Disciplining Emperor Gaozu of Han

Chapter 55: Confused about small things, clear-headed about big things

"If you lose, don't always be drunk," Liu Ying stated.

"What pleasures are there in life without drinking?" Liu Bang resolutely refused.

"You are the King of Han, with so many affairs to attend to. What kind of behavior is it to always be drunk?" Liu Ying rebuked.

Zhang Liang and Chen Ping agreed wholeheartedly and nodded slightly.

"If you dare mention this again, I'll beat you to death!" Liu Bang gritted his teeth. "This is my only hobby in life, and you want to control it? Anyone who doesn't let me drink is my father's killer!"

Liu Bang was a drunkard and womanizer; asking him to stop drinking was tantamount to asking him to die.

"That's just how drunkards are!" Liu Ying rolled his eyes and had no choice but to change his terms: "Then you should be more polite to your subordinates. Don't just beat or scold them. Treating your generals like children is an insult to your status as the King of Han."

"What is 'prestige'?" Liu Bang was completely clueless.

Zhang Liang and Chen Ping looked at Liu Ying.

Out of habit, Liu Ying used internet slang, but offered no explanation: "That's not the point. The point is you can't be too rude to your subordinates. You need to change that."

"It's just a beating or a scolding, it's not like I'll lose a piece of my flesh," Liu Bang said dismissively.

"You either beat or scold them, showing no respect whatsoever. How can they not have complaints?" Liu Ying was speechless. What kind of logic was Liu Bang using?

"Beating them and scolding them won't affect my ability to appoint them to important positions," Liu Bang said smugly, puffing out his chest. "As long as they are talented, I will appoint them to important positions. It's fine."

"You're always hitting and scolding me, doesn't that affect my chances of being promoted?" Liu Ying retorted.

"Your Highness is unaware of the truth, what the King of Han said is true." Before Liu Bang could refute, Chen Ping spoke up for him.

"Chen Ping, you're speaking up for him?" Liu Ying was surprised.

"Prince, this is not Chen Ping speaking for the King of Han, but the truth." Chen Ping was very certain: "King Xiang is clear-headed about small matters, but muddle-headed about big matters, and he doesn't know how to use people; the King of Han is not concerned with trivial matters, he treats his generals like children, and if he is angered, he will either beat or scold them, but he has never been muddle-headed on important matters."

"Excellent!" Zhang Liang echoed.

"You..." Liu Ying couldn't believe it.

"Xiang Yu was very polite to people. If someone was sick, he would cry and shed tears, and he would personally distribute food to them..." Chen Ping's words shocked Liu Ying.

"Xiang Yu was that kind of person?" Liu Ying found it unbelievable.

"Absolutely true!" Chen Ping nodded emphatically.

"How could someone so soft-hearted massacre a city and slaughter the common people?" Liu Ying felt as if thunderbolts were rolling down his spine.

"Xiang Yu's womanly kindness is not just a nickname," Liu Ying said with a sneer, completely looking down on Xiang Yu. "Xiang Yu only knows how to offer small favors; he has never been right once when it comes to matters of principle."

"Excellent!" Zhang Liang echoed.

"Excellent!" Chen Ping agreed.

Seeing how earnest the two were, Liu Ying had no choice but to believe them.

Liu Bang and Xiang Yu were two extremes, and the two were sharply opposed. Xiang Yu was meticulous about details but neglected important matters; Liu Bang was not concerned with details but was never ambiguous about important matters.

Last year, after Xiang Yu had enfeoffed the princes in Guanzhong, he prepared to withdraw from Guanzhong and return to Pengcheng to establish his state and capital. However, he was stopped by a man named Han Sheng, who advised him not to return east but to establish his capital in Guanzhong instead.

Xiang Yu uttered a famous line that has been passed down through the ages: "Wealth and honor not returned to one's hometown are like wearing embroidered clothes at night; who will know them?" Han Sheng was greatly disappointed and mocked Xiang Yu, saying, "People say that the people of Chu are like monkeys wearing hats; it's true." Xiang Yu was furious and had Han Sheng boiled alive.

After Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu, he initially planned to establish his capital in Luoyang. However, Lou Jing, upon meeting Liu Bang, advised him to move the capital to Guanzhong. Liu Bang found Lou Jing's reasoning very sound and consulted with his ministers. Many of his ministers were from Shandong and opposed the idea of ​​establishing the capital in Guanzhong, preferring to remain in Luoyang. Liu Bang, still convinced of Lou Jing's merits but undecided, consulted Zhang Liang. Zhang Liang analyzed the pros and cons and supported Lou Jing's view. Liu Bang immediately set off for Guanzhong to establish his capital.

Furthermore, he bestowed the Liu family name upon Lou Jing, which showed how much he valued Lou Jing.

Furthermore, regarding the matter of Ao Cang, the two had completely different attitudes.

Aocang was the lifeline of the empire, of paramount importance. Yet Xiang Yu passed by Aocang three times without entering. After the defeat at Chenggao, Liu Bang lost confidence after being defeated by Xiang Yu and wanted to abandon the area east of Chenggao. Li Shiqi disagreed, as abandoning the area east of Chenggao meant abandoning Aocang. Without this major granary, the consequences would be severe.

Liu Bang decided not to abandon Chenggao and Chengdong, but to hold Aocang.

With the grain from Ao Cang in hand, Liu Bang felt more confident and decided to outlast Xiang Yu. "Xiang Yu, you think you're so tough? I won't fight you. Let's outlast each other with our supplies!"

Xiang Yu did not control the grain supply at Ao Cang, so he could only transport grain from Pengcheng, which is now Xuzhou, to the Luoyang area in Henan. The supply line was too long, more than a thousand or two thousand miles, and was easily cut off by Peng Yue, which led to Xiang Yu's downfall.

If Xiang Yu had established his capital in Guanzhong, Liu Bang would have been trapped and died in Hanzhong, there would have been no Chu-Han Contention, and history would have unfolded very differently. If Xiang Yu had controlled Ao Cang and had had ample supplies, the supply lines would not have been cut off, and Liu Bang would have been the one to lose.

"Your rudeness is ultimately unacceptable," Liu Ying questioned. "Respect is mutual. Your disrespect towards your subordinates has led to their lack of reverence for you, which undermines the prestige of the King of Han. Don't you think you're playing the role of King of Han too lightly?"

"I..." Liu Bang started to say, but then swallowed his words, his expression changing several times: "I will be more polite to them."

The makeshift troupe, lacking the constraints of etiquette, appeared unrestrained and free, but in reality, it was detrimental to Liu Bang's prestige as King of Han, a problem he had already realized.

It was precisely because of this problem that Shusun Tong established the rites.

With the ceremony completed and the officials restrained, Liu Bang finally understood the joy of being emperor, exclaiming, "Only today do I realize the nobility of being an emperor!"

"Remember what you said." Liu Ying steadied herself.

Liu Bang nodded slightly but did not speak.

Zhang Liang and Chen Ping exchanged a glance, their faces filled with satisfaction.

They had advised Liu Bang to tone it down and stop being so impolite, but Liu Bang was incorrigible and ignored them, even Zhang Liang, whom he respected most, wouldn't listen. At this point, it was quite remarkable that Liu Ying could get Liu Bang to listen.

"Fan Kuai, you lead seven hundred men and defeat them for me." Liu Bang summoned Fan Kuai and ordered, "If you lose, you are not allowed to eat dog meat for the rest of your life."

"You're not allowed to eat dog meat? King Han, can you please not be so cruel?" Fan Kuai was shocked.

As a dog butcher, his greatest love in life must be dog meat. Forbidding him from eating dog meat is a punishment on par with Liu Bang's aversion to women.

"Hmph." Liu Bang glared at Fan Kuai.

Fan Kuai shrank back, not daring to speak.

"If you lose, each of you will receive thirty strokes of the cane," Liu Ying said to Li Bi and Luo Jia.

Liu Ying was a man of his word; if he said he would punish someone with a cane, then he would punish them with a cane. Li Bi, Luo Jia, and the cavalrymen quickly obeyed.

"Ying'er, just wait and call me." Liu Bang was bursting with confidence.

Liu Ying glanced at him, a slight smile playing on her lips.

Amidst everyone's anticipation, the competition began.

Fan Kuai was a fierce general who personally led seven hundred elite troops into battle. However, when faced with the three-by-three tactic, he was overwhelmed. From the very beginning, Fan Kuai was at a disadvantage, and the outcome was quickly decided.

"Impossible! Impossible! How could I lose?" Fan Kuai was pinned to the ground by Li Bi and Luo Jia, shouting with his neck stiff and his face full of disbelief.

"Fan Kuai, you can forget about eating dog meat again!" Liu Bang roared in fury.

"I'm not convinced, let's try again." Li Biluo released Fan Kuai, who got up, still very unconvinced.

"Again!" Liu Bang was equally unconvinced.

"You've already lost. If we were to compete again, what would you have to offer?" Liu Ying would not grant Liu Bang's wish.

"If you don't compete, I won't keep my word," Liu Bang threatened.

Knowing Liu Laogang's nature, if this isn't a threat, it will definitely become a reality. Liu Ying rolled her eyes: "Don't cry if you lose."

"You're the one who'll cry," Liu Bang scoffed.

The second competition begins...

"How could I have lost again?" Fan Kuai was completely dumbfounded. "And lost so thoroughly this time."

"Impossible!" Liu Bang nearly rubbed his eyes out.

"Again!" Fan Kuai refused to believe it.

"Again!" Liu Bang refused to accept reality.

"King of Han, please don't compete." Zhang Liang's eyes flashed like lightning, radiating brilliance.

"King of Han, even if we compete again, you will still lose." Chen Ping's eyes shone brightly.

Note 1:

The Records of the Grand Historian, Biography of Marquis of Huaiyin, records that when Han Xin was appointed general in Hanzhong, he said to Liu Bang: "When King Xiang met people, he was respectful and kind, and spoke gently. If someone was sick, he would weep and share his food and drink with them. However, when someone had rendered meritorious service and deserved to be rewarded with a title, he would cut off the seal and could not bear to give it to them. This is what is called the benevolence of a woman."

The Book of Han, Biography of Han Xin, records that when Han Xin was appointed general in Hanzhong, he said to Liu Bang: "Xiang Yu is respectful and gentle to people. When people are sick, he weeps and shares his food and drink with them. However, when people have made contributions and are about to be rewarded with titles and seals, he is reluctant to give them to them. This is what is called the benevolence of a woman."

Note 2:

The Records of the Grand Historian, Biography of Xiang Yu, states: "Someone said to Xiang Yu, 'Guanzhong is surrounded by mountains and rivers, and the land is fertile and rich. It is suitable to establish a capital and become a hegemon.' Xiang Yu saw that the Qin palaces were all burned and ruined, and he also longed to return east. He said, 'Wealth and honor without returning to one's hometown is like wearing embroidered clothes at night. Who will know it?' The person who said this said, 'People say that the people of Chu are like monkeys wearing hats. It is true.' When Xiang Yu heard this, he had the person who said this boiled alive."

The Book of Han, Biography of Xiang Yu, records: "Then Han Sheng said to Yu, 'Guanzhong is surrounded by mountains and rivers, a land of great natural defenses, rich and fertile, suitable for establishing a capital and becoming a hegemon.' Yu saw that the Qin palaces had all been burned down, and longed to return east, saying, 'Wealth and honor without returning to one's hometown is like wearing brocade at night.' Han Sheng said, 'People say that the people of Chu are like monkeys wearing hats, and it is true.' Yu heard this and beheaded Han Sheng."