Sky Curtain: The opening scene explains the four major cases of the Ming Dynasty plus the early Ming

As Zhu Dijun finished speaking, the myriad worlds and timelines did not recover from that extreme silence.

On the contrary, within the dead silence, a spiritual storm is brewing that will sweep across all eras.

The name "Yang Shiqi" no longer refers to a person.

It became a symbol, a code.

It represents the deepest fear—that the person you know and trust most may have been an empty shell possessed by evil spirits from the very beginning!

The Ming Dynasty, the second year of the Jianwen Emperor's reign.

Inside the Hanlin Academy, the young Yang Shiqi had just finished a policy essay and was preparing to present it to Zhang Dan, the Minister of Personnel.

Several of his colleagues were chatting and laughing with him yesterday, praising his quick wit and promising future.

But today, those gazes have changed.

They looked at Yang Shiqi with an indescribable sense of inquiry, alienation, and even... fear.

It's like looking at a monster in human skin.

Yang Shiqi felt a chill run down his spine, not understanding what had happened.

Unbeknownst to him, just moments before, his colleagues had been scrutinizing his family members, particularly those with "mysterious" origins, with the same look in their eyes.

In other parallel universes, the inconsistent signal transmission caused by the power of the live broadcast from the sky resulted in fragmentation and delays in uncovering the conspiracy of the civil official group led by the Three Yangs.

The Ming Dynasty, the fifteenth year of the Yongle reign.

Due to delays and clipping in the Sky Power live stream signal, the conspiracy of the civil service group led by the Three Yangs was not exposed.

Inside the cabinet, Yang Shiqi was discussing political affairs with Yang Rong and Yang Pu.

When he opened his mouth, Yang Rong and Yang Pu, who would usually agree with him, subconsciously distanced themselves from him.

Their gazes lingered on Yang Shiqi's gentle and refined face, as if trying to find the shadow of another face within it.

Is it the ambition of the Yang family of Hongnong?

Is it a blood feud with the Pu family?

Or is it an unknown ghost, raised from childhood?

The Ming Dynasty, the first year of the Xuande reign in a parallel world.

Due to delays and clipping in the Sky Power live stream signal, the conspiracy of the civil service group led by the Three Yangs was not exposed.

Zhu Zhanji, sitting on the dragon throne, looked down at the Grand Secretary who was speaking eloquently and defending "benevolent governance."

He could no longer feel even the slightest bit of respect or trust.

He felt that every word uttered from that mouth was wrapped in the sweetest poison.

What kind of filthy heart, harboring desires to overthrow the Zhu family's empire and to murder the emperor and seize power, was hidden beneath that official robe?

The fifth year of the Zhengtong reign of the Ming Dynasty.

The elderly Yang Shiqi, serving as regent, was instructing the young Zhu Qizhen.

His wrinkled face was seen by others as a symbol of wisdom and loyalty.

But in the eyes of Empress Dowager Zhang and her trusted eunuchs, every wrinkle hid a man-eating shadow!

As they looked at this political stalwart who had survived five dynasties, a common thought began to grow wildly in their hearts.

On what grounds?

How was he able to remain at the pinnacle of power through the reigns of five emperors—Jianwen, Yongle, Hongxi, Xuande, and Zhengtong?

If there were no ghosts involved, who would believe it?!

The doubts from all times and spaces converged into an invisible torrent, seemingly penetrating time and space to reach the modern live broadcast room.

On the celestial canopy, Zhu Dijun seemed to hear the silent questioning of these billions of living beings, and he spoke softly.

"Family members, I know that there may still be some people who do not accept my hypothesis about Yang Shiqi's identity."

"After all, it sounds like a fantasy."

"But have you ever considered that while history is full of coincidences, when all these coincidences happen to the same person and point to the same disastrous outcome, then it's no longer a coincidence!"

"That was premeditated!"

Zhu Dijun's voice suddenly turned sharp!

"Yang Shiqi was involved in the 'unnatural deaths' of three consecutive emperors, from Zhu Di to Zhu Gaochi and then to Zhu Zhanji!"

"Every time, he played the role of a 'loyal subject'!"

"Every single time, he's the biggest beneficiary!"

"Every time, the Ming Dynasty's national policies were reversed after the emperor's death, in a direction that best served the interests of the civil service!"

"Why is it always you?!"

"Why do you always say it's a coincidence?!"

"How come it always happens at the most critical junctures that determine the fate and direction of the nation?!"

A series of questions, like heavy hammer blows, pounded into everyone's hearts!

"Isn't that enough?"

Zhu Dijun sneered and pulled up a new file.

"Family members, I'll tell you one more piece of irrefutable evidence that will dispel all your doubts!"

"We all know that in the Ming Dynasty, and indeed in all dynasties of China, what was the most orthodox path for scholars to enter officialdom?"

"It's the imperial examination!"

"Ten years of hard study, and finally, success in the imperial examination! Every official who rises through the ranks has a crucial political symbol in his life, one that is even more important than his own parents—"

"Master!"

"Your examiner is your mentor! You and he have formed an unbreakable political alliance! Your background, your teachers, your connections—all are clearly traceable and transparent!"

"However, Yang Shiqi, who was hailed as a 'wise prime minister' and the leader of the civil service group..."

Judy Jun's voice was drawn out and full of mockery.

"He has no mentor!"

boom!!!

These two words are more damaging than all previous speculations combined!

No mentor?!

How could a scholar, a civil official who rose to the position of Grand Secretary, not have a mentor?!

To scholars throughout ancient times, this was utterly ridiculous!

On the sky, Zhu Dijun immediately provided historical evidence.

Yang Shiqi did not enter officialdom through the imperial examination!

In the first year of the Jianwen reign, he was recommended by court officials for his historical talent and appointed as a professor, participating in the compilation of the "Veritable Records of Emperor Taizu".

[When Zhang Dan, the Minister of Personnel, saw his policy essay, he praised it, saying, "This is not the talk of a mere scholar," and ranked it first!]

He studied under his maternal uncle, Chen Mo, in his early years.

Judy Jun's voice, like the whisper of a devil, was interpreting this seemingly normal resume.

"Family members, do you understand now?"

"recommend!"

"A young man with a vague background, whose only known fact is that his father died and his mother remarried, bypassed the most rigorous and fundamental talent selection system in the entire country—the imperial examination and the mentor system—simply because of the recommendation of a few so-called 'court officials' and a single word of praise from the Minister of Personnel!"

"He was parachuted into the Hanlin Academy, the very heart of the empire's power, like a ghost!"

"Is this normal?!"

"Do you believe there isn't a powerful force paving the way for him, forging his identity, and pulling strings behind the scenes?!"

"A person whose very origins cannot withstand scrutiny, a person who didn't even have to go through the most basic procedures for entering officialdom, has become the only veteran of our Great Ming Dynasty to have remained in power across five dynasties!"

"Jianwen, Yongle, Hongxi, Xuande, Zhengtong!"

"He was like a black, poisonous tree, rooted in the dragon vein of the Ming Dynasty, watching emperors come and go like a revolving lantern, while he, from beginning to end, remained there!"

"Now, do you still think those three hypotheses are outrageous?"

At this moment, no one doubted it anymore!

All logical chains are now closed!

A carefully selected "ghost" with a forged identity, implanted into the heart of the empire through unorthodox means, whose life goal was never to assist the monarch!

Rather, it's about outliving the monarch!

They outlasted generation after generation of Zhu family emperors, until they completely stripped the imperial power of the country and turned it into the private property of their vast behind-the-scenes conglomerate!