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

The people under the canopy wore expressions that were exactly as I had expected.

I have the world's affairs firmly in my grasp.

I knew it all along!

"Indeed, it was arranged by later generations for the sake of effect, just like the play we watch."

"That's right! Who spends millions of taels of silver on a wedding? Even the emperor can't be that wasteful!"

"But why does what Zhu Zhanshan said sound somewhat familiar?"

The man's father, standing to the side, scolded him with exasperation:

"It's one thing to not study properly before, but now you're not even paying attention to the sky!"

"Isn't that exactly what Zhu Di said when he looked for his nephew!"

"Just keep playing around!! You don't even pay attention to the sky. Let's see what kind of good job you can find after you graduate from the academy!"

"Nobody'll hire you to tell stories in the entertainment districts!"

His son immediately lowered his head, dejected, and made up his mind:

I'll watch it every day and every night from now on. I refuse to believe I won't figure it out!

Zhenguan,

Li Shimin counted on his fingers one by one, reciting several names as he went.

"Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Di... Zhu Qizhen, Zhu Qiyu... Zhu Youjian."

"Aren't there fifteen emperors? Where did this sixteen come from!"

Li Shimin was puzzled, so he asked a question and received the answer.

Wei Zheng immediately stepped forward, giving no one else a chance to speak.

"Your Majesty, don't forget about Zhu Yunwen. Zhu Di wasn't in the line of succession!"

Wei Zheng bowed and murmured these words, but his head remained raised; instead, he looked up at Li Shimin.

"I almost forgot," Li Shimin said, rubbing his forehead, as if suddenly realizing something.

"Zhu Di is not like me after all. He is the crown prince and inherited the throne from his father. It's my fault. My memory is getting a little fuzzy."

"Does Your Majesty mean that you are getting old?"

Li Chengqian asked coldly. Ever since Tianmu finished recounting his experiences, he hadn't given Li Shimin a kind look.

"This Crown Prince does not mind taking on the heavy responsibility of the Tang Dynasty ahead of schedule."

Father is getting old!!!

They should have made way a long time ago!!

These words were like a chilly wind blowing in June; the entire hall fell silent, and not a single person dared to speak.

Even Wei Zheng quietly moved back to the ranks, burying his head behind his colleagues to hide, like an ostrich.

"Haha, this...that..."

Li Shimin changed the subject, scratching the back of his head with an embarrassed expression, and quickly changed the subject.

"You all ask who launched the coup of the gate? I knew it was Zhu Di who set a bad precedent. The Ming Dynasty actually had a coup..."

Li Shimin's voice grew softer and softer, his voice increasingly hesitant, and he felt a growing numbness in his body.

He clearly just wanted to change the subject, but how could this wretched Ming Dynasty, this hateful Zhu Di, be so similar to him?

Crown Prince Li Chenggan launched a coup, which resulted in a similar event occurring in the Ming Dynasty.

How could the Ming Dynasty be so wicked?!

Changsun Wuji couldn't stand it any longer; after all, he was his brother-in-law, so he quickly stepped in to defuse the situation.

"Zhu Qizhen should have had no heir after he ascended the throne, so the throne was passed to his younger brother Zhu Qiyu. It was also said on the screen that the Ming emperors did not have many offspring."

"The coup d'état was probably launched by Zhu Qiyu's other brothers, otherwise Zhu Zhanxian would not have called him his nephew."

"That makes sense!!"

During the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Kangxi was somewhat dissatisfied.

Why isn't Empress Xiaozhuangwen of the Qing Dynasty listed among the virtuous empresses?

In Kangxi's eyes, his grandmother, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, was also worthy of the title of virtuous empress.

"Even if later generations have many grievances against our Qing Dynasty, how can they ignore my achievements and those of Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang?"

Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang did indeed contribute greatly to the ascension of Shunzhi and Kangxi to the throne, and even made significant contributions when the Qing Dynasty entered the Central Plains.

Whether it was persuading Hong Chengchou to surrender or using every means to attract Dorgon, they both put in a great deal of effort.

Moreover, he deeply missed Shunzhi and Kangxi, and left a will before his death, refusing to be buried with Huang Taiji in Shenyang, but instead requesting that a separate mausoleum be built for him.

He is so virtuous, he couldn't be more virtuous!

[Zhang Heng: Life is just a series of ups and downs.]

[A bad person is a bad person, yet they say being melancholic is a talent. Why am I not melancholic?]

What do you mean? What are you implying?!

After Emperor Renzong of Song, the scholars all began to hurl insults:

Zhang Heng, you're just showing off. Life is full of ups and downs, how come it's all just ups and downs for you?

You're just as despicable as He Zhizhang from the Tang Dynasty!

You may not have heard of Zhang Heng, but you've definitely heard of his defeated rivals.

The imperial examination in the second year of the Jiayou era of the Northern Song Dynasty was known as the Millennium Dragon and Tiger List, which produced a group of geniuses who were rare in a century, while their opponents were geniuses who were rare in a millennium.

Northern Song Dynasty?

The eyes of the Song Dynasty emperor and his officials immediately lit up.

They thought the heavens had forgotten about their Great Song Dynasty, and that they had fallen to the same level of treatment as the Jin Dynasty.

In that year's imperial examination, three of the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties were named: Su Shi, Su Zhe, and Zeng Gong.

The Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties?

Who are the other eight?

We also want to be on this list.

Li Bai smiled dismissively. "The Eight Great Masters' prose, can it compare to what the venerable He Zhizhang said in person?"

He called me a "banished immortal!!"

[Also, Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao, the founders of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism]

[Zhang Zai, the great Confucian scholar who proclaimed, "To establish a heart for Heaven and Earth, to establish a destiny for the people, to continue the lost learning of the past sages, and to usher in an era of peace for all generations."]

it is good!

That's well said!

It perfectly captures the highest ideal of Confucianism!

Many Confucian scholars from the time before Emperor Renzong of Song looked up to the sky and repeated this sentence.

Hehe, Zhang Zai wasn't even born yet, but I'm the one who's already calling him out!

[Nine of them rose to the rank of prime minister, and one was a man of both literary and military talent, who expanded the territory by more than two thousand li.]

Zhang Heng was the top scholar who emerged from this millennium-old ranking of dragons and tigers.

Su Shi praised him, saying, "His talent is unmatched for a hundred years."

However, despite being such a person, his fame doesn't compare to that of Su Shi and others; it seems he didn't write any particularly famous articles.

Zhang Heng struggled to break free from the mountain of papers, tears welling up in his eyes.

I don't have time to write!

Zeng Gong is one thing, but who are Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao? How come they are more famous than me?

You want to write poetry? I can do that too!

At worst, I'll just sleep half an hour less from now on!

They're busy handling national affairs and writing policy essays; they don't have time to write poems or songs.

[Now even civil servants who have passed their exams aren't allowed to post on social media.]

[Su Shi and others who were unappreciated wrote articles lamenting the unfulfilled ambitions of their lives.]

[Zhang Heng is busy criticizing the Three Departments and the Prime Minister in officialdom, but he also won the archery contest with perfect accuracy during his mission to the Liao Kingdom.]

At this point, Zhang Heng had something to say: "Where in life is there such a thing as being talented but unrecognized? For me, being talented and recognized is the beginning of my life."

There are ten lotus flowers in the pond. I'll pick one. What about you?

us?

Zeng Gong, Zhang Zai, and other scholars began to consider this question.

You pick one lotus, we pick nine lotuses?

That's right, the more you practice cooking, the better.

As the saying goes, "Everyone has their own purpose," and scholars say, "Isn't my talent something to be asked?" Zhang Heng replies, "He's asking me a question."

After a few breaths, the scholars understood the meaning of these words and began to curse.

What makes you so great?!

Let me tell you, even if you become the top scholar, have a smooth official career, and land a comfortable life, I won't envy you in the slightest!

"Where are you going?!"

A scholar was packing his belongings when his fellow townsman asked him a question in confusion.

Having finally passed the preliminary examination in Jingzhao Prefecture and traveled for months to reach Kaifeng Prefecture, with the provincial examination just around the corner, I found myself packing my bags...

"I'm planning to go back, but I really don't have the confidence."

The taxi driver, shaking his head bitterly as he packed his luggage, spoke with a particularly melancholic tone in this moment.

"I plan to take the test again next time, since I'm still young."

"etc!!"

"What?!"

"I'll play along with you!"

In the second year of the Jiayou era, many scholars had lost confidence and vowed to try again the following year.

But some people refuse to admit defeat, so should I avoid their sharp edge?

World War I laid the foundation, World War II brought them success!