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

The night wind rustled the Taiji Palace's window paper, resembling the sobs of refugees outside. A single candle remained within the palace, its dim light barely illuminating a small area.

Mr. Qi's skinny body stood straight in the light and shadow, even taller than the cracked dragon-shaped pillar in the hall.

Li Longji was still huddled in the corner, his bright yellow uniform stained with stains that might have been from wine or tears, his white hair hanging in disarray at his temples, he no longer looked like an emperor.

He heard Mr. Qi's footsteps approaching, but he just buried his face deeper, digging his fingertips into the dust in the cracks of the chair, like a child afraid of being scolded.

"Wrong? Li Sanlang!" Mr. Qi's voice suddenly exploded, shaking the celadon brushwasher on the desk. "How dare you hide here? Do you dare to come out with me? Let's go to Zhuque Street and see those refugees gnawing on tree bark, freezing to death. Which one of them is not a citizen of your Tang Dynasty?"

"Go to the West Market and take a look. That place, where once Hu merchants gathered and the sound of pipa music could be heard for three blocks, is now only left with broken walls and the remains of children who have yet to be buried under the walls!"

He grew increasingly agitated as he spoke, each blow a blow to Li Longji's heart. "I truly cannot understand how you, Li Sanlang, could have become so incompetent. Have you forgotten how, during the Jinglong reign, on the ridge outside Luoyang City, you clutched half a wheat cake and told me that we must ensure everyone in the world had enough to eat every day? Have you forgotten how, in the early Kaiyuan years, you held Yao Chong's hand in Hanyuan Hall and told us to 'take the people as our root and frugality as our foundation'? You're not a tyrant! You were the emperor who personally brought the Tang Dynasty to its peak of prosperity—how could you have become like this?"

"If Yao Chong were here, would you have the nerve to see him? Would you have the nerve to see those officials who assisted you back then?"

Li Longji's shoulders trembled violently and his Adam's apple rolled, but he didn't dare to look up.

How could he not remember? Those images were like marks etched in his bones: when he was still the Prince of Linzi, he followed Mr. Qi on his visits to the people, and saw an old farmer selling his daughter because of heavy taxes. He immediately untied the jade belt around his waist and exchanged it for silver, and with tears in his eyes, he said to Mr. Qi, "If I ever come to power, I will make sure such a tragedy never happens again."

In the 13th year of Kaiyuan, he was offering sacrifices to the gods on Mount Tai. Looking at the people kneeling at the foot of the mountain, he turned around and smiled at the people behind him, saying, "Look, this is the spirit of the Tang Dynasty."

But now, all those visions have vanished into thin air, and all that remains is the purgatory he created with his own hands.

Seeing that he was still silent, Mr. Qi softened his tone a little, but the regret in his eyes became even stronger.

He slowed down his pace, walked to the chair, and his eyes fell on Li Longji's temples - how could the young man who wore a jade crown and had a smiling face become so decadent now?

"That year you were only seventeen, riding a skinny horse in the snow, your lips frozen purple, yet you still clutched a copy of 'Zhenguan Zhengyao' and said you wanted to learn 'the art of governing the world' from me."

His voice deepened, carrying a hint of melancholy. "In the blink of an eye, you've lost all your original intentions in the music of the colorful clothes and feathered robes."

Li Longji's shoulders finally collapsed, tears streaming down his cheeks onto his clothes, staining them darkly. "Sir, I... I know I was wrong."

"But it's too late."

"Too late?" Mr. Qi suddenly laughed, his laughter filled with desolation, yet concealed with a spirit of unwillingness to admit defeat. "As long as I'm still breathing, it's not too late! Students make mistakes, and as a teacher, I can't just watch you fall into the abyss and do nothing."

"Back when you were trying to seize the throne from Empress Wei, it was me who helped you contact the Imperial Guards. I also helped Princess Taiping force the emperor to abdicate. Now that you've caused such a huge mess, it's natural for me to clean up your mess."

He changed the subject, his tone suddenly sinking, like a huge rock pressing down on his heart: "But I have to tell you the truth. The current situation is not much different from the destruction of the Tang Dynasty."

"When you appointed Jiedushi (military governors) and gave them the power over the military, finances, and personnel, it was like handing a knife into someone else's hands."

"Now, the imperial court has issued an imperial edict, but those military governors either turned a deaf ear or simply threw it away. Do you think Geshu Han's defeat at Tongguan was really just due to a lack of troops? It was the military governors in the rear who withheld food and fodder, and watched him die in battle!"

"All of this is because of you, Li Sanlang!" Mr. Qi's voice hardened again, carrying an unquestionable resolve. "From today on, there will be no 'Great Tang Dynasty'. There will only be 'Tang Dynasty'—the 'Great' character that symbolized the tributes of all nations and the submission of all barbarians has been worn away by your own hands."

He leaned forward, staring intently into Li Longji's eyes, and said word by word, "But this dynasty will eventually end because of you, Li Longji. Now, there are only two paths before you."

"Or, continue to cower here like a rat, waiting to die in a dark corner, bringing shame to the Li family's ancestors."

"Or, we can learn from Emperor Taizong. Even if the word 'Great' is missing from his name, he can still make those covetous foreign races dare not covet our Great Tang."

"Have you forgotten the tragedy of the Five Barbarians' invasion of China? Have you forgotten the days when the people of the Central Plains were slaughtered like animals by foreigners?"

Mr. Qi's voice was filled with a sense of tragedy and grandeur. "This land of the Tang Dynasty was conquered by Emperor Taizong and Emperor Gaozong, generation after generation. It was defended by countless soldiers with their lives. We must not let the same mistakes of the past happen in your hands!"

"You are a descendant of the Li family and an emperor of the Kaiyuan Era. Even if you only have your last breath left, you must stand on the city wall and let the world see that you, Li Sanlang, have not collapsed yet!"

Li Longji suddenly raised his head, and there was finally light in his red eyes - that was the bloodiness awakened by the scolding, and the imperial dignity engraved in his bones.