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

"Fourth brother, did you see that? It's praising you on the sky!"

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Zhu Di's clenched fist and mocked him.

Seeing the message on the screen mentioning again how his eldest son, Zhu Di, had added four years to his lifespan, Zhu Yuanzhang was furious.

This kid's got too big for his britches now, he even dares to talk back to him.

He was just clinging to his elder brother's leg, begging Zhu Biao to appoint him as "General of Heavenly Strategy" in the future.

Is this position something that can be given to him?

This kid is getting more and more arrogant because he knows he can't become emperor!

Utterly arrogant!

Zhu Di clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

The words on the screen were disheartening, but his own father's mockery made him even more uncomfortable.

His eyes darted around, and a wicked idea popped into his head.

Zhu Di turned to face Zhu Biao, knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist, and spoke with a tone full of grievance and pleading.

"Brother, I'd like to ask you for a reward!"

Zhu Biao watched his fourth brother in this state. His fourth brother had always been one to never ask for help or back down.

A tough guy, forged in the crucible of war, actually knelt down and begged for a reward.

"Fourth brother, get up first. I promise you."

Zhu Yuanzhang, who was standing nearby, felt a little uneasy seeing this scene.

Did I say something too harsh? Did I hurt him too much?

I think I've been a bit too harsh on my fourth child lately.

His heart softened.

"Fourth brother, what reward do you want? If your eldest brother can't give it to you, we will!"

Zhu Yuanzhang patted his chest and solemnly guaranteed!

Seeing that Zhu Yuanzhang had spoken, Zhu Di felt a little guilty, but then he made up his mind. Who told him to keep mocking me!

Then he made a startling remark.

"Please, elder brother, bestow upon Father the title of Emperor Emeritus!!"

???

!!!

"Zhu Di!!!!"

...

[As an emperor, what kind of dance would you most like to see? Or rather, who could be called a king of dance?]

Oh? That's an interesting question.

"What kind of dance could you possibly like to watch? Of course, you'd like to watch beautiful women dance!!"

"Exactly! If we can't watch beautiful women dance, are we supposed to watch men dance?"

"If it's that man from the sky earlier, that wouldn't be a problem either!"

"really!"

During the reign of Emperor Cheng of the Western Han Dynasty,

"Dance? Of course, I prefer watching palm dances!!"

Emperor Cheng of Han, Liu Ao, clapped his hands and laughed heartily. His favorite performance was the palm dance by Consort Zhao Feiyan.

His delicate, white feet bounced and twirled in his palms, like round, white pearls—truly a sight to behold.

I wish I could swallow it whole.

Her body moved gracefully, and as the red veil fluttered, the jade-like color appeared and disappeared, truly exquisite.

Liu Ao repeatedly made Zhao Feiyan perform a palm dance on his palm, but unfortunately, given his arm strength and lust, he couldn't hold out for long.

During the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty,

Faced with this scene, Du Fu recalled the first time he had seen Gongsun Da Niang's sword dance.

The sword flashed and spun like lightning.

It arrives like thunder, then subsides with fury; it departs like the calming light of a still river.

Gongsun Da Niang's sword dance was unrestrained and bold, yet it retained a woman's gentleness, making it arguably the best in the world.

Only Gongsun Da Niang was proficient in this dance.

Du Fu thought to himself: If we're talking about dance queens, Gongsun Da Niang definitely deserves a place.

This question has different answers in many dynasties, but during the Zhenguan era of the Tang Dynasty, the dance that Emperor Taizong of Tang (Li Shimin) longed to see most was a dance performed by a man.

What?! A man?!

Could it be that Li Shimin also learned the bad habits of the Liu family?

"Erlang, you can't just imitate everything he does because you admire Emperor Wen of Han. You absolutely mustn't do that!!"

Li Yuan earnestly advised Li Shimin, for he truly did not want to see his son embark on a path of no return.

Why did Li Shimin have this idea? Let's rewind to the ninth year of the Wude era, the year Li Shimin ascended the throne.

In the ninth year of the Wude era, the Tang Dynasty, having just emerged from war and the Xuanwu Gate Incident, welcomed a new monarch.

[But not long after he ascended the throne, the Eastern Turkic Khaganate's Khan, Jieli, led an army of over 100,000 southwards to invade the border, attempting to tear a large piece of flesh from the already unstable Tang Dynasty.]

Li Shimin did not gamble with his unstable empire and the lives of the people of Chang'an.

[Leading only six horsemen out of the city, he intercepted a 100,000-strong Turkic army on the banks of the Wei River.]

[Li Shimin went alone to the meeting with Jieli Khan, and the two sides renewed their alliance. Li Shimin gave Jieli Khan a large amount of gold, silver and silk. The historical record summarizes the amount of the gifts given in three words: "emptied the treasury!"]

Li Shimin exchanged a moment of humiliation for a long period of development for the Tang Dynasty.

This is the "Alliance of the Wei River".

Western Han Dynasty

Liu Che raised an eyebrow.

"Li Shimin was truly audacious; he dared to confront an army of 100,000 men on the banks of the Wei River with only six horsemen."

"Tsk tsk, I understand now a little better what the sky said about the dance Li Shimin wanted to see."

"If it were me, I'd want to see it too!"

Countless ancestors under the heavens admired Li Shimin's courage and boldness.

That was a Turkic army of 100,000; leading six men or leading no one at all seemed to make little difference.

Those dynasties before the Tang seem to have understood why later generations held Li Shimin in such high esteem.

These deeds alone would make anyone exclaim, "A god descended to earth!"

The Wei River Alliance became a lifelong humiliation and an indelible stain on Li Shimin's record. He swallowed the humiliation and transformed it into boundless motivation for governing the country. In just three years, he restored the strength of the Tang Dynasty.

In November of the third year of the Zhenguan era, Li Shimin appointed Li Jing, the Minister of War, as the commander-in-chief of the army and dispatched 100,000 troops. Li Jing personally led 3,000 cavalry to launch a surprise attack on Dingxiang, and 10,000 cavalry to launch a night raid on Yinshan, capturing the Khaganate of Jieli alive. In just three months, the Eastern Turkic Khaganate was destroyed.

No, wait a minute, something's not right.

All the ancient people under the sky who saw this must have felt that they had skipped something.

You mean they restored their national strength in three years and then defeated hundreds of thousands of Eastern Turks?

This Li Jing doesn't seem to be a simple person either; he wiped out the Eastern Turks in just three months.

After Jieli was captured and brought to Chang'an, at the victory banquet, Li Shimin immediately ordered Jieli to dance in celebration.

In the picture, a Turkic-style Hu man, with a gloomy expression and a face full of humiliation and helplessness, dances the Hu Xuan dance. His plump body makes his dance moves not graceful, but combined with the expression on his face, it gives people a unique sense of comfort.

On the grassland, Jieli usually just watched others dance, but now that he was suddenly jumping up and down, his movements were quite clumsy.

At that moment, the sky happened to reflect Jieli's expression during the Wei River Alliance.

On one side was the triumphant laughter of the Wei River Alliance, and on the other was the humiliating dance performed at the victory celebration banquet.

Triumph and humiliation combine to form a perfect picture.

In the seventh year of the Zhenguan era, at Emperor Taizong's birthday banquet, he ordered Jieli to perform a dance once again.

In the scene, Jieli appears much more prosperous, and in the center of the banquet, he skillfully performs his signature Hu Xuan dance.

Her dance moves were so alluring that they were even more captivating than those of many professional dancers.

A once-powerful Turkic ruler transformed himself into the King of Dance in Chang'an.

This is considered a case of laid-off workers finding new employment.

During the Zhenguan era,

Li Shimin and the others looked extremely pleased; this was exactly the expression they wanted to see!

They were all witnesses to the Wei River Alliance of that year, and the humiliation they felt still lingered in their hearts.

The thought still makes me angry.

No, I want to watch it again!!

"His Majesty!!"

Looking at the expressions on his ministers' faces, Li Shimin knew they thought the same thing as him.

"Summon Jieli, play the Qin King's Battle Music, and have him dance here!!"

Before long, Jieli was brought into the palace. Having only recently been captured, he was clearly not yet able to maintain the composure he had shown in the years to come.

His face still showed an expression of humiliation.

Li Shimin and others were not angry but pleased.

That's exactly the expression I wanted; otherwise, it wouldn't be fun.

Jump now!!

As the music of the King of Qin's breaking formation played, Jieli, once again looking humiliated, began to dance the Hu Xuan dance that he had seen and performed many times.