Zu An was surprised. He did not expect his words to frighten the other party so much. He made use of this opportunity to ask, “What’s your crime?”

A tremor ran across the black mist that served as Zhang Han’s face, as if tears were streaming down it. “Even though I was able to hold on for a moment, the empire’s elite forces were still wiped out under my leadership. I was the one who ruined the final hope of the empire, letting it be destroyed by the remnants of the Six Eastern Countries[1].”

This history was indeed no different from what Zu An remembered. Afraid that he would agitate Zhang Han, he chose not to probe any further. Instead, he heaved a deep sigh and lamented, “Such is life. There is little that a man can do in the face of heaven’s will.”

Zhang Han was taken aback. The emperor he remembered was a strong-willed and strict...