In my dream of returning to the Tang Dynasty, I snatched Wu Zetian from my lap.

Upon hearing this, Wu Meiniang kindly inquired but was instead falsely accused.

The woman, born an empress, instantly turned cold and ruthless.

"Li Yuanchang, you're too arrogant!"

Who I associate with is none of your business.

"You go your way, I'll go mine."

Li Yuanchang knew Wu Zetian's personality well. Kind words and warm care were useless. This kind of top-notch strong woman, the first empress of China, didn't fall for that.

He stepped forward, his attitude firm: "That's not up to you!"

"you!"

Wu Meiniang stood up abruptly, her bright and beautiful face contorted in a fierce glare, creating a striking contrast that even her anger possessed an exquisite beauty.

The way the two looked at each other, once filled with love and the stirrings of a young girl's heart, has now become a complex mix of love, hate, and resentment, beyond words.

The entire pavilion remained silent for a good dozen breaths.

Wu Zetian was furious, but there was nothing she could do about Li Yuanchang. She could only order him to leave, saying, "I can't accommodate such a great figure as you here!"

She bit the large Buddha statue so hard: "Go away."

Having finally managed to bump into him, how could Li Yuanchang possibly leave?

He resorted to shamelessness, taking off his coat and casually tossing it on the table.

"What are you doing?" Wu Meiniang frowned slightly.

Li Yuanchang took off his shoes again.

"I'm tired, I'm going to take a nap."

As he spoke, he walked toward the bed.

When he entered, he noticed signs and signs of habitation here. It must be Wu Meiniang's pavilion, and she must have been staying there for a while.

"Are you sick?" Wu Meiniang blocked her way, her face full of displeasure.

"This is my residence."

Li Yuanchang pulled her away.

"So what?"

"You can report it to the authorities."

Li Yuanchang looked completely indifferent and plopped down on the soft, fragrant bed.

"you!"

Wu Zetian was so angry that she froze, her jade-like hands clenched into fists.

Reporting to the authorities might be useful to others, but how could it be of any use to Li Yuanchang?

Under her angry glare, Li Yuanchang had already covered himself with the blankets and closed his eyes with a clear conscience.

"stand up!"

"I'll say it one last time!"

Li Yuanchang ignored him.

Wu Zetian's anger was soaring, and her years of composure seemed to be of no use at this moment.

"It still tastes familiar," Li Yuanchang suddenly remarked.

"Why don't you just die!"

Enraged, Wu Meiniang grabbed a piece of clothing and threw it at Li Yuanchang.

Li Yuanchang simply turned over like a dead pig that doesn't fear boiling water, and that was the end of it.

Wu Zetian was so angry that she gritted her teeth, for no reason at all.

"Okay, you can stay here."

"Here you go."

Wu Zetian coldly uttered a sentence, then turned and left.

Snapped!

She opened the door, only to be met with the Han Prince's guards blocking her way at the stairwell not far away.

"Get out of here!" Wu Meiniang shouted directly.

The guards looked at each other, as if to say, "Who is this? So arrogant? But he seems to have a special relationship with His Highness."

Some of these people did not recognize Wu Zetian, but a few did.

"Madam, we cannot proceed without His Highness's order."

Wu Meiniang clenched her fists, intending to call for her subordinates, but when she looked down, she saw that none of her subordinates were there. They had all been dispersed, and the entire building, inside and out, was filled with people from the Prince of Han's mansion.

She simply couldn't walk.

"Li, Yuan, Chang!" she shouted angrily into the room.

There was no response.

The guards of the Prince of Han's mansion were all shocked. Even the Princess Consort of Situ wouldn't dare to yell at His Highness like that!

Unable to leave and with no other option, Wu Meiniang angrily turned back to confront Li Yuanchang.

The door slammed shut, and people outside immediately started talking.

"Who is this?!"

"Brother Chang, you've spent a lot of time at the Prince of Han's residence, who is this?"

"Ahem, don't ask."

"What can't you ask? Tell me."

"Isn't His Highness inside?"

"..."

Time passed quickly, and night fell in the blink of an eye.

None of the members of the Han Prince's Mansion returned to Mingzhou. Li Yuanchang entrusted Zhuo Xi with the task of calculating personnel and supplies.

He stayed behind with Wu Zetian.

Under Wu Zetian's wrath, Li Yuanchang slept for what felt like an eternity.

So much so that Wu Zetian sat in her room, seething with anger.

Li Yuanchang woke up.

He immediately launched into sarcastic remarks: "You're really sleeping soundly, aren't you afraid I'll kill you!"

Li Yuanchang rubbed his eyes and grinned: "Would you be willing to kill me?"

"You're disgusting!"

Wu Zetian's disgust and disdain were palpable.

She was no longer that young girl; years of ups and downs in the business world had replaced the struggles in the deep palace in history.

Although the environment has changed, the intrigue and deceit have not diminished. She has long since mastered the skill of concealing her emotions and being adept at scheming.

This can actually be seen from the way he deliberately showed off his ring in front of Situ Lan when he entered the room.

For a woman like her, any emotion or expression is enough to show that the person opposite her is no ordinary person.

Li Yuanchang shrugged indifferently.

"I'm hungry, get me something to eat."

Wu Zetian sneered, "You expect me to be treated like your Han King's consort?"

"But this is not your Han Prince's Mansion."

Seeing that she remained unmoved, Li Yuanchang turned around and ordered his guards to make preparations.

In no time, a lot of food was brought over.

"Want something to eat?"

"Just looking at you makes me feel full."

Li Yuanchang was amused: "I never realized before that your mouth was like it was coated with poison."

"I never realized you were so shameless, restricting my freedom and even barging into my home. Aren't you afraid of losing face if word gets out!" Wu Zetian retorted.

Li Yuanchang smiled again, showing no anger whatsoever.

When dealing with women, regardless of the type, the most important thing is to be thick-skinned and have a good attitude; this is far more important than money or appearance.

He started eating on his own, while Wu Meiniang turned her head away with a look of disgust and started calculating her accounts.

The two were in the same room, yet they were worlds apart, as if they were completely unrelated.

Li Yuanchang hadn't been alone in a room with Wu Meiniang like this for a long time, and even in this tense situation, he still felt at ease.

After finishing his meal, he had someone bring him a large bucket of hot water.

Wu Meiniang was speechless upon hearing the commotion; there were so many people from the merchant guild watching outside.

She knew there was nothing she could do about Li Yuanchang, and she didn't want to interfere anymore, but Li Yuanchang actually moved the water bucket into the dormitory and started taking off his clothes in front of everyone.

She could no longer tolerate it.

"you!"

Just as she was about to launch an attack, her gaze froze, and her voice abruptly stopped.

Li Yuanchang's clothes fell to the ground, revealing his strong, well-defined upper body, which was covered with crisscrossing scars from knives and arrows.

There are at least a dozen cuts on the front!

These are all scars left from his life-and-death experiences over the years. In ancient times, there were no corresponding methods to treat them.

Wu Meiniang's beautiful eyes went blank for a moment, the words she wanted to say stuck in her throat, and she seemed to be frozen in place.