How could Chu Qinghe possibly do something that would backfire so badly?

Anyway, Chu Qinghe has already set out the seats. It's up to Dongfang Bubai and Yaoyue to decide who sits first.

Taking in Chu Qinghe's response, Dongfang Bubai chuckled inwardly, showing no surprise whatsoever.

After pondering for a short while, Dongfang Bubai suddenly spoke up: "If I were emperor, how would I govern the country?"

Although Dongfang Bubai was proud, he was not arrogant.

For Dongfang Bubai, facing his own problems was never a shameful thing.

Upon hearing this, Qu Feiyan, who was standing to the side, grinned.

Jellyfish Yin Ji looked on with admiration.

"As expected of the eldest sister, she has already put herself in the role of the empress."

Although she was filled with admiration, Jellyfish Yin Ji also looked at Chu Qinghe, as if she was also curious about how Chu Qinghe would explain these things.

After pondering for a while, Chu Qinghe said, "If you want to govern a country, you must first understand, then know, then comprehend, and finally seek solutions."

Dongfang Bubai frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"

Seeing that Dongfang Bubai did not understand, Chu Qinghe did not care and slowly said, "Take the Ming Dynasty as an example. The main body of a country is people, and people are divided into commoners, merchants, officials and warriors."

"Let's start with the people. For a country, this may be the easiest, but also the most difficult. The core of governing this type of people is the simplest. Just adhere to the saying, 'If the people are rich, they are easy to govern; if the people are poor, they are difficult to govern.'"

Dongfang Bubai glanced sideways and said, "Is simply enriching the people enough?"

Qu Feiyan thought for a moment and said, "Isn't it true that wealthy families are more unruly and difficult to manage, while poor families are easier to manage?"

Hearing what Qu Feiyan said, Chu Qinghe said calmly, "That's because what you see is what's easy to manage."

As he spoke, Chu Qinghe slowly said, "As the saying goes, 'Those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who have nothing to lose.' The more a person has, the more they worry about, simply because they are afraid of losing it. But for those who have little to begin with and nothing worth cherishing, their actions are the most reckless and unrestrained."

After thinking for a moment, Lin Shiyin said, "Isn't it the same principle as Zhu Wushi, who didn't have any major weaknesses, but because the young master helped her heal her beloved, she now has someone she can coerce?"

Chu Qinghe gave a soft "hmm" and said, "Not bad."

"People's hearts are drawn to many things: wealth, power, status, and even strength. These are what most people strive for throughout their lives. But once they have these things, they have to go to great lengths to keep them."

"For the people of the world, if they can become wealthy, they can live peacefully in their hometowns and value their own property. In this way, they will obey their superiors and be afraid of breaking the law. If the people respect officials and are afraid of committing crimes, it will be easier to govern them."

“If people have nothing to begin with, or if their lives are getting harder and harder, they will dare to offend officials and break the law when they are forced to do so. If the people dare to offend officials and break the law, it will be difficult to govern them. They may even rebel and gather to revolt.”

After all, not everyone is born with a rebellious streak.

If people can live and work in peace and contentment, with enough to eat and wear, who would be so foolish as to risk their life for death?

Then, Chu Qinghe changed the subject and said, "Secondly, there are merchants. Merchants are supposed to be for the people, but they are not. If there are good merchants, they will bring wealth to the region. If there are bad merchants, the people will be poor and resentful. Special methods are needed to deal with merchants. We must be able to let them make money, but we cannot let them corrupt and exploit the people. Otherwise, evil will accumulate and resentment will build up."

"The methods for dealing with this businessman are simple: first, set a fair price; second, diligently supervise; third, educate him morally; and fourth, control him."

Although it is said in a light and understated manner, every sentence is a summary of what later scholars have drawn from five thousand years of cultural accumulation.

For Dongfang Bubai and even the Water Mother Yin Ji and the other women, these experiences often evoked profound thoughts.

Dongfang Bubai, in particular, became so engrossed in the question-and-answer session that he even asked some of his own questions.

In response, Chu Qinghe would also share his understanding of the principles of being a ruler and governing a country with Dongfang Bubai and the other women.

However, whether it's the art of rulership or the so-called way of governing a country, it involves far too many aspects.

It's impossible to explain it in just a few words.

Not to mention someone like Dongfang Bubai, who suddenly has to transform from the ruler of a martial arts force into a monarch.

There are too many things that are lacking, and many things also require a lot of time to accumulate and summarize.

Furthermore, while it is extremely easy to govern the common people, merchants, officials, and warriors individually within a country, the complexity changes when they are united.

Even if Chu Qinghe talked for a whole day, he still wouldn't finish talking about all of this.

Therefore, after briefly discussing some things, Chu Qinghe changed the subject and said, "There are many things that you can understand now but it's useless, and there are many things that you don't need to do yourself."

The women, including Dongfang Bubai, who had been deep in thought about Chu Qinghe's explanation of the ways of being a ruler and governing a country, looked puzzled upon hearing Chu Qinghe's words.

Seeing this, Chu Qinghe said, "You are rulers, not subjects. As rulers, your job is to oversee the overall situation. The rest is to delegate tasks to capable ministers. Otherwise, how can one person manage the affairs of a country? At most, you can delegate some power."

Hearing what Chu Qinghe said, Dongfang Bubai looked at Chu Qinghe and said, "If power is delegated too much, wouldn't that easily lead to problems?"

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!