Li Shimin faked his death? Then I will be powerful enough to conquer the world!

The late autumn rain slanted across the eaves of the Liangyi Palace, staining the vermilion palace walls even deeper.

In front of the palace gate with a gilded animal head holding a ring, a bronze crane lampstand flickered. Li Zhi was stroking the jade ring left by his brother Li Chengqian repeatedly in the flickering candlelight. His fingertips stroked the words "uphold righteousness" engraved on the inside of the ring, as if he could still touch the familiar warmth.

On the secret letter spread out on the desk, the wet ink recorded the unusual movements of the powerful people in Chang'an.

"Your Majesty! It's bad, Your Majesty!"

The sudden screams outside the hall tore through the silence. When Li Tai pushed open the wooden door, a gust of wind blew up, causing the memorials on the desk to rustle.

Li Zhi stood up suddenly, the hem of his bright yellow dragon robe swept across the desk, and the overturned inkstone spread ink stains on the yellow silk memorial.

The usually flamboyant fourth brother now had his hair in a mess, the hem of his black brocade robe was stained with mud, and the jade belt around his waist was askew, as if he had crawled through half of the palace.

Li Jiming followed closely behind. His usually calm face was now as pale as paper. As he staggered, the jade pendants on his waist collided with each other, making a crisp but panicked sound.

"Fourth brother, what happened?"

Li Zhi took two steps at a time and stepped forward. He reached out to support the staggering Li Tai, but the other party grabbed his wrist.

"Damn it! That bastard Li Ke is crazy!"

Li Tai grabbed Li Zhi's dragon robe, his voice trembling with a crack, "He wants to avenge Big Brother. He said he would cut off the tongue of anyone who cursed Big Brother!"

Before he finished speaking, he blurted out every crazy word Li Ke had said in the Daming Palace. When he was excited, his saliva splashed on Li Zhi's dragon robe.

The hall instantly fell into dead silence, with only the copper bells on the eaves making faint whimpers in the wind and rain.

Li Zhi's pupils suddenly contracted, and the veins on the hand holding the jade ring bulged.

Li Chengqian's portrait is hung in the hall, and the eyes in the painting seem to penetrate time and space, watching everything.

Li Tai was still repeating every one of Li Ke's wild words, his words interspersed with heavy breathing, but Li Zhi was silent.

"Your Majesty! Please say something!"

Seeing Li Zhi's prolonged silence, Li Tai anxiously grabbed his shoulders and shook them violently. "He's in charge of Big Brother's secret party. Who knows how many secret agents there are! The shadow guards in Chang'an alone can rival the three major camps!"

"Big brother was also foolish. He actually gave Ye Tianzi's seal to him. Now look what's going on. He can mobilize half of Chang'an City's defenses overnight!"

His voice became louder and louder, causing pain in the eardrums.

Li Zhi slowly pulled back his sleeves and walked to the window.

Outside the window, the rain enveloped the stone beasts in the courtyard in darkness.

Raindrops slid down the glazed tiles and dripped onto the white marble steps, making a crisp sound, but could not break the suffocating silence.

He reached out and stroked the carvings on the window, and the cool touch gradually calmed him down.

"Fourth brother, do you think Third Brother has enough men under his command?"

Li Zhi suddenly spoke, his voice frighteningly calm.

Li Tai froze in place instantly, his eyes wide open as if struck by lightning: "Zhi Nu! Are you crazy?"

He ignored the etiquette between the monarch and his subjects, rushed forward, grabbed Li Zhi's shoulders and shook him violently, "Do you know that he wants to kill civilians and officials? Once he starts, Chang'an will be a river of blood!"

"How many interests are involved behind those officials, and the people are losing confidence! What kind of turmoil will this cause!"

Veins bulged on his forehead, and beads of sweat the size of beans slid down his cheeks and dripped onto the back of Li Zhi's hand.

Li Zhi gently slapped Li Tai's hand away, walked to Li Chengqian's portrait, and bowed deeply to it.

The candlelight danced in his eyes, making his face flicker, as if a battle between heaven and man was going on.

"Fourth brother, the team from Tokyo hasn't all moved here yet, and the officials in Chang'an always treat me like a child."

When he turned around, a cold light flashed in his eyes, "Third brother, this fire is lit at the right time."

His voice was low and cold, and every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, with majesty.

Li Tai opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

During the Mid-Autumn Festival last year, Li Chengqian threw the Ye Tianzi token to Li Ke in front of everyone, and said with a smile, "You will guard half of this world for me."

At that time, he just thought it was a joke between brothers, but looking back now, he could see that there was a deeper meaning in his elder brother's eyes.

The token was not only a symbol of power, but also a heavy trust, entrusting Li Ke with the important task of protecting the new emperor.

"Let the third brother go and make trouble."

Li Zhi picked up the memorial on the table. The ink-stained handwriting was particularly glaring under his fingertips. "Afterwards, punish him to guard the imperial mausoleum - but let everyone know that it was I who suppressed his anger."

He walked to the map and pressed his finger heavily on Chang'an. "Those who scolded Big Brother, do they really think that no one will deal with them once the new emperor ascends the throne?"

"Killing the chicken to scare the monkeys will let them know who is the master of this world."

His eyes swept across the densely packed marks on the map. Each mark represented a force of officials. In his eyes, they were all prey that needed to be tamed.

At the same time, in a deep house in the west of Nanjing, the drizzle hit the green tiles, making a rustling sound, as if the heaven and earth were mourning for the impending bloody storm.

Li Xueyan's hand holding the ruler stopped in mid-air, and more than 20 children in the classroom looked towards the door in unison.

She was wearing a plain robe, her figure was as straight as a pine tree, but there was determination hidden between her eyebrows.

Two men in black wearing bronze ghost masks appeared silently in the corridor. Rain dripped down the edges of their hats, leaving dark marks on the blue bricks.

"Scythe officer, the commander-in-chief has given orders."

The black-clad man on the left spoke with a voice as if squeezed out from behind an iron mask, carrying a metallic coldness and murderous tone. "Three days from now, at midnight, bring the elite troops of the Blood Scythe into the capital."

As he finished speaking, a tense atmosphere filled the air, as if even the rain had become heavier.

When Li Xueyan stood up, her wide black robe swept across the table, knocking several abacus chips to the ground.

She looked at the dark shadow gradually disappearing in the rain, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the gilded short blade at her waist - that was the "Blood Scythe Order" bestowed by Li Ke himself.

"Sir, are we leaving?"

A little girl timidly grabbed the corner of her clothes, her eyes full of reluctance.

Li Xueyan lowered her head and saw that the girl was still wearing the amulet she had given her during the Lantern Festival last year.

She reached out and gently stroked the children's heads, then looked at Zhang Song and Qin Yan who were sitting in the back row of the classroom.

Her eyes looked into the distance, with the flame of revenge flashing in them.

As the night deepens, undercurrents are surging amid the sound of drums in Chang'an City.

Li Tai left Liangyi Hall and looked at the crescent moon hanging high above the palace wall. He suddenly remembered what Li Ke had said: "I was born to take the knife for my elder brother."

At this moment, he finally understood that Li Ke wanted to do more than just block the knife - he wanted to transform into the sharpest blade and cut a thorny road to the throne for the new emperor.

Li Zhi stood in front of the window, clenched his fists, and secretly vowed in his heart that he must fulfill his elder brother's unfinished wish.

This seemingly crazy revenge is only the first step in the imperial chess game, and it has just begun...