The Empress has abandoned me? I'll support a new emperor and destroy your kingdom!

"Su Che, the traitor, colluded with foreign powers, plotting a rebellion. The evidence is irrefutable!" Gao Tianci's voice resounded across the execution ground through his inner force. "His Majesty is benevolent, remembering his past merits, and granting him a complete corpse for slow slicing—this is already a divine grace!"

Su Che was bound to the execution platform, the sharp blade slicing through his flesh piece by piece. Blood flowed down the wooden platform, emitting a rusty, metallic stench under the blazing sun. The execution ground was surrounded by people; the very people he had once protected were now craning their necks, as if watching a grand performance.

"The 301st knife!"

The executioner's shrill voice pierced the noise.

Su Che didn't shout. He simply stared at the makeshift platform directly in front of the execution ground. On the platform, Lin Chu, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, sat upright on her imperial chair, with Gao Tianci, dressed in brocade robes and wearing a jade crown, standing beside her. The two were very close, and Gao Tianci's hand was gently resting on the back of Lin Chu's chair.

Lin Chu didn't speak. She simply stared at the face that had once shown Su Che countless gentle smiles, now devoid of any expression. It was as if she were looking at an insignificant object.

Su Che wanted to laugh, but the movement pulled at the wound on the corner of his mouth.

Colluding with foreign powers? Intending to rebel?

What a huge joke.

Three years ago, he inexplicably transmigrated from the modern world to this place, becoming a down-on-his-luck scholar in the Tianming Empire whose family had been destroyed. It was Lin Chu, who at the time was the neglected and precarious sixth princess, who brought him back to her mansion from a dilapidated temple on a snowy night.

She said, "Sir, you are a man of great talent, why should you be buried in obscurity? Helping me is helping all living beings."

He said, "On what grounds?"

She replied, "I know you are no ordinary person, I am willing to entrust my life to you, and this world... should not be like this."

At that moment, her eyes shone with light, with resentment, and with the same desire as his to tear apart the flames of this corrupt world.

So he agreed.

He helped her navigate the treacherous court; he eliminated her political enemies and subdued the border troops. He offered her a reform of the imperial examination system to break the monopoly of powerful clans; he designed new agricultural tools for her, saving millions of lives; he established the "Listening" secret service for her to control all news in the world.

Countless times, he stood in front of her, protecting her from death.

Countless times he ventured alone into enemy territory, clearing obstacles for her.

He single-handedly elevated a princess with no connections to the position of crown prince, and amidst the bloodshed and rebellion of the old emperor, he carved a path to the throne, placing her on the highest pedestal.

Three days ago, she ascended the throne as empress, becoming the first female emperor in the history of the Tianming Empire.

At the coronation ceremony, she held his hand and, in front of all the civil and military officials, said in a choked voice, "Mr. Su is like a teacher and a father to me, like my own arm and fingers. In this life, I will never betray you."

How beautiful it is.

Then, just last night, at the celebration banquet, she personally poured him wine, her eyes as gentle as ever.

"Sir, drink this cup, and we will enjoy this vast land together."

He drank it.

The wine contained a "muscle-softening powder," which was colorless and odorless, and only she could make him completely unguarded.

When he awoke, he was already in shackles, accused of numerous crimes, and all his past achievements were now attributed to Gao Tianci. In the court, everyone accused him of being "arrogant and domineering" and "having treacherous intentions." His loyal former subordinates—Zhao Jianing, Pang Xiaopan…—were dragged out of the palace one by one, their screams echoing in the air.

He looked at her and asked only one question: "Why?"

Gao Tianci eagerly answered, his head held high: "Because your achievements overshadow the emperor! Because His Majesty cannot sleep at night! Because you, a sorcerer of unknown origin, deserve to die!"

Lin Chu finally spoke, his voice soft but as cold as ice: "Su Che, you are too clever, so clever that it frightens me. This empire belongs to the Lin family, not the Su family."

It turned out to be the case.

It turns out he was never her "husband," but rather the ladder that was most useful and most needed to be destroyed on her path to heaven.

"The four hundredth cut!"

Another scene of flesh and blood being torn apart.

His vision began to blur, but the two figures embracing on the platform remained glaringly clear. He saw Gao Tianci lower his head and whisper something in Lin Chu's ear, and Lin Chu's lips curled up slightly, revealing a faint, shy smile befitting a young woman.

That was an expression Su Che had never seen before.

It turns out, she wasn't incapable of smiling, she just didn't know how to smile at him like that.

It turns out that she wasn't inherently cold-hearted; she simply reserved all her tenderness for the son of the great general who hid under his father's wings when she was in danger and jumped out to reap the rewards when she succeeded.

Do you hate it?

Of course I hate it.

But even more turbulent than hatred is overwhelming anger and mockery.

I'm angry at the injustice of this world, and angry at myself for being blind and heartless.

He mocked himself for having lived two lives, yet he still believed in human nature, in promises, and in those ephemeral emotions.

His consciousness gradually faded, and his last perception was the whispers of the people around him.

"I heard that this person used to be the Empress's most favored person..."

"A favorite? Bah! He's nothing but a traitor! General Gao is the true loyal minister!"

"Exactly! Look at General Gao and His Majesty, they're a perfect match, a match made in heaven. This traitor is like a toad trying to eat swan meat..."

Oh.

Su Che closed his eyes.

If there is an afterlife...

If there is an afterlife, Lin Chu, Gao Tianci, and all those who have wronged me...

I want you to suffer a fate worse than death!

I want this so-called Tianming Empire...

The land is shattered, and the sun and moon are crumbling!

The excruciating pain engulfed his last vestiges of consciousness like a tidal wave.

……

I don't know how much time passed.

It may be a moment, or it may be forever.

Suddenly, a deafening cheer erupted in my ears, a roar that seemed to reach the heavens.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

Su Che suddenly opened his eyes.

There was no execution platform, no blood, and no knife to slice flesh.

The blinding sunlight made him squint. He found himself standing on a majestic high platform, dressed in an elegant yet neat blue robe. Beneath his feet were polished white marble tiles, and before him stretched a vast expanse of kneeling officials and a sea of ​​people.

A breeze brushed against my cheek, carrying the chill of early spring and a hint of... sandalwood and banners.

He turned his head stiffly and extremely slowly.

Half a step to the side stood Lin Chu, dressed in the bright yellow crown of a prince and wearing a jeweled crown. She was tilting her head slightly, looking up at the golden dragon throne higher up. Her profile was as white as jade in the sunlight, and her eyes flickered with suppressed excitement, ambition, and a hint of barely perceptible trepidation as she ascended to the throne.

Further away, Gao Tianci, dressed in fine clothes and full of vigor, glanced at him quickly with a look that was a mixture of smugness, greed, and provocation.

This is……

The sixth day of the third month in the 379th year of the Tianming calendar.

Empress's coronation ceremony.

He was reborn thirty days earlier.

He returned to the day when everything had just begun, before the betrayal occurred, and when he still had the chance to drag everyone into hell...

His heart pounded wildly in his chest, almost shattering his ribs. The lingering pain of being slowly tortured in his past life still lingered in every nerve ending, intertwining with the absurd yet real scene before him, causing him a moment of dizziness and nausea.

"Mr. Su?"

A soft female voice, tinged with dependence and inquiry, rang out.

Lin Chu turned her head slightly to look at him. His face held just the right amount of weariness, gratitude, and complete trust. He was completely different from the cold and ruthless face he had shown at the end of her previous life.

"Your Majesty," Su Che heard his own voice ring out, calm and even slightly bowing, performing an impeccable courtier's salute, "the auspicious time has arrived. Please ascend the throne, Your Majesty, to receive the homage of all officials and to receive the mandate of Heaven."

His movements were fluid and natural, as if he had practiced them hundreds of times.

Only he himself knew what kind of frozen wasteland lay deep within those lowered eyes, and what kind of hellish fire was burning silently.

Lin Chu seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, showing him a smile of extreme trust, even tinged with vulnerability: "Without you, sir, I would not be where I am today. I will never forget this kindness and grace."

Having said that, she took a deep breath, and amidst the deafening music and the tolling of bells, she turned around and, step by step, walked across the scarlet carpet laid out before the dragon throne towards the supreme throne of power.

Su Che stood quietly in place, watching her straight back.

Never forget?

Yes, how could you forget?

You will be ungrateful, you will betray me after I have served my purpose, you will execute me by slow slicing, and you will exterminate all my brothers and brethren.

You and that good-for-nothing Gao Tianci will trample over the corpses of me and my comrades to enjoy this blood-stained land.

good very good.

Lin Chu, in this life...

Let me teach you what it truly means to "never forget".