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

The cicadas in the Imperial Garden were buzzing with activity, and the sunlight filtered through the layers of sycamore leaves, casting dappled gold on the white marble path.

Wu Meiniang was kneeling on the bluestone slabs of the Nine-Curve Corridor, holding a Xiang Fei bamboo fan. Her back under her gauze skirt was already soaked with cold sweat, and the hem of her skirt, embroidered with gold-thread peonies, rose and fell slightly with her trembling body.

The words just now were like a ball of hot coals, burning back and forth in her chest, making her feel burning pain with every breath she took.

Li Zhi sat up slightly, and the jade belt buckle on his waist gently collided with his movements, making a clear sound.

Wu Meiniang lowered her eyes and stared at her twisted fingers, but she could clearly feel the emperor's burning gaze, as if it were real, falling on the top of her head.

"Mei Niang, I knew you were no ordinary person."

Li Zhi's voice was hoarse from a long illness, but it also had a rare clarity.

He reached out and brushed away the sweat-stuck hair on her forehead. When his fingertips touched her cold skin, Wu Meiniang subconsciously shrank.

"No matter how gorgeous the peonies in this garden are, they are not as moving as your sincerity today." He dragged out the last syllable, as if he was savoring something, or sighing.

Wu Meiniang's whole body was tense, and the gold thread on the bamboo fan hurt her palms.

She stole a glance at the emperor's profile, watching the newly grown white hair on his temples trembling in the wind, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes filled with fatigue. She suddenly remembered the whispers of the palace maid on duty last night - the imperial physician said that the emperor's rheumatism was getting worse and was difficult to cure.

This thought made her throat tighten and the regret in her heart became stronger. How could she have said such presumptuous words in the moment of impulse?

"Your Majesty, please forgive me... I just slipped my words..."

She leaned forward, her forehead almost touching the stone slab, her voice trembling, "Such a rebellious thought should not be..."

"Slip of the tongue?"

Li Zhi suddenly chuckled. He picked up the celadon teacup from the stone table, but his trembling hands caused a few drops of cold tea to spill, leaving dark stains on the stone slabs. "When you carved the characters 'Wu Zhao' on the wall of Liangyi Hall, did you ever consider that you were being disingenuous?"

"The sun and the moon are in the sky, what a Wu Zhao." He turned to look at her, his eyes burning. "Did you come up with this word? How do you pronounce it?"

"Nian...Zhao." Wu Meiniang raised her head and met the surging emotions in Li Zhi's eyes.

There was admiration, understanding, and a hint of determination in that look that she couldn't understand.

The cicadas' chirping suddenly became deafening. The bamboo curtains hanging under the corridor were lifted up by the wind and then fell heavily, making a "clicking" sound.

"Good Wu Zhao." Li Zhi put the teacup down heavily, the glazed surface colliding with the stone slab, making a crisp echo. "I have been the emperor all my life. If I entrust the country to you after my death, the people of the world will definitely poke at my spine and curse me."

He paused, then reached out and took her cold hand, the warmth of his palm startlingly hot. "But if I don't pass the throne to you, am I going to watch my child being toyed with by powerful officials? And watch the foundation laid since the Zhenguan era be destroyed in an instant?"

"I have no other choice."

He smiled wryly.

Wu Meiniang shuddered all over and tried to pull her hand back, but it was held even tighter.

She looked at the emperor's pale but resolute face, and suddenly remembered that many years ago, when she was sitting in Ganye Temple, it was the milk candy he sent her that helped her get through countless cold nights.

He recalled the time when the two of them joined hands to eliminate Changsun Wuji, sitting opposite each other in front of the dragon table late at night, discussing countermeasures.

Thinking back to the time he defied all odds and crowned her empress, the storm that erupted in the court...

It turns out that without realizing it, they have already become each other's strongest support in the vortex of power.

"I dare not..." she murmured, tears blurring her vision. "There has never been a woman who became emperor... Your Majesty, you should do this for the Li clan temple..."

"enough!"

Li Zhi coughed violently, blood seeping from between his fingers, but he still forced a smile and said, "Hasn't it been enough that you've shouldered so much infamy for me over the years? You've been at the center of every incident."

He loosened his hand, took out a silk handkerchief from his sleeve, and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "Mei Niang, we are husband and wife, but also comrades who fought side by side. We conquered this country together."

"We are more like accomplices in murder and arson."

The lotus flowers in the lotus pond swayed gently in the wind. The whispers of palace maids could be heard in the distance, but they were blurred by the scorching sun.

Wu Meiniang looked at Li Zhi's blood-stained handkerchief and suddenly realized that this frail emperor had already disregarded life and death, and the only thing he cared about at this moment was his vast territory.

"In the sandalwood box under the bed in Ganlu Palace, there is a military and political atlas compiled by me."

Li Zhi's voice gradually faded, but every word was weighty. "I have ordered Zhang Xiaojing to secretly train assassins and have also drafted a decree to pass on the throne..."

He paused, his eyes sweeping across the blossoming garden. "Although you have the talent to govern a country, you are still a woman... Those pedantic old ministers will surely rise up and attack you. I'm afraid you..."

"Your Majesty!" Wu Meiniang suddenly grabbed his sleeve, tears welling up in her eyes, "Why do you have to do this? Why do you have to bring this eternal infamy..."

"Because it's worth it." Li Zhi reached out to wipe away her tears, his fingertips caressing the red corners of her eyes. "Mei Niang, look at the flowers in this garden. No matter how beautiful they are, they will eventually wither. But the country and the people will last forever."

"As long as the Tang Dynasty can continue, what does it matter if I bear some infamy?" His voice suddenly choked. "You've done so much for me over the years. I'm sorry..."

The wind blew the fragrance of lotus towards her face. Wu Meiniang leaned on the emperor's shoulder, listening to his rapid heartbeat, and suddenly remembered what Li Zhi had said.

He said, "I would like to enjoy this vast landscape with you."

Today, the mountains and rivers remain the same, but people are already in their twilight years. And this oath has to be fulfilled in such a thrilling way.

The cicadas were still chirping noisily, but at this moment, the wind in the imperial garden seemed to have stopped. Only two hearts, clinging to each other in the vortex of power, remained, beating under the scorching sun, making a promise to change history.

"Mei Niang, we are not only the emperor and empress, we are also husband and wife, have you forgotten?"

"Sometimes, you and I have become distant, and I feel that power has become a burden."

"It seems that since I took the throne, I can no longer treat you the same way as before."

"You've been my sword for so long, bearing so much infamy for me. I'm sorry."

"I have told you many, many half-truths and half-falsehoods, but there is one thing I have never lied to you."

"My attitude towards you remains the same as before, and has never changed."

As the sky darkened, Li Zhi shook his head.

"Forget it, forget it. No matter how much people scheme, they can't control too many things behind the scenes. In the end, it all depends on whether God will bless you."

"Mei Niang, it's been a while since I last watched fireworks. Wait a minute, come with me to the Zhaixing Tower to watch the fireworks."

"When I was little, my favorite thing was the Chinese New Year, the day when everyone got together. But later, they all left."

"Since I came to power, every year has been different from the previous ones."

"But now, I feel reluctant to let go."

"I feel like I don't have time, Mei Niang, so just treat me as me and celebrate the New Year with you in advance."