"Li Shimin has always taken Emperor Yang of Sui as a warning, but what is the difference between him and Emperor Yang of Sui in his later years, killing loyal ministers and violating human ethics."

"In his later years, he was like Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty to build a large number of buildings, working the people and losing money."

"In the early years of Zhenguan, Li Shimin repeatedly ordered that no palaces should be built."

"But only ten years later, he went against the norm and built palaces on a large scale."

"Regardless of the minister's strong opposition, he not only built more than a dozen palaces such as Renshou Palace, Luoyang Palace, Feishan Palace, and Yuhua Palace, but also in Zhenguan for 21 years, and thought that the palace was stuffy and unbearable, and spent a lot of money to build a luxurious and luxurious summer resort on the top of Lintong Li Mountain."

"And arrogant and lascivious, after Tang Taizong was in his old age, he felt that he should enjoy it, so he restored the luxurious palace room that Yang Guang had built at the beginning, and collected a lot of beauties to hide in it."

"And once I accidentally saw that the daughter of my deceased courtier was very beautiful, so I took her as a concubine!"

"At this time, Wu Zetian was only fourteen years old! He also ordered people to look for beautiful women for himself all the year round, and as long as they were beautiful, they would send him to the palace. ”

[Minister Zhang Xuansu and others believe that this move is "after inheriting the withering, killing the devastated people, spending hundreds of millions of efforts, and attacking the disadvantages of a hundred kings."] ］

[Dai Gao also admonished, "The construction is endless, and the public and private labor costs are unbearable.] Li Shimin not only did not listen, but also became furious and punished the crime of "slander." ］

And for the advice of the minister Huangfu Deshen: "Repair Luoyang Palace, work hard." Li Shimin even said a very classic saying, "If the people have nothing to do, they will be arrogant, and if they work hard, they will be easy." ”

"It means that if the common people have nothing to do, they will be arrogant and lascivious, so they need to be constantly served, so that they can work and work non-stop, so that the rule can be stable."

It is ridiculous that a country that is people-oriented and develops would say such a thing! ”

"Li Shimin's large-scale construction in his later years not only cost the country huge wealth, but also made the common people bear heavy forced labor, so that in the end, many ordinary people did not hesitate to cut off their own hands and feet in order to escape forced labor."

In the sixteenth year of Zhenguan, Li Shimin also issued a special decree for this purpose: "From now on, there are self-injured and disabled people, and according to the law, they will be punished and still be enslaved." ”

"It means that I don't care how much you hurt yourself, not only will you increase your sin, but you will also continue to serve hard labor."

"Li Shimin often did similar things in his later years, and it wasn't until a year before his death that Li Shimin felt that he had done a little too much."

"One of the more unavoidable factual problems of the Tang Dynasty was this tax and forced labor."

"Taxation is understandable, the Tang Dynasty has many people and strong countries, and in this situation, the country needs the help of the people to pay taxes to stabilize the foundation of the country."

"Paying taxes for the state is an obligation in any era, even in today's socialist environment."

"However, it is very incomprehensible to pay for conscription after taxation, if it is to spend money to conscript soldiers to contribute to the country, it is okay, and the conscription in the Tang Dynasty is completely under the guise of using the people and making them free labor for the country."

"The definition of conscription is the forced labor of commoners by the ruler for unpaid labor."

"It has a very broad audience, and it's aimed at almost all people."

"However, the children of the palace minister's family do not need to join the conscription because of their status and other reasons, but the taxes they pay are not the standard of ordinary families."

"Of course, all this is a prerequisite for a good future, and if any family has an accident due to corruption and other issues, they will not only face forced labor, but even suffer for the rest of their lives after being assigned to the border."

"In fact, compared to other dynasties, the Tang Dynasty should be considered good."

"The policy of the Tang Dynasty has always been good, not long after the founding of the country, the emperor proposed a policy of exempting from forced labor for one year when the country was in a situation of ruin."

"This policy not only won the support of a large number of people, but also drove the country's economic development and laid a good foundation for the later prosperous situation."

"But this can't change the fundamental problem of their exploitation of labor, as well as the loss of life and money in the later stage."

"In fact, everyone is a feudal dynasty, even if the Tang Dynasty is humane, it can't really treat the people well, and it can't be true fairness after all."

"This problem, it seems that every dynasty will have it, there are too many dynasties that rule violently."

"For example, during the reign of Qin Shi Huang, the people at that time were conscripted into military service, not to mention that they could not get the attention of the upper echelons no matter how hard they worked, they were like an inexhaustible source of strength and became a tool for the rulers to use."

"It's not an exaggeration, in such a situation, no matter how hard people try, they may still lose their lives in the next second."

"In the real society, in a social environment that does not pay attention to human feelings, people's lives are like mustard, and the people at that time were really bleak."

"The so-called water also carries the boat, and it can also capsize the boat", this sentence was perfectly embodied in the Tang Dynasty. ”

"It's just a pity, the Tang Dynasty is essentially a feudal dynasty that oppresses the people, and there are still many people who are surviving under the pressure of the state."

"The country's economic prosperity is nothing more than a bubble for them."

"The real prosperity should be built on the basis of the people's sense of happiness, and it was Li Shimin who destroyed the prosperity he built with his own hands."

In the twelve articles of "Emperor Fan" written for the crown prince Li Zhi, he clearly wrote: "Since I reigned on the throne, I have not been good enough. ”

"The splendid pearls and jades are endless, the palace and the pavilion are frequently made, the dogs, horses, eagles and falcons are far away, traveling in all directions, for the annoyance, this is my deep also, don't think it is the law."

"Obviously, for the sake of his ancestors, Li Shimin must tell the truth to his son, and he hopes that Li Zhi will not follow his example, and to be a virtuous monarch, he must be temperate and restrained."

This Li Shimin's move is a bit of a "only the state officials are allowed to set fires, and the people are not allowed to light lamps"! ”

"Only allow you Li Shimin to act perversely, and not allow others to enjoy Li An's ease? Thanks to Li Zhi being a good son, he was not psychologically unbalanced with his father's last words. ”

Sima Guang: Emperor Taizong once said: "The reason why the common people commit theft is because of the heavy taxes and forced labor, and the greedy looting of the officials, which makes them hungry and cold, so they can't care about shame." ”

"To eliminate thieves, we should get rid of luxury, reduce expenses, reduce forced labor and taxes, select and appoint honest officials, so that the common people have a surplus of food and clothing, and the common people will naturally refrain from stealing, where can we use harsh laws!"

"You have explained the reasons for this, the heavy taxation and forced labor, and the greedy looting of the officials, without which the people would be able to live and work in peace and contentment, and how could there be any thieves?"

That's true, but you didn't!

(End of chapter)