Recaps

Liu Heng arranged for Luo Jing to choose several wives at a grand banquet, using the marriages to bind his political influence and divide the Marquisate of Dong'e among his descendants. The empress proposed that many women combine their strengths to match Luo Jing, leaving the gathered families stunned.

• Luo Jing left the palace and considered the political significance of his marriage, while Liu Heng announced that he would select wives for him.
• Liu Heng explained to the empress that the chosen women would curb Luo Jing's influence and ensure the Marquisate of Dong'e was divided among his children.
• The Empress Dowager, Liu Heng, the empress, and prominent families gathered at Weiyang Palace, where Liu Heng asked Luo Jing to compose a rhapsody.
• Luo Jing composed the “Endless Night Rhapsody,” praising the banquet and its guests, and Liu Heng ordered it preserved for later generations.
• The empress declared that no single woman could match Luo Jing and suggested that many women join together, stunning the families at the banquet.

Jia Yi visited Zhao City to arrange a marriage for the Marquis of Dong'e and request the Luo Clan’s books for Liu Heng’s new academy. Luo Ling agreed to provide copies, intending to use the selection to revive schools of thought he favored, while praising Liu Heng’s willingness to work with the Luo Clan.

• Jia Yi arrived in Zhao City and met Luo Ling, who approved Liu Heng’s chosen concubines for the Marquis of Dong'e and promised betrothal gifts.
• Jia Yi conveyed Liu Heng’s request for the Luo Clan’s collection to support an academy in Chang'an and preserve the classics of the Hundred Schools.
• Luo Ling agreed to let Han attendants copy the books, on condition that the texts remain within All Xia until the time came to civilize the barbarians.
• After Jia Yi left, Luo Ling told Luo Chen that the Luo Clan would choose which books to share and use them to bring favored schools back into prominence.
• Luo Ling praised Liu Heng for trusting the Luo Clan’s resources to help the realm prosper.

Liu Heng doubts whether his achievements are truly his own, but Luo Jing urges him to preserve and strengthen Great Han and establish an academy that will endure. Liu Heng names it the Imperial Academy and appoints Luo Jing its first Libationer; the schools of thought then rush to Chang'an to influence its curriculum.

• Jia Yi returned to Zhao City with gifts and treasures for Duke Zhao's State.
• Liu Heng told Luo Jing that his smooth reign had made him doubt whether he could become a sage sovereign, and Luo Jing reminded him that preserving Great Han's prosperity was itself a great achievement.
• Luo Jing argued that establishing an academy could secure Liu Heng's legacy, and Liu Heng named it the Imperial Academy and appointed Luo Jing its first Libationer.
• Scholars and leaders from the schools of thought flocked to Chang'an after news spread that the court would establish an academy.
• A Meng Clan Confucian elder explained that the school had come to ensure its classics became part of the Imperial Academy's official curriculum.

Luo Jing presided over the Imperial University’s first assembly, where Meng Mingcheng provoked Huang De into an outburst and persuaded Luo Jing to expel him and his students. The gathering ended with Luo Jing saying the university would formally open after the sages’ writings arrived from Zhao City.

• The Imperial University was established with erudite posts for the Thirteen Classics, while the sleeping Ji Zhao received 2,000 Fortune Points without noticing.
• Luo Jing addressed the gathered scholars as Libationer and urged them to set a good example for the university’s disciples.
• Meng Mingcheng accused rival Confucian factions of collaboration with Qin through a parable, prompting Huang De and others to challenge him.
• Meng Mingcheng used Huang De’s angry outburst to argue that he lacked the virtue required of an erudite, and Luo Jing ordered Huang De and all his students expelled.
• Luo Jing announced that the Imperial University would formally open after the writings of the past sages arrived from Zhao City.

Liu Heng considered which schools of thought Great Han should use to govern and summoned Confucian erudites to present their ideas. He embraced one scholar’s argument for unity and a Sage King’s rule, while reassuring other schools that they would still have a place at the Imperial Academy.

• Liu Heng asked Luo Jing what eminent scholars sought, and Luo Jing explained that the schools aimed to establish ideal realms through different methods.
• Luo Jing argued that Great Han should choose a governing doctrine while allowing other schools to survive and contribute through the Imperial Academy.
• Liu Heng issued an edict summoning Confucian erudites to the palace and another assuring scholars of other schools that they still had important uses.
• Liu Heng asked the Confucian erudites what Great Han needed, and an adherent of “Venerate the King” argued that unity and institutional change would bring peace.
• Liu Heng declared himself the Sage King who would usher in peace and welcomed the erudite’s theory as support for his reforms.

In Zhao City, Luo Ling worried that the Han Court’s Confucian reforms could revive an impractical version of the old Luo State and feared what might happen to the clan after his death. In Chang’an, Luo Jing took his advice to heart but, encouraged by his concubines, decided to present his rhapsody praising the flourishing Han realm to the emperor.

• Luo Ling heard that the Han Court had made the Spring and Autumn Classic Official Learning and designated Qi Law and Mengist Confucianism Secondary Learning, and he feared the scholars’ reforms would repeat the Luo State’s past.
• Luo Ling worried that future Luo Clan leaders would not use Divine Artifacts to protect the clan, and he sent Luo Jing a warning to slow the Confucian scholars down and have them work among the common people.
• Luo Jing read Luo Ling’s letter and considered withholding his rhapsody, Heavenly Han, Part Three, because he feared it falsely praised a troubled realm.
• A concubine of Luo Jing argued that the realm was genuinely peaceful and that the rhapsody could encourage the emperor to govern even better, so Luo Jing ordered its transcription completed.
• The next day, Luo Jing carried the bamboo slips into the Imperial Palace and wondered whether the Luo Clan’s efforts to develop paper would succeed.

Liu Heng resolved to survey the realm’s land and address hidden abuses so people everywhere could live securely. The investigation began in Guanzhong, where widespread corruption enraged him and led him to order guilty officials and powerful families exiled to Lingnan.

• Liu Heng read Luo Jing’s rhapsody, reflected on his shortcomings, and said that benevolent governance had to reach displaced people throughout the realm.
• Liu Heng told Luo Jing he would spend five to ten years reassessing land, and an edict announced investigations into illegal land seizures and unpaid taxes.
• Liu Heng began the land survey in Guanzhong, relying on the Han Court’s broad base of small landowners, freemen, scholars, and military merit nobles to support reform.
• Officials uncovered widespread abuses in Guanzhong, and Liu Heng feared that conditions elsewhere might be worse.
• Luo Jing urged Liu Heng to take heart in Guanzhong’s relative prosperity and focus on extending it to Shandong.
• Liu Heng ordered officials, powerful gentry, and nobles who had concealed abuses in Guanzhong exiled to Lingnan, setting the land survey in earnest.

Liu Heng condemned the Powerful Gentry for resisting land reform, but stopped officials from turning the survey into a campaign of confiscation and purges. His order reached Shandong, where the Powerful Gentry calmed down and the investigation resumed through normal procedures.

• Powerful Gentry in Shandong resisted Liu Heng's policies, and some officials in Chang'an secretly encouraged opposition.
• Liu Heng rebuked those who challenged his rule and argued that their extravagance contrasted with the hardships of common people.
• Confucian scholars, Legalist students, and students of Xun Confucianism helped implement the land survey, while officials used Han statutes to ruin local Powerful Gentry and turn the survey into confiscations.
• Liu Heng summoned Luo Jing and Jia Yi and decided that officials must not use legal violations as grounds for purging the Powerful Gentry.
• Liu Heng ordered an envoy to Jiaodong Kingdom to stop the confiscations, and officials in Shandong resumed the land survey through normal procedures.

The Luo Clan achieved a complete breakthrough in papermaking, producing fine white paper that could hold ink. Luo Ling ordered it prepared as tribute for the Son of Heaven, and a delegation left Zhao City for Chang'an with the paper.

• After decades of research, the Luo Clan perfected papermaking and gained recognition from the system for the achievement.
• A master craftsman reported the breakthrough to Luo Ling, who tested the paper with brush and ink and wrote “The Luo Clan of All Xia” on it.
• Luo Ling declared that the Sage King was with them and ordered the paper sent to the Son of Heaven as tribute under the name “Luo Paper.”
• Luo Jiu told the craftsman to keep improving the paper and planned workshops to produce and sell it throughout the realm.
• The Luo Clan prepared a higher-quality batch of paper, and its delegation of several hundred people departed Zhao City for Chang'an.

Luo Ban brought the Luo Clan’s newly developed paper to Chang’an as a tribute, and Liu Heng recognized its potential to transform writing across Great Han. As the grand ceremony approached, the capital tightened security and Liu Heng continued receiving reports from the realm’s vassals.

• Duke Zhao’s State arrived in Chang’an with a delegation of over a thousand people, including five hundred Dare-to-Fight Warriors, drawing attention to the Luo Clan’s unusual show of force.
• Liu Heng asked Luo Ban why the delegation was larger than before, and Luo Ban explained that the men were protecting a precious gift for the Son of Heaven.
• Luo Ban presented the Luo Clan’s smooth white paper, and Liu Heng tested it with a brush before praising its promise for Great Han’s culture and letters.
• Liu Heng proposed that Luo Jing write a literary composition on the paper for the grand ceremony, and Luo Jing agreed to help display the new material.
• Luo Jing suggested copying and distributing his writings once paper became available, and Liu Heng offered palace attendants to assist.
• As the grand ceremony neared, Chang’an enforced stricter order, and Liu Heng received reports from other vassals, including Zhao Nan of Lingnan.

Luo Jing and Luo Ban discussed powerful military families turning to classical learning as a way to regain influence, worrying that scholar clans might recreate hereditary aristocracy. As the imperial ceremony began, the chapter framed this shift as history’s recurring rise of a new, more progressive aristocracy under stronger imperial authority.

• Luo Jing received visitors from powerful families seeking connections and opportunities for their younger members to enter the Imperial Academy.
• Luo Jing realized that declining Meritorious Marquis families hoped to gain influence by cultivating scholars and joining the Classical Studies ranks.
• Luo Ban explained that Shandong families had been imitating the Luo Clan’s education and family discipline to preserve wealth and status across generations.
• Luo Jing noted that the Marquis of Zàn's family and Marquis Liu's family were also pursuing scholarship, raising his concern that military nobles could become powerful scholar clans.
• Luo Jing told Luo Ban that he had arranged for the Han Clan to return to court, and Liu Heng had welcomed them into trusted, prestigious offices.
• The formal ceremony began after extensive changes in officialdom, and the chapter described the emergence of a new aristocracy beneath imperial authority.

At the grand audience ceremony, Liu Heng received tribute from Lingnan and then saw Luo Ban present inexpensive paper bearing a rhapsody praising the Great Han. Liu Heng declared the paper an auspicious gift from Heaven and burned the written sheet in a sacrifice to Supreme Heaven.

• Descendants of convicted ministers from Lingnan entered on their knees, presented tribute, and hoped Liu Heng would pardon them and let them return home.
• Liu Heng dismissed the Lingnan group and called for the envoy from Duke Zhao's State.
• Luo Ban presented paper inscribed with the rhapsody 'Great Han,' astonishing the court with its quality and low cost.
• Liu Heng ordered the court painter to record the ceremony on paper and named the painting the Picture of Heaven Bestowing Paper.
• Liu Heng declared Luo Paper an auspicious omen and used the rhapsody-covered sheet as an offering in a sacrifice to Supreme Heaven.

Luo Zhongkan died after learning that his wife was carrying another child, and Luo Ling promised to care for his family. His posthumous son, Luo Wuji, was born as a Child of the Mandate of Heaven, and Ji Zhao examined his potential.

• Luo Ling learned that Luo Zhongkan had collapsed and went to his bedside, where Zhongkan entrusted his wife and daughter to him.
• Luo Zhongkan told Luo Ling that his only regret was never leading an army into the Western Regions and asked that a future descendant fulfill that wish.
• Luo Ling sensed a Sacred Mark in Luo Zhongkan's wife's womb and told the couple they were expecting another Luo Clan Scion.
• Luo Zhongkan named his unborn son Luo Wuji and died; Luo Jing later offered to look after the boy in Chang'an when he grew older.
• Luo Wuji was born the following year, and the system announced that he was a Child of the Mandate of Heaven.
• Ji Zhao examined Luo Wuji's attributes and saw that many of his uneven talents could still be improved.

Luo Jing learned that Emperor Liu Heng had ordered Zhou Yafu to suppress a serious uprising in the southwest while maintaining his cautious approach to war. Meanwhile, Crown Prince Liu Qi lost control during a board game and killed Liu Mo, Crown Prince of Jiaodong, and another man, leaving his fate uncertain.

• Luo Jing greeted Crown Prince Liu Qi at the palace before discussing frontier trouble with Emperor Liu Heng.
• Liu Heng explained that he would send Zhou Yafu and five thousand Imperial Guards to quell the Southwestern Yi uprising and punish the officials responsible.
• Liu Qi went to a gaming house, where he encountered Liu Mo and challenged him to a board game.
• After Liu Mo gained the advantage and mocked him, Liu Qi struck him with the iron board and killed him.
• Liu Qi killed a young man who threatened to accuse him, then left with the Palace Guards.

After Crown Prince Liu Qi killed the Crown Prince of King of Jiaodong and the Duke of Qi’s son, Liu Heng considered the political consequences and whether to depose him. Jia Yi urged the emperor to protect the kingdoms’ trust and asked officials to weigh in, while factions in Chang'an began moving against Liu Qi.

• Liu Heng erupted in anger over Liu Qi’s killings and promised the envoys from Jiaodong and Qi an accounting.
• Liu Heng asked Jia Yi to assess the consequences, and Jia Yi warned that failing to answer for the deaths could undermine Great Han’s stability.
• Luo Jing stopped Jia Yi before he openly called for Liu Qi’s deposition.
• Liu Heng asked Jia Yi to gather the officials’ views, and Jia Yi agreed to carry out the command.
• Interested parties seized on Liu Qi’s actions as an opportunity to move against his position as Crown Prince.

After Liu Qi’s killing of two nobles provoked outrage across the realm, Liu Heng summoned Liu Che, King of Liang, back to Chang’an, signaling that he intended to replace the crown prince. The empress was forbidden from pleading for Liu Qi and realized her sons might be set against each other.

• Memorials flooded Changle Palace demanding that Liu Heng punish Liu Qi, leaving the crown prince unable to inherit unless Liu Heng purged the court.
• Luo Jing praised Liu Heng for allowing ministers to remonstrate, and Liu Heng ordered a decree summoning Liu Che, King of Liang, back to the capital.
• The empress considered pleading for Liu Qi, but an attendant delivered Zhang Yan’s warning that she must put the realm before the crown prince.
• A palace maid told the empress that Liu Che had been summoned, and the empress understood that Liu Heng intended to replace Liu Qi.
• The decree spread through Chang’an, and the retainers of the murdered crown prince and young master of Qi State rejoiced that Liu Qi would pay for his crimes before they followed their lords in death.
• Imperial messengers carried Liu Heng’s decree into Liang State.

Liu Che traveled from Liang to Chang'an after the court summoned him to replace Liu Qi as crown prince. After Empress Dowager Zhang Yan and his mother urged him to consider the state and Liu Qi’s fate, Liu Che answered Liu Heng’s questions about ruling and was judged fit to be ruler; the chapter ended with the account of his appointment as crown prince.

• Liu Che set out for Chang'an, and the Liang King's Grand Preceptor warned him to remain restrained until his succession was officially confirmed.
• Empress Dowager Zhang Yan told Liu Che not to imitate Liu Qi and said she would decide how his mother should respond to the succession.
• Liu Che assured his mother that he would care for Liu Qi, but privately believed a deposed crown prince could not be allowed to live.
• Liu Heng asked Liu Che how he would govern, and Liu Che explained his ideas for ruling the realm.
• Liu Heng declared Liu Che fit to be ruler, while Luo Jing and Jia Yi praised him as a blessing for All Xia.
• The account of Emperor Xiaowu recorded Liu Qi’s deposition and Liu Che’s appointment as crown prince.

Liu Heng taught Liu Che that an emperor’s great ambitions had to serve the people, then reviewed the realm’s prosperity and approved a proposal to celebrate his achievements. The “Great Han Sage Kings Rhapsody” appeared, earning Liu Heng 500 Fortune Points and slightly increasing the rate at which he gained them.

• Liu Heng took Liu Che to see farmers at work and explained that rulers depended on the people and must govern within their strength.
• Jia Yi reported that lower agricultural taxes, strong harvests, and grain purchases had kept tax revenues steady while filling the granaries and increasing commercial income.
• Liu Che privately disagreed with Liu Heng’s low-tax approach, believing the court should collect more to fund state projects and expenses.
• Zhou Yafu explained the costs and details of the campaign against the Southwestern Yi, while Liu Heng reflected on the high cost of war.
• Luo Jing proposed commissioning a rhapsody and paintings praising Liu Heng’s rule, and Liu Heng approved the plan with the Marquis of Dong'e in charge.
• The “Great Han Sage Kings Rhapsody” appeared, and Liu Heng gained 500 Fortune Points as the system noted that his family had helped create the flourishing age.

Liu Heng collapsed during a court audience and, knowing he was dying, gave Liu Che advice for ruling Great Han and urged him to trust Luo Jing and never provoke Duke Zhao Ling. Liu Heng died with Luo Jing beside him, and the court mourned the emperor later honored as Emperor Taizong Wen.

• Liu Heng fainted during court, and the Director of Imperial Physicians attributed it to overwork while Luo Jing feared the emperor was dying.
• After waking, Liu Heng sent the ministers out and told Liu Che to treat Chancellor Jia Yi well, restrain his military ambitions, and rely on capable ministers.
• Liu Heng urged Liu Che to trust the Marquis of Dong'e and warned him never to provoke Duke Zhao Ling.
• Liu Heng asked Luo Jing to help Liu Che govern and keep watch over the realm, then died as Luo Jing spoke with him.
• Luo Jing cried that heaven had fallen, and the court and people of Chang'an mourned Liu Heng as the Hymn of Praise to the Sage King was sung.
• The court granted Liu Heng the temple name Taizong and the posthumous name Wen.

Liu Che took the throne and summoned Liu Qi to Chang'an in a humiliating display, prompting Liu Qi to rebel in Jiujiang. As the court’s forces closed in, Liu Qi’s rebellion collapsed, and he faced capture on the battlefield.

• The Grand Preceptor told Liu Qi that Liu Che had ascended the throne and ordered him to travel immediately to Chang'an to share in the celebration.
• Liu Qi went to war after the court’s summons, while the marquises of Jiujiang and neighboring rulers moved to block his advance.
• Liu Che declared that Jiujiang would become commanderies and counties after the rebellion was suppressed, and ordered his forces to bring Liu Qi back alive.
• Liu Qi’s forces lost their occupied cities and were driven back by the court’s allies.
• A crossbow bolt nearly struck Liu Qi, and the court’s soldiers called for him to be captured alive; Liu Qi decided he would rather die than be taken.

Liu Che accepted the court’s demand to give the dead King of Jiujiang the inauspicious posthumous title Li, then sought Luo Jing’s support as he faced court intrigue and uncertainty. Luo Jing entered Changle Palace and met the new emperor in their first formal audience, leaving their relationship poised to shape Liu Che’s rule.

• Liu Che proposed a middle posthumous title for the King of Jiujiang, but court officials urged him to name him Li, and Liu Che yielded.
• Liu Che suspected that powerful figures had helped force Liu Qi into rebellion and death, and concluded that he needed Luo Jing’s support to take control of the court.
• Luo Jing reflected on how the palace had changed since Liu Heng’s death and resolved to help Liu Che protect the realm’s stability.
• Liu Che and Luo Jing performed the Great Ceremony during their first formal audience, exchanging bows as ruler and subject.
• The chapter’s historical account said Liu Che allowed Luo Jing to retain unrestricted access to the palace and its offices.

Liu Che asked Luo Jing how to gain the power to govern, and Luo Jing tested whether the new emperor sought power for the people or for himself. Liu Che declared his ambitions to expand Great Han and pursue institutional reform, while Luo Jing agreed to support him; the chapter left Luo Jing cautiously willing to help as Liu Che began his reign.

• Liu Che rejected the idea that the Luo Clan’s status came from the Sacred Mark and asked Luo Jing for counsel on governing.
• Luo Jing asked what had prompted Liu Che to seek power, leading Liu Che to consider whether he would rule for the people or merely for himself.
• Liu Che declared that he would expand the States of All Xia and pursue great conquests, and Luo Jing affirmed that the realm’s princes and ministers should submit to him.
• Luo Jing advised Liu Che to define what talents he needed and offered to help find suitable people, while warning him against the Legalist struggle between sovereign and ministers.
• Liu Che called for worthy people and new policies, and Luo Jing left Changle Palace willing to lend him resources while reserving judgment on the results of his reign.

Liu Che issued an edict calling for talented people from both scholarly and military backgrounds and promised support for the children of fallen soldiers. At a frontier garrison, Wei Qing told the soldiers about the edict, then the Xiongnu attacked.

• Liu Che called for worthy talent, including capable officers and soldiers, and ordered a place in the Imperial Gardens to care for the orphaned children of fallen soldiers.
• Soldiers at a frontier city traded stories about the Sage King and Grand Lord Duke Zhao, then asked Wei Qing about posthumous titles.
• Wei Qing explained who could receive posthumous titles and encouraged the soldiers by telling them Liu Che would consider battlefield talent for office and care for their children.
• The soldiers cheered at the news, but gongs sounded and beacon fires appeared as the Xiongnu launched an attack.

As Xiongnu raids increased amid worsening grassland weather, Wei Qing earned enough battlefield merit to be pardoned, while Jia Yi recognized the raids as a warning of possible famine and went to alert Liu Che. In the palace, Jia Yi found Liu Che meeting privately with an unfamiliar Confucian scholar.

• A Han frontier force rode out against more than a thousand Xiongnu raiders, and Wei Qing killed four enemies in battle.
• Jia Yi approved the proposed rewards and pardon for Wei Qing after reviewing the battle report.
• Jia Yi noticed that Xiongnu raids had sharply increased and traced the change to poor weather affecting the grasslands and frontier.
• Fearing that worsening pasture conditions could drive the Xiongnu to raid on a larger scale, Jia Yi hurried to the palace to see Liu Che.
• Jia Yi entered Liu Che's Inner Hall and found him with a middle-aged Confucian scholar whom Jia Yi did not recognize.

Jia Yi warned Liu Che that worsening conditions on the grasslands were driving more Xiongnu south, while Dong Zhongshu argued that destroying the Xiongnu would uphold the way of the Former King. Liu Che appointed Dong Zhongshu to lecture at the Imperial Academy, setting the court on a path toward war.

• Jia Yi reported increased Xiongnu movements south and urged the court to expand intelligence gathering on the grasslands.
• Dong Zhongshu argued that the Han should destroy the Xiongnu to uphold the way of the Former King and prevent a rival power from standing beside it.
• Jia Yi agreed that conflict with the Xiongnu was inevitable and said the Chanyu should submit to Liu Che.
• Liu Che appointed Dong Zhongshu Erudite of the Thirteen Classics and ordered him to lecture at the Imperial Academy.
• Jia Yi grew uneasy as he recognized that Liu Che intended to build support for war, but he did not oppose the emperor.