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

The summer nights in Chang'an were so hot and stuffy that it was hard to breathe. Inside the Liangyi Hall, green smoke curled from the gilded incense burner, and the scent of ambergris mixed with incense lingered among the carved beams and painted buildings, but it could not dispel the depression that permeated the air.

Li Zhi leaned against the Panlong chair, his dark brocade robe with dragon pattern hanging loosely on his shoulders. The seven-square buckle of the jade belt around his waist was slightly askew, reflecting the flickering candlelight on the table and casting a cold light on the blue brick floor.

He held a scroll of memorials in his hand, his brows were tightly furrowed, and the fine lines at the corners of his eyes were filled with fatigue.

The copper bells on the eaves suddenly rang, and Li Ke's black robe swayed gently in the night wind.

When he raised his eyes, he saw that the young slave who used to chase fireflies and laugh in the imperial garden was now so thin that even the outline under the crown looked thin and bony, with deep eye sockets and prominent cheekbones.

"Your Majesty, no matter how many government affairs you have to attend to, you must take care of your health."

Li Ke's voice broke the dead silence in the hall.

His eyes swept over the pile of memorials on the imperial desk. The sealing wax on the top scroll had been repeatedly peeled off, and the edges were worn and rough.

Li Zhi slowly raised his head.

"Third brother, take a look at this memorial!"

He grabbed another scroll on the table and threw it hard. The plain white letter unfolded in the air, and the dense tiny calligraphy made Li Ke's pupils shrink suddenly - the locust plague in Henan Province was concealed, and the local officials even used "auspicious locusts" to whitewash the situation.

The military rations in Longyou were withheld, and the soldiers guarding the border could only eat bran to fill their stomachs.

Half of the grain transport money from Jiangnan was missing, and the bodies of drowned boatmen were floating on the river.

"The equal-field system and the market exchange system have become a cover for them to exploit the land!"

"Once the gates of desire are opened, they cannot be closed...then there will be a flood, and even the best laws are but paper dams!"

"No policy can solve the current problems facing the Tang Dynasty."

Li Ke bent down to pick up the memorial, and his fingertips stroked over the shocking impeachments. It seemed as if he could hear the cries of thousands of people surging out of the memorial.

“Is there no way to curb these chaos?”

His voice rose unconsciously.

Li Zhi's gaze pierced through the rain and looked towards the Taiji Palace, where Emperor Taizong once ruled the country.

"Unless..." His Adam's apple rolled and his voice suddenly became hoarse as torn silk. Thunder exploded outside the hall, splitting the second half of the sentence into pieces.

Raindrops carrying humid heat waves poured into the hall, blowing the candlelight this way and that, casting flickering light and shadows on the two people's faces.

This deliberate pause gave Li Ke an idea. He took a half step forward, and the hem of his black clothes swept across the blue bricks, making a slight rustling sound.

"any solution?"

There was an imperceptible tremor in his voice and his eyes were fixed on Li Zhi.

Li Zhi stood up slowly, and the corner of his robe brushed across the golden dragon pattern on the Panlong Chair, making a slight friction sound.

He walked to the window and looked at the dark night sky outside. Raindrops fell along the eaves, splashing water on the white marble railings.

After a long moment, he turned around and looked at Li Ke with a piercing gaze, his eyes filled with turbulent thoughts: "Third brother, the emperor said this a long time ago, have you forgotten?"

His voice was faint, as if carrying an echo from the distant past. Mixed with the sound of rain, it gave Li Ke the illusion that he had returned to the Qianwu period.

Li Ke was stunned at first, then his pupils suddenly contracted and memories came flooding back.

They were still young then, standing beneath the red steps of the Taiji Palace, listening to their brother, the Emperor, swearing from the Dragon Throne: "Running water never stale, nor does a door hinge rot. Only by cleansing away old vices can we maintain eternal vitality!"

At this moment, the rumbling thunder brought him back to reality. He looked at the new white hair on Li Zhi's temples and suddenly realized that the young man who always followed them had already carried the weight of the entire dynasty.

"Your Majesty, start all over again..."

Li Ke muttered to himself, his voice chilling to the bone.

He knew better than anyone that this meant becoming an enemy of the entire vested interest group, countless lives would be lost, and the turmoil during the Qianwu period might be repeated.

How could those complicated relationships in the court and those new and old officials who formed cliques be willing to lose the power in their hands?

Li Zhi smiled bitterly and fell back into the armchair, leaving deep dents in the gold-thread cushions.

"Forget it, the price is too high. Without my brother, this is not something we can do."

He grabbed the teacup on the table and threw it to the ground. Amid the sound of shattering porcelain, his voice was filled with tears. "Back then, my brother was the one who had the confidence to implement the new policies. But I... I have to think carefully before doing anything!"

"Look, these are the 'auspicious signs' sent by officials from all over the country. The unicorn appearing and sweet springs gushing out are all lies to whitewash the situation!"

Li Ke's throat choked with sobs, and the scene of all the officials in the court jointly impeaching the empress when she was deposed last year appeared in front of him.

Behind those high-sounding memorials is a complex network of interests.

"You've done enough, young slave."

He took two steps forward, but stopped when he saw Li Zhi's bloodshot eyes. "Using the Five Surnames and Seven Families to check and balance officials, using the Empress to break the shackles of family background, these methods..."

"It's all just drinking poison to quench thirst!" Li Zhi suddenly stood up and swept the memorial on the table with the hem of his brocade robe.

The sound of rain gradually subsided, and the sound of drums could be heard from afar on Zhuque Street, each one heavier than the last, as if knocking on the hearts of the two people.

Li Ke looked at Li Zhi's trembling back, and suddenly remembered the first time Zhinu heard about the Xuanwu Gate Incident. The nine-year-old Zhinu huddled in his arms, crying and asking why brothers had to kill each other.

Now, that timid child has to face the crisis alone in this power arena, and is torn apart by various forces.

"Maybe we can take a long-term view."

Li Ke picked up the memorial on the ground, the candlelight flickering in his eyes, "First, select new talents from the academy and train our own team..."

"Third brother, you gave me the throne, but I would rather not have it..."

Outside the hall, a waning moon broke through the clouds, casting the shadows of the two people on the plaque that read "Qianwu's Reign".

At that moment, he suddenly understood that they had spent their entire lives trying to catch up with the figure that was forever out of reach - their royal brother, the man who created a prosperous era.

"But your majesty, with such great power as the Queen of Heaven, could there be any problems?"

"No matter what, there has never been a second emperor before."

"Chi Nu, I dare to ask you a question as your brother. What are you going to do with the Queen of Heaven in the future?"

"Do you have feelings for her? No matter what, she is a knife in your hand now, but what about the future? Will she still be willing to be a knife in your hand?"

"She is not an ordinary person. You should be aware of her ambitions."

After hearing Li Ke's words, Li Zhi did not answer immediately.

He played with the teacup in his hand.

"Third brother, I definitely have feelings for Mei Niang, not to mention she even gave birth to my child."

"As for her ambition, no matter how big it is, as long as I'm here, she'll never be able to turn the tables."