualified to comment on the historical reality of the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing.

In the current timeline, Liu Rong has witnessed the first half, or rather, the first two-thirds, of the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing.

no way.

Liu Rong, like a butterfly, has actively stirred up many storms with her wings.

But the most significant storm was not something Liu Rong intended.

Historically, Emperor Wen of Han reigned for 27 years, while Emperor Jing of Han reigned for 16 years.

Together, they reigned for a total of forty-three years, a period historians refer to as the "Reign of Wen and Jing."

In the world that Liu Rong transmigrated to, Emperor Taizong was still on the throne for twenty-seven years, but Emperor Xiaojing, Liu Qi, unexpectedly only reigned for six years before peacefully leaving this world.

Liu Rong attributed the reason to the following: Historically, Crown Prince Liu Rong was implicated by his birth mother, Consort Li, and was eventually deposed and made Prince of Linjiang.
The other older sons were all useless—they had all sorts of bad habits and were all of poor quality, forcing Emperor Xiaojing to start anew and select his tenth son, Liu Zhi, to be trained from scratch.

Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, whose real name was Liu Zhi, was born in the seventh year of the reign of Emperor Xiaowen of the Taizong Emperor, which was the same year that Emperor Xiaowen died.

Emperor Jing's reign titles were directly based on Emperor Wu's age—one year old in the first year of Xiaojing's reign, two years old in the second year of Xiaojing's reign, and so on.

Emperor Xiaojing (Liu Qi) devoted all his efforts to cultivating this successor.

Perhaps he was truly provoked by Consort Li's "old dog" remark, or perhaps it was to ensure that Emperor Wu of Han would inherit the throne at the oldest and most mature age possible;

From the third year of Emperor Xiaojing's reign, when the Wu-Chu Rebellion was quelled, to the fifth year when he first fell critically ill—until the sixteenth year of Emperor Xiaojing's reign.

Spurred on by Consort Li's exclamation of "old dog," and driven by his desire to shield Emperor Wu of Han from the storms of war for a few more years, Emperor Jing of Han, Liu Qi, survived for another eleven years after his first critical illness.

In this timeline, Crown Prince Liu Rong was no longer burdened by his birth mother, Consort Li. Emperor Jing was no longer provoked by the word "old dog" and no longer needed to protect the young Emperor Wu of Han for a few more years.

As Liu Rong matured, Emperor Jing's worries about his successor lessened until finally, he was completely at ease and no longer wished to endure the fate of death. He accepted his destiny and passed away peacefully.

If we disregard the "Reign of Wen and Jing" and look at it purely from a practical perspective, this matter actually makes Liu Rong quite proud.

—A capable ruler who, in the original history, was worried about his successor and refused to give up for eleven years, passed away peacefully after becoming the crown prince!
In particular, the successor whom this emperor was worried about was the historically renowned Emperor Wu of Han!
Anyone would find it hard not to feel proud in such a stark contrast.

However, it must be acknowledged that Liu Rong's emergence—his unexpected success leading to Emperor Jing's untimely death—indirectly resulted in the "Reign of Wen and Jing" in history, which, within the timeline in which Liu Rong lived, was only partially revealed.

As people often say, "One minute on stage requires ten years of practice off stage."

The same principle applies to feudal dynasties, and indeed to every "golden age" in the history of human civilization.

A prosperous era that lasts for decades may require decades, centuries, or even hundreds of years of diligent governance and slow accumulation by predecessors before it is finally manifested in the form of a prosperous era.

Just like the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing of the Han Dynasty, the foundation was laid by Emperor Gaozu's pioneering efforts in establishing the Han Dynasty, eliminating the feudal lords of different surnames, and Empress Lü's hard work and iron-fisted rule over the country for many years.

Even the so-called prosperous era of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing was still in the accumulation stage during the reign of Emperor Taizong Wen—at least in the early period.

During Emperor Taizong's 27-year reign, it wasn't until the last ten years or so that the people of the land began to feel: Hey, life is getting better.

Oh, so it's a wise and benevolent ruler on the throne.

A significant portion of the achievements and effectiveness of the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing were accumulated during the reign of Emperor Wen and became apparent during the reign of Emperor Jing.

As a result of Liu Rong's time travel, Emperor Jing Liu Qi's reign was shortened by a full ten years!
Therefore, after Liu Rong ascended the throne, he found it difficult to say whether the positive changes and achievements that occurred during his reign were due to his own actions or the lingering effects of the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing, which had not yet had time to take effect, but which happened to materialize after his accession.

But there are a few things that Liu Rong is fairly certain of: it must be his own achievement—or at least 'the credit belongs to me'.

The first thing to benefit was the introduction of wheat flour, which greatly reduced the hunger rate among the lower classes of the Han people and significantly improved their sense of well-being.

For farmers, happiness is never that complicated.

Being able to eat your fill is happiness.

Being warmly dressed is happiness.

Not going hungry, not getting cold, and being able to eat meat every now and then, that would truly be the life of a celestial being, a life that only exists in heaven.

In addition, the significant increase in grain production, coupled with the dual approach of state monopoly on grain production, has stabilized the grain market in the Han Dynasty—currently limited to the Guanzhong region—to the greatest extent possible, greatly enhancing the risk resistance capabilities of Han farmers.

Farmers with high risk resistance have a low chance of falling back into poverty and becoming tenant farmers.

And the self-cultivating farmers were the most indispensable foundation of rule for the Han dynasty—or rather, for every feudal agrarian regime in China.

In other words, Liu Rong's implementation of the wheat harvesting system, along with the government monopoly on grain, directly improved the income, happiness, and resilience of Han farmers, and indirectly consolidated the foundation of Han rule.

Liu Rong was able to confirm this achievement, and there was no need to discuss whether it was actually the work of Emperors Wen and Jing.

Mass production—mainly the steady increase in millet production—is indeed inseparable from the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing.

However, Liu Rong can readily attribute the credit for the large-scale promotion of Sumai wheat, the emergence and promotion of interviews, and the rapid increase in grain production in recent years due to external factors such as fertilizers, farming methods, and farming tools.

Then there's the official system and bureaucratic structure.

In the past, the Han dynasty's bureaucratic system was not chaotic, but it was cumbersome and rife with overlapping duties and unclear division of responsibilities.

The most representative example is that the prime minister is the prime minister of the whole country, while the Grand Secretary is the prime minister of Guanzhong.

The realm encompasses Guanzhong, and the prime minister is also the prime minister of Guanzhong. In other words, Guanzhong has two "prime ministers" with full authority. Similarly, in the military, there are generals in charge of logistics, generals in charge of the security of logistics routes, and generals in charge of protecting the rear on the battlefield, ready to switch from the rear guard to the front guard and lead the army in retreat—all called generals, but their duties are completely unrelated, and the difference in their authority is greater than the difference between a human and a pig.

When issuing orders, whether from high-ranking military generals or the imperial court in Chang'an, not only must the names be explicitly stated, but the words must also be used to subtly 'reveal' which general is being referred to.

For example, let's take the Inner Historian again.

— He was said to be the Minister of Agriculture, and theoretically he should have been the official in charge of agriculture for the whole country, but he only took charge of agriculture and sericulture in Guanzhong.

Instead of thinking about expanding their responsibilities from Guanzhong to beyond Guanzhong, they spend all their time thinking about what rights Guanzhong still has that they can take into their own hands.

After Liu Rong implemented a series of targeted reforms, the bureaucratic system became clear.

Everything became orderly and well-organized, with each department managing its own responsibilities and assigning responsibilities to the appropriate authorities.

In addition, Liu Rong did not turn a blind eye to the long-standing and deep-rooted problems of corruption and bribery in the Han Dynasty, nor did he use excuses such as the limitations of the feudal era or the high cost of labor to justify his actions.

Using the private treasury to maintain integrity, regardless of its effectiveness or whether it goes against human nature—at least the money was real, and a comprehensive plan was made to the greatest extent possible.

It's an exaggeration to say that corruption has been eradicated, but Liu Rong has used his great courage and decisiveness to eliminate the possibility of corruption at its root, based on reasons such as "it's not easy to live in Chang'an".

With clear division of responsibilities within the bureaucratic system and effective control over corruption, Liu Rong could write this on his list of achievements without any psychological burden.

To be honest, the Wen-Jing era, which was brought about by the joint efforts of the father and grandfather, not only failed to gain any credit from Liu Rong in terms of governance, but actually owed Liu Rong a debt!
After all, the practice of accepting bribes in the Han Dynasty originated from Emperor Taizong Xiaowen's overly lenient attitude towards his trusted confidant, General Zhang Wu, for accepting bribes, and Emperor Xiaojing's boundless indulgence of his sister, Princess Guantao Liu Piao.

Finally, and most importantly, is Liu Rong's martial arts skill.

—After Liu Rong ascended the throne, the Han dynasty broke many records and established many unprecedented milestones in the war against the Xiongnu.

Any one of their numerous victories was more than anything that had been achieved in the previous fifty years since the Han Dynasty, and was even more audacious than what ordinary people would dare to dream of.

However, to be fair...

In terms of martial arts, it's true that "success is achieved by me," but it should be attributed to my father and grandfather that "success is also due to me," a fact that Liu Rong has no choice but to acknowledge.

Just like the accumulated achievements of six generations of Qin, through Duke Xiao of Qin, King Huiwen, King Wu, King Zhaoxiang, King Xiaowen, King Zhuangxiang—until the seventh generation, Qin Shi Huang Ying Zheng, finally unleashed his power and swept across the six kingdoms.
Since the establishment of the Han dynasty, it has gone through Emperor Gao, Emperor Xiaohui, Emperor Qianshao, Emperor Houshao, Emperor Taizong, Emperor Xiaojing—until Liu Rong, the seventh emperor, was able to accumulate strength and begin to shift from defense to offense, gradually avenging the blood debts owed to the Xiongnu.

In fact, Liu Rong had always held this view regarding Emperor Wu of Han in history.

—To be able to get things done is truly impressive and commendable.

But the credit shouldn't go to Emperor Wu of Han, who gritted his teeth, stomped his feet, sent Wei Qing and Huo Qubing to fight, and then won.

Rather, it should be the successive emperors since the Han Dynasty who wanted to fight but were reluctant to, who lacked funds and supplies, and who were willing to swallow their pride and bear the humiliation of being labeled as traitors in history books, yet still passed the torch from generation to generation to save up funds for Emperor Wu of Han's decisive battle.

It's like a family where the parents have saved money for decades and saved up 100,000 yuan;
My brother worked day and night and saved up 100,000 yuan.
The older sister received 50,000 yuan as a dowry when she got married, and the younger brother and sister also contributed 50,000 yuan through part-time work and scholarships.

All the hard work went to the family. We finally managed to scrape together 300,000 yuan to buy you a Mercedes.

What kind of logic is it for you to drive around and tell everyone you're so capable that you're driving a Mercedes-Benz?
How did this car get here?
Yes, you signed the contract, the car is registered in your name, and you can drive it.

But don't you have any idea where the money for the car came from?
Is it harder for you to sign the contract and register the car in your own name, or is it harder for your parents, older siblings, and younger siblings to save money?
Anyone with a conscience should tell everyone—especially themselves—that they were simply fortunate enough to drive this car and catch it.

It is for this reason that Liu Rong has always exaggerated his own achievements in history, while he has been quite critical of previous emperors, especially Emperor Wu of Han, who is rarely mentioned during the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing.

It's not that Emperor Wu of Han had no merits or abilities.

Rather, the credit should not be taken by Emperor Wu of Han—at least not entirely by him, leaving none for the previous emperors, especially Emperors Wen and Jing.

Liu Rong has never been a hypocrite when it comes to such matters.

Liu Rong was dissatisfied with Emperor Wu of Han's actions. If he were in the same position, he would naturally not do anything that even he himself despised.

Therefore, in every victory in foreign wars, Liu Rong would never forget to mention his father and grandfather, namely Emperors Wen and Jing, and the reigns of Emperors Wen and Jing.

Whenever conditions allowed, Liu Rong would even praise Emperor Gaozu and Empress Lü.

It's not a show—at least not entirely a show.

Rather, Liu Rong genuinely believed that the current state of the Han dynasty was inseparable from the diligent governance of successive emperors and their policy of appeasement and submission in the face of foreign aggression.
The emperors of the Han dynasty transformed every bit of humiliation they swallowed into coins and grains stored in the Imperial Treasury.

When Liu Rong ascended the throne, not only did the Imperial Treasury accumulate vast sums of money and mountains of grain, but the previous emperors of the Han dynasty also accumulated endless humiliations.

Over the years, the humiliation suffered by the Han emperors at the hands of the Xiongnu is too great to be fully described by the bamboo of the Southern Mountains or washed away by the waters of the Eastern Sea.

All Liu Rong wanted to do was use the money, grain, and troops accumulated by his ancestors to find the Xiongnu and vent their anger on behalf of their forefathers.

Liu Rong didn't care about any martial arts prowess that was unparalleled in history or any emperor who was a great ruler for all time.

Under these circumstances, the inexplicable trend of holding the Fengshan ceremony that had swept through the court was also dispelled by Liu Rong without hesitation.

—What kind of Fengshan ceremony is this?
You look like Mount Tai!

With all that spare money spent on eating, drinking, and having fun, why not do something better?
Officials were given bonuses, soldiers were given rewards, and ordinary people were given grain.

At the very least, providing resettlement for those unemployed vagrants and lazybones would be a good deed, wouldn't it?
Liu Rong was never afraid of being ashamed to face his ancestors or the heavens; he was only afraid of being ashamed to face the people of the world, or of seeing the people of the world wielding hoes and wanting to rebel against him.

As long as everyone in the world is doing well, what does Mount Tai matter? In Liu Rong's eyes, it's not as important as a stele commemorating the conquest of the Hu.

(End of this chapter)