Deposed? I couldn't be happier! I wouldn't even be a dog to the crown prince.

The dawn completely tore away the last trace of gloom from the Grand Canyon, and golden light poured down like a tide onto the layered reddish-brown rock walls.

Li Chengqian stood at the very edge of the cliff, his black fox fur cloak fluttering in the morning breeze. His gaze swept across this vast new continent, as if traversing layers of space to survey the outline of the entire planet.

Standing beside him, Wu Meiniang felt the ambition and composure emanating from the man that she had never seen before, and she couldn't help but hold her breath.

At this moment, Li Ke, Li Tai, and Li Zhi, still half asleep, also came over one after another. Standing behind their eldest brother, they looked at the blazing sun and felt an indescribable surge of pride in their hearts.

"Brother, your position is really dangerous this early in the morning."

Li Tai rubbed his chubby face, which smelled of engine oil, and broke the silence with a chuckle. But when he looked at the distant horizon, the smile gradually turned into a solemn expression.

Li Chengqian didn't turn around. He pointed to the land beneath his feet, which was no longer desolate, and spoke in a deep and powerful voice.

"Fourth brother, ninth brother, look. From the North American steel mill beneath our feet, to the South American rubber plantations where the third brother is, and then to the British Isles ruled by the ninth brother. Along the way, we've ridden on the ironclad warships of the Tang Dynasty, used the telegraph machines of the Tang Dynasty, and walked on the cement roads of the Tang Dynasty."

He turned around and looked at his brothers, his eyes revealing an unprecedented depth.

"Back in Chang'an, we always thought the imperial palace was heaven, and that chair in the Taiji Hall was our destiny. But look at us now, the footprints of the Li family have covered every corner of this earth."

"We set all the shipping routes, we laid the submarine cables, and all the gold and iron mines underground bear the seal of the Eastern Palace. Now, all the rules in this world are dictated by the Li family."

Li Zhi was deeply moved upon hearing this, and he subconsciously tightened his military uniform.

"Brother, are you saying that we have already conquered an empire unprecedented in history?"

Li Chengqian laughed, a kind of serene composure that came from seeing through the dimensions of time and space.

"It's not just about the country. Meiniang just asked me what this era should be called."

He looked at Wu Meiniang, then at his brothers, and uttered a phrase that was enough to shatter this era.

"I think this should be called the 'Empire on which the sun never sets'."

Li Ke frowned and repeated softly, "The sun never sets? The sun never sets?"

"That's right."

Li Chengqian turned around again and pointed to the fully risen red sun.

"As the Earth rotates from east to west, the sun sets in Chang'an while the sun rises in London. The sun sets in London while the sun is at its zenith in North America. No matter how the planet rotates, at any given moment, the sun will always shine on the territory that flies the Tang Dynasty's dragon flag."

"In this empire, light will forever exist, for our territories have now formed a circle. As long as there is light in this world, it must first shine upon the land of the Tang Dynasty."

These words struck Li Ke, Li Tai, and Li Zhi like a heavy hammer blow.

They never imagined that power and territory could be given such a romantic and domineering interpretation.

Li Tai looked at his elder brother, then at his own hands covered in calluses and grease, and the last trace of the "throne" in his heart completely vanished.

He used to think that becoming emperor was the greatest achievement in his life, but now he understands that the heavy industry base he built with his own hands is the beating heart of this "empire on which the sun never sets".

"Brother, I used to think I was pretty amazing just because I could mine and smelt iron in North America. But after hearing what you said, I feel like I could build a hundred more blast furnaces!"

Li Tai clenched his fist, his tone filled with fervor.

Li Ke also took a deep breath and gave Li Chengqian a formal salute that he had never performed before.

"Brother, back in Chang'an, we always thought you were shirking your duties. Now I understand that you were giving each of us a world of your own. Li Ke is willing to guard the gateway to South America for the Tang Dynasty and never let this light be extinguished in the Southern Hemisphere."

Li Zhi was so excited that his eyes reddened slightly.

"Me too. Brother, although those barbarians in Europe now wear Tang suits and speak Chinese, I know they still harbor savagery in their hearts. I will use the laws of the Tang Dynasty and bayonets to forever nail them to the map of the world where the sun never sets."

The three brothers' gazes met in the air, and finally all fell on Li Chengqian.

This is a true surrender, not based on blood ties or etiquette, but on a vision and perspective that has been thoroughly won over.

They knew that without Li Chengqian's imaginative black technologies and his boundless delegation of power, they would at most still be scheming against each other in some mansion in Chang'an, vying for a few words of praise from the old man.

It was Li Chengqian who personally led them into the vast universe.

Empress Zhangsun also stepped out of the tent at some point. She stood at a distance, looking at her sons who were tightly huddled together in the morning sun, tears silently streaming down her cheeks.

For a long time, her dreams were filled with the bloodshed of Xuanwu Gate.

But now, these children are discussing how to rule the world and how to make the sun never set.

This is probably the most luxurious and greatest comfort a mother can receive.

Li Chengqian clapped his hands in satisfaction as he looked at his brothers, who were so full of energy.

"Alright, stop with the sentimentality. The sun may not set, but we haven't finished our work yet."

He was just about to call everyone back for breakfast when suddenly, the sound of rapid hoofbeats and the roar of a mechanical engine came from afar.

Those were the Crown Prince's personal guards responsible for perimeter security.

Xu Xiao was sitting in a convertible jeep, clutching a sealed envelope covered with red wax.

The jeep drifted and braked sharply at the edge of the cliff, kicking up a cloud of red dust.

Xu Xiao jumped out of the car before it even came to a complete stop. His expression was strange, a mixture of surprise and a frustrated desire to laugh but not daring to.

"Your Highness! Your Highness! Something terrible has happened!"

Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow and asked casually, "Has the old man finally come to his senses and is planning to bring troops to America to capture us?"

"No...it's an urgent telegram from Chang'an, a top-level official document!"

Xu Xiao was panting heavily as he ran, and his hands were trembling slightly when he handed the telegram to Li Chengqian.

"Your Highness, the situation in Chang'an... the atmosphere there has completely changed."

Li Chengqian removed the sealing wax and glanced at the first line of the telegram.

His previously nonchalant expression froze instantly.

He blinked, then flipped the thin telegram over and over again, seemingly suspecting that it was some kind of prank orchestrated by the old man and Li Tai.

"Brother, what's wrong? Is the old man throwing a tantrum again?" Li Zhi leaned over and asked in a low voice.

Li Chengqian didn't speak. He turned his head, looked at the bottomless abyss behind him, and then looked at the red sun that symbolized the golden age of the Tang Dynasty.

His lips began to twitch involuntarily, and finally he couldn't help but utter a curse.

"Holy crap, this old man... he's really gone mad."

Wu Meiniang sensed the unusual atmosphere and stepped forward, asking softly, "Your Highness, what exactly did the telegram say?"

Li Chengqian slapped the telegram into Wu Meiniang's arms, then, looking somewhat dazed, leaned against the rock beside him.

"The old man said in the telegram that he felt the infrastructure construction in Chang'an was too slow, seriously hindering global integration. So he decided that starting next month, he would personally lead a team to the construction site to replace all the dirt roads in Guanzhong with eight-lane asphalt roads."

"Furthermore, he also wants to build some kind of 'Global Satellite Signal Transmission Center' in the backyard of the Taiji Palace, saying that he wants to personally monitor those data."

Li Tai's eyes widened: "Father Emperor going to the construction site? Has he gone mad?"

Li Chengqian took a deep breath and looked at Xu Xiao with a complicated expression.

"Xu Xiao, besides this, what else did the telegram say?"

Xu Xiao swallowed hard, his expression becoming even more bizarre as he added insult to injury.

"Your Highness, there was a sentence attached to the end of the telegram. His Majesty said that he is too busy to go to Antarctica to catch penguins. So... he wants you to stay abroad for a few more years and not rush back."

"He said... he said he hadn't had enough of sitting on the throne yet."

A gentle breeze blows through the Grand Canyon.

Standing on the edge of the cliff, Li Chengqian listened to this declaration, which could be described as a "reverse default," and fell into a long silence.

He originally thought the old man would cry and beg him to come back and take over the job.

Now, things have gotten really bad; the old man has become addicted to rolling them.

"Old Xu, are you sure this telegram isn't a fake sent by Mo Ju?"

"Your Highness, I have confirmed that this vermilion seal is indeed the personal seal of His Majesty, the one 'King of Involution' that was personally engraved..."

Looking at the rising sun in the distance, Li Chengqian suddenly felt that he, the creator of the "empire on which the sun never sets," seemed rather "amateurish" in the face of his father's almost fanatical diligence.

"Let's go back."

Li Chengqian gritted his teeth and strode towards the camp.

"Your Highness, are we going back to Chang'an to take over the throne?" Li Zhi asked excitedly, following behind.

"Screw that! I need to go back and see what crazy buff that old man gave himself!"

"Chang'an... I'm afraid it's become something I don't even recognize."

Xu Xiao followed behind and muttered under his breath, "Your Highness, if you go back now, His Majesty will probably send you straight to repair the Great Wall."

Li Chengqian stumbled, but walked even faster.

"He dares!"