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

Beyond the celestial screen, the 21st-century live-streaming room was already a boiling ocean of excitement.

When Zhu Dijun's roar, "Do you think I am Ji Chang and Liu Heng, those two beasts?" resounded throughout the Fengtian Hall, the barrage of comments froze for a mere 0.1 seconds before erupting in a burst of energy!

"Holy crap!!!!"

"He's gone berserk! Brother Jun has completely gone berserk! That 'drawing the firewood from under his back and grabbing the hand' move made Yu Qian vomit blood!"

"You misused the wording. This isn't just a counterattack; it's a blatant attack on the spirit! A naked attack on the spirit!"

"I was just thinking, what if Yu Qian and the others deny it to the death and insist that Zhu Qiyu framed them? But then Brother Jun just played his trump card!"

Soon, a logic genius discovered the true core of this move.

"Wait a minute... guys, why does this scene look so familiar?"

"What kind of beastly father in the world would use his own recently deceased son for his own purposes?"... If I were to translate this, wouldn't it be equivalent to: "What girl would joke about her own innocence?"

The moment this comment appeared, the entire live stream went silent, and then erupted into an even more frenzied discussion!

"Holy crap! That's the truth! Top-notch understanding!"

"Exactly the same! This is practically a gender-swapped, upgraded version of ancient imperial power struggles! The destructive power has been increased ten thousandfold!"

"Yu Qian and his men didn't lose unjustly! Who would have thought that an emperor would use such a rogue-like yet irrefutable logic to wage a conspiracy!"

"This move is brilliant! Because Zhu Jianji is really dead! There's no way to verify anything! If you dare to question it, you're inhuman, you're slandering a father who has just lost his son! You're worse than an animal!"

"Yu Qian and his men were utterly speechless. If they dared to utter a single 'yes,' they would be drowned in the spittle of the other officials in the court, even before the emperor took action!"

As for what Zhu Jianji himself thinks? He'll only say: For my peanuts! For my peanuts! (doge)

Countless "666" and "Jun Ge is awesome" flooded the screen.

Modern audiences, with their entertainment-driven spirit of deconstructing everything, instantly saw through the simple and brutal core logic behind this shocking conspiracy.

This is a form of dimensional reduction attack.

A dimensional attack that uses postmodern rogue logic to crush the "rites and laws" and "morality" that the ancient scholar-official class was so proud of!

……

The Ming Dynasty, during the Jingtai reign, at the Fengtian Hall.

The chaos continues.

Several imperial physicians were urgently summoned and hurriedly administered acupuncture and medicine to the unconscious Yu Qian.

Wang Wen and Chen Xun stood there, looking utterly dejected, as if all their bones had been removed.

Looking at the glaring pool of blood, and then at the mixed expressions of contempt, disgust, and fear in the eyes of their colleagues, they felt dizzy and disoriented.

It’s over.

The fame, reputation, and status they had earned through a lifetime of bloodshed and achievements were utterly crushed and reduced to dust by that puppet emperor with the death of his own son.

They couldn't even find any words to retaliate.

Because the other party stood at the highest point of Confucian ethics, namely "father-son relationship".

Any questioning is a desecration of humanity.

Of course, one could question whether the other party was learning from Ji Chang and Liu Heng, but the problem is that it was the Confucianists who praised those two beasts. If you question "Zhu Qiyu" now, aren't you slapping the face of the moral sage rulers you once praised?

Zhu Dijun's figure disappeared at the entrance of the side hall.

He didn't turn around, nor did he even glance at the "savior prime minister" he had personally defeated.

The moment he turned around, his face, contorted with grief, instantly returned to a stagnant calm.

Xing'an followed behind, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Only after returning to the warm Qianqing Palace, isolated from all outside sight and sound, did Zhu Dijun sit down on a chair covered with thick cushions.

He was no longer hunched over and weak in the Fengtian Hall; his back was straight, and his eyes were sharp as an eagle's.

"Xing'an".

He spoke calmly.

"This servant is here."

Xing'an immediately knelt down and buried his head deeply.

"Yu Shaobao won't die."

There was no warmth in Judy Jun's voice.

"Let him live. A prime minister who is unconscious and whose reputation is ruined is more useful to me than a loyal and righteous man who has died."

Xing'an trembled, becoming even more respectful:

"This servant understands."

A living Yu Qian can serve as a symbol of his "benevolence" and can be used to constantly remind everyone in the court of the consequences of defying the emperor.

"Wang Wen and Chen Xun..."

Zhu Dijun's fingertips tapped lightly on the table, producing a rhythmic, soft sound.

"They are smart people; they know how to make the right choice."

Either you end up like Yu Qian, ruined and disgraced.

Either be an obedient dog.

"deliver an imperial order."

Zhu Dijun turned his gaze to the window, where the gloomy sky seemed to have cracked open, letting in a glimmer of light.

"Order the Imperial Guards to record all those who spoke in defense of Yu Qian and the other two in the palace today, or those who appeared indignant."

"Draft a list and submit it."

"I... want to personally 'visit' these loyal ministers."

Xing'an's heart clenched suddenly!

He understood the undisguised bloodthirsty intent behind the word "visit"!

This is not an attempt to appease, this is an attempt to settle scores!

A thorough purge targeting the core power of the entire civil service is about to begin!

"This servant... obeys the decree!"

……

The Ming Dynasty, Hongwu reign.

Inside the Fengtian Hall, Zhu Yuanzhang slammed his hand on the armrest of the dragon throne, making a loud noise.

But his face didn't show anger, but rather a very complex expression, a mixture of shock, admiration, and a hint of pleasure.

"Good! Good my ass!"

He first cursed, then couldn't help but praise, "What a fine example of 'father-son relations'! What a brilliant move to eliminate the root of the problem!"

He looked at the descendant named Zhu Dijun on the sky, his eyes shining.

"These book-weary pedants need to be dealt with using this method!"

"If you try to reason with them, they'll bring up ancestral laws and family traditions; if you talk about family laws, they'll talk about benevolence and morality!"

"This descendant of the fourth son simply overturned the table and refused to play along anymore! He stood on the moral high ground and asked them, 'Are you even human?'"

"Hahaha! That's great! That's really great!"

What Zhu Yuanzhang hated most in his life were these hypocritical civil officials who formed cliques for personal gain.

He used his butcher's knife to kill batch after batch, but he could never kill them all.

Today, he saw a weapon sharper than the butcher's knife.

To destroy their spirit!

……

The Ming Dynasty, during the Yongle reign.

Inside the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Di, who had just finished dealing with government affairs, leaned back in his chair and quietly looked at the sky.

Unlike Zhu Yuanzhang, he was not excited; instead, his expression was unusually calm, even showing a hint of... contemplation.

"Great monk, what do you think?"

He suddenly spoke.

Standing to the side was Yao Guangxiao, dressed in all black, with an inscrutable expression.

"Your Majesty, this boy's strategy is neither an open scheme nor a covert one, but a scheme based on 'power'."

"Strategic maneuvering?" Zhu Di pondered the word.

Indeed.

Yao Guangxiao nodded.

"He used the death of the crown prince as leverage, the familial bond between father and son as leverage, and the restoration of the old crown prince as leverage. With these three forces combined, he was upright and powerful, and no one could resist him."

"He positioned himself as the 'weakest' and 'most miserable' person, a pitiful man who had just lost his son, was utterly despondent, and was even willing to return power to his elder brother's lineage."

"In this way, all those who lay a hand on him become disloyal, unjust, and inhuman villains."

Excitement gleamed in Yao Guangxiao's eyes.

"In contrast, Your Majesty's Jingnan Campaign back then, although it was in accordance with the will of Heaven and the people, ultimately earned it the reputation of being a 'fight between uncle and nephew'."

"Yet this man could make his elder brother, the retired emperor whom he had imprisoned, willingly serve him and hand over his greatest political asset—his son Zhu Jianshen."

The difference in quality is immediately apparent.

Zhu Di remained silent.

He had to admit that Yao Guangxiao was right.

He fought for the throne during the Jingnan Campaign, risking his life and fighting tooth and nail.

This descendant, without shedding a drop of blood, manipulated the entire court with just a few words and a performance.

The brilliance of their methods and the ruthlessness of their hearts sent a chill down the spine of even the Yongle Emperor.

"This Judy Jun..."

Zhu Di spoke slowly, a deep, dark light shining in his eyes.

"He's destined for great things."

Then, in a somber tone, she thought of her three eldest sons and said:

"Ah, if Gao Chi, Gao Xu, and Gao Sui possess the abilities of their descendant Zhu Dijun, then I will have a worthy successor. Speaking of which, isn't it like thievery, or rather, archaeology, which increases one's wisdom?"

Yao Guangxiao smiled slightly and said:

"Your Majesty, perhaps because future generations have witnessed too many sordid and filthy things through endless archaeological work, they know what methods to use to deal with the civil service. Compared to the Crown Prince and the two princes, he understands the cannibalistic nature of the civil service better!"