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

The giant arc lamp at the top of Taiji Palace, personally tuned by Mo Ju, burst forth with dazzling light the moment the switch was turned on. This pure white light not only illuminated the bluestone slabs of Zhuque Street, but also completely shattered the millennia-long darkness of the Tang Dynasty.

As Li Shimin shouted "Radiance!" in the command center, the entire city of Chang'an seemed to have had some kind of awakening switch flipped.

Along both sides of Zhuque Avenue, the wooden lampposts that used to be adorned with red lanterns have long been replaced with European-style long-pole streetlights made of cast iron. At this moment, the tungsten filaments vibrate violently inside the vacuum glass sphere, and the current supplied by the Weishui Power Plant surges along the dense copper wire mesh. In an instant, thousands of lights illuminate simultaneously, and ten thousand flames bow down.

The people of Chang'an who were preparing to rest were so startled by the daylight-like light outside their windows that they scrambled out of their homes.

"My God! Has the sun fallen into Chang'an?"

An elderly farmer with white hair collapsed to the ground, staring at the streetlight overhead—a light that was so bright it was blinding, yet didn't emit any smoke or sway. His lips trembled for a long time before he finally knelt respectfully on the cement road and kowtowed repeatedly to the lamppost.

In his eyes, what else could this power of thunder, which could burn without oil or charcoal, be but a miracle?

The entire city of Chang'an was in an uproar; no, it should now be called the "city that never sleeps" of the Tang Dynasty.

In just a few years, under Li Shimin's almost self-torturous diligence, the infrastructure projects of the Tang Dynasty were like an out-of-control torrent. The original low-lying, damp, and decaying wooden markets were ruthlessly bulldozed, and reinforced concrete structures sprang up across the land.

Standing at the intersection, the office buildings, some a dozen stories high, were covered with neat glass curtain walls, gleaming coldly under the lights. Trams, which originally only existed in Li Chengqian's writings, were now running rhythmically along the city's crisscrossing railway tracks, their overhead conductors scraping against the power lines, occasionally bursting into a string of blue-purple sparks.

All of this was a gradual process of adaptation for the native people of the Tang Dynasty, but for the foreigners who had just arrived in Chang'an, it was nothing short of a terrifying experience of being subjected to a dimensional reduction attack.

At Chang'an New Station, under a dome made of steel and tempered glass, an electric auxiliary locomotive emitting white smoke and sounding its whistle slowly came to a stop.

The hatch opened, and several Western Region envoys dressed in gorgeous silk, who considered themselves noble, and several special envoys from the Roman Catholic Church walked out with their heads held high.

"Is this the legendary, wealthy Tang Dynasty?"

The leading Roman envoy was adjusting the cross on his chest, a reserved smile playing on his lips. He had expected to see a reinforced version of Constantinople, with more magnificent stone walls and more guards.

However, the moment he stepped out of the station and looked up at the sky, his composure shattered instantly, replaced by a blank stare caused by mental overload.

What did he see?

It was a towering, greyish-white forest, every branch and leaf shimmering with an artificial light that did not belong to nature.

On the rooftop, which was several times higher than the church spire, huge red characters shimmered with neon-like light. Although he couldn't understand them, he could feel the oppressive aura of that vast civilization.

A long steel wagon, pulled by no horses, let out a strange cry and sped past him on the track a few meters in front of him, the wind pressure it generated almost blowing his top hat off.

"A miracle...this is the realm of the gods!"

The Roman envoy's legs buckled, and his knees slammed heavily onto the smooth concrete. He had no intention of resisting; he only stared in horror at the skyscrapers gleaming in the night, his whole body trembling violently. Finally, like those old farmers, he knelt devoutly at the station entrance, muttering confessions that no one could understand.

This scene played out every day at Chang'an Railway Station. There were even special Imperial Guards responsible for helping these foreigners, who were paralyzed with fright, to the rest room so as not to block the morning rush hour for the people of the Tang Dynasty.

Li Chengqian was leaning against the viewing platform of the East Palace, which was a hundred feet high.

This is a reinforced steel structure that he specially commissioned Li Tai to have custom-made in North America, with floor-to-ceiling windows on all four sides.

He was swirling a glass of carbonated juice with ice in his hand, while a phonograph version of "The King of Qin's Battle Song" played from the speakers behind him, with a very strong rhythm.

Wu Meiniang walked gracefully to his side, her cheongsam tailored to be the most fashionable attire for young women in the Tang Dynasty.

"Your Highness, Eunuch Wang just sent someone to say that His Majesty spent the entire night reviewing memorials under the electric lights of the Taiji Palace, and is now in high spirits, preparing to inspect the global headquarters of the telegraph office."

Wu Zetian covered her mouth and chuckled, her eyes filled with helplessness towards that "God of War in the Involution Zone".

Li Chengqian took a sip of juice, the carbonation exploding in his throat, bringing a refreshing sensation.

"Let him be. Father is currently in a state of heightened excitement about 'civilization upgrade,' with adrenaline levels higher than a twenty-year-old. As long as the lights are on, he will absolutely not leave his desk."

Li Chengqian looked down at the city.

The streetlights stretched out like a golden dragon vein, and the office buildings were brightly lit, where countless civil servants and accountants were working overtime to calculate taxes. The tram lights darted through the streets like fireflies, and the air was filled with the mingled smells of engine oil, coal smoke, and the salty tang of free trade.

It's a very strange visual impact.

There are still many classical eaves and brackets in Mingming City, but they are encased in reinforced concrete and pierced by electrically powered elevators.

He was like a refined giant wearing a suit, holding an electric pointer, and with a Han Dynasty jade pendant pinned to his chest.

The psychedelic cyberpunk style and the profound classical style of the Tang Dynasty are fused together here in a wild and timeless way.

Li Chengqian took a deep breath, feeling the pulse of the industrial age coursing through the ground beneath his feet and reaching the depths of his soul.

He originally thought that changing an era required a gradual process and gentle reforms.

However, he underestimated the system's transformation of Li Shimin, and also underestimated the frenzied outburst of the Tang people after witnessing the "miracle".

When survival was no longer an issue, and when light dispelled superstition and darkness, this ancient people displayed a creativity and execution that would make even the gods tremble.

"Your Highness, what are you thinking about?" Wu Meiniang asked softly.

Li Chengqian placed the empty cup on the railing, a confident smile playing on his lips.

"I was thinking that I used to want to retire, to be lazy, and to be a quiet, unambitious salted fish."

"But I didn't realize that salted fish also need a good fish tank. Now this fish tank has become a bit too big because of my antics."

He looked down once more upon the magnificent capital city.

This is the Tang Dynasty he personally initiated, and this is the history he rewrote.

Gone are the scenes of widespread suffering caused by land annexation, as depicted in the original history books, and gone are the scenes of frustration when faced with powerful ships and cannons.

There is only one voice in the world now, and that is the Mandarin of the Tang Dynasty.

The sky now has only one kind of light, which is the artificial electric light developed by Donggong.

"Meiniang, look at those tracks, look at those tall buildings."

Li Chengqian pointed at the bustling city of Chang'an, his eyes flashing with an unprecedented madness.

"The wheels of history should have moved forward slowly, but they might have even gone backward a few steps."

"But now, I've welded that wheel to the track and filled the engine with the most powerful fuel possible."

He paused, his tone becoming firm.

"I welded this accelerator shut."

"No one can stop this golden age."

Looking at Li Chengqian's profile, Wu Meiniang felt that the man before her was no longer the carefree crown prince, but an eternal ruler who had grasped the truth of the world.

"Your Highness, what's our next step...?"

Li Chengqian stretched and lay back down in the leather swivel chair.

"Next step? The next step is, of course, to wait for the old man to lay out the power grid all over the world, so I can hold a transoceanic live press conference here."

"But before that, Meiniang, you need to get Moju to get me a better air filter."

"The industrial smell is still a bit strong."

Wu Meiniang smiled and gently draped a blanket over him.

"Your Highness, please rest assured. His Majesty will surely volunteer to do the rest of the work."

Li Chengqian closed his eyes contentedly, listening to the vibrant roar of the city below.

That was the roar of the times.

That is the most indelible mark that Li Chengqian left on this planet.

"Your Highness, the telegraph office says that His Highness Li Zhijiu has sent another request for help from Europe, saying that the voltage there is unstable and the lights keep exploding. Please give your instructions."

Li Chengqian waved his hand: "Tell him to go find the fourth brother, don't bother me."

"Yes, Your Highness."

The night in Chang'an was still brightly lit.

And the spark of this golden age is igniting global ambitions along those slender copper wires.