After the Jingkang Incident, the Northern Song fell.
The Jurchens installed the surrendered official Liu Yu as the “Emperor of Great Qi,” making him rule Henan and Shandong on behalf of the Jin dynasty. In everyone’s eyes, he was merely a puppet who could be discarded at any moment.
But this time, Liu Yu possessed the judgment, patience, and talent for choosing capable people of a great founding emperor.
He did not rush to rebel against Jin or lose himself in the hollow title of emperor. Instead, he began with granaries, river works, military pay, and officials, gradually turning a puppet dynasty into a real state.
The Jin dynasty wanted to control him, the Southern Song wanted to destroy him, scholars across the Central Plains regarded him as a traitor, and the Zhao Song claim to legitimacy was a shackle he could not escape.
To win the hearts of the people, he even willingly gave up his imperial title and enthroned a member of the Zhao clan. Through a generation of regency and patience, he bought the Liu clan time.
This is the story of a man branded a traitor who, through two generations of governance, warfare, and political scheming, turned the throne lent to him by the Jurchens into the seat of a true dynasty.
No transmigration, no System.
