Sky Curtain: A Review of Historical Foes and the Secrets of Ministers

The screen flashed, and a civil official dressed in a purple Tang Dynasty court robe, wearing a Jinxian crown, and with an indignant expression, suddenly appeared in the center of the screen.

On the Tang Dynasty Square, all the ministers stared intently and gasped in shock.

"Isn't this Duke of Ju, Tang Jian?" Changsun Wuji exclaimed.

Standing on the other side of the crowd, Tang Jian himself was stunned when he saw his headshot appear on the sky. Then his eyes instantly reddened, and tears of grievance welled up in his eyes.

[You people always say I, Tang Jian, am petty! You say I cursed Li Jing until my death, that I didn't consider the bigger picture, and you expect me to be more magnanimous?]

Tang Jian roared, his face flushed and neck bulging, "I'm putting my words here today: Li Jing is a complete amateur, a brute!"

Upon hearing this, Li Jing's face turned bright red, but strangely, he did not refute it.

Because he seemed to have guessed what Tang Jian was going to say.

The sky continued its relentless attack, unleashing its full firepower.

[I, Tang Jian, as the Special Envoy and Plenipotentiary of the Great Tang Dynasty, have ventured alone into the Turkic camp and am currently having a heart-to-heart talk with the old Khan, Jieli, trying to persuade him.]

【I've tried everything, said all the right things, but Jieli is, after all, the overlord of the grasslands. He cares about his reputation; even surrendering has to be done with some ceremony, right?】

[And then? The next second, before I'd even finished a sip of tea, Li Jing led the Tang Dynasty's iron cavalry, charging in like mad dogs! The entire mountainside was filled with Tang soldiers!]

Tang Jian's eyes were bloodshot as he pointed at the screen and roared.

I was in the Turkic tent, and I was even more dumbfounded than Jieli.

The way that old fox Jieli looked at me, he definitely thought I was deliberately trying to stall him so Li Jing could launch a sneak attack.

If I hadn't been quick-witted and managed to steal a horse during the chaos, the grass on my grave would be three meters tall by now.

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes revealed a hint of disdain.

"That Tang Jian, what a spineless coward. 'Three meters of grass on his grave'? Look how scared he is."

Zhu Yuanzhang sneered, "What war doesn't involve death? In a battle between two armies, what's the loss of a few envoys in order to annihilate the enemy's main force? Li Jing's move was unexpected, ruthless, and well executed."

Zhu Biao, standing to the side, was sweating profusely and couldn't help but sigh, "Father, although warfare is based on deception, Li Jing's move was a stroke of genius in military strategy, taking advantage of the Turks' relaxed vigilance to defeat the enemy in one fell swoop."

"But from a human perspective... it is indeed too cruel. Tang Jian is, after all, a special envoy representing the imperial court. To use him as bait and discard him is truly disheartening. He has been through the ordeal of death, so it is only natural for him to feel resentment."

"Cruel?" Zhu Yuanzhang's smile vanished abruptly. He turned and glared fiercely at Zhu Biao. "Biao, you're far too merciful! How can someone who aspires to great things conquer the world if they're hampered by such womanly compassion?"

Zhu Yuanzhang stood proudly with his hands behind his back, saying, "Some sacrifices are necessary. If we were the commander-in-chief of the Tang Dynasty, we would not only fight, but we would also be more ruthless than Li Jing."

Historically, Zhu Yuanzhang was always a ruthless person who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

It is worth noting that the drowning of Han Lin'er, the Little Ming King, at the Guazhou ferry crossing was a famous unsolved case on the eve of the establishment of the Ming Dynasty.

Based on existing historical records, it can be almost certainly concluded that this was not an accident, but a meticulously planned political assassination.

As for whether Zhu Yuanzhang was the mastermind behind it all, although official history has not left any direct evidence, almost all the suspicions point to him.

At this point, Old Zhu pointed at Tang Jian, who was crying and wailing on the sky, and spat out a disgusted saliva.

"Look at Tang Jian again. He got a little fright and started cursing like a shrew. He's completely disgraced the imperial court."

"As an envoy of a great power, to lack even the awareness to face death at any time is, in the end, nothing but a coward."

"Couldn't he learn from the envoys of the mighty Han Dynasty? Learn from Fu Jiezi who beheaded the King of Loulan, and learn from Ban Chao who said, 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained.' Compared to the Han envoys, the civil officials of the Tang Dynasty are too spineless."

On the sky, Tang Jian pulled out a sword from somewhere and brandished it.

[A sneak attack is one thing, but in war, all's fair in love and war, so I'll tolerate it!]

But what the hell did Li Jing say to his soldiers afterward? He said, "What's the point of regretting someone like Tang Jian!"

Listen to this! Is this even human language?!

Tang Jian's eyes were bloodshot as he pointed at the sky and roared.

【I'm asking you, Li Jing, am I even human? Answer me!】

Originally, I thought this diplomatic mission would be a lucrative one, allowing me to take dozens of young members of my family to the grasslands for a chance to gain experience and advancement.

[And what happened? The Turkic camp went into chaos, and I was only concerned with escaping on horseback. My dozens of family descendants were all hacked to pieces by the enraged Turks and died outside!]

[I've been loyal my whole life, never committed a single crime, and yet what's the difference between this and having my entire family wiped out?]

[That son of a bitch Li Jing! If you're going to launch a surprise attack, you could at least give me a heads-up. Is it that hard? Huh?]

[You trampled over dozens of lives of my Tang family, over my head, Tang Jian, to achieve your unparalleled feat of annihilating the Turks! How am I supposed to explain this to my orphaned children and widows when I go back?! How am I supposed to explain this to my relatives and friends?!]

[If I were to criticize Li Jing, no one would dare speak up for him. Not even His Majesty!]

On the field.

Li Shimin, who had been comforting Li Jing, awkwardly withdrew his hand, coughed twice, and began to look around.

Tang Jian squatted on the ground, covering his face and wailing, "My poor nephews... they died so tragically..."

None of the ministers dared to step forward and offer advice.

Because what the sky said was right. Who could be magnanimous in the face of such a annihilation of an entire family?

Ying Zheng stared silently at the nearly insane Tang Dynasty civil official, a cold glint in his eyes.

"A merciful general cannot command an army," Ying Zheng uttered calmly.

Meng Tian, ​​standing to the side, nodded in deep agreement. "Your Majesty is absolutely right. If Li Jing missed the opportunity to annihilate the enemy's main force because he was worried about the life of Tang Jian, then he would be a true amateur."

"Although Li Jing's words were cold-blooded, they were the ruthlessness that a top commander must possess."

Ying Zheng picked up his wine cup, took a sip, and said coldly, "Indeed. For the greater good, anyone can be sacrificed. However, these civil officials of the Tang Dynasty are quite audacious, daring to insult the most meritorious general of the dynasty, and the Emperor of Tang doesn't even care. It's truly a disorder of the hierarchy."

The curtain continued to fall, and Tang Jian pointed his sword at the screen, addressing the crowd.

So, after I came back, I cursed Li every day, cursing him every time I saw him.

Anyone who dares to advise me to be magnanimous, I'll hang myself in front of their house.

The last person to do this on the battlefield was Han Xin.

Why do you think Li Shiqi didn't criticize Han Xin after his incident? Was it because he was of high moral character?

[They were boiled alive into a broth, how could he possibly curse them?]

[Those two bastards, one calls himself a military genius, the other a war god. No wonder their hearts are so hard-hearted, unlike ordinary people.]