Recaps

After the emperor departed, merchants and aristocratic clans rushed to join Great Liang’s Southern Liang market venture. Lin Yi explained that he planned to use their businesses to develop the region under the court’s control, and Mi Zhu later reported that they had contributed more than fifty million strings of cash.

• Mi Zhu invited interested merchants and aristocratic clans to the Ministry of Revenue to discuss the Southern Liang market.
• Lin Yi told Cao Cao, Xun Yu, Guo Jia, and the others that he intended to use the merchants’ influence to develop Southern Liang while keeping the lion’s share of profits and control with Great Liang.
• Xun Yu and Guo Jia recognized that bringing the merchants and clans into Great Liang’s system would let the court regulate them instead of trying to eliminate them.
• Lin Yi ordered the Net to monitor the merchants and clans so they would not escape the court’s control.
• Mi Zhu arrived with the registration lists and reported that the merchants and clans had contributed more than fifty million strings of cash, startling Cao Cao and Xun Yu.

After Great Liang secured tens of millions of strings of cash from merchants and great families, Lin Yi prepared to turn his attention west and anticipated a war triggered by the assassination case at Frostwest's imperial palace. A three-day feast for Great Liang’s citizens strengthened their pride and identification with the empire.

• Chen Qun praised Lin Yi for raising enormous funds, while Cao Cao celebrated the great families’ donations.
• Lin Yi explained that the great families had earned money during the campaign and were deliberately reducing their wealth to avoid his suspicion.
• Lin Yi announced that Great Liang would next confront the western countries and hoped his father-in-law would survive the crisis involving Bill III.
• Great Liang held a three-day feast with free food and drink for its citizens, while people from other ethnic groups envied them.
• Great Liang’s common people celebrated being treated as the emperor’s guests, and their shared pride in the empire grew.

As war spread across the West, Bill III tasked Ashina Tiandu with negotiating an alliance with Abaddon, while secretly planning to have them both killed. He learned Tiandu intended to overthrow him on his birthday and ordered Xiuli to strike during the negotiations.

• War erupted across the West, disrupting Ashina Tiandu’s plan to unite the powers against Great Liang.
• Bill III asked Ashina Tiandu what to do, and Tiandu proposed an alliance with Abaddon and the Great West Empire.
• Bill III assigned Tiandu to lead the negotiations and dismissed the ministers.
• After the court emptied, Bill III revealed that the Net and Princess Anne had warned him of Tiandu’s growing plot.
• Xiuli reported that Tiandu had bought off guards and ministers and planned to act on Bill III’s birthday.
• Bill III ordered Xiuli to infiltrate the negotiating party and kill Ashina Tiandu and, if possible, Abaddon.

Bill III suspected that Ashina Xiuli had betrayed him and sought help from Great Liang as Prince Tiandu’s rebellion threatened his rule. Xiuli went to confront his brother, Ashina Tiandu, and revealed that Bill III had ordered him to kill Tiandu and Abaddon.

• Bill III recalled that Xiuli resented being castrated and made commander of the Palace Guard Corps, while Xiuli warned that the Council of Elders would oppose his succession.
• Bill III summoned Old Cha'er, said he could no longer trust Xiuli, and ordered him to contact Great Liang and have the Net rescue him.
• Xiuli went to Ashina Tiandu, who assumed his brother had joined his rebellion and said their planned coup was set for the day after tomorrow.
• Xiuli told Tiandu that Bill III knew about the assassination plot and had ordered him to kill Tiandu and Abaddon.

Ashina Tiandu learned that Princess Anne had exposed his plan to assassinate Bill III and decided to act before Net could interfere. After winning Xiuli and the Council of Elders to his side, Tiandu prepared to enter the palace under the pretense of rescuing the emperor.

• Xiuli told Ashina Tiandu that Princess Anne had revealed the assassination plot, and Tiandu ordered the plan moved ahead of schedule.
• Tiandu summoned Minister Aksu and A Long, who agreed that they had to act before Net could become involved.
• Xiuli considered leaving the palace to avoid being blamed, but Tiandu told him the Council of Elders had also agreed to the plan.
• Xiuli realized the Council's support could influence his troops and agreed to take part without personally killing Bill III.
• Tiandu ordered a beacon lit inside the palace so they could charge in under the pretext of saving Bill III.

As Prince Tiandu’s forces moved to overthrow Bill III, Ashley chose not to defend the emperor and instead sent his nephew Xiaoniu to support the prince. Ashley left the outcome to the rebels, believing the Frostwest Empire needed a strong ruler and that his family’s interests were at stake.

• Prince Tiandu’s allies mobilized forces to attack the royal palace, believing their coalition had enough strength to ensure victory.
• Ashley and Xiaoniu realized that Prince Tiandu was rebelling, and Ashley warned that opposing him would be suicidal because most officials had been won over.
• Ashley decided to remain neutral, reasoning that the new ruler would still need him as governing minister.
• Ashley struck Xiaoniu, smeared blood on his face, and ordered him to muster troops and reinforce Prince Tiandu.
• Xiaoniu hurried to his barracks to join the rebellion, while Ashley reflected that he had never intended to help Bill III because the emperor’s alliance with Great Liang threatened his family’s interests.

Bill III fortified the palace as Prince Tiandu’s forces advanced under the pretense of protecting the emperor, then attacked the palace gates when the defenders resisted. As Tiandu claimed control of the royal city, another force arrived shouting that it would protect Bill III, leaving Tiandu unsure whether they were allies or enemies.

• Bill III learned that many officials and generals had joined Prince Tiandu, and he ordered his guards to hold the royal city while waiting for help from Great Liang.
• Shouts of an assassination attempt caused a commotion in the palace, but Bill III realized the enemy was using the ruse to approach and ordered the shouters arrested.
• Prince Tiandu led his army toward the palace, using the claim that he was protecting Bill III to move through the city unchallenged.
• Prince Tiandu accused Old Cha'er of collaborating with assassins and ordered his men to storm the palace, prompting Old Cha'er to unleash a volley of arrows.
• Aksu and the other commanders attacked the palace entrance, where their much larger army fought Old Cha'er's defenders.
• As Prince Tiandu boasted that he controlled the royal city, troops appeared behind him shouting that they would protect Bill III, and he demanded to know whether they were friend or foe.

Prince Tiandu accepted Xiaoniu’s troops as support after Aksu interpreted Ashley’s indirect involvement as tacit backing. Tiandu’s army broke through the palace gates, leaving him convinced he had become master of the royal palace.

• Xiaoniu arrived with troops and declared that he had come to help Prince Tiandu and protect His Majesty.
• Aksu persuaded Prince Tiandu that Ashley had sent Xiaoniu to support the rebellion while avoiding blame.
• Prince Tiandu welcomed Xiaoniu, who claimed to have killed assassins and then attacked Old Cha’er’s palace defenders.
• Prince Tiandu promised promotions and gold to spur his forces into a fierce assault on the palace.
• Tiandu’s army smashed through the palace gates, and Prince Tiandu declared himself its master.

Ashina Tiandu seized power in Frostwest and confronted Bill III, who defended his willingness to submit to Great Liang by revealing the scale of its forces. The chapter left Bill III asking what his son planned to do with him, as Tiandu hinted that he would use the assassination attempt to justify what came next.

• Ashina Tiandu entered the great hall with the captured Old Cha'er, and Bill III blamed his son for the coup.
• Bill III accused Tiandu of betraying him, while Tiandu condemned his father for planning to submit Frostwest to Great Liang.
• Bill III revealed that Great Liang had more than four million troops and had already destroyed over four million enemy soldiers.
• Tiandu dismissed the threat, arguing that only a fraction of Great Liang's forces could fight and that the Western Alliance could challenge it.
• After Tiandu declared the throne his and asked what he intended to do with Bill III, Tiandu said the assassination attempt meant he needed to explain the incident to the people.

Ashina Tiandu had Bill III killed and took the crown, becoming Bill IV, emperor of the Frostwest Empire. He promised to uphold his alliance with the Great West Empire while secretly planning to destroy it and conquer Great Liang.

• Ashina Tiandu overcame his hesitation and ordered Xiaoniu to take Bill III away, tempting him with a promotion of four ranks.
• Xiaoniu's men seized Bill III, and he cursed Ashina Tiandu and Aksu as they dragged him off.
• Bill III was killed in the rear courtyard, still wondering why the Net had not arrived.
• Ashina Tiandu briefly showed grief before declaring himself emperor, and Aksu and the others bowed to him.
• A Long congratulated Bill IV on behalf of the Great West Empire, and Bill IV promised to contact him while privately plotting against it.
• The Council of Elders presented Bill IV with the crown, and he vowed to destroy the Great West Empire and conquer Great Liang.

Lin Rusong ignored Bill III’s plea for help, intending to let his death provide Great Liang with a pretext to invade Frostwest in Princess Anne’s name. With Ashina Tiandu on the throne, Lin Rusong agreed they needed to strike first and asked where Xue Rengui was.

• Lin Rusong refused to rescue Bill III, while Xu Zhong worried that the decision might bring trouble with the emperor.
• Lin Rusong said he would take the blame and use Bill III’s death as justification for a campaign against Frostwest.
• Xu Zhong guessed that Jia Xu had devised the plan, and Lin Rusong explained that Jia Xu had offered both rescue and invasion as options.
• Lin Rusong said he had chosen invasion to spare his son a bad reputation and settle the matter decisively.
• Wang Ziwen warned that Ashina Tiandu’s accession made it urgent to seize the initiative, and Lin Rusong asked for news of Xue Rengui.

Lin Rusong ordered Xue Rengui to finish conquering the remaining western nations and harass the Frostwest and Great West Empires, hoping to prevent them from joining forces. After learning that Ashina Tiandu had killed Bill III to seize the throne, Lin Rusong used the murder as a public justification for Great Liang to invade the Frostwest Empire.

• Yi Yun reported that Xue Rengui had destroyed five western nations, prompting Northern Liang's veteran generals to return to extra drills.
• Lin Rusong ordered Xue Rengui to destroy the last three nations within three days and then harass the Frostwest Empire and Great West Empire.
• Lin Rusong and Wang Ziwen prepared to attack the Frostwest Empire, confident that Great Liang would win.
• A messenger reported that Ashina Tiandu had killed Bill III and seized power.
• Lin Rusong declared Ashina Tiandu a patricide and announced that Great Liang would send troops to punish him and seek justice for Bill III.

Abaddon and his ministers plotted to exploit Frostwest's turmoil while investigating the mysterious Great Tang force. Abaddon then learned that Lin Yi had conquered Zhennan and angrily rejected his invitation to discuss the Hengduan Mountains.

• Abaddon celebrated Bill IV's actions, while Morandi warned him not to underestimate Bill IV's ambition.
• Adolf proposed spreading rumors that Bill IV had murdered his father, and Abaddon ordered the rumors circulated among common people.
• Adolf warned that the mysterious force calling itself Great Tang had rapidly swept through several countries, and Abaddon ordered an investigation into its identity and motives.
• Alusi reported that Lin Yi had invited Abaddon to celebrate Great Liang's conquest of Zhennan and discuss the Hengduan Mountains.
• Abaddon angrily refused the invitation and insisted that the Hengduan Mountains belonged to Great West.

Great Liang's first formal Imperial Examination drew more than fifty thousand candidates competing for a hundred places in official service, giving scholars from humble backgrounds a chance to change their fortunes. As candidates awaited the results, they lamented the extraordinary competition and the young men who had wasted their chance to study.

• Great Liang established a full examination process, progressing from county and commandery tests to a nationwide second round and a final palace examination before the emperor.
• A scholar in coarse hemp hoped to rank among the top hundred so he could become an official and ease his parents' hardship.
• Ma Wencai said more than fifty thousand candidates had entered the second round and named several exceptional competitors, including Li Yuanlong, Zhang Shiyu, Zhang Fengfan, Lang Yuming, Wang Yuxuan, Huang Longsi, and Zhang Zizai.
• Candidates discussed the difficulty of earning a place in the top hundred and waited for the results, while some considered trying again next year or taking the engineering examination.
• Scions of great families treated the examination as a way to support the emperor's policies and gain his favor, while wastrel young men regretted neglecting their studies.

Li Yu, Xu Chu, and Guo Jia joked about their burdens and agreed to visit the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion at Cao Cao’s expense. Li Yu suspected Cao Cao’s invitation was connected to the Imperial Examination, and the trio set off to find him.

• Li Yu sighed over the carefree lives of young men preparing for the Imperial Examination, and Xu Chu and Guo Jia mocked him for complaining despite his easy life.
• Li Yu changed from lamenting his sorrows to eagerly agreeing to visit the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion, while Xu Chu and Guo Jia teased him.
• Xu Chu claimed he would only go to support Great Liang’s economy, then admitted Cao Cao was paying for their visit.
• Li Yu guessed Cao Cao had invited them because he needed help with something related to the Imperial Examination.
• Li Yu, Xu Chu, and Guo Jia agreed to go find Mengde.

Lin Yi reviewed the Imperial Examination’s top ten and learned how Huang Longsi and Zhang Zizai had come to serve Great Liang. He approved the rankings, ordered Zhang Zizai warned rather than punished, and prepared to employ several specially talented candidates outside the examination results.

• Lin Yi praised Huang Longsi’s broad talents despite his father’s service under Great Ning, and declared that Great Liang would employ capable people regardless of their origins.
• Wang Yue explained that Zhang Zizai had impersonated a Great Liang envoy to persuade a pirate chief to submit, then taken the title of lord of Langye Island.
• Lin Yi decided not to punish Zhang Zizai for the deception, but ordered that he receive a warning.
• Lin Yi checked more examination papers, circled candidates with special talents, and ordered Zhao Gao to send their names to the Ministry of Personnel and publish the list.

Lin Yi learned that Bill III had died and reviewed the growing turmoil in the west. He ordered Huo Qubing to attack the border between the Great West Empire and the Frostwest Empire, leaving Great Liang poised to pressure both countries.

• Wang Yue told Lin Yi that Bill III was dead, and Lin Yi accepted his father’s role in the death as part of a broader plan.
• Wang Yue reported that the retired emperor was mobilizing against Bill IV while Abaddon accused Bill IV of murdering his father and seizing power.
• Lin Yi assessed Great Liang’s western forces and decided that Xue Rengui alone could not keep Abaddon occupied.
• Lin Yi ordered Huo Qubing to attack the border between the Great West Empire and the Frostwest Empire so Abaddon could not build up his strength unopposed.
• Lin Yi noted that Great Liang’s western deployment included forces under his father, Ran Min, the two Chaos, Xue Rengui, Huo Qubing, Zhou Yu, and Gan Ning, with more armies expected to arrive.

Lin Yi proposed a grand assembly where representatives from every commandery and county could bring local concerns directly to the court, helping Great Liang improve its policies. Xun Yu and Chen Qun were tasked with refining the plan, and Lin Yi ended their doubts about his dignity by crushing an ink block in his hand.

• Lin Yi reflected on strengthening Great Liang and ensuring that policies reached the common people, then clarified to Wang Yue that he meant better communication, not finding women for the harem.
• Lin Yi devised a grand court assembly for representatives from every commandery and county and wrote down its proposed name and outline.
• Lin Yi summoned Xun Yu and Chen Qun and asked them to refine the assembly’s practical arrangements.
• Xun Yu praised the assembly as a channel for public concerns, while Chen Qun warned that it could weaken the emperor’s dignity and help expose local abuses.
• Lin Yi crushed a hard ink block in his hand, convincing Chen Qun that the assembly would enhance rather than diminish his authority.

Lin Yi told Princess Anne that her father, Bill III, had been killed in a coup led by Ashina Tiandu and Xiuli. Ma Ling'er urged Anne to ask Lin Yi to invade Frostwest, avenge her father, and take the throne, leaving Anne shaken and angry.

• Lin Yi instructed Xun Yu and Chen Qun to arrange a grand court assembly once or twice a year, then went to Anne's palace.
• Anne saw Lin Yi's sorrowful expression and asked whether something had happened to her father.
• Lin Yi gave Anne intelligence saying Ashina Tiandu and Xiuli had staged a coup and Bill III had been killed before the Net could rescue him.
• Anne grieved over her father's death and condemned Ashina Tiandu for murdering him and usurping the throne.
• Ma Ling'er suggested Ashina Tiandu killed Bill III to prevent him from supporting Anne, and urged Lin Yi to send troops to Frostwest so Anne could become empress.

Ma Ling'er pushed Princess Anne toward seeking revenge on Ashina Tiandu, while Lin Yi discovered that her new scheming manner came from reading Guo Jia's copy of Thick Black Theory. Princess Anne ultimately asked Lin Yi to conquer Frostwest, leaving her hopes of preserving her family’s position tied to winning Great Liang’s favor.

• Ma Ling'er convinced Princess Anne that Ashina Tiandu had killed her father out of fear she would inherit the throne, and Anne became consumed by thoughts of revenge.
• Lin Yi found Ma Ling'er reading Thick Black Theory and learned that Guo Jia had given her the book instead of teaching her characters.
• Lin Yi told Princess Anne that Great Liang would avenge her father, while privately intending to destroy and annex the Frostwest Empire.
• Princess Anne asked Lin Yi to save Frostwest from Ashina Tiandu, hoping her support would earn the imperial family favor and secure her own place in Great Liang's court.

Anne accepted that Frostwest would be absorbed into Great Liang and sought Lin Yi’s affection, while he promised to avenge her father by killing Ashina Tiandu. Lin Yi then set out incognito for the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion with Zhang Long, Zhao Hu, and Zhou Bao, claiming he wanted to learn about the people’s hardships.

• Anne decided that Frostwest’s people would be better off under Great Liang and hoped her son might one day inherit the empire.
• Lin Yi comforted Anne, promised to kill Ashina Tiandu, and left her to rest.
• Lin Yi learned that Guo Jia was drinking with Cao Cao at the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion and decided to visit the establishment in disguise.
• Dun Ruo summoned Zhang Long, Zhao Hu, and Zhou Bao to accompany Lin Yi on his incognito visit.
• Zhang Long and Zhao Hu celebrated the prospect of visiting prostitutes with Lin Yi, and Zhou Bao corrected them by calling the outing a visit to understand the people’s circumstances.

Lin Yi praised Zhou Bao for his growth while Zhang Long and Zhao Hu regretted missing the chance to earn favor by saving him. Disguised as a young master, Lin Yi went to the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion and discovered how a vendor had invented paper pinwheels.

• Lin Yi praised Zhou Bao for understanding his efforts, while Zhang Long and Zhao Hu resented him for winning the emperor’s favor.
• Zhang Long and Zhao Hu imagined that saving Lin Yi from an assassin could raise their ranks, then Lin Yi told them to call him young master and hide his identity.
• Lin Yi and his attendants continued through the streets toward the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion, and Lin Yi reflected on his life as emperor.
• Lin Yi spotted paper pinwheels for sale and asked the vendor how he had made them.
• The vendor explained that his son had ruined books and played with spinning paper, inspiring him to create pinwheels to sell to children.

Lin Yi explored the inventive goods sold by ordinary people and considered how to encourage innovation in Great Liang before visiting the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion. He discovered the brothel hid behind a scholarly exterior, and the madam offered him a private elegant quarter.

• Lin Yi bought a locally made paper pinwheel and reflected on how common people's inventions could benefit Great Liang, though he decided not to introduce chemistry and physics hastily.
• Lin Yi browsed more street vendors' handmade toys and pastries, then headed to the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion in Yong'an City.
• Lin Yi found the pavilion's elegant exterior hard to reconcile with a brothel, and Zhao Hu explained that its interior was entirely different.
• Lin Yi saw the pavilion's women coax bashful examination candidates inside and realized the respectable facade helped patrons enter discreetly.
• The madam welcomed Lin Yi, assumed he was wealthy, and offered him a private elegant quarter.

Lin Yi visited the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion to find Guo Jia and learned that he was hiding there under the name Little Lü Bu. The madam revealed herself as Qinglin, the Net’s Earth-Class Number One, and greeted Lin Yi as the emperor.

• Lin Yi paid the madam to leave him alone, then asked whether she had seen Guo Jia.
• The madam identified Guo Jia as Little Lü Bu of the Pleasure Quarters but refused to disclose his whereabouts.
• A Net agent told Lin Yi that Guo Jia was in Heaven-Class Building Number One with Aman and the others.
• Lin Yi entered the elegant lodge, and the madam followed him inside.
• Qinglin dismissed the others, knelt before Lin Yi, and greeted him as Your Majesty.

Lin Yi recognized Qinglin as a young Net agent in disguise and promised to honor the intelligence agents’ sacrifices. At Heaven No. 1 Building, Cao Cao told Guo Jia, Li Yu, and Xu Chu that aristocratic families had trapped him into sleeping with Lu Yafu’s concubine, and he asked Li Yu for support against the coming impeachment.

• Qinglin revealed her identity to Lin Yi and apologized for failing to recognize him sooner.
• Lin Yi thanked Qinglin for her service and vowed to improve benefits and rewards for the Net and its agents.
• Lin Yi entered Heaven No. 1 Building and found Cao Cao asking Guo Jia, Li Yu, and Xu Chu for help.
• Cao Cao confessed that aristocratic families had set him up with Lu Yafu’s concubine.
• Guo Jia tried to leave, while Cao Cao asked Li Yu to support him against the aristocratic families’ planned impeachment.