Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Li Shimin gripped the cold bridge railing, his fingertips pressing so hard they almost embedded themselves in the cracks in the stone.

Looking at his son's calm and expressionless face, and listening to those promises he 'couldn't give, he felt his blood run cold.

He had considered that the generals might waver, but he never imagined that they would waver so completely and betray him so justifiably.

"Privy Council...hereditary...Grand Marshal of the Western Expedition..."

Li Shimin murmured these words repeatedly, each one like a heavy hammer blow, shattering the barrier in his heart called 'imperial grace'.

He bestowed upon Li Jing the honor of Duke of Wei and upon Li Ji the title of Duke of Ying, but he was always wary of them overshadowing his own achievements.

Li Chengqian directly granted them real power, a foundation, and a future.

Which is lighter and heavier, at a glance.

"Your Majesty, the situation is hopeless..."

Changsun Wuji's voice was filled with endless desolation and admonition: "With Li Jing and Li Ji gone, Guanzhong will have no more protection."

"Now that the three armies have surrounded us, Tongguan and Lantian have fallen, and Chang'an is an isolated city... Continuing to hold out will only increase casualties and turn this ancient capital and its millions of inhabitants into ashes, Your Majesty!"

"Changsun Wuji! You're talking nonsense!"

Yuchi Gong, his eyes bloodshot, roared, "Your Majesty! We are willing to fight to the death! Even if it costs us our lives, we will protect Your Majesty and break through the encirclement to Luoyang and Taiyuan to gather reinforcements and plan our next move..."

"Respect virtue!"

Cheng Yaojin clutched his wound, cold sweat pouring down his face, yet he surprisingly remained calm.

He interrupted Yuchi Gong's unrealistic fantasies, his voice bitter: "It's useless... Pharmacist and Maogong have both rebelled. Who in the world will listen to us? Going out will just mean being surrounded in another place."

Chai Shao also hung his head in dejection.

He looked at the silent, well-equipped musketeers standing on the south side of the bridge, and then thought of Li Jing's terrifying military prowess, Li Ji's pervasive infiltration, and Xue Rengui, Hilde, and other fierce young talents...

This battle is simply impossible to fight.

Li Shimin slowly closed his eyes, and two streams of turbid tears slid down his resolute yet aged face.

These are not tears of fear, but tears of despair and sorrow from the collapse of one's achievements, betrayal by all, and being ruthlessly abandoned by the times.

He was once a general of the Heavenly Strategy Army, and was invincible in battle.

He ushered in the prosperous Zhenguan era, during which all nations came to pay tribute.

But now, he's being used by his own son, using what he used to be best at—

Military achievements, ambition, and promises to talented individuals drove them to a desperate situation.

After a long while, he opened his eyes. Those eyes, which were once as sharp as an eagle and could see into people's hearts, were now only filled with weariness and emptiness.

"Chengqian".

His voice was dry and hoarse, no longer possessing the majesty of an emperor, but only the aged voice of a defeated father: "You won."

"His Majesty!"

Yuchi Gong and the others wanted to persuade him further.

Li Shimin waved his hand, stopping them.

He straightened his slightly hunched back and, for the last time, as emperor, looked at his crown prince, his rival, and the one who would overthrow his empire.

"The seal of the Supreme General of Heavenly Strategy, which commands all the armies under Heaven... I can give it to you."

Upon hearing this, the people north of the bridge were as if they had lost their parents.

"but!"

Li Shimin changed the subject, staring intently at Li Chengqian: "I have three conditions."

Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow slightly: "Father, please speak."

"First!"

Li Shimin said, word by word: "You must not harm Qingque and Zhinu. Strip them of their royal titles, imprison them in the Imperial Clan Court, and ensure that they have enough to eat and wear and live out their old age in peace."

He still missed his two sons after all.

"can."

Li Chengqian agreed readily.

Li Tai was never his target; he was an idle prince who had lost all his support and was insignificant.

As for Li Zhi, even if he were the original Emperor Gaozong of Tang, he would only be the original one, and it would be equally irrelevant.

"second!"

Li Shimin's gaze swept over the civil officials such as Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling, then turned to the wounded Cheng Yaojin, the grief-stricken Yuchi Gong, and the dejected Chai Shao:

"To all the gentlemen present today, as well as the civil and military officials in the court who did not participate in this mutiny, you must promise not to investigate the past, not to instigate major cases, and to allow them to preserve their official positions, lives, and families."

This was the last bit of dignity he could, as emperor, secure for his long-serving ministers.

Li Chengqian pondered for a moment and slowly nodded:

"Your subject can promise that as long as they keep to their duties and do not harbor any disloyalty in the future, your subject will treat them with courtesy and use their talents appropriately."

"However!" He changed his tone, coldly glancing at Cheng Yaojin, Yuchi Gong, Chai Shao, and the others, and said in a deep voice, "Anyone who dares to incite rebellion or plot treason again will be killed without mercy."

This can be considered a promise that leaves room for maneuver.

Li Shimin took a deep breath and uttered the last, and most difficult, condition:
"Third. I can abdicate. But I will not go to the palace you arranged, where I will be laughed at like your grandfather. I want to find a place to spend the rest of my life with your mother."

His voice choked with emotion, carrying a resolute sorrow: "You must not stop me."

This condition caused Li Chengqian to fall silent for a moment.

Li Shimin carried the infamy of killing his brothers and imprisoning his father throughout his life.

Now, he himself has been forced into this situation. If he were imprisoned in a palace like Da'an Palace like Li Yuan, he would rather be dead.

Moreover, he knew without even thinking that Li Yuan was probably grinning from ear to ear, feeling a sense of 'you've finally met your match'.

However, Li Chengqian did not want Li Shimin to become so despondent.

But now is not the time to talk about such things, yet he said thoughtfully:
"Yes, Your Majesty. I will order the Academy of Sciences and the Ministry of Works to be at Your Majesty's beck and call. Wherever you wish to stay, I will order them to build you the most luxurious palace!"

With all three conditions granted, Li Shimin felt as if his last bit of strength had been drained.

He gave a bitter laugh and slowly took out the military seal of the 'General of Heavenly Strategy', forged from black iron and symbolizing the highest military power of the Tang Dynasty, from his bosom.

The seal was cold and heavy; it had accompanied him in pacifying the world, but now he had to hand it over to his own son.

He walked slowly, step by step, toward the center of the bridge.

Li Chengqian also took a few steps forward.

For the first time, the father and son stood face to face at such close range in the middle of the Wei River Bridge.

One held the imperial power that was about to be handed over, while the other was about to take over the world.

Li Shimin looked at his son's young, stern face, so similar to his own in his youth, and finally asked:
"Chengqian, tell me, if I don't agree today, will you really order an attack on the city? Will you really commit patricide?"

This question made everyone on and under the bridge hold their breath.

Li Chengqian met his father's incredibly complex gaze without flinching.

Instead of answering directly, he calmly countered with a question:
"Father, when you raised your bow and arrow to the Crown Prince outside Xuanwu Gate back then, did you hesitate for even a moment?"

"When you forced your grandfather to abdicate and move out of Taiji Palace, did you ever think about the bond between father and son?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it was like the sharpest dagger, peeling away all the pretense of warmth and revealing the cruelest and most real essence of the power struggle.

Li Shimin trembled violently, staggered back half a step, and his hand holding the seal trembled violently.

Looking at the cold, clear reflection in his son's eyes, he seemed to see himself again, just as ruthless and resolute, standing before Xuanwu Gate.

The cycle of cause and effect, retribution is unhappy.

It turns out the answer had already been written.

All his questions, resentment, and indignation transformed into endless bitterness and enlightenment at this moment.

Finally, he exhaled a long, deep breath, as if exhaling half a lifetime of ambition, suspicion, and struggle.

Then, he stretched out his hands and slowly and solemnly handed the cold and heavy seal of the 'General of Heavenly Strategy' to Li Chengqian.

"take it."

"This empire... is yours."

Li Chengqian looked at the seal that was so close to him, but did not immediately take it.

He raised his eyes and took one last look at his father's face, which had aged and turned ashen in an instant. Then, he stretched out his hands and steadily accepted the heavy burden that represented supreme power and bore countless bloodshed and responsibility.

The seal felt cold and heavy in my hand.

"My son, thank you father."

He bowed slightly and gave a salute.

This gesture is the final respect a subject pays to his monarch, and also the final farewell a son gives to his father.

Li Shimin turned away, no longer looking at the seal that had changed hands, nor at his son who had become the new ruler.

He walked somewhat unsteadily toward the north side of the bridge.

The setting sun cast a long, long shadow of him, lonely and desolate.

His back was turned towards Chang'an City.

And the future he just handed over is now in the hands of that tall, upright young man standing at the heart of the bridge.

The Wei River flows swiftly and ceaselessly, carrying away the past glories and struggles, and reflecting the unstoppable arrival of a new era.

South of the bridge, thousands of soldiers, like a black tide, knelt down in unison, their shouts echoing like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami crashing through the sky.

"Your humble servants pay their respects to General Tian Ce!"

The roaring sound overwhelmed the roar of the Wei River, announcing the end of one era and the beginning of another.

[Ding! Congratulations, host! You have completed the main quest of turning the tables!]

Just then, a mechanical voice suddenly rang out. (End of Chapter)