Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors

Wei Zhen dreamed of weeping at midnight, Zhang Jin grieved by daybreak's cries.

Lamentable women, three thousand released from the palace, death-row prisoners, four hundred returning to settle their final affairs.

Clipping beards, burning medicine for meritorious officials, Li Ji sobbed, contemplating suicide.

Mouth bloody, sucking wounds, comforting warriors, Simo called out fervently, begging to die honorably.

It wasn't just about skill in battle or seizing the right moment, it was about touching hearts and winning them over.

Since then, one hundred and ninety years have passed, yet the world still sings and dances in his honor.

Singing of seven virtues, dancing of seven virtues, Saints compose, their legacies endless.

It wasn't merely about glorifying mighty arms, nor just about boasting of sagacious governance.

Emperor Taizong's intention was to set an example of kingship, a difficult legacy to show his descendants.

Seeing this level-clearance evaluation, Li Hongyun really wanted to complain.

What do you mean "not so difficult" trial?

Compared to the previous "simple" trials, this was a leveled-up version, albeit slightly.

I had a performance in the instance that could replace Lord Qin, and yet it's still just a "not so difficult" trial?

However, on second thought, after all, it was only after obtaining so many golden talents that I won. Balanced under this mechanism... it indeed seemed to be just a "not so difficult" trial.

Truly difficult were the trials faced by heroes like Emperor Taizong of Liang and Emperor Taizu of Sheng under historical circumstances of their times.

Thus, Li Hongyun no longer dwelled on it—if it was "not so difficult," then so be it!

Then, Li Hongyun looked at this poem.

This was a famous poem by a Liang Dynasty poet, sung in praise of Emperor Taizong.

Previous instances in "Dark Sand" also often used verses for conclusions, but it was rare to attach a long poem to a level-clearance evaluation like this.

This poem nearly recreated Emperor Taizong's entire life, but most importantly, it highlighted his most admirable trait.

The initial verses, from "Emperor Taizong raising righteous troops at eighteen" to "At thirty-five he brought universal peace," tell of the many years of warfare and the remarkable achievements of Emperor Taizong in pacifying the realm.

The subsequent content used several anecdotes to demonstrate why Emperor Taizong could stabilize the world so swiftly: because he reached out with his heart sincerely.

In the early years of the Zhen Guan era, Emperor Taizong ordered the burial of all the remains of those who died in wars, offering sacrifices before entombing them. Anyone who buried unclaimed bodies was thanked with fabric and silk from the official treasury.

In the second year of Zhen Guan, a great famine occurred, with parents in poverty selling their children out of starvation. Emperor Taizong commanded the imperial treasury's gold and silk be used to redeem the sold children and return them to their parents.

Wei Zhen was gravely ill, and Emperor Taizong, anxious about his condition, dreamt of Wei Zhen coming to bid farewell in the night. Awakening with a start, he couldn't help but weep; when Zhang Jin passed away, Emperor Taizong personally managed the mourning, overcome with grief. The officials said, "It is the hour of Chen, inauspicious for such sorrow," but Emperor Taizong replied, "The bond between a sovereign and his subjects is profound, like that of parent and child. When emotion stirs within, how can one heed the hour?" With that, he wept bitterly.

Deeming the palace women confined to the deep palace pitiable, he selected thousands to set free, allowing them to seek their own partners.

In the sixth year of Zhen Guan, he personally oversaw the prisons to investigate wrongful cases, ultimately identifying four hundred prisoners to be executed. He allowed them to return home to arrange their affairs. By the next autumn, all four hundred prisoners had returned, none having fled.

Li Ji lay bedridden, terminally ill, and when the royal physician said dragon whiskers burned to ash were needed as medicine, Emperor Taizong personally trimmed off his beard; when General Li Simo was struck by an arrow, Taizong himself sucked the blood from the wound.

This Li Simo, actually named Ashina Simo, was a noble of the Eastern Turks, a great-grandson of the Khan Yilikhan, yet later became a renowned general of the Liang Dynasty. During Emperor Taizong's campaigns against Korea, he swore to serve to his death, earning illustrious merits.

These achievements were just the tip of the iceberg of Emperor Taizong's accomplishments.

In addition, Emperor Taizong swallowed locusts to demonstrate his solidarity with the people and resolve to eradicate the locust plague.

The bones of fallen warriors, the impoverished parents forced to sell their children, the civil officials governing the country, the military generals fighting wars, the women of the palace, the prisoners in jail...

All could feel the radiance of this once-in-an-epoch emperor.

Perhaps some may say, was this all just a show? Is trimming a beard or collecting bodies worthy of such gratitude and importance? Does it truly matter?

It does indeed matter.

Because in the rigidly hierarchical society of ancient times, for a monarch to demonstrate such actions already expressed a significant attitude.

And this attitude often marks the boundary between a wise ruler and a tyrant.

Those emperors who seemed clever but eventually turned into tyrants, where did their transformation begin?

Perhaps it began with the belief that their actions were merely for show.

As an emperor gradually became accustomed to his exalted status, growing more distant from his people, no longer moved by the suffering of his subjects, no longer grateful for the efforts of his civil and military officials, considering the toils of the people and the sacrifices of his warriors as a matter of course...

Then he was not far from becoming a tyrant or a despot.

One could say that Emperor Taizong of Liang was truly a man of genuine emotions. Open, tolerant, and passionate, his spirit not only deeply affected those around him but also influenced all citizens of the Liang Dynasty.

Even this intense emotion to some extent became embedded in the character of the entire Huaxia civilization, showcasing the most splendid aspects of its culture.

As the poem ultimately suggests, these contents are not merely about boasting how Emperor Taizong was invincible in battle or how he expanded the frontiers, nor merely about his wisdom or skill in governing.

It is to make future generations understand the difficulties of ruling a kingdom.

Emperor Taizhong achieved such great achievements not out of luck, but because he deeply understood the hardships involved and never allowed himself a moment of slackness.

Before Emperor Taizhong, when speaking of governance, people would often refer to the three dynasties: the Xia, Shang, and Zhou.

But it is clear that the Xia, Shang, and Zhou were part of the distant slave society. Perhaps there were beautiful memories of "abdication," "Saints Yao and Shun," "Rites of Zhou," and so on, but those memories were ultimately seen through a filter.

After Emperor Taizhong, however, when it came to governance, it was universally recognized that no period after the three dynasties could surpass the "Rule of Zhen Guan."

The "Essential Governance of Zhen Guan" thus became the compulsory course for ancient emperors, and it was considered a perfect answer.

This is the verdict given by generations of sages, history, and time itself.

...

At this moment, Meng Yuan was also keeping an eye on the players' progress.

Although he spent the most time observing Li Hongyun, it was Zhao Haiping who first cleared the instance.

In this instance, Zhao Haiping was able to fully display his military acumen, and since he didn't need to bring any talents to enhance his military skills, he had more freedom in choosing his talents, making it easier to replicate Lord Qin's tactics.

However, the entire experience of Li Hongyun was the most representative.

Compared to players like Chu Ge, Fan Cun, and Zhao Haiping, Li Hongyun didn't really have any particular strengths except for his relatively good luck.

His combat ability was decent, and his puzzle-solving skills were okay; it seemed he knew a little about everything, but was not the most proficient in any area.

But it was precisely because of this, after clearing the Trial Illusion, that he was better able to understand Lord Qin's strength.

Because it is only after shoring up weaknesses that one realizes that Lord Qin's strength is an all-encompassing and flawless power.

Can Shi was somewhat curious and asked, "But I still want to ask, can such simulation trials really enable them to dominate in real historical slices as well? The difference between this simulation trial and the ultimate trial seems quite significant.

"In the real historical slices, even the most important anchor points are concealed by demons..."

Meng Yuan nodded confidently, "Yes!"

If Meng Yuan had any doubts before, then the previous event where all the players entered a historical slice together and completed Wang Wenchuan's reforms had already shown him the players' strong cooperative abilities and organization.

As a genuine Re-orderer, Meng Yuan had, of course, already reviewed the situation of this historical slice.

Lord Qin's existence had been completely concealed by the demons.

Therefore, in the ultimate trial, the players would be entering a historical slice where Lord Qin simply did not exist.

They would have to complete the monumental task of reconstructing the Rule of Zhen Guan without Lord Qin.

Can Shi originally thought that Meng Yuan would use a Trial Illusion without Lord Qin for the players to practice, but to her surprise, Meng Yuan had deconstructed the real Lord Qin, allowing the players to closely watch and understand him.

Now she realized, perhaps this was the right approach.

Because only after seeing the standard answer, could the players come up with a solution that is infinitely close to the standard answer.