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

The armored soldiers of the Wude Hall have formed a square formation, their black armor gleaming coldly under the sun. Li Longji stands on the steps, his fingers unconsciously stroking the fish bag at his waist.

The words that Guo Yuanzhen brought were still echoing in his ears - "The emperor said to spare her life", but he had not yet shaken off the dust on the soles of his boots. The crisp sound of the armor plates colliding when he mobilized the troops just now had already shattered the remaining hesitation.

"Your Majesty, the Princess's residence is surrounded by people."

The eunuch's voice was shrill and trembling, "The crossbowmen in the palace have loaded their arrows."

Li Longji tugged at the jade belt tightening around him, his Adam's apple rolling. "Pass my words on. Those who surrender will be spared, but those who resist...will be killed without mercy."

The last four words were pronounced so harshly that the birds under the corridor frightened away.

When the vermilion lacquered gate of the Princess's Mansion was knocked open, Taiping was slowly peeling lychees in the pavilion in the backyard.

The maids had already scattered like birds and beasts, and only the assassins she had personally trained were guarding outside the pavilion, the swords in their hands reflecting the golden hairpins on her temples.

Hearing the loud noise of the door hinge breaking, she threw the last petal of lychee into her mouth. Before the sweetness on the tip of her tongue melted away, she saw Li Longji and his soldiers stepping over the rockery, and the hem of his black dragon robe swept across the crushed peonies.

"Sanlang came so quickly." Taiping stood up slowly, and the phoenix embroidered on her skirt spread its wings as she moved.

She ignored the crossbows pointed at her, only staring at Li Longji's young yet hard face. "That was not the look you had when you stole my precious sword from the Western Regions to cut through the thorns."

Li Longji's hand pressed on the hilt of the sword, his knuckles whitening. "Aunt, hand over the military token and follow your nephew to see the Emperor."

Taiping suddenly laughed, his laughter as clear and crisp as the clashing of broken jade: "See him? See how he can justify you, the rebellious son who murdered your aunt?"

She leaned over and picked up a dagger from the stone table. It was the self-defense weapon given to her by Wu Zetian.

"Why do you think I've been raising private soldiers and winning over court officials all these years? To kneel before you and beg for mercy?"

The assassins drew their swords at the same time, and the blades collided with the armored soldiers' spears, making a sharp and crisp sound.

Taiping suddenly raised her hand to stop them. The dagger swirled between her fingers, finally resting firmly against her heart. "I am the daughter of Emperor Gaozong, the biological daughter of the Great Saint Empress Wu Zetian, and the Princess Guardian of the Tang Dynasty."

Her voice suddenly rose, making the bronze bells at the corner of the pavilion jingle. "You want me to surrender a young boy like you? You'd have to do it only if the Suzaku Street in Chang'an City flows backwards!"

Li Longji's throat choked for a moment. He remembered that when he was a child, he was tripped by a rockery, and Taiping carried him across half of the imperial garden to find the imperial physician.

He remembered that she put the most precious night pearl into his hand and said, "Sanlang must be the brightest star."

But those images were shattered into pieces by the shouts of the soldiers. He saw the determination burning in Taiping's eyes, which was very similar to the look on his grandmother Wu Zetian's face when she was forced to abdicate.

"Aunt!" He took a step forward, his voice trembling imperceptibly, "The Emperor said, I'll spare your life, but you'll be exiled to Puzhou!"

"Puzhou?" Taiping seemed to have heard a huge joke.

"I saved my life from the sword mountain, and I saved the Li family from disaster! Now I am being exiled by my own nephew? Li Longji, look carefully, my blood is also the blood of the Li family, it is warm!"

She suddenly raised the dagger, and the silver blade was so bright in the sunlight that people couldn't open their eyes.

The sounds of fighting outside the pavilion seemed to fade away in an instant. Li Longji only saw Taiping's last look at him - there was no hatred, only a kind of sadness that was almost pity, as if he was looking at a poor man who would eventually be swallowed by power.

"I hate, I hate... that Ge Fushun's betrayal." Her voice was as light as a feather, but every word struck Li Longji's heart. "Taiping... ultimately failed to protect the peace of the Li family."

The moment the dagger pierced her heart, Taiping's golden skirt fell to the bluestone with a soft clang. She fell backward, hitting the vermilion pillar of the pavilion. The blood from the corner of her mouth stained the phoenix embroidery on her chest red. The wings embroidered with gold thread looked like flames soaked in blood.

Upon seeing this, the assassins dropped their swords and committed suicide. For a moment, the only sounds in the backyard of the Princess's Mansion were the heavy breathing of the soldiers and the faint chirping of cicadas in the distance.

Li Longji stood there, the sunlight filtering through the hollow patterns on the roof of the pavilion and falling on his face, flickering like a dream from which he had not yet woken up.

He suddenly remembered what Taiping always said: "Sanlang, this dragon throne looks precious, but once you sit on it, you'll realize how painful it is."

Guo Yuanzhen stepped forward and whispered, "Your Majesty, it's time to return to the palace and report."

Li Longji did not move, but just bent down to pick up the fallen golden hairpin.

The pearls on the hairpin still carried Taiping's body temperature. He squeezed them too tightly, and the sharp edges pierced his palm, oozing blood. The blood then tangled with the gold thread on the hairpin, making it impossible to distinguish one from the other.

"Go back to the palace." He finally spoke.

When I walked out of the Princess's Mansion, the heat in Chang'an was still scorching and the cicadas were still noisy.

But Li Longji knew that some things would never be the same. The precious sword from the Western Regions that he had once used to cut through thorns had finally been used to cut down the person closest to him.

The aunt who always stuffed candied fruits into his hands eventually fell under the light of his knife.

The ice basin in the Liangyi Hall was still emitting white steam. When Li Dan heard the news, he was placing the black and white chess pieces back on the chessboard one by one.

The sound of chess pieces falling on the board suddenly became chaotic. A white chess piece rolled to the ground. He bent down to pick it up, but couldn't catch it. His fingertips scratched a shallow mark on the cold gold brick, like a wound that would never heal.

"I understand." He finally said, there was no joy or anger in his voice, only a dead silence.

The cicadas outside the window are still chirping, but the summer in Chang'an is finally getting cold.

"According to the rites for a princess, she will be buried next to Qianling Mausoleum, closer to her father, the Emperor, and her mother, the Empress."

The eunuch kowtowed and left, and he was the only one left in the hall.

The ticking sound of the clepsydra suddenly became extremely clear, making people's temples throb.

He recalled the year Taiping was born, when his father, Emperor Li Zhi, held the baby in his arms, grinning from ear to ear, and said that this was a lucky star bestowed by God on the Li family.

The city of Chang'an at that time was also as hot as it is today, but the wind in Hanyuan Hall was filled with the sweet fragrance of candied fruit, not the indissoluble bloody smell of today.

Three days later, Li Longji changed the reign title to Kaiyuan.

That day, a rare summer rain fell in Chang'an, which washed away the remaining bloodstains in the Princess's Mansion, but could not wash away the chill that seeped through the cracks in the palace walls.

Li Dan sat in the corner of the viewing platform, watching his son accept the homage of all officials. Li Longji, wearing the dragon robe, was full of vigor and vitality, and the sharpness in his eyes and eyebrows was very similar to that of the young Emperor Taizong.

After the ceremony, Li Longji walked up to him and bowed. The twelve beads on the dragon crown swayed gently, masking the emotion in his eyes.

"Father, I have followed your wishes and buried my aunt with honor."

Li Dan nodded, his eyes fixed on the jade belt around his waist—it was the Hetian jade that Taiping had handpicked for him, now worn by her nephew. "Be a good emperor."

He patted the back of Li Longji's hands, which still bore the calluses of holding a knife. "Don't imitate me, and don't imitate...your grandmother."

Li Longji said nothing, but bowed deeply. When he stood up, Li Dan saw the dragon embroidery on his neck. The stitches were so fine, yet they looked like countless tiny hooks, dragging him into the abyss of power.

Not long after, Li Dan resigned from the position of Supreme Emperor and moved to Baifu Hall.

He dismissed most of the eunuchs and spent his days with the chessboard. Sometimes a game of chess would last until late at night. The sound of chess pieces falling on the board echoed in the silent palace, as if counting the past that no one could count.

In late autumn of the first year of Kaiyuan, Li Longji came to see him.

The imperial kitchen prepared lotus seed soup, removing the bitter core and simmering it until it was soft and glutinous. Li Dan took a spoonful of it, but felt a bitter taste on the tip of his tongue, so bitter that it went straight to his heart.

"Is everything in the court peaceful?" he asked.

"Yes," Li Longji replied, "Guo Yuanzhen has led his troops to quell the rebellion, and all the prefectures have surrendered."

"That's good." Li Dan put down the jade spoon and looked out the window. The ginkgo leaves in Baifu Hall were scattered all over the ground, a golden mess. It was the same golden path Taiping had paved for him in the Imperial Garden the year he first ascended the throne. Back then, she had said, "Brother, this world should belong to the Li family."

Now that I think about it, was that sentence true, or was it a foreshadowing that had been laid long ago?

Li Dan couldn't tell. Perhaps from the day Wu Zhou was replaced by Zhou, the Li family was destined to be torn between family ties and the empire, until all memories were stained red with blood.

Li Longji sat for a moment, then stood up to say goodbye. When he reached the palace gate, he suddenly turned around and saw Li Dan bending over to pick up a fallen black chess piece. His back was hunched, like an old branch bent by the years.

He couldn't help but say, "I... never thought of wanting her to die."

Li Dan didn't look back, but simply placed the chess piece gently on the chessboard: "I know."

He paused, his voice so soft it sounded like a sigh, "But this dragon throne can't accommodate two people who want to win."