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

Li Chengqian picked up the bowl of plum juice with ice crystals floating on it and gulped down a large mouthful. The sweet, sour, and icy taste instantly slid down his throat and into his stomach, completely extinguishing the heat of the early summer evening. The roars coming from the direction of Taiji Palace had barely subsided when he impatiently locked himself in the heavily guarded study in the East Palace. He skillfully spread out a sheet of fine Chengxintang paper, grabbed a heavy piece of Hetian jade paperweight, and pressed it down at the four corners. His vast knowledge base about the "Electrical Age" surged forth from his mind like a burst dam.

The principles of alternating current electromagnetic induction, the meshing sketches of the stator and rotor of a rudimentary steam generator, the glass cavity of a tungsten filament bulb—though rough, it perfectly conformed to mechanical structure… These groundbreaking drawings, enough to baffle any craftsman of the era, quickly took shape under his specially made carbon pen. To make it seem authentic, he even deliberately drew several ancient runes full of mystery next to some complex gear transmission formulas, disguising them as fragments of some long-lost Western alchemy.

However, he had no intention of personally going to the Taiji Palace to explain these mind-bending physics theorems to the old man. Since the system had successfully transformed Li Shimin into a tireless, perpetual motion machine fueled by the nation's fortune, then his father had to figure it out and experiment with it himself. Li Chengqian found several yellowed parchment scrolls, stuffed the newly drawn blueprints inside, crumpled them vigorously, and even dripped a few drops of strong tea from the previous day onto the edges to create a sense of historical weight and vicissitude.

On a dark and windy night, with a gentle breeze rustling the high red walls of the Eastern Palace, it was the perfect opportunity for His Highness the Crown Prince to act as a "deliveryman." Li Chengqian changed into a plain black night outfit and, like a nimble night owl, deftly scaled the outer wall of the residence of Mo Ju, the Minister of Works. He skillfully made his way to a corner of the courtyard and slipped the most crucial assembly blueprints for the steam generator through a perpetually drafty dog ​​hole into the bushes in the Mo family's backyard.

Then, without pausing, he sneaked back to the vicinity of the Taiji Palace. He knew that Li Shimin practiced a set of exercises to loosen his muscles by the artificial hill in the Imperial Garden every morning, so he quietly and deliberately "lost" the tattered scroll about the architecture of alternating current networks in the most conspicuous spot on the white marble table. Having done all this, Li Chengqian dusted off his hands, concealing his accomplishment, humming a Jiangnan folk tune, and lightly slipped back to his soft bed in the East Palace, falling into a deep sleep.

Before the morning mist had even dissipated, a deafening roar erupted over Chang'an. Li Shimin, dressed in a tight-fitting gray military uniform, clutched the crumpled parchment tightly in his hand, his muscles trembling uncontrollably with excitement. His eyes, slightly red from long nights of reviewing memorials, now shone with a terrifying light, like a hungry wolf eyeing fresh meat, as if the parchment was not merely a piece of paper, but the key to the eternal rule of the Tang Dynasty.

"Wang De! Quickly summon Mo Ju! Summon all the chief craftsmen of the Ministry of Works, all of whom are of the sixth rank or above, to the palace!" Li Shimin rushed into the imperial study like a whirlwind, slamming the AC power diagram heavily onto the imperial desk. The force of the impact made the precious Duan inkstone jump, and he didn't care that ink had splashed all over the table.

Before Wang De could even escape the gates of Taiji Palace, Mo Ju, clutching another set of blueprints smeared with foxtail grass, stumbled and tumbled into the palace. The emperor and his minister hastily pieced the two blueprints together on the large table, and instantly gasped in unison. Although they couldn't decipher the complex Latin formulas of electromagnetism, the clear mechanical transmission structure and the arrogant annotation of "conducting the power of thunder through copper wires to transform it into endless light" completely ignited the passion of these two most fervent pragmatists of the Tang Dynasty.

"Your Majesty, these blueprints... these blueprints are simply a divine gift from heaven to the Tang Dynasty! If we can truly create such a device that can control lightning, the night will be as bright as day!" Mo Ju was so excited that his beard stood on end, tears streamed down his face, and he held the parchment in his hands, trembling uncontrollably.

Li Shimin kicked over the low table that was in the way, his body brimming with the boundless energy of the nation's engine, and roared, "Then what are we waiting for? You can allocate any money in the national treasury! All iron and copper mines in the world will be prioritized for the Ministry of Works' experiments! I want to see this so-called 'electricity' lit up Chang'an as quickly as possible! Anyone who dares to obstruct the supply will have their entire family executed!"

From that day forward, the colossal machinery of the Tang Dynasty once again reached its highest level, emitting a deafening roar of the era. Copper mines across the country were given urgent orders to begin mining, and hundreds upon hundreds of tons of high-purity copper were continuously transported to Chang'an. Meanwhile, Li Ke, far away in South America, received a series of urgent telegrams from his father, ordering countless unrefined natural rubber slurries to be loaded onto cargo ships and sailed back to the Tang Dynasty, specifically for the research and development of insulating coatings.

Meanwhile, Li Chengqian, the instigator of all this, was living the ultimate life of a life of luxury he had dreamed of since his transmigration. The sun shone brightly in the back garden of the Eastern Palace, and a gentle breeze carried the delicate fragrance of peonies. He wore a loose, breathable silk robe and held a fresh bamboo stalk that had just been cut from Zhongnan Mountain. He was idly teasing the increasingly plump and glossy iron-eating beast.

"Eat more, get fatter and you'll be more lovable. Your only mission in this life is to act cute in front of me, don't be like that workaholic outside who works non-stop." Li Chengqian stuffed bamboo into the mouth of the iron-eating beast, and rubbed its fluffy head with satisfaction, which made the black and white beast let out a satisfied hum.

Wu Meiniang sat in an octagonal pavilion not far away, her delicate hands gently plucking the sandalwood pipa in her arms. The melodious and graceful music drifted softly in the breeze. Looking at her prince's carefree and unrestrained demeanor, as if the affairs of the world were none of her concern, and then thinking of the court outside, which was already in turmoil and towering buildings were being constructed everywhere, she couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle softly.

"Your Highness, you just threw those mysterious blueprints out and then ignored them. His Majesty is now even skipping his time to go back to the inner palace to sleep. I heard from Wang De that His Majesty was still in the Imperial Study last night, personally helping the craftsmen wind those copper coils with pliers." Wu Meiniang stopped her fingers, her eyes filled with helplessness and amusement.

Li Chengqian casually lay down on the rattan chair beside him, stretched comfortably, and picked up a chilled grape from the table, tossing it into his mouth. "Meiniang, you don't understand. Father is enjoying himself right now; it's the miraculous effect of the Tang Dynasty's national fortune burning wildly within him. If I were to rush to help now, I would only deprive him of the sense of accomplishment in creating a great and lasting legacy. The system's hidden mechanism is truly brilliant; I only need to keep my merits hidden."

He closed his eyes contentedly, his fingers gently tapping the armrests of the rattan chair to the rhythm of the pipa. The imperial edicts from the previous dynasty piled up? His father, with his boundless energy, had the time to review them. The Ministry of Works was stuck on technical difficulties? Mo Ju led the artisans of the land to work tirelessly to overcome them. His primary task as the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty was to maintain his mental and physical well-being and live as long as possible. After all, the ultimate pleasure of capitalist exploitation—watching others work themselves to the bone for his own casual ideas—was indescribable.

Occasionally, some ignorant court officials would come to the Eastern Palace, trying to persuade His Highness the Crown Prince to share some of the heavy responsibility of supervising the projects. Li Chengqian only needed to cough weakly twice, point to the non-existent wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, and sigh, saying, "I am exhausted and afraid I am not up to the task. This country still needs to be supported by the eternally young Emperor." This was enough to move those officials to tears and send them home.

The timeline seemed to be pressed on a frantic fast-forward by an invisible hand. The camera flashed by in a montage-like manner: from the first cumbersome hand-cranked generator bursting with blinding sparks in the Ministry of Works' secret chambers; to rough copper wires spreading like spider webs beneath the red walls and green tiles of the Taiji Palace; and then to the first primary AC power plant, driven by a giant steam turbine, rising from the ground on the banks of the Wei River, its chimneys belching out white steam that blotted out the sky. Everything was growing wildly at an incredible speed, driven by Li Shimin's almost obsessive fanaticism.

Li Chengqian stood quietly atop the highest pavilion in the Eastern Palace, holding a glass of the finest wine from the Western Regions. The night breeze ruffled his robes, his gaze fixed on the main hall of the Taiji Palace, shrouded in darkness in the distance. There lay hidden the ultimate secret of the Tang Dynasty's impending leap into a new era.

Just as the night watchman struck the midnight bell, a dull yet powerful sound of a giant power switch closing suddenly rang out inside the power plant on the banks of the Wei River.

Immediately afterwards, a pure light, absolutely not belonging to any kind of firewood or burning oil, suddenly shone above the Taiji Palace. The light was pure white, dazzling, and so stable that it did not waver at all, like a small sun fallen to earth, instantly tearing apart the rule of darkness that had lasted for thousands of years, and illuminating the golden glazed tiles of the entire imperial city with a dazzling brilliance.

Wu Meiniang gasped in horror, covering her red lips. The white jade wine cup in her hand trembled slightly, nearly falling to the ground. "Your Highness... what is that light? It's a hundred times brighter than the full moon of Mid-Autumn Festival!"

Li Chengqian tilted his head back, gazing at the artificial light source that illuminated the entire Tang Dynasty night sky. He downed his glass of red wine in one gulp, his eyes gleaming with a fanatical smile of ambition to control the era. He turned to look at Wu Meiniang, whose face was filled with shock, a hint of cunning in his voice.

"Let's go and congratulate Father. Tonight, he finally won't have to work in the dark to review memorials."