- #1
It's a charming story about an alternate world's Tang dynasty. The protagonist is The Prince of Teng, Li Yuanying, who is the youngest brother of Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of Tang.This alternate Li Yuanying (that may or may not be transmigrated person) got a library system that enables him to receive knowledges and stuffs beyond his era. As the result, he leisurely (and shamelessly) changes the world's history.Spoiler
Taizong's sons no longer kill each other. Taizong's eldest son, Li Chengqian, manages to succeed him relatively peacefully and live longer. Li Zhi does not become Emperor Gaozong nor got involved with Wu Zetian. Wu Zetian instead becomes the first female prime minister. Li Yuanying remains politically influential and close to Taizong and Li Chengqian for a lifetime. And so on.
[collapse]The novel provides interesting twists for fans of ancient China or anyone who loves alternate history. The author manages to draw lifelike main characters with consistent behavior throughout the story, while maintaining aforementioned characters' original profiles.Still, it's not perfect. First, erratic pacing (?) causes some events to develop slower and some other quicker in later chapters. Second, there's a bit of "Chinese nationalism" here. I consider it logically suitable for people of THAT ERA, but I understand that it might also offend people from related countries.