to make one skirt for them. Each of them competed with each other for the newest and most wonderful things, and clothes made in the morning may be considered old and out of style that same evening. He spent much effort on building palaces and gardens of the greatest splendor, but his affections for them could not last, so all buildings were torn down and rebuilt and torn down again. These construction activities went around the clock without ceasing, with great torches used for illumination at night, and water boiled to mix with the dirt in the winter. In order to carve Buddha images in the western hills of Jinyang, over 10,000 torches were used for one night, bright enough to shine on the Jinyang Palace like it was the day. Whenever there were natural disastrous, ill omens, or agrarian rebellions, he never blamed himself, but would only hold great vegetarian feasts to treat the Buddhist and Taoist monks, believing that this would bring divine blessings so that difficulties would pass. He liked to play the pipa and sing, and he wrote a song entitled, Song of No Worries (無愁曲), with several hundred servants singing with him, leading to the people referring to him as "the Son of Heaven with no worries." He established "the Pauper Boy's Village" within the Hualin Garden (華林園), where he would put on pauper clothes and beg in the village, believing that this was great joy. He also built models of the important border cities and had soldiers act like Northern Zhou soldiers to attack them, and with him resisting the attacks with the eunuchs. His favorite servants Lu Lingxuan, Mu Tipo, Gao Anagong, and Han Zhangluan controlled the government. The eunuchs Deng Changyong (鄧長顒) and Chen Dexin (陳德信), and the Xiongnu He Hongzhen (何洪珍) also participated in the important decisionmaking. Each of them brought their friends and relatives into the government and promoted them beyond proper bounds. The officials' promotions were all dependent on the amount of bribes they paid; those who submitted bribes were promoted and those who did not were demoted. The judges issue their verdicts depending on bribes as well, with the rich allowed to live and the poor sentenced to death. The officials compete in their corruption and flattery, to the detriment of the people. The servants, such as Liu Taozhi, were promoted to great honors and created princes. Almost