A live-streamed Chinese language lesson under the sky—the ancients were taken aback.

Liu Bang looked down at the winding characters, his face showing difficulty.

He wasn't very literate, but he didn't dare say he couldn't understand it, so he forced himself to keep reading.

"Well... governing a large country is like cooking a small fish, or frying a small fish? You can't flip a small fish too many times, or it will fall apart. I understand that principle. Old Liu once fried fish in Pei County, and it fell apart as soon as he flipped it."

Ying Zheng's brow twitched slightly. A village head with limited education was using the analogy of frying fish to interpret the Tao Te Ching. His interpretation was unrefined, but correct.

Do you think that makes sense?

Liu Bang scratched his head. "Of course you can't flip fish too often when frying it, but you have to flip it eventually, right? If you don't flip it, the bottom will burn. If you flip it too much, it will fall apart. If you don't flip it, it will burn. You have to find the right balance yourself."

Ying Zheng paused for a moment and asked a question that had nothing to do with the Tao Te Ching.

"When you were the village head, what did the people find most annoying?"

Liu Bang thought about it and then told the truth.

"I hate forced labor the most. Every year when the Great Wall and the imperial roads are built, all the able-bodied men are taken away, and no one is left to farm the land. Every time they go to the village to conscript people, Old Liu wants to run away, not because he's afraid of being scolded, but because he's afraid of seeing the despair in those people's eyes."

Your Majesty, the people are not afraid of hardship, but they are afraid of endless suffering.

Building the Great Wall was a good thing, and building the imperial highways was also a good thing, but building them all at once left the people breathless, like frying a fish and flipping it too many times.

Looking at the unkempt Liu Bang, Ying Zheng felt a mix of emotions. He vaguely understood the reasons for the rise of the Han Dynasty.

He turned his head and looked at Lü Zhi, who was kneeling next to Liu Bang. This young woman had said that she would later be able to control a country, but she was just an ordinary woman now.

"Lü Zhi, what can you do?"

Lü Zhi raised her head; she had already thought about this question on her way here.

She was just an ordinary peasant woman who couldn't write and didn't understand the laws of the court, but she knew this was an opportunity, perhaps the only one in her life.

Her answer was concise: "Your Majesty, I do not understand the affairs of the court, but I do understand two things: how to keep a family from starving and how to prevent a group of people from arguing."

At home, I weave cloth, cook, manage accounts, and take care of my younger siblings. My father often says that I manage accounts better than he does. If Your Majesty were to ask me to manage the granary, audit the accounts, and allocate resources, I would be able to do it.

"If Your Majesty were to ask me to comfort those women displaced by the war, I would do it. What I can do is prevent trouble in my own backyard. Only when there is no trouble in the backyard can I fight the war with peace of mind."

Ying Zheng looked at her; she was honest and didn't boast. She knew what she was capable of.

Liu Bang, who was listening nearby, suddenly interjected: "Your Majesty, speaking of logistics, I know someone named Xiao He, who is a county official in Pei County. He manages the accounts exceptionally well, a million times better than our old Liu. If he comes, you won't have to worry about logistics."

Ying Zheng glanced at him. This village head knew nothing himself, but he was quite good at recommending people.

He turned his gaze back to Lü Zhi.

"Empress Lü, I'm giving you a chance. I'll send Xiao He to Xianyang. The two of you will work together to check the accounts of the grain depots in Guanzhong. If you do well, I'll reward you. If you don't, you can go back to Pei County and continue weaving your cloth."

Empress Lü bowed deeply and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Ying Zheng eventually turned to Liu Bang.

"Liu Ji".

"This humble subject is here."

"I will give you an official position called Dianke, in charge of handling matters on the Heavenly Screen. You will be responsible for dealing with any statements on the Heavenly Screen that are detrimental to the court."

Liu Bang was stunned. Those people on the sky were talking all at once, daring to say anything. Who knew what they might say next? What if they said something the emperor didn't like to hear? Who would be responsible for that?

"Your Majesty... how do we do this job?"

"You were a village head in Pei County, so you know what the people think and how to deal with them. Figure it out yourself. If you can't do it well, then go work on the Great Wall."

Liu Bang opened his mouth, as if to say something, but could only manage to squeeze out a few words: "Your subject... Your subject obeys the decree."

Liu Bang left the hall. He had managed to keep a straight face inside, but now, with the cool breeze blowing, the sweat on his back was soaked through and clung coldly to his undergarments.

Without knowing the cause and effect, they were inexplicably brought before the emperor for questioning.

Why did the emperor seek him out?

There are plenty of literate people in the world; any one of the scholars in the imperial court could compile the words on the celestial screen into a book.

The emperor deliberately brought him all the way from Pei County, just so that he, a mere village head, could manage the sky.

Liu Bang suddenly looked up at the sky, then at Lü Zhi in front of him.

He had a bold guess: he was Liu Bang, the man Tianmu had mentioned.

He intends to overthrow the Qin Dynasty and become emperor, so why is he standing in the Qin Dynasty palace now, serving as an official for Qin Shi Huang? Isn't he just putting himself on the line?

Logically, the emperor should have killed him to eliminate any future trouble.

He had seen too many things like this in the Pei County government office. Stealing a chicken could get you beaten with a broken leg, let alone stealing the whole world.

But the emperor did not kill him.

Not only were they not killed, but they were also given an official position. Why?

Liu Bang's old face scrunched up. He couldn't figure it out, so he decided to stop thinking about it. He was always too lazy to think about things he couldn't understand.

Those are things from another time and space.

Liu Bang looked up at the night sky that had once been bright, but it was now pitch black, without a single star.

Even if he were Liu Bang, he could never be Liu Bang in this lifetime. Liu Bang was a traitor to the Qin Dynasty. The only one alive now is Liu Ji, the Qin Dynasty's official in charge of the imperial household, a subject of the emperor, and a minor official in charge of the imperial palace.

But then I thought, this works too.

Hey, Old Liu has come to Xianyang to take up an official post.

Sishui Pavilion was a wretched place. It was drafty in winter and leaky in summer. All year round, all they did was catch thieves and conscript laborers. They even had to buy alcohol on credit.

He is now standing in the Xianyang Palace, on the steps of the emperor. Starting tomorrow, he will have official residence and a salary, which is more than ten thousand times better than in Pei County.

Thinking about it this way, he suddenly became happy again.

Empress Lü walked ahead of him, her pace neither hurried nor slow.

He hurried to catch up with her, lowered his voice, and whispered in her ear, "Old Lu, do you think His Majesty has gone mad? Sending me to deal with those mouths on the sky? I can't even read properly."

Without turning her head or stopping, Lü Zhi said, "Then let's learn all the characters first."

Liu Bang was momentarily speechless.

He awkwardly touched his nose, then suddenly remembered something else: if he really was Liu Bang, then Lü Zhi would be his future wife.

The moment this thought crossed his mind, his gaze toward Lü Zhi's back changed.

He strode up to Lü Zhi, grinning as he approached her: "Wife, oh no, Miss Lü, do you think this is a blessing or a curse for old Liu?"

Lü Zhi stopped and turned around, the moonlight shining on her face.

"It's a blessing that you came out of the palace alive," she said, her voice neither loud nor soft. "His Majesty didn't kill you, which means he thinks you're useful. But a useful person is a blessing when used well, but what do you think happens when they're not used well?"

Liu Bang's smile froze for a moment.

"...It's a disaster."