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

The drizzle in late spring in Nanjing was like silk, slanting across the carved wooden windows of the manor, making tiny sounds on the green bricks and black tiles.

The scent of sandalwood lingered in the house, intertwining with the humid air outside the window, creating a hazy mist.

Mr. Qi was wearing a moon-white gown with cloud patterns embroidered in gold thread faintly visible on the cuffs. He carefully held the celadon teacup in front of Li Chengqian. The green tea in the cup swayed slightly, and the rising hot steam, carrying the unique fragrance of Longjing tea, filled the room.

"Your Majesty, come and have some tea."

Li Chengqian nodded slightly, and his bony fingers gently grasped the teacup.

When he touched the warm porcelain wall, memories suddenly flooded back - a thousand years ago in the Chang'an Palace, he had also accepted the teacup handed to him by Wei Zheng in this way. The tea at that time was mixed with the smell of blood, and it burned his tongue to the point of numbness.

The teacup in my hand at this moment is exquisite, but it lacks some of the warmth it had in the past.

The lotus pattern engraved on the bottom of the cup rubbed against the palm of the hand, just like the dents made by boots on the floor tiles in front of the Taiji Hall.

"Did Fatty Lin really say that? Does he not regret following me?"

Li Chengqian's voice carried a subtle hint of expectation, his eyes fixed on the tea leaves floating on the surface of the tea soup.

The tender green buds rose and fell, and in a trance turned into fluttering flags on the battlefield.

"Your Majesty, who among those who followed you has ever regretted following you?" Mr. Qi's voice suddenly rose, tears welling in his eyes. "From me, the Grand Tutor, to every soldier in the Tang Dynasty, no one wants to risk their lives for your Majesty again."

He raised his hand to wipe the corners of his eyes, and the faded jade belt buckle exposed at the cuff of his sleeve silently spoke of the glory of the past.

"Do you remember the rebellion in the ninth year of Qianwu? You personally donned armor and went into battle, protecting the soldiers and helping them break through the siege amidst the chaos."

"In the fifteenth year of Qianwu, there was a severe drought. You led the entire court to donate money... I will never forget these things even in my grave."

When he got to the emotional part, his Adam's apple rolled violently.

Li Chengqian listened quietly, and the sound of rain outside the window gradually became clearer.

The strong nostalgia and loyalty in Mr. Qi's eyes struck his heart like a heavy hammer.

Obviously, those past events were just yesterday's events to him, but Mr. Qi in front of him was reminding him that more than a thousand years had passed.

This absurd feeling of time and space dislocation made him feel a little dazed.

The ticking sound of the desk clock suddenly became deafening, and each tick was like the hammer of time, hitting his body that was incompatible with this era.

"But Old Qi, I still don't understand," Li Chengqian said, gently placing the teacup on the sandalwood tea table with a soft thud. "I left behind so much industrial infrastructure for the Tang Dynasty, improving agricultural tools, building workshops, and compiling manuals on craftsmanship. Even if there wasn't any progress, how could there not be a single word or record of it?"

"How could I let the land of China sink to this point?"

There was deep confusion and unwillingness in his tone, his brows were tightly furrowed, and the three lines on his forehead were as deep as if carved by a knife.

Mr. Qi walked to the window, staring at the rain in silence for a long time, then slowly spoke: "Your Majesty, I will tell you about this matter slowly."

“Many historical events can only be closed but not concluded.”

"The books and artifacts you left behind have promoted the development of the Tang Dynasty."

"But... after you left, during the later years of Emperor Li Longji's reign, the court was in turmoil. Various factions, vying for power, viewed your efforts as heresy. Some even called them 'strange and perverted tricks.'"

"It would disturb people's hearts. Some feared that if the people mastered these skills, they would become uncontrollable... Gradually, the workshops closed, the books were burned, and your hard work was slowly lost."

At the end of his speech, Mr. Qi's voice was so low that it was almost swallowed by the sound of rain, and his skinny fingers unconsciously stroked the mottled vermilion paint on the window frame.

"But, I don't understand," Mr. Qi turned around and looked at Li Chengqian with a burning gaze. "Your Majesty chose to keep Wu Meiniang. According to the history Your Majesty knows, Wu Meiniang founded the Zhou Dynasty. Even though she had some achievements during her reign, Your Majesty's move was still too risky."

The doubt in Mr. Qi's eyes was like a cloud of fog, gradually blending into the rain outside the window.

Li Chengqian stood up and paced slowly around the room. His footsteps echoed in the empty room, each step seeming to question history.

"Risk? I don't think there's anything risky about it," he stopped and looked at the rain curtain outside the window.

"History tells me that if Li Hong hadn't died, the Tang Dynasty might have been a very different place."

"But Li Hong is weak and can't take on such a big responsibility."

"As for my decree, Li Ke will only use it when the Tang Dynasty faces the risk of no one succeeding it."

When he mentioned the word "Li Ke", his voice suddenly paused, as if touching a scabbed wound deep in his heart.

"Old Qi, don't you understand what I mean?" Li Chengqian turned around, his eyes filled with helplessness. "I know you must be upset about this, but if the successor is incompetent, do we really want them to succeed?"

"Although Wu Meiniang is ruthless and cruel, and can say that anyone who wants to achieve great things can kill even their closest relatives, can she be a good person?"

"But can a good person sit in that position? One should be responsible for one's duties. Sitting in that position doesn't mean one won't make mistakes."

"When you are an emperor, incompetence is the greatest fault."

"So, I decided to choose Wu Mei Niang."

His speech became faster and faster, and the last few words almost burst out from between his teeth.

"I thought I had changed everything, but unexpectedly, I hadn't changed anything. The world is still the same world, and the Tang Dynasty is still the same Tang Dynasty."

Li Chengqian sat down again, his face filled with fatigue and loss. He picked up the now-cold tea and took a sip, a bitter taste spreading across his tongue. As the tea slid down his throat, it evoked the fishy sweetness of drinking horse blood by the Luo River.

"But what you told me about Chen Fusheng and Yi'er, I think is quite good."

Li Chengqian suddenly changed the subject, his lips curled up slightly, "That kid, we watched him grow up, he's always been steady. As for getting pregnant before marriage..."

He shook his head slightly, revealing a meaningful smile. "If he can't even control this desire, how can he maintain his position in Nanjing?"

"If he didn't truly love you and was afraid that you would object, why would he put himself on the gambling table and take a gamble?"

"I bet that you, the Grand Tutor Qi, can protect them. I guess this idea didn't come from Chen Fusheng, but probably from Yi'er, right?"

After saying that, he reached out and stroked the edge of the teacup, and the action was very similar to when a young man stroked the top of his younger sister's head in his arms.

Mr. Qi smiled bitterly and nodded, saying, "Your Majesty is indeed as wise as a god. This is exactly what the princess wants."

"Ah, but, Your Majesty, don't worry. Chen Fusheng was very kind to the princess. They both lived happily and died of old age."

When Mr. Qi mentioned the words "died of old age", he emphasized his tone and a tear of relief appeared in his eyes.

Hearing the words "died of old age", Li Chengqian's hands tightened unconsciously.

He slowly picked up the teacup and drank the cold tea in one gulp. The bitterness went from his throat to his heart.

“It’s good to die peacefully, it’s good to die peacefully…”

He murmured to himself, his voice filled with endless emotion and melancholy.

The feeling of being out of tune with the times came over him again like a tide, and his heart ached slightly, as if it was being tightly grasped by an invisible hand.

The rain is still falling outside the window, and no one knows when it will stop, just like the sorrow in his heart, endless.

The remaining tea on the desk gradually cooled down, reflecting the blurry rain scene outside the window, like a wet ink painting, tinged with the vicissitudes and loneliness of a thousand years.