The face project cost Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty his life (recommended topic 2 on the TV academic storytelling program) Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty is really a historical figure worthy of attention.

He is a famous tyrant in Chinese history, but before he became emperor, his reputation was very good and his articles were also beautifully written.

When he knew that the prince had lost the favor of his father, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, because of his obsession with sensuality, he deliberately broke the strings of the harp and harp in his mansion and let the old emperor see it.

As expected, the old emperor fell into the trap, thinking that he was not good at enjoying himself, so he developed a good impression of him, and in turn made him the crown prince.

This shows that his IQ is not low, unlike idiot emperors such as Jin Hui Emperor Sima Zhong.

Objectively speaking, when Emperor Sui Yang came to the throne, he also tried to make a difference.

He once issued an edict to exempt women from servitude and class service, and ended the system of women's field service that had been implemented since the Northern Wei Dynasty. He also adjusted the age of men to become men from 21 to 22 years old, shortening the service time.

He also established the Jinshi subject based on the imperial examination reforms of his father, Emperor Wen of Sui Dynasty, in order to limit the nobility's monopoly on power and select talents more broadly.

His move improved the imperial examination system and had a profound impact on the history of later generations of China.

It can be found from the "Book of Sui Dynasty: Chronicles of Emperor Yang" that records of his preferential treatment of "Gifu" (exemption from corvee) to the common people are frequently found in historical records.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty also issued an edict to provide special preferential treatment to the elderly: those who are over ninety years old will be "granted" (meaning "granted") the title of prefect; those who are over eighty years old will be "granted" the title of county magistrate, etc.

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It is indeed very creative to honor the elderly by conferring official titles.

This shows that Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was not a bad guy who had lost his basic sense of morality and "let him scold and let me enjoy myself" from the beginning. Instead, he cared very much about his own image and hoped to gain a good reputation and become a respected person.

A wise monarch praised by people.

But what he did later made him a typical example of a cruel, stupid, and reviled tyrant throughout the ages, and he was recorded in history.

In less than fifteen years in office, he completely destroyed the prosperous country that his father had worked hard to build for twenty years. While the people suffered endless suffering, he also lost his own life.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty died in a mutiny and was strangled to death with a rope. It was very tragic.

But after thinking about it for a long time, we found that what really killed him was the face project he had always been obsessed with.

What is the face project of Emperor Sui Yang?

First, we need to clarify what face engineering is.

Face engineering is a type of image engineering.

As long as the appearance is emphasized rather than the interior, regardless of the objective conditions and actual results, no matter how vigorous and beautiful the big things are done on the surface, it can be called an image project.

Among them, doing something to show to your superiors in order to gain approval from your boss and strive for promotion is a performance project; while doing something to show to outsiders in order to be praised and admired by others, so as to satisfy your own vanity, is a face project.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was the emperor and the "NO1" in the world. Of course, the big things he did did not have the problem of performance projects, so they were called face projects.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty had a very good face, and he had benefited greatly from the face-saving operation of "cutting off the strings of the harp, breaking the strings, and filling the dust" before ascending to Dabao. Therefore, it is very likely that the operating principles of exaggeration, flashiness, and superficiality have been deeply rooted in him.

Entered his subconscious, and eventually led him to become obsessed.

There is a line in "Big Shot": "Don't seek the best, just seek the most expensive." Emperor Sui Yang had this mentality.

So, what is the content of Emperor Sui Yang’s face project?

What are the dangers?

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty's face projects can be divided into two categories.

One type has certain positive meanings, but goes too far in terms of scale, cost, and other issues for the sake of face; the other type has basically no positive meaning, but goes too far.

But no matter which category, the consequences are extremely tragic.

During the Sui Dynasty, China's political center of gravity was in the north and its economic center was in the south.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty then considered building a Grand Canal to connect the north and the south.

This move can, on the one hand, strengthen the political control over the south, on the other hand, it can continuously transport the wealth of the south to the north, and on the other hand, it can conveniently travel around Jiangdu, find a feeling in the place where he made his fortune, and seek pleasure in the prosperous Jiangnan.

If we only look at the first two project goals, this project can also be a good project that benefits the country and the people in the present generation and will be passed down to future generations.

However, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, regardless of the objective conditions, unleashed his majestic power and turned the operation of this project into a major disaster that was harmful to the country and the people.

Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty ascended the throne in July 604 AD and began the comprehensive construction project of the Grand Canal the following year.

From the start of construction in 605 AD to the completion in 610 AD, canals such as Tongji Canal, Hangou Canal, Yongji Canal, and Jiangnan River were excavated day by day, forming a canal centered on Luoyang, extending to Yuhang (now Hangzhou) in the south, and extending to Yuhang (now Hangzhou) in the north.

The Grand Canal in Zhuojun (now Beijing).

This canal connects five major water systems: the Haihe River, the Yellow River, the Huaihe River, the Yangtze River and the Qiantang River. It is more than 4,000 miles long and was completed in just 5 years.

Even today with modern construction machinery, a project of this scale is still very large, and the speed is astonishing.

Emperor Sui Yang achieved his goals through the predatory use of national and people power.

The Tongji Canal was excavated, and more than a million people from the counties in Henan were recruited; the Han ditch was dug, and more than 100,000 people from Huainan were recruited; the Yongji Canal was built, and more than a million men and women from the counties in Hebei were recruited.

Similar records can be found in history books.

The abuse of national power and people's power does not stop there.