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

The nights in the capital were bloated and cold, steeped in suspicion.

The controversy surrounding the nursery rhymes did not subside; instead, it escalated further due to the instigation of certain individuals and the government's clumsy suppression.

Yu Qian is ill; it is said that he was so angry that he suffered a heart attack.

Chen Xun and Wang Wen secluded themselves at home, frantically writing letters to their former students and friends, trying to sever ties with each other.

Empress Dowager Sun issued three imperial edicts in succession to condemn the rumors, but this only added fuel to the fire, making the saying "there is much gossip at the door of a widow" an unspoken secret among the people of the capital.

The entire imperial court was in complete chaos.

The person who started all this remained calmly in the Qianqing Palace, seemingly uninvolved.

"Xing'an".

Zhu Dijun put down a copy of "Zizhi Tongjian" in his hand, his voice calm and without any ripples.

Xing'an quickly bowed forward. In the past few days, he had watched his master turn the world upside down with a flick of his wrist, and the initial fear in his heart had long since disappeared, leaving only awe and reverence.

"This servant is here."

Zhu Dijun shifted his gaze from the book to the direction of Nangong, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

"We're in Nangong, is anyone there?"

Xing'an's heart skipped a beat!

"I want to see my... dear imperial brother, Zhu Qizhen."

boom!

Xing'an's mind went completely blank, as if struck by lightning!

He froze, staring incredulously at the indifferent man on the dragon throne, wondering if he had misheard.

To see...to see the retired emperor?

At this critical juncture?

"What?!"

Xing'an's voice changed due to extreme shock. He fell to his knees with a thud and crawled to Zhu Dijun's feet.

"Your Majesty! You mustn't!"

His voice was trembling with tears; he was truly terrified.

"What kind of place is Nangong? It's a den of dragons and tigers! It's surrounded by eyes everywhere! The Empress Dowager's people, Yu Qian's people, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard... Our people will be discovered as soon as they get close!"

"and……"

Xing'an said, trembling.

"Moreover, the Emperor Emeritus... he hates you to the core, how could he possibly want to see you! This... this is walking into a trap, Your Majesty!"

What Xing'an said was a truth that everyone understands.

Going to see Zhu Qizhen at this moment is like a person strapped with explosives going to chat with a madman holding a torch.

Any one of those Mars could kill them both!

At this moment, the live broadcast room on the sky came to a complete standstill.

Whether it was the emperor and his ministers during the Yongle reign or the audience in modern times, everyone was stunned speechless by Zhu Dijun's groundbreaking idea.

"He's insane! He's absolutely insane!"

"I take back what I said before. Nursery rhymes are nothing; this is a real suicide attack!"

"Meet Zhu Qizhen? What does he want? To apologize with a bundle of thorns on his back? Or to mock him to his face? I completely cannot understand his thought process!"

"No...that's not right! Think about it, the waters are already muddied. Everyone suspects Yu Qian and Empress Dowager Sun of plotting against the Emperor, and Zhu Qizhen is definitely thinking his chance has come. At this time, the Emperor secretly goes to see him...this...this is going to be a grand drama of 'brotherly love and resistance against powerful ministers'!"

"Hey, you're a genius! He's trying to turn his biggest enemy into an ally (pawn)!"

The analysis in the comments was spot on.

Inside the Fengtian Hall, Zhu Di stared intently at the sky, trembling with excitement.

He got it!

He understood completely!

Every step this descendant took was precisely on the spot he admired most!

First, a nursery rhyme was used to create a common "enemy"—the powerful ministers represented by Yu Qian and Empress Dowager Sun.

Then he went to see Zhu Qizhen and used his eagerness to be restored to the throne and his hatred for powerful officials to pull him into his "camp"!

Use the least likely ally to fight the most powerful enemy!

"Wonderful! Wonderful!"

Zhu Di couldn't help but clap his hands in admiration.

"He's trying to tell Zhu Qizhen: 'Look, our brothers are fighting, and outsiders are benefiting. Why don't we join forces first, get rid of those troublesome officials and women, and then talk about who will inherit the throne!' That fool Zhu Qizhen will definitely believe him!"

Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Gaoxu exchanged a glance, both seeing a deep sense of powerlessness in each other's eyes.

Compared to these descendants, the political maneuvering they engage in is nothing more than child's play.

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Despite Xing'an's desperate pleas, Zhu Dijun remained unmoved.

He simply said, "Who said I was going to go in openly and honestly?"

He extended a finger and gently tapped the armrest of the dragon throne.

"In the four years since I ascended the throne, there have always been some clandestine passages and loyal old acquaintances inside and outside the palace."

"I remember that when the Southern Palace was built, in order to prevent the retired emperor from escaping and to keep an eye on him, a secret passage leading to the Imperial Garden was left under a dry well in the Southern Palace."

His voice was very soft, but it made Xing'an's pupils shrink sharply!

Secret passage!

It is true! Back when the emperor was still the Prince of Cheng, he secretly ordered his trusted confidants to build it as a precaution. No more than three people knew about it!

And now...

Zhu Dijun slowly stood up, his face once again displaying that sorrowful, numb, and even somewhat neurotic expression.

"My beloved Ji'er is gone... What's the point of being emperor?"

He muttered to himself, as if speaking to Xing'an, or perhaps to himself.

"Perhaps... I should go see my elder brother, and return this empire... to him..."

His voice was filled with utter despair.

Xing'an was deeply shocked when he saw him like this.

He suddenly understood.

Your Majesty is not going to negotiate, nor is he going to form an alliance.

He's going to...show weakness! To surrender!

Use the posture of "utter despair, only wanting to abdicate and hand over the throne" to completely numb the retired emperor!

high!

That's brilliant!

Xing'an stopped trying to dissuade him, and kowtowed heavily, his voice resolute.

"This servant will arrange it immediately!"

……

Half an hour later.

The night was as dark as ink, and crows cried mournfully.

A slender figure, supported by Xing'an, moved like a ghost through the secluded Imperial Garden and disappeared behind a rockery.

Nangong.

Zhu Qizhen was pacing back and forth anxiously in his room.

He had already heard about the nursery rhyme.

He was excited, thrilled, and felt that his chance had finally come!

For several days in a row, apart from things getting more and more chaotic, there was no substantial progress, which made him extremely irritable.

Just then.

In the corner of the room, the abandoned well cover, which had been used for decoration, emitted a faint, almost imperceptible creak.

"Who?!"

Zhu Qizhen shouted warily.

In the darkness, a hunched figure slowly emerged from the shadows of the well.

He was dressed in plain clothes, his face as white as paper in the moonlight, his eyes vacant, like a walking corpse.

The moment Zhu Qizhen saw the person's face clearly, his pupils shrank to pinpoints!

It's him!

He's his good younger brother!

The current emperor of the Ming Dynasty is Zhu Qiyu!

"You...how did you get here?!"

Zhu Qizhen's voice was filled with shock, vigilance, and a hint of barely concealed...fear.

Zhu Dijun did not answer.

He could only look at his elder brother, the very man who had killed his son.

Then, he made a move that surprised both Zhu Qizhen and all the viewers in front of the screen.

He straightened his robes, then slowly knelt down before Zhu Qizhen.

"Brother Emperor."

A hoarse call, filled with endless exhaustion and despair.

"Your subject... has come to apologize to you."

Zhu Qizhen naturally did not believe that his good younger brother would come to apologize; he had initially returned intending to kill his elder brother.

"Apologize? My dear brother, you appear here and say you're apologizing to me? Do you think I'll believe you?" "Your Majesty, I know you won't believe me. Before coming here, I even hoped to adopt Jian Shen and take your son away, but we didn't choose either. Jian Ji is dead, and my concubine was a spy deliberately chosen by that vile woman Sun Ruowei. She can't compare to the deep affection between you and my sister-in-law."

Zhu Dijun was naturally referring to Empress Qian, compared to the scheming Empress Dowager Zhang and Sun Ruowei. Empress Qian truly loved Zhu Qizhen, and even though she didn't bear him a son, her kindness was still reciprocated by Zhu Qizhen.

Zhu Qizhen couldn't help but ask tentatively:

"You're the one who spread the rumors outside the palace today."

Zhu Qiyu also answered affirmatively:

"It's me."

"Why? You're just asking for trouble."

Zhu Qiyu looked both pained and indifferent.

"There's no particular reason. It's for revenge, for my son, for the heroes of Tumu Fortress, for my great-grandfather Zhu Di, Zhu Gaochi, and for our father Zhu Zhanji. Even now, if someone is stupid, they can see how our father, grandfather, and great-grandfather died."

"Although I am a puppet, I have seen the direction of your reign, my brother, and can deduce in reverse how they died!"