Sky Curtain: The Overlord Charges into Battle, Shocking Emperors of All Dynasties

At this point, almost everyone perked up.

During the Ming Dynasty, they only knew Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Di and his family, and Zhu Houcong, who changed Zhu Di's temple name to Chengzu.

But judging from this family, there doesn't seem to be any problem at the root; they're a family of ruthless people.

In various parts of the Ming Dynasty, some people broke out in a cold sweat upon hearing these words.

They really have something to hide!

Zhu Houzhao squinted, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest, the tapping sound echoing in the room. A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips.

He had no descendants, so the blame could be placed on him. Now Tianmu is going to talk about the cause of his death.

If there's really a problem, then don't blame him for flipping the table.

The first few are relatively normal. Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, was a monk and begged for food in his early years. He fought for more than ten years to become emperor, and his physique was so strong that he was not a normal human being.

[He ascended the throne at the age of forty, getting up before dawn to handle state affairs. Especially after abolishing the position of prime minister, all the affairs of the country were on his shoulders. He worked more than ten hours a day and never missed a day of court. Even so, he still managed to father 26 sons and 16 daughters and lived to the age of 71. He was practically a saintly being.]

[It's worth mentioning here that Zhu Yuanzhang had the most sons of any emperor in the entire Ming Dynasty. As for emperors, having even one was already a good thing; how many more could one possibly want?!]

"That's right, our bodies are just that tough!"

"Besides, would someone who's become emperor really be thinking of shirking his duties?"

Zhu Yuanzhang puffed out his chest and patted it vigorously, showing his sons how robust his physique was.

Zhu Di rolled his eyes. "Do you think everyone has as much energy as your father?" he thought. "He's already getting a headache just looking at all the government affairs."

How can we manage government affairs without someone to help us?

[After the fire that destroyed Nanjing during the Jingnan Campaign, Zhu Yunwen's fate remained unknown. However, as the saying goes, "If his fate is unknown, then he is dead."]

Zhu Di was, after all, a military emperor who spent his life on campaigns. He died of illness at Yumu River at the age of sixty-five. But what's strange is that Zhu Di only had three sons, and no more children were born after the twenty-fifth year of the Hongwu reign.

Although Zhu Gaochi was fat, he lived to the age of forty-eight, which can be considered a natural death.

Zhu Zhanji lived to the age of thirty-eight. He had served in the battlefield in his early years and had old injuries. In addition, he had a sweet tooth and suffered from diabetes, so his death was not unusual.

Thirty-eight years old?

Zhu Di and Zhu Gaochi instantly paled, looking at their beloved grandson and eldest son in disbelief.

Thirty-eight years old is the prime of an emperor's life, yet Tianmu says it's normal?!

Zhu Di glared fiercely at Zhu Gaochi.

You've set a great example as a father!

Zhu Gaochi and his son Zhu Zhanji could only manage a wry smile; they truly couldn't give up these sweets.

I'm so hungry!!

Zhu Gaoxu and Zhu Gaosui exchanged a glance, both pouting, and saw the undisguised amusement in each other's eyes.

They all remembered one thing,

Zhu Zhanji had sworn an oath that if his hands were stained with the blood of the Zhu family, he would not have a good end.

Looking at it now...

[Zhu Qizhen died at the age of thirty-eight, and Zhu Qiyu died at the age of thirty. Having gone through such events, both of them could be considered to be in relatively normal circumstances.]

[The situation began to deteriorate during the reign of Emperor Xianzong (Zhu Jianshen). Zhu Jianshen died at the age of 41, and Zhu Youcheng at the age of 36. The culprit, Liu Wentai, was protected by court officials, and his death sentence was commuted to exile.]

[Emperor Zhengde, Zhu Houzhao, was fond of military affairs. He was the second emperor after Emperor Yingzong, Zhu Qizhen, to personally lead a military campaign. Moreover, he achieved a great victory at Yingzhou. Historical records state that Zhu Houzhao personally beheaded a Mongol soldier.]

However, this very emperor, who could be built on horseback, accidentally fell into the Grand Canal in Huai'an in September of the fifteenth year of Zhengde's reign. He choked on the water and caught a chill, and died in March of the sixteenth year of Zhengde's reign at the age of thirty-one, without an heir.

Everyone knows how cold the river water is in September. Historical records show that Zhu Houzhao was in poor health from a young age. Although he was physically strong, it is understandable that he developed pneumonia after falling into the water.

The strange thing is that after Zhu Houzhao returned to the capital, the imperial physicians were unable to cure him for several months. Before his death, he asked Grand Secretary Yang Tinghe to summon famous doctors from the common people to the palace, but Yang Tinghe refused. The imperial physicians were never changed from beginning to end.

[After Zhu Houzhao's death, the cabinet immediately determined the successor and arrested Zhu Houzhao's confidants, including Jiang Bin, in a swift purge.]

Zhengde thirteenth year

Zhu Houzhao's eyes were filled with gloom.

He wasn't curious why Jiang Bin hadn't been by his side when he was seriously ill.

Judging from the situation at the time, the inner palace was probably sealed off long ago, and Jiang Bin couldn't even get through the palace gates, let alone provide protection.

Fine, fine, if that's how it is, then none of us should live anymore!

The gloom in Zhu Houzhao's eyes was replaced by madness. If you want to play this game, then let's see if your necks are tougher or my soldiers' swords are tougher!

Zhu Houzhao decided to overturn the table; he now felt that the entire court and the entire harem were people who wanted him dead.

The four border troops had already been transferred to the capital and were under the command of Jiang Bin, who had already gained control of most of the military power in the capital!

I don't have time to play these power games with you now.

I suppose the spirit of the founding emperor in heaven would approve of what I have done!

If Zhu Houzhao was easily soluble in water, then his cousin, Emperor Shizong of Ming (Zhu Houcong), whom our Taoist priest is, was purely a fire-elemental deity, and could even be described as a legendary, resilient king.

Historical records indicate that Emperor Jiajing survived multiple assassination attempts and six major fires throughout his life, with fires burning wherever he went, even during his travels.

Six times?!

They weren't killed?

And once or twice is fine, why do it six times? Are you afraid others won't notice?

"It seems that Emperor Jiajing was really tough," Li Shimin exclaimed in amazement. He couldn't believe that an emperor could be assassinated so many times.

"Moreover, I thought it was a coincidence the last few times. It's normal that the imperial physicians couldn't cure the illnesses. Human resources are sometimes limited."

"But this fire, six times! Burning wherever it went? I don't believe there isn't some conspiracy involved!"

In the first year of the Jiajing reign, a fire broke out in the palace where Jiajing's mother resided; the cause remains unknown.

In the fifth year of the Jiajing reign (1526), ​​a fire broke out in the palace of Empress Zhu Houzhao, the wife of Emperor Zhengde.

In the eighteenth year of the Jiajing Emperor's reign, during his southern tour, three major fires broke out at the emperor's temporary palace. No other places were burned; only the area where the emperor was staying was destroyed.

Not even a single official or guard went in to rescue him; they just stood around watching the fire. It was Jiajing's wet nurse, Lu Bing, who rushed into the fire and risked his life to save Jiajing.

In these three fires, palace maids and eunuchs were killed or injured, but the accompanying ministers escaped unharmed.

"Oh!"

Upon witnessing this scene, all the emperors were both angry and amused.

What they saw was an emperor being subjected to a humiliating spectacle, with his subjects standing around watching as if they were about to witness him being burned alive.

And there are guards? Is this how you protect the emperor's safety?!

He deserves to be killed!!

The ministers and guards who were watching should all be killed; the charge of "disrespecting the emperor and father" alone is enough!

[A fire broke out in the Imperial Ancestral Temple in the 20th year of the Jiajing reign, and in the 26th year of the Jiajing reign, a fire broke out in the Empress's Palace. Of course, the reasons behind these fires can only be described as understandable.]

This leads to an assassination attempt that nearly cost Jiajing his life—the Renyin Palace Coup!