The video takes us to ancient times; Li Er transforms into the Tongtian Emperor of Shu Han.

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"Cao Cao, even in this situation, you're still going to stand up for that tyrant?"

"Those are a full 20,000 well-equipped elite troops. Facing a mere 3,000 worthless soldiers who aren't even worthy of being called ragtag soldiers, even if the commander-in-chief is an idiot, he can easily crush them!"

"Don't really mythologize any general. Bai Qi was just a human being after all. You don't understand the principle that even a skilled cook can't make a meal without rice?"

Sun Quan relentlessly mocked and ridiculed him.

The proverb "Even a skilled cook cannot make a meal without rice" is a proverb that everyone understands.

Many people are actually facing this situation.

For example, Zhuge Liang in Shu.

The predicament that Bai Qi is now facing is even greater than that of Zhuge Liang.

Even the strongest general is useless if he has no capable soldiers under his command!

"tyrant?"

Cao Cao laughed.

Judging from his expression, he was probably laughing in anger.

"When Emperor Gaozu met the First Emperor, he said that a true man should act like this. Do you understand the First Emperor better than Emperor Gaozu?"

"And stop calling me Cao the traitor! You coward, you also usurped the Han throne and became emperor. How dare you call me Cao the traitor? You son of a bitch!"

Liu Bei, at least, held the title of a member of the Han imperial family when he declared himself emperor, so it could be considered a kind of restoration of the Han dynasty.

Liu Bei constantly called Cao Cao a traitor, so Cao Cao had to accept it.

But what are you, Sun Quan?

They call me Cao the traitor, but I have never declared myself emperor.

On the contrary, it is you who keep calling me a thief, yet you declare yourself emperor and attempt to steal the country!

"It wouldn't be too wrong to call him a tyrant, after all, he did cause many people to be buried far from home in order to build the Great Wall to resist the Xiongnu."

Liu Bang spoke.

He didn't care whether Cao Cao or Sun Quan was the traitor who stole the Han throne.

Or rather, in his view, the fact that the Han Dynasty could last for hundreds of years was far beyond his expectations.

Moreover, judging from the previous assessment by the immortal, although Liu Shan was somewhat weak-willed and could not be considered a wise ruler, the painstaking efforts of Zhuge Liang, Jiang Wei, and others still brought a perfect end to the Han Dynasty.

He had nothing to complain about.

However, he had some opinions on the assessment of these two people.

"When I saw the First Emperor on his eastern tour, I did say that a true man should act like this. But after all, he was the emperor, and most ambitious emperors are tyrants at heart."

Even Liu Bang himself had to admit that although many people called him a benevolent ruler, the number of people who died directly or indirectly at his hands was also countless.

"Indeed, if we only look at the deaths and injuries of the common people, there are probably very few emperors throughout history who can be called benevolent rulers."

Li Er largely agreed with Liu Bang's view.

To determine whether an emperor is incompetent and tyrannical, one should not look at only one aspect, but rather consider all aspects, including his achievements and mistakes.

Indeed, many historians recorded Ying Zheng as a tyrant because of the large number of people buried under the Great Wall.

However, building the Great Wall was not only necessary for the Qin Dynasty, but also essential for every dynasty throughout history.

Without that defensive line, even more civilians would have died on the border!

For example, most people acknowledge that Emperor Wen of Han was a wise and benevolent ruler throughout history, and he can indeed be considered a wise ruler in various senses.

However, without the predecessors who planted the trees, even Liu Heng would not have been able to focus on developing domestic affairs.

"Even if building the Great Wall was necessary, what about the Epang Palace? Was that pleasure-seeking thing also necessary? Wasn't this putting personal enjoyment above the lives of the people?"

Doesn't this prove that he was a pleasure-seeking, incompetent, and cruel emperor?

Even though Li Er and others subtly expressed their disagreement, Sun Quan still stubbornly persisted.

It seems that only by denying Qin Shi Huang, the emperor who first achieved unification, can one find some excuse for his reclusive life in a corner of the country.

However, Cao Cao simply scoffed at his opinion.

“Sun Zhongmou, the more you talk, the more you expose your short-sightedness. Was the construction of the Epang Palace really for pleasure?”

"Your opinion is exactly the same as Xiang Ji's. The difference is that Xiang Ji frankly admitted that he didn't have that ambition, but what about you? You're clearly a coward, yet you insist on becoming emperor. You're the epitome of a monkey wearing a crown!"

Was the Epang Palace truly built for pleasure?

Cao Cao clearly had a completely different opinion.

Not only him, but also Liu Bang and others did the same.

"If one really wants to enjoy life, expanding the harem, collecting rare treasures and fine wines—aren't those more tempting than building the Epang Palace?"

"Exactly, is it that beautiful women aren't fragrant enough, or that fine wine isn't sweet enough?"

"There are many ways to enjoy life. For the First Emperor, building the Epang Palace was the most expensive and most boring way. If you were in his shoes, would you choose this?"

"Although in the eyes of the people at the time, Ying Zheng built such a magnificent palace for pleasure, we should not look at it that way from the perspective of later generations."

Clearly, most people held a negative view of what Sun Quan described as the First Emperor's concept of pleasure.

Most importantly, they were all emperors, and they all knew how many ways an emperor could enjoy himself.

If it were them, they would rather take more concubines and have their servants offer more fine wines and rare and exquisite trinkets.

Even hobbies that are somewhat wasteful of time and money are things like performing the Fengshan ceremony or cultivating immortality.

Everyone agrees with your accusation that the First Emperor was superstitious about cultivating immortality and wasted a lot of money and manpower in order to refine the elixir of immortality.

To criticize the Epang Palace is, frankly, quite perplexing.

What kind of stupid person would use money that should be used for enjoyment to build a cold, impersonal building?

"Then tell me, why else would Qin Shi Huang build the Epang Palace? The historical records are crystal clear, what other explanation could there be?"

Sun Quan was stunned; he hadn't expected so many people to stand up and refute him.

But what he said was clearly recorded in the history books!

"History written by historians can be trusted, but not entirely, especially their evaluations of certain events. They are human too, and they will inevitably include their own opinions in their writings."

"It is normal for ordinary people to think that the Epang Palace is a useless thing that wastes manpower and money, but an emperor should be able to see something deeper."

"If you look at it that way, do you think that Cao Mengde built the Bronze Sparrow Terrace for pleasure?"

Li Er's explanation already sounded somewhat helpless.

He truly hadn't expected that even with so many people correcting Sun Quan's statement, this guy would still stubbornly insist on his own way.

Can't they at least reflect on their own problems?

"Otherwise what? What else could it be?"

"Even most of Cao Cao's ministers are opposed to him, so there can't be any other explanation, can there?"

Sun Quan countered with a question.

Upon seeing his remarks, Li Er said he didn't want to communicate with an idiot.

How could such a charlatan have infiltrated the Three Kingdoms period?

Logically speaking, Sun Quan in his youth, who was able to quickly bypass the internal strife and take control of the entire Jiangdong region after Sun Ce's death, should be considered a hero.

But how could this hero be getting worse as he gets older?

"Cao Mengde, why don't you explain yourself and clear your name while you're at it?"