7480, who witnessed the copper furnace explosion, said: "..."

It's over! It's completely over now!

The Ninth Prince, the future monarch of Wei, was killed by the host; the future Khan of Mongolia, Chirhan, was killed by the host; the Child of Destiny had both legs blown off by the host, crippling him for life; and now even the royal family of Wei has been sent to hell by the host...

This world is no longer fun!

7480 knew exactly how things would develop next. The host would definitely help Le Zhengming conquer this continent, and even the continents beyond, achieving unparalleled feats. Far from being taken away by the Lord God, Le Zhengming's luck actually grew even stronger.

7480 suddenly burst into tears, but he didn't even have the hands to wipe his tears.

Amidst the heart-warming cries, Zhuang Li and Yue Zhengming ran hand in hand in the noisy palace.

Everyone gathered towards the collapsed altar, even the patrolling soldiers. No one wanted to catch the two people walking in the opposite direction and ask them any questions.

Only Zhuang Ran was stunned for a moment and then roared angrily: "Where are Le Zhengming and Zhuang Li? Catch them, quickly!" Apart from Zhuang Li, he couldn't think of anyone else in the world who could blow up the altar without anyone noticing.

Unfortunately, his reaction was still a few beats too slow. Zhuang Li and Yue Zhengming had already escaped from the capital under the protection of hundreds of private soldiers.

A few days later, rumors spread throughout the country that the entire Wei royal family had been struck dead by a thunderbolt sent down from heaven during their sacrifices to heaven. Because the new emperor had been tyrannical, extravagant, and incompetent, the people, far from mourning his death, secretly rejoiced.

The ministers in the court were so frightened that they hid in their homes and dared not go out. They had done many evil things that harmed the people and exploited them, so they were naturally afraid that God would punish them.

Different from everyone else's reaction, Zhuang Ran instigated a rebellion against the Imperial Guards at this time, and together with his own private soldiers, he attacked the imperial city and sat on the supreme throne.

It was not until this moment that everyone realized that the real ambitious person was not the new emperor, not the ninth prince, but Zhuang Ran!

But he only sat on the throne for two months, and all his fantasies were shattered.

Le Zhengming led an army of one million to invade the State of Wei and besiege its capital. Of the five million soldiers and horses in the world, he alone commanded one million, while the remaining four million were divided among a dozen states, large and small. Without an alliance, no one could rival him.

But he had compassion on the people in the city and only laid siege instead of attacking it.

With the rice and food supplies cut off, the defending army had no choice but to open the city gates and let the army march straight in.

－－－

The magnificent Wei palace is now filled with smoke and the sound of killing is deafening.

Zhuang Ran sat on the throne, listening calmly to the commotion outside the palace, his hands stroking the dragon throne carved from golden nanmu over and over again, his eyes flashing with deep obsession.

The white-faced eunuch standing behind him urged anxiously: "Your Majesty, the rebel army is coming, let's run!"

"Where are you running to?" Zhuang Ran asked calmly.

"Yes, where can you run to? The Wei Kingdom is now my Wei Kingdom." Le Zhengming kicked open the door and walked in slowly with a bloody knife in his hand.

Behind him followed a group of soldiers as tall and strong as iron towers, all of them had red eyes and were full of murderous intent.

Zhuang Ran leaned back on the dragon throne and asked with a smile, "Where's my son?"

Yue Zhengming knew who he was asking about, so he waved his hand and said, "Take him to see the military advisor."

A group of soldiers rushed forward, tied Zhuang Ran up, and then pulled the rope around his neck, dragging him to a side hall. Le Zhengming followed closely behind, knife in hand, a cold, murderous look in his eyes.

Strangely, facing such a scene, Zhuang Ran showed no fear at all. Instead, he narrowed his eyes and smiled slyly. He knew Zhuang Li's character too well and naturally knew that he would never commit patricide.

Zhuang Li grew up in the Princess's Mansion, and Zhuang Ran only visited her once every few months. He would leave after saying a few words to the Princess, and had never really taken a good look at his son.

As a result, Zhuang Li desperately longed for his father's affection from a young age. To keep his father, he would act like a spoiled child, throw a tantrum, and even secretly run to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion and refuse to leave. Knowing that Madam Yanran was his father's favorite, he did everything he could to please her, driving the eldest princess to tears.

What Zhuang Li desires most in his life is just one thing - fatherly love.

Zhuang Ran watched him fooling around coldly, knowing full well what he longed for, yet he refused to grant it. This child, constantly struggling between despair and hope, brought him much amusement, but was also like a weapon, helping him to slash the princess's heart, one cut at a time.

He would never let this woman get what she wanted, just as everything her son had would be taken away by him in the future.

He cruelly played with the hearts of the mother and son, and was certain that they would never escape from this prison forged in their hearts.

I still remember when I sent Zhuang Li to the border, he asked with tears in his eyes: "Father, do you ever treat me as your son?"

Look, after all the cruelty and pain he'd endured, the only thing Zhuang Li wanted to ask was something as foolish as this. The child that woman gave birth to was indeed exactly like her, so weak it had no bones!

Thinking of this, Zhuang Ran panted and chuckled. He had already thought about how to treat Zhuang Li later.

As long as he was willing to show a good face and say a few kind words, the child would surely release him with joy and then respectfully send him back to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion. Le Zhengming valued the child so much that he probably wouldn't kill him again.

As long as he survives, his great cause will be realized one day. That child is extremely smart and will definitely be of some use.

While he was thinking, the rope around Zhuang Ran's neck was untied and he was pushed into a dim room.

As expected, Zhuang Li was waiting in the room, but there were two people accompanying him. One was Zhuang Xu, who was sitting in a wheelchair, and the other was Madam Yanran, who was forced to kneel on the ground with her hands handcuffed behind her back by two soldiers.

"Your Majesty, please save me!" Seeing Zhuang Ran, Madam Yanran struggled subconsciously.

Zhuang Ran suddenly clenched his fists, then slowly released them. He did not look at his wife and children, but just stared straight at Zhuang Li with a gentle and kind smile on his face.

But this smile turned into horror in the next moment, because Zhuang Lilue waved his hand and two eunuchs came up, wrapped a white silk around his neck twice, and slowly tightened it on the left and right.

Then an official walked into the room, took out a document that was as long as the ground, and began to read out the charges on it, such as treason, killing his wife and children, taking human life, etc. A careful count turned out to be as many as 126.

Zhuang Ran knew that none of these charges were fabricated. To climb the social ladder, he had long since lost all humanity and committed all manner of evil. But he never imagined that this child, who had once surrounded him like a dog, would now be hanged without a word to him.

Is this his son? Is this the boneless bastard the eldest princess gave birth to?

Zhuang Ran opened his eyes wide and looked at Zhuang Li in disbelief. The face full of flattery in his mind was replaced by a pair of extremely cold and cruel eyes at this moment.

This is not his child, but a demon crawling out of hell!

Zhuang Ran began to struggle violently. The strong physique he had developed from years of martial arts training was simply not something that two weak eunuchs could suppress.

Fortunately, Le Zhengming walked in in time and kicked him hard.

The two eunuchs then continued to pull the white silk, half-knelt down, pressed their knees against Zhuang Ran's back, and bent his neck backwards.

This scene completely overlapped with Zhuang Li's dream. In another dimly lit room, the eldest princess was also pushed against the back and her neck was broken.

Zhuang Li stood up and pushed Zhuang Xu forward in his wheelchair. Facing Zhuang Ran's face, which gradually turned red and blue, he leaned over and whispered in Zhuang Xu's ear, "Do you feel that? That despair, that helplessness, that heartbreaking pain of watching a loved one being brutally murdered—that's what it's like."

His soft hands covered Zhuang Xu's back and gently pushed him forward.

The wheels creaked and rolled, bringing Zhuang Xu closer.

The father and son faced each other, one was trembling violently and tears were streaming down his face; the other had a pale face and his eyeballs were popping.

How similar is this scene to the eldest princess being strangled to death, and Zhuang Li being kicked into the room by Zhuang Xu, watching her die with his own eyes? Fate is a cycle, so this is what it means.

The longing for fatherly love, the idea of being soft-hearted, were all fantasies. When it came to ruthlessness, this kid was probably on par with no one! Zhuang Ran stared intently at Zhuang Li's calm face, then looked at Le Zhengming, who stood behind him like a bodyguard, and suddenly smiled through gritted teeth.

"Okay," he said intermittently, using up his last bit of strength, "You, as expected, are my, Zhuang Ran's, seed! Good, really good, haha~"

He just laughed heartily twice, then hung his head and died.

No matter how hard the original owner tried to please, he couldn't even get Zhuang Ran to look him in the eye. But Zhuang Li, through his own death, earned the other party's sincere admiration. The complexity of the human heart is simply unbelievable.

Zhuang Xu faced his father's face, a face that was filled with death and yet was filled with a hideous smile. He finally collapsed. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. His eyes clenched, but no tears flowed. He could only slowly raise his hands and cover his frozen face, trying to escape this terrible situation.

The two soldiers let go of Madam Yanran, who immediately threw herself on Zhuang Ran's body, wailing in extreme grief.

The old, dim house trembled in her madness, as if it would collapse at any moment.

Zhuang Li hooked his index finger at Le Zhengming, and the two of them retreated side by side, standing in the warm yellow sunlight, gazing into the distance.

"After raiding the treasury and the homes of the powerful, we'll have enough capital to manufacture firearms. Winter is coming, and the people are starving and cold without furs. Why not offer them work instead of relief? Let them work in blast furnaces and mines. At least they'll have a free place to live, a warm fire to keep them warm, and plenty of food to eat. They'll even get paid in the spring. What do you think?"

"I'll follow your instructions." Le Zhengming gently stroked the top of the little curly hair with a gentle smile.

The boy seems to care about nothing and seems cruel and cold-blooded, but he has his own order in his heart.

7480 curled up in a corner of the small dark room, shedding tears of despair again.

－－－

Le Zhengming ascended the throne and became emperor, changing the country's name to "Hua". The following year, he led a million troops to attack the neighboring countries.

His army used muskets and cannons, while other armies used bows, arrows, and scimitars. This huge gap in weaponry made it almost effortless for China to unify the Central Plains. He also defeated the foreign coalition forces, who from then on regarded China as a forbidden land and dared not invade.

On this day, Le Zhengming, who had been on an expedition to Mobei, finally returned to the imperial court and met the little curly-haired girl he had been thinking about for a long time.

He pulled open a piece of gorgeous shark silk and wrapped it around the little curly-haired boy. He then gently placed a golden crown on his fluffy bun and asked softly, "Do you like it?"

"I like it." Zhuang Li caressed the gorgeous fabric lovingly, his voice soft and gentle, "Do you know why I like gorgeous clothes?"

"Why?" Le Zhengming kissed his cheeks closely, his voice hoarse with desire.

"Because the world is so terrible, I want to live a more beautiful life." Zhuang Li held his lover's face, which hadn't even had time to wash off the dust, and smiled brightly: "But that was all in the past. This world is beautiful, and I love it."

Le Zhengming's eyes darkened, and he immediately covered his red lips and kissed him passionately.

He didn't know why, but when Curly said he loved this world, the joy and satisfaction in his heart surged like a wave. He wanted to keep this person in his arms forever.

The warm yellow sunlight was refracted by the shark gauze covering the two people and turned into colorful spots of light. Several eunuchs carefully avoided these spots of light and left the palace.

Flocks of birds flew over the imperial city and headed further out, where there were golden wheat fields stretching out in a row, bright red fruits hanging from the treetops, and farmers sitting on the edge of the fields, smiling and looking forward to the harvest.

The land that was once riddled with scars from war has regained its vitality without anyone noticing.

－－－

After nightfall, Zhuang Li was suddenly awakened by 7480, who was deep in sleep: "Master, Master, a golden finger has fallen."

"What?" Zhuang Li shrank into his lover's arms and asked in a daze.

"Zhuang Xu's gold finger fell off. Do you want to recycle it?" 7480 reminded again.

Zhuang Li then got up, kissed Le Zhengming, who had also woken up, and whispered, "I'll go check on Zhuang Xu, you continue to sleep."

"I'll accompany you." Le Zhengming immediately got up and changed his clothes, and personally dressed the little curly-haired boy, put on socks and shoes.

The two walked into a dilapidated hall in the cold palace and saw Zhuang Xu, in a wheelchair, repeatedly banging his head against a pillar. Madam Yanran hugged his bleeding forehead and wailed, repeatedly saying, "Mother is wrong, it's mother who harmed you."

"No, it was me who harmed you and Dad. I just had a dream. In that dream, I didn't get this damn military library at all, so I honestly served as the eldest son of the Zhenguo Mansion. I didn't help the previous emperor usurp the throne, nor did I instigate Dad to kill the eldest princess, nor did I encourage the Ninth Prince to frame General Yue Zheng.

Our family, under the protection of the eldest princess, has lived a happy life. Dad was a lifelong Duke of Zhenguo, and after his death he enjoyed endless honors. I served in the imperial court, enjoying a life of wealth and glory. Mother, you will follow me and live a separate life, surrounded by your children and grandchildren in your old age, in harmony and health. General Le Zheng has expanded the territory, driven out the Tartars, and established a vast empire. The State of Wei has submitted to him, and war has not broken out.

"Without my ambition and self-righteousness, there wouldn't have been these devastating disasters that followed. Every one of us would have lived a good life. Mother, I was wrong. I don't want this useless military library anymore! I don't deserve it. I was wrong..."

Zhuang Xu's mind had gone into a frenzy, and he could only repeat "I was wrong" over and over again.

Along with his endless remorse, a point of light emerged from the back of his head and was easily captured in Zhuang Li's palm.

7480 whispered, "This is an F-level cheat, equivalent to a library, but the books inside are all military books, only useful in the ancient war plane. Master, you can sell it in the mall, or melt it into energy."

Without saying a word, Zhuang Li melted the golden finger into energy liquid.

7480: “…”

Forget it, the Child of Destiny was forced by the host to give up his God-given fortune on his own initiative, what else can it say!