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

Did they raise all the vassal kings like pigs in the Ming Dynasty?

Although it doesn't sound pleasant, Old Zhu knows that this is mostly the truth.

And he didn't dislike it.

After all, they are his descendants.

He drove out the Tartars, unified the country, and founded the Ming Dynasty.

Can't we let our descendants enjoy this too?

Faced with his self-righteousness, Li Er was somewhat speechless, or perhaps helpless.

"If there is only one generation, or if each person is a single descendant, then there is naturally no problem."

"Even if you, Old Zhu, can have a lot of children, twenty or thirty is the maximum."

"In such a vast Ming Dynasty, supporting twenty or thirty princes was naturally a piece of cake."

"But that's not the case. You have twenty or thirty children, and each of them has their own descendants. If this continues generation after generation, do you think the Ming Dynasty can afford it?"

These words were so shocking that they left Old Zhu completely dumbfounded.

Passed down through generations, the current dozen or so princes naturally don't consume too much money, food, or supplies.

But if it is passed down for four or five generations, thousands or even tens of thousands of mouths will be waiting to be fed.

What would happen if the imperial court couldn't afford to support them?

Having grown accustomed to a life of luxury, they would certainly not allow their living conditions to decline.

In the end, it will inevitably end in the plundering of the people's wealth!

No wonder that during the numerous challenges at the end of the Ming Dynasty, the wealth confiscated from those so-called royal palaces was incredibly substantial.

While ordinary people are struggling to even get enough to eat, those born into royalty still maintain their privileged lifestyle.

How could the Ming Dynasty have survived?

Perhaps this is just one of the reasons, or even the most important one.

But for Lao Zhu, the blow was incredibly heavy.

He constantly boasted about his humble origins as a cowherd and couldn't tolerate even the slightest imperfection.

It is said that no matter how great their past achievements, corrupt officials will inevitably face death.

But no one could have imagined that the biggest group of parasites in the Ming Dynasty were actually raised by him!

"Girl, girl, we didn't expect this, we really didn't expect this."

"We never imagined that simply wanting to be better for our descendants would lead to such a disaster."

"How many people starved to death because of us at the end of the Ming Dynasty!"

Old Zhu seemed to have lost all his energy and spirit in an instant.

Empress Ma was also stunned at this moment.

Before this, she had never imagined that simply giving the royal family a slightly better treatment, passed down from generation to generation, would lead to such a disaster!

"Why, why didn't this happen in the previous dynasty?"

"Don't those emperors want to treat their offspring better?"

Even Zhu Biao said he couldn't understand or accept it.

If the hidden dangers are really that great, why didn't they erupt in previous dynasties?

Li Er: "..."

Although he treated his children well, he was very generous with both fiefdoms and frequent rewards.

But after he realized this, he also understood why the Tang Dynasty did not experience a situation like that of the Ming Dynasty.

The reason is really hard to talk about...

"Isn't this simple?"

"Think about it yourselves, how many upheavals has the Tang Dynasty experienced?"

"The capital fell six times, and the emperor was moved nine times. Even if it is eventually recovered, what about the royal family members in the entire capital? How many of them will survive the process?"

Obviously, if even the emperor was forced to flee the capital, the situation must have been extremely critical.

At such times, even those who value family ties the most cannot bring all the royal family members along.

Will those who are left behind suffer another fate?

"The emperor moved nine times, and each time the emperor fled, it meant that the Li Tang royal family was wiped out in blood."

"Don't say that having too many royal children is dragging down the imperial treasury. The fact that the Li Tang royal family hasn't died out is all thanks to their ability to reproduce!"

Zhao Kuangyin revealed the unspeakable truth about Li Er without any attempt to conceal it.

Being a prince in the Ming Dynasty might have been a carefree and enjoyable thing, but being a prince in the Tang Dynasty was a very dangerous profession.

Especially in the later stages, with the capital being moved several times and the emperor fleeing several times, it was truly a situation where no one could help them.

No matter which rebel army entered the capital, the first thing they would do would be to massacre the royal family.

Zhu Biao: “…”

It seems like this is really the case!

"But in our Great Song Dynasty, has such a problem never occurred before?"

Zhao Kuangyin was somewhat confused.

To be honest, while he didn't exactly spoil his children, he certainly did a good job in arranging their lives.

Before Li Er put forward this view today, he could not have imagined that having too many royal children would have such drawbacks.

He could only quietly wait for his descendants to provide the answers to these questions.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured, there is nothing to be ashamed of."

"However, the Song Dynasty imperial family has always had a small number of offspring, with many princes and princesses dying shortly after birth, and even..."

"By the time of my father, he had no direct descendants and could only pass the throne to your lineage, that is, me."

Zhao Shen quickly explained.

understood.

Zhao Kuangyin could accept this explanation.

One problem was the long-term bloodshed of royal family members, while the other was the lack of offspring, which simply couldn't accumulate enough to cripple the court's finances.

As for the Sui Dynasty, which goes back even further.

There were only two generations in total, so there simply wasn't enough time for it to erupt.

During the Wei and Jin dynasties, the foundation was also unstable, and it did not last long enough for this problem to erupt.

It goes without saying that if we push all the way up to the Han Dynasty, then it's even more obvious.

Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, was incredibly skilled at issuing the Edict of Grace.

Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty, Liu Xiu, was reduced to a commoner by the Edict of Grace before the uprising.

Liu Bei, a descendant of the esteemed Prince Jing of Zhongshan, was reduced to selling straw sandals.

It also harmed the imperial treasury and the people.

Under the edict of grace, they all became victims of the calamity.

It was precisely because of this that such a huge problem was not fully revealed until the Ming Dynasty of the Zhu family.

"I understand. It is precisely because the previous dynasty failed to provide any lessons, and you, Father, have no better reference, that you are naturally unable to make the most correct decision."

Zhu Biao was still shaken at this moment.

If what Li Er said is true, and the Zhu family is indeed thriving...

This system, passed down from generation to generation, may not actually bankrupt the imperial court's finances, but it will certainly create a huge burden.

And those people living in their territory probably won't have a good life either!

Fortunately, Li Er saw through it and pointed it out.

They still have a chance to change!

"Now that we know, then naturally..."

Old Zhu thought that it was natural to make some changes.

But when it came time to actually take action, I hesitated.

Once the "Decree of Grace" implemented by Emperor Wu of Han is put into effect, the title of imperial descendants will be worthless except in times of chaos.

Do we really want to treat our descendants like this?