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

“If you are unwilling to make changes, then barring any unforeseen circumstances, the methods used by Emperor Gaozu to govern the country will be of no use to you.”

Li Er had already tried to be as tactful as possible.

He even wanted to say that if someone was so stingy, then many of the corrupt officials in the Ming Dynasty must have been created by Zhu Yuanzhang himself.

They work diligently as officials, but they only get a few days off throughout the year, and their salary is barely two cents.

If things go wrong every now and then, there's even the risk of losing your head.

So, what do you think they became officials for, Lao Zhu?

"If you want people to work diligently, you first have to make sure they can make a living, right?"

"If you yourself are destitute, how can you talk about bringing benefits to the community?"

When one is successful, one should help others, but it is likely that most of the officials under Zhu Yuanzhang were still in the stage of "when one is poor, one should only care about oneself."

"I'm not even talking about making them rich and powerful, but at least we should ensure that their whole family has enough to eat and wear, and that they don't have to worry about making a living, right?"

"Old Zhu, I won't say any more, but you are clearly treating those officials like cattle and horses."

"They might not even be as good as cattle or horses. At least the cattle that ordinary people raise never go hungry while working."

Zhao Kuangyin almost burst out laughing.

The thought that under Zhu Yuanzhang's rule, officials in the court even had to worry about making a living felt utterly absurd to him.

Old Zhu: “…”

Faced with ridicule, he chose to remain silent.

Providing damage output when facing adversity is not his forte, especially since everyone is criticizing him, and it's not that he doesn't reflect on his own actions.

If one or two people say he did something wrong, that might be biased. But if the vast majority of people are on the opposite side of him, he has to consider whether he really did something wrong.

Meanwhile, within the heavens, Liu Bang also delivered his perfect answer.

Contrary to what was initially stated in the challenge, Xiang Yu did not attempt to seize a state title or the throne.

Having gone through so much, he has a very clear understanding of his own position.

He was not cut out to be an emperor; he was better suited to be a pleasure-seeking feudal lord or a general who waged war.

He established his capital in the capital and rebuilt the Han Dynasty.

Talented people from all over the world flocked to him.

Liu Bang accepted all comers and selected talents through the imperial examination system. As long as they were truly talented and capable, they could be employed regardless of their background.

Whether they were from powerful families, former opportunists from the Donglin Party, or even civil officials who came from rebel backgrounds, they all received extremely fair treatment.

He embodied the word "magnanimity" to its fullest extent.

Even at the very beginning of the challenge, he received no support from any powerful figures.

Even at the most critical moment in the siege of the Qing army, the powerful clans did not offer any assistance.

Even now, having conquered the world, Liu Bang still shows no intention of settling scores.

Just as he had said to Han Xin before.

He knew very well who the only enemy was in this challenge.

Apart from that one and only enemy, everyone else is someone we can use.

After the Han Dynasty was rebuilt, all past transgressions were forgiven.

Moreover, he was far more generous than Zhu De, and even more generous than Li Zicheng.

The officials' treatment was naturally excellent, and Liu Bang always provided double the amount of grain and fodder requested for disaster relief from various places, no matter how much was needed.

Once the money and grain were distributed, he didn't care what the local officials did, how much they embezzled, or how much they exploited at each level.

The only requirement is that once the goods arrive, the problem must be resolved.

If the population doesn't decrease, the people will be satisfied, there will be no public discontent, and the harvest will last until the next autumn harvest.

As long as these needs are met, he wouldn't care about anything else, even if it meant pocketing all the government's money and grain!

Generous and delegating.

It was obvious that the officials below preferred this kind of emperor.

And those who can serve as local officials, how could they not have some real skills?

If they have money, food, and manpower, and still can't solve the disaster relief problem, then they probably wouldn't have the face to continue sitting in that position.

As for how much grain was embezzled during this process, Liu Bang neither asked nor cared, which was tantamount to letting it go unchecked.

This just proves what Li Er said earlier.

If you give the horses enough grass, they will naturally find a way to run!

Within just a few months, the Ming Dynasty, which was riddled with problems at the end of the dynasty, was brought under control in an orderly manner.

While it's not to say that everyone can have enough to eat, at least in most places, there have been no more cases of people starving to death or even resorting to cannibalism.

"Clearly, even though natural disasters were frequent at the end of the Ming Dynasty, there was enough food to keep the people alive."

"The premise is that you have the same methods as Emperor Gaozu."

How can we avoid a complete falling out with the powerful clans and gentry, yet still require them to provide funds and provisions?

Liu Bang's choice was no different from the decision Liu Che made when he was in dire straits.

Selling official positions and titles!

They sell some sinecure positions and empty titles.

Although everyone knows that the official positions and titles that can be sold have little real power and are merely mascots in the court, countless powerful figures still flock to them.

There are many who squander the family fortune left by their ancestors just to obtain a minor official position.

What made Liu Bang even more extreme than Liu Che was that Liu Che sold without any limits, while Liu Bang limited the quantity.

Highest bidder wins!

If recorded in history books, such behavior would be enough to leave a lasting stain on one's reputation.

But Liu Bang did it without the slightest hesitation, in front of everyone throughout history.

"Your Majesty, are you really not afraid of being infamous for eternity and being cursed by millions of people in the future?"

Within the canopy, one could see Liu Bang selling off one official position after another, and massive amounts of money being moved into the national treasury.

Xiao He truly didn't know what to say.

It's not a big deal to do this secretly; at worst, the historian can just embellish the text a little.

But to do this in front of hundreds of millions of people throughout history during a challenge, isn't that a bit too shameless?

"Then what else can I do? I can't just follow Li Zicheng's example and send my troops to plunder, can I?"

"It's fun to rob for a while, but once all the powerful figures band together and rebel, I won't even have time to cry."

"Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. With the Southern Ming dynasty still unsettled and Sichuan still unpacified, the newly established dynasty could not withstand any major upheavals."

Certainly, Liu Bang could send Han Xin and Xiang Yu to slaughter powerful clans and emulate Li Zicheng's actions when he entered the capital.

However, this land had just experienced the turmoil at the end of the Ming Dynasty, the destruction caused by Li Zicheng's entry into Beijing, and the panic caused by the Qing army's entry into the pass.

The people did not have much confidence in the newly established Han Dynasty.

If we offend the powerful clans and influential figures at this point, the next upheaval will not be far off.

Even if Han Xin could easily suppress most rebellions, the people's confidence could never be restored once the rebellions were suppressed.

“The powerful and wealthy want fame, but I have fame and only want money.”

"How can a mutually agreeable transaction be condemned to eternal infamy?"