Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Many tales of gods and ghosts, once the mystery is unraveled, are actually quite simple.

Li Ji's tone was as if he were discussing something commonplace, while also remembering to ask a question.

“What thoughts does this give you, my lord, regarding the hearts of the people?”

Upon being asked such a seemingly profound question by Li Ji, Liu Bei was slightly taken aback, looked at Li Ji, and then replied.

“To bewilder the hearts of the people… is not difficult.”

Li Ji couldn't help but sigh, saying.

“Before there was Zhang Jiao, now there is Li Ji, and from this point on, no one in the Great Han will use ‘The Azure Sky is dead, the Yellow Sky will rise’ to predict the fate of the Great Han again.”

After a pause, Li Ji said solemnly. “The following words, please forgive my disrespect, my lord…”

“Why speak such words between you and me? Zikun, speak your mind directly. If there is anything I do inadequately, I will surely correct it.” Liu Bei replied.

Li Ji shook his head and replied.

“It is not that you have shortcomings, my lord, but rather I wish to make you understand that not only can history sometimes be altered by the victors, but the hearts of the people are also easily manipulated and deceived.”

“The people are foolish, lacking knowledge, and thus easily misled and exploited. This is not the fault of the people, but rather the nature of humanity.”

“Therefore, only by broadly enlightening the people, enabling them to distinguish right from wrong, can the nation be forever secure and the people live in peace and prosperity.”

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei couldn't help but widen his eyes as he looked at Li Ji.

It wasn't that what Li Ji said was rebellious, but rather that the court had always favored the policy of keeping the people ignorant.

To broadly enlighten the people is completely different from the Confucian ideal of civilizing the world.

These seemingly simple four words, upon reaching Liu Bei's ears, were no less than a thunderclap, causing him to stare blankly at Li Ji for several breaths.

Li Ji was not anxious, patiently waiting for Liu Bei to digest his words, also understanding that for feudal rulers, "broadly enlightening the people" was, to some extent, a taboo.

It was often believed that the policy of keeping the people ignorant was the way to ensure the long-term stability of the country.

Moreover, the policy of keeping the people ignorant was largely developed in Shang Yang's *The Book of Lord Shang*, which contained the "Five Arts of Ruling the People": keeping them ignorant, weakening them, tiring them, humiliating them, and impoverishing them.

In a sense, Shang Yang's execution by dismemberment was not unjust at all.

Shang Yang's "Five Arts of Ruling the People" deeply influenced the Qin state, and also influenced Qin Shi Huang's attitude towards the people of the world, indirectly leading to Qin Shi Huang exhausting the people's strength while neglecting the rising resentment, ultimately leading to the rapid disintegration of the unified Qin Dynasty.

And the Han Dynasty inherited the Qin system. Even though benevolent rulers such as Emperor Wen of Han, Emperor Jing of Han, and Emperor Xuan of Han appeared during the Western Han Dynasty, the court as a whole undoubtedly still inherited the tendency to keep the people ignorant.

Furthermore, in the original timeline, the policy of keeping the people ignorant did not end with the collapse of the Han Dynasty, but was instead continuously optimized and improved by successive dynasties.

By the time of the Qing Dynasty, the perfection of the "thirty-three taels of silver" and the "eight-legged essay" were undoubtedly the sublimation and development of the "Five Arts of Ruling the People."

It can be said that although Shang Yang never saw a unified dynasty before his death, his ideas continued to influence every unified dynasty.

And in this special period, it was undoubtedly the best opportunity for Li Ji to reverse this tendency of keeping the people ignorant and to break the closed-door policy.

After all, although the policy of keeping the people ignorant had lasted for hundreds of years and could be considered the ancestral law, it had not yet been completely solidified.

Moreover, Li Ji could take advantage of the influence of the Way of Peace and the repeated rebellions of the Great Han over the centuries to illustrate that the method of keeping the people ignorant was not advisable.

One who does not plan for ten thousand generations is not sufficient to plan for the moment.

Li Ji specifically invited Liu Bei from Xiapi to Runan not only to have Liu Bei come forward to "inherit the mandate of heaven" but also to let Liu Bei see with his own eyes that the policy of keeping the people ignorant was not advisable.

Today, Li Zikun of Longxi can easily bestow the mandate of heaven upon someone in front of the people. Why couldn't another Liu Zikun emerge in the future to make the people believe that someone else is the one to whom the mandate of heaven belongs?

The hearts of the people are the most solid existence in the world, but also the most fragile.

After a good while, Liu Bei finally frowned and spoke.

“Please explain in detail this idea of broadly enlightening the people, Zikun.”

And for this moment, Li Ji had long prepared countless drafts, in order to take the opportunity to persuade Liu Bei and obtain his full support.

As long as he obtained Liu Bei's support, then everything could be justified, embarking on the road of taking advantage of the chaos to carry out a thorough reform of the Great Han.

“My lord, before discussing how to broadly enlighten the people, I boldly ask a question. Do the people believe that they are Han people?” Li Ji asked.

“That is natural.” Liu Bei replied without thinking.

“What is the reason?” Li Ji asked again.

“If the subjects of the Great Han are not Han people, could they be called something else?” Liu Bei was somewhat puzzled.

“You have not truly answered the question, my lord. What is the basis for the people's belief in who they are?”

“If it is only because the dynasty's name is such, then so be it. But Wang Mang once established the Xin Dynasty. Did the people change their names because of this?”

After a pause, Li Ji gave another example, saying.

“When Qin destroyed the Six Kingdoms and unified the world, there were countless people who did not call themselves Qin people but considered themselves Chu people, Qi people, or Zhao people.”

Such a deep investigation left Liu Bei stumped.

Liu Bei frowned and pondered for a while, even recalling many memories from his childhood, before finally replying.

“Could it be a matter of time? The dynasty needs to continue for several generations, and the next generation will believe they are Han people through word of mouth.”

“That is indeed one of the reasons, but it is also where the ignorance of the people lies.”

Li Ji responded, then said.

“I have another question. You must be aware that most of the rebel armies at the end of the Qin Dynasty were fighting under the banner of restoring their states. Not to say how much of it was pretense, but there must have been genuine longing for their former states.”

“However, those rebel armies fighting under the banner of restoring their states must have been nobles, not commoners. Why is this?”

Liu Bei frowned and pondered, wanting to say that because the rebel armies were all nobles of the Six Kingdoms, they would naturally fight under the banner of restoring their states, but Liu Bei changed his mind and realized the loophole.

Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were not Qin people, and Emperor Gaozu was also not a Qin person.

People of Emperor Gaozu's age were also born before Qin Shi Huang's unification, and even Emperor Gaozu's great-grandfather had served as a minister in the Wei state, only to have Emperor Gaozu's generation completely reduced to commoners.

But even so, Emperor Gaozu would not be unaware of the change of dynasties, nor would he be unaware that his former state was dead.

And seeing that Liu Bei had not been able to answer for a long time, Li Ji directly said.

“The answer lies in recognition.”

“Those nobles of the Six Kingdoms who fought under the banner of restoring their states, whether it was due to the interests of their former states or because they could not let go of the glory of their former states, undoubtedly had their hearts set on their former states.”

“Just as when the Great Han is about to fall, you and a group of virtuous ministers and brave generals who have their hearts set on the Great Han are all dedicated to supporting the Han Dynasty, the same is true.”

“However, please think carefully, how many of the countless people who consider themselves Han people would actively support the Han Dynasty?”

(End of chapter)