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

"boom--!"

A blazing orange-red flame, like a raging fire dragon, erupted from the bottom of the "Great Tang Pegasus." It was the release of a terrifying thrust of millions of tons in an instant; the entire northwestern desert seemed to groan in agony under this earth-shattering force. The massive steel launch tower was completely enveloped in scorching steam. This steel behemoth, embodying the pinnacle of Tang Dynasty technology, slowly broke free from the millions of years of gravitational pull amidst a deafening roar, rising inch by inch from the ground.

"Lifted! Rocket attitude stable! First-stage engine thrust data normal!" Mo Lin, the president of the Academy of Sciences, gripped the microphone, his voice cracking as he stared intently at the telemetry data on the main screen.

A massive tail of flame trailed a long white streak, piercing the sky. The light was so dazzling that millions of people in Chang'an Square involuntarily squinted, yet stubbornly refused to look away.

Inside the underground command center, the deathly silence was instantly overturned by waves of ecstatic cheers.

Li Shimin gripped the alloy railing in front of him tightly, the veins on the back of his hands bulging. This emperor, who swept across the land and conquered the world on horseback, now had red eyes, warm tears swirling wildly in his eyes before silently sliding down his hard cheeks.

"Father, did you see that? Our Tang ships have flown into the sky!" His lips trembled, like a child who had finally handed in a perfect answer to his stern father. He remembered the humiliation at the Wei River, the bloody night at Xuanwu Gate, and every day and night he had endured for this vast empire. And now, he had personally pushed the Tang Dynasty's territory into the realm of the gods.

"Your Majesty, the arrow has successfully separated! It is entering the predetermined orbit!" The data clerk's shout brought Li Shimin back to reality.

"Good! Keep a close eye on them! Even the slightest anomaly in the data of a single screw must be reported immediately!" Li Shimin wiped his face, whirled around, and his eyes, now blazing with renewed battle intent, swept across the entire area. "This is only the first step in a long march. Immediately connect the radio and tell those three rascals who went to the moon that once they're there, they'd better plant the flag securely! If they plant it crookedly, I'll make them come back!"

Time seemed both long and short during this interstellar expedition.

A few days later, in the silent deep space 380,000 kilometers away.

The "Guanghan Palace" primary lunar module, resembling a silver metallic flying insect, slowly descended towards the cratered, grayish-white planet against the backdrop of the deep, boundless universe.

Inside the capsule, Commander Qin Chuan—the great-grandson of Qin Qiong, the Duke of Yi of the Tang Dynasty—was skillfully manipulating the attitude control handle. His breathing was somewhat heavy due to the circulatory system inside his heavy spacesuit, but his eyes were as sharp as those of his ancestor who charged into battle.

"Great Tang Command Center, this is Guanghan Palace. We are 300 feet from the lunar surface, and the descent rate is very stable. Radar has locked onto the landing site on the 'Sea of ​​Tranquility' plain." Qin Chuan's voice, carried by radio waves, crossed the vacuum of 380,000 kilometers and returned to Earth with a slight amount of static.

At this moment, Chang'an City, and even the entire Earth, had come to a complete standstill. All factories stopped operating, all schools suspended classes, and billions of eyes were fixed on the large LCD screens broadcasting blurry images.

"One hundred feet. Dust is visible in the air."

"Fifty feet. Thrust reversers ready."

"Ten feet... contact probe triggered!"

With a slight tremor inside the module, a weak reaction force came from the bottom. The lunar module's four massive cushioning legs firmly sank into the lunar soil, which had remained dormant for billions of years.

"Engine shut down. Command center, Guanghan Palace has landed safely. Repeat, Datang has arrived on the moon." Qin Chuan released the handle, turned to look at the co-pilot, and the two bumped fists hard through their thick helmets.

On Earth, the silence that had been building for days was instantly ignited. In the Northwest Command Center, Mo Lin knelt on the ground and wailed. The white-haired academicians embraced each other, tossing their blueprints into the air like snowflakes. Li Shimin slammed his hand down on the teacup in front of him, then laughed loudly, the sound shaking the ceiling and causing dust to fall.

But the most exciting moments are yet to come.

Several hours later, the decompression of the hatch was completed. Qin Chuan, carrying a life support backpack, slung himself out of the hatch and stood on the makeshift metal ladder.

Beneath his feet lay a desolate, gray, lifeless world. There was no wind, no sound, and above him stretched an endless, dark starry sky. In the distance, however, was a beautiful, azure water sphere—their homeland, the territory of the Tang Dynasty.

Qin Chuan took a deep breath, lifted his right foot, which was wearing a heavy anti-static boot, and placed it firmly on the lunar surface.

A clear footprint with anti-slip texture is forever etched on this planet.

He pulled a folded metal pole from the outside of his backpack. It was a flagpole forged from the finest titanium alloy from the North American heavy industry base, with a black gold dragon flag woven from special metal wire attached to it.

Qin Chuan gripped the flagpole with both hands and, with all his might, plunged it into the hard crevice of the lunar rock.

On the airless moon, the flag could not flutter in the wind, but its internal memory metal skeleton instantly sprang open, supporting the menacing Eastern dragon upright, which proudly looked down upon this desolate land.

Qin Chuan stood at attention, gave a standard Tang Dynasty military salute to the flag, and then pressed the communication button on his helmet.

"Command center, this is Qin Chuan."

His voice was broadcast synchronously to every corner of the earth via relay satellite.

"I have planted the dragon banner of the Tang Dynasty upon the moon. All land under heaven belongs to the emperor; the banner of the Tang Dynasty now flies high in the starry sky. May my Tang Dynasty last forever!"

This statement was like a nuclear bomb, triggering a massive tsunami on Earth.

On Zhuque Avenue in Chang'an, countless people wept with joy, kneeling in the street and kowtowing frantically towards the moon. In the Vatican of Western Europe, cardinals, watching the images on the screen, silently made the sign of the cross, murmuring, "May the Great Khan of Tang bless us." Outside the governor's palace in South America, indigenous people gathered around a bonfire, performing the most primitive sacrificial dances to celebrate humanity's complete conquest of the gods.

This is a night of revelry for all mankind, but at the heart of the celebration, the words "Tang Dynasty" will forever be imprinted.

Meanwhile, in Chang'an, at the Eastern Palace...

Unlike the deafening clamor outside, the backyard of the East Palace was exceptionally quiet. Only the occasional croak of frogs in the pond mingled with the rustling of the bamboo grove in the night breeze.

Li Chengqian did not go to Taiji Palace to join the commotion. He was still wearing that loose silk robe, lying on his favorite huanghuali rocking chair, with his eyes closed and a cup of tea that had gone cold in his hand.

Cheers and firecrackers echoed outside, their sounds penetrating the high red walls and reaching into the courtyard.

Wu Meiniang walked over with a plate of freshly cut watermelon, looking at Li Chengqian's unusually calm demeanor, somewhat puzzled.

"Your Highness, this is a momentous event, a truly groundbreaking one. Our Tang Dynasty's flag has even reached the moon! How can you not be excited at all? Just now, the cabinet sent someone to invite you to the victory banquet, but Commander Xu turned them away."

Li Chengqian slowly opened his eyes and glanced at the bright moon overhead.

Before, the moon was just a cold, white plate. Now, it carries a hint of the wildness of industrial civilization.

"Excited? I've already been excited." Li Chengqian chuckled, placed the tea on the small table beside him, picked up a slice of watermelon, took a bite, and let the sweet juice spread in his mouth.

"Meiniang, you only saw that flag. What I saw was that this machine called 'Great Tang' has finally reached the peak allowed by the laws of physics."

He sat up straight, his eyes appearing exceptionally clear in the darkness.

"From steam engines to internal combustion engines, from electricity to aerospace, I've basically squeezed every last blueprint out of my head. I've pushed the fundamental sciences on Earth to a terrifying tipping point. Going further won't be solved by blueprints alone; it will require time, and generations of trial and error to break through quantum mechanics and the speed of light."

Wu Meiniang sat beside him, gently fanning him with a round fan to ward off the mosquitoes of early autumn.

"So, Your Highness means we'll have nothing to do from now on?"

"There's plenty of work to do, but I no longer need to personally handle it." Li Chengqian stretched out a huge yawn, his joints cracking loudly.

"Now that the old man has found the bottomless pit of the stars and the sea, his national destiny engine can burn for at least several hundred years."

Building a base on the moon, growing potatoes on Mars, and venturing out of the solar system—this is an enormous undertaking; he'll be very busy.

The scientific system of the Tang Dynasty has been established, and the schools are producing scientists even more dedicated than I am every day.

"I, the one who guided you through this 'cheat code' journey, have successfully completed my historical mission."

Looking at the moonlight filling the courtyard, Li Chengqian smiled with a look of complete relaxation and relief.

For so many years, he has been playing the role of the mastermind behind the scenes, pushing the Tang Dynasty into a frenzied internal struggle. Now, this chariot has finally entered the track he most hoped for.

"Meiniang, do you still remember what I said when I was just old enough to understand things? My biggest dream in this life is to become a salted fish that can turn over."

Wu Meiniang chuckled and rolled her eyes at him.

"Your Highness, this salted fish of yours has turned the whole world upside down."

"That's because the pond used to be too small and the water too murky. Now the water is clear, the pond has become the universe, and it's time for me to take a good rest."