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

Inside a secluded room of an unassuming mansion in the capital city.

The flickering candlelight illuminated the three pale faces, making them appear ghostly.

The strong smell of medicine mixed with the stench of blood permeated the oppressive air.

Yu Qian lay half-reclined on the soft couch, his face as white as paper. He had just been forcibly awakened by the imperial physician with potent medicine, and his body was extremely weak. However, two clusters of cold flames burned in his deep-set eyes.

He didn't look at anyone, but stared intently at the flickering candle wick.

Wang Wen, the hot-tempered Minister of Personnel, seemed to have all his strength drained away. He slumped to the side, his eyes vacant, muttering repeatedly, "Lost...lost everything..."

"The bond between father and son... Ah, the bond between father and son..."

His smile looked more like a grimace.

All the classics and rituals they studied throughout their lives were ultimately utterly destroyed by these four words.

"Stop talking!"

Chen Xun let out a low shout, his voice hoarse.

The Grand Secretary's face was ashen. He forced himself to remain calm, but his slightly trembling fingertips betrayed the turmoil in his heart.

"Now is not the time for regrets!"

Chen Xun's gaze swept over Wang Wen and finally landed on Yu Qian.

"Mr. Yu, are you... alright?"

Yu Qian's eyes slowly moved, finally finding their focus.

He looked at Chen Xun, his lips moving slightly, his voice weak but clear.

"He won't die."

He struggled to sit up straight.

Seeing this, Wang Wen quickly stepped forward to help him up.

Yu Qian pushed his hand away, propped himself up on the soft couch, and straightened his hunched back inch by inch.

It was as if they wanted to regain the dignity they had lost in the Fengtian Hall today.

"He is not Zhu Qiyu."

Yu Qian spoke, uttering his first words.

It was a bombshell.

Wang Wen and Chen Xun were both startled.

"Mr. Yu, what do you mean...?"

"That cowardly and foolish Prince Cheng could not have come up with such a vicious plan."

A chillingly rational glint flashed in Yu Qian's eyes.

"He doesn't have the guts, nor the cunning."

"His grief-stricken appearance in the palace today was feigned, but the madness he displayed when he cursed Ji Chang and Liu Heng as beasts was genuine."

"He has someone backing him!"

Chen Xun took a deep breath and uttered the name that was about to be uttered: "Emperor Emeritus Zhu Qizhen!"

Wang Wen suddenly looked up:

"It was him! It must have been that deposed emperor who instigated this! The brothers joined forces!"

"Yes!"

Chen Xun slapped his thigh, his eyes flashing with realization and fear.

"What did Zhu Qiyu gain by using his son's death to set a trap? He reinstated Zhu Jianshen as crown prince!"

"The biggest beneficiaries are Zhu Qizhen's lineage!"

"Zhu Qiyu traded a dead son for Zhu Qizhen, a living ally! He deceived us all!"

The air in the sealed room instantly turned cold.

A mad emperor is terrifying enough.

A mad emperor, and a retired emperor who hates him to the core and also yearns for revenge...

What kind of bloodshed will these two brothers unleash when they join forces?

They dare not think.

All they knew was that no matter who ended up sitting on that dragon throne, the three of them who had forced the emperor to abdicate in the palace today and were nailed to the pillar of shame for "disloyalty and injustice" had no chance of survival!

Dead silence.

A prolonged silence.

"Use their plan against them."

After a long silence, Yu Qian's hoarse voice broke the suffocating silence.

Chen Xun and Wang Wen suddenly looked at him.

Yu Qian's lips curled into a sorrowful yet resolute smile.

"Isn't he going to reinstate the Prince of Yi as crown prince?"

"OK."

"Let's go along with his wishes and let Zhu Jianshen become the Crown Prince peacefully and without hardship!"

Wang Wen's breath hitched. He seemed to understand something, and a terrifying glint flashed in his eyes.

Chen Xun also realized what was happening. He looked at Yu Qian, his voice trembling with excitement:

"What Yu Gong means is..."

Yu Qian slowly raised his head, and for the first time, a ruthless and cunning look, typical of a warlord, appeared on his scholarly face.

"The foundation of the nation cannot be unstable for even a day."

"Now, we have a crown prince."

"That mad emperor, and that deposed retired emperor..."

He paused, then spoke each word as if squeezed out from between his teeth.

"What's the point of keeping it?!"

boom!

These words shook the two of them even more than Judy Jun’s roar!

Kill the emperor!

Moreover, it was a simultaneous elimination of both the emperor and the retired emperor!

This is not just treason, this is tantamount to tearing a hole in the sky!

"That's right!"

Wang Wen stood up excitedly, his fists clenched.

"His Majesty has gone mad! For the sake of power, he is willing to frame loyal officials with the death of his own son! How can such a beast be worthy of being a ruler!"

"Zhu Qizhen was utterly incompetent; the defeat at Tumu Fortress was a national disgrace! If he were restored to the throne, the Ming Dynasty would surely perish!"

"Only by supporting the young Crown Prince to ascend the throne, and with our utmost assistance, can we restore order and restore order to the court!"

He found a plausible reason for this heinous crime.

A resolute glint flashed in Chen Xun's eyes. He nodded, his voice low and deep: "This matter must be handled flawlessly. As for Empress Dowager Sun..."

"She will agree."

Yu Qian sneered.

"She wanted those two brothers dead even more than we did."

"An out-of-control emperor and a reinstated crown prince—her power has been undermined, and she is more anxious than we are."

"The foundation of the country has been established..."

Yu Qian looked at the candlelight, and the flame in his pupils transformed into a karmic fire that burned everything away.

"Your Majesty, be damned!"

Nangong.

The night was deep, and the cold wind was like a knife.

Zhu Dijun pushed open the creaking palace door and went inside.

There were no lights in the hall, only a pale sliver of moonlight filtering through the broken windows.

He took off his plain white dragon robe and put on an ordinary blue cloth robe. The look of utter despair and grief on his face had vanished without a trace.

Instead, there is a sharpness like that of a hawk and a bottomless calm.

A figure emerged from the shadows.

It was Zhu Qizhen.

He looked at his "younger brother" with an extremely complex expression.

There was awe, fear, and a hint of barely suppressed fervor.

"It's done."

Zhu Qizhen's voice was somewhat hoarse.

"Um."

Zhu Dijun responded indifferently, walked to the dilapidated table, sat down, and poured himself a cup of cold tea.

"Your Majesty, Yu Qian is spitting blood, Wang Wen is distraught, and Chen Xun is devastated."

Zhu Qizhen repeated the intelligence he had received, word by word.

"The entire court of officials remained silent, as if trembling with fear."

"Your words have broken everyone's spirit."

Zhu Qizhen looked at Zhu Dijun and couldn't help but ask:

"Ji Chang... Liu Heng... are you truly not afraid that all the Confucian scholars in the world will use their pens to pierce you into a sieve?"

Zhu Dijun picked up his teacup, took a sip, and the cold tea slid down his throat.

He smiled.

It was a laugh tinged with endless mockery.

"Good brother, don't you understand yet?"

"The last thing an emperor needs to care about is that group of weak and incompetent scholars."

"A pen holder?"

He slammed the teacup down, making a crisp sound.

"My sword will teach them how to hold a pen."

Zhu Qizhen felt a chill run down his spine.

He realized that he had underestimated the domineering and insane nature of the "madman" in front of him.

"Brother, what should we do next?" Zhu Qizhen suppressed the turmoil in his heart and took the initiative to put himself in the position of "subordinate".

Zhu Dijun did not answer directly.

He turned his head and looked through the broken window toward Renshou Palace and the brightly lit mansions in the capital.

"Tell me, if a chef has prepared all the ingredients and decided on the main course, what will he do next?"

Zhu Qizhen was taken aback, but then he realized what was happening.

"He would... remove the useless ingredients, and then... start cooking."

"That's right."

A cold smile curled at the corners of Zhu Dijun's mouth.

"Seeing the depths, that's the main course."

"And the two of us..."

His gaze lingered on Zhu Qizhen for a moment.

"Those two pieces of 'ingredients' that need to be removed are the ones that are in the way."

A layer of cold sweat instantly seeped out from Zhu Qizhen's back.

He got it.

"Are they... about to make their move?"

"It's not about taking action."

Zhu Dijun corrected,

"They 'have to' take action."

"With the crown prince already established, I, the emperor, have become the biggest obstacle in their eyes. And you, the retired emperor, are a perpetual hidden danger in their hearts."

"If we don't send the two of us down to keep our ancestors company, they won't be able to sleep at night."

Zhu Dijun stood up, walked up to Zhu Qizhen, and patted him on the shoulder.

His movements were very light, but Zhu Qizhen felt that hand was as heavy as Mount Tai.

"So, dear brother."

"Next, it's our turn to prepare an even grander 'feast' for them."

In the darkness, Judy Jun's eyes shone eerily, like two burning will-o'-the-wisps.

"A... execution banquet."