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

The tremors of the sky reverberated throughout every time and space.

But for some, this shock is a deep, visceral pain, an unforgettable experience.

In a little-known corner of the Ming Dynasty, during the Jingtai era.

The real Emperor Jingtai, Zhu Qiyu, was staring blankly at the sky.

His face was as pale as paper.

From initial anger and confusion, to later shock and bewilderment, and now... utter shame.

He looked at the "himself" on the sky, how he stirred up storms with a few words.

Looking at that "self," one can see how incisively it points out the deep-seated problems of the Ming Dynasty.

Watching that "self" show how, in order to pave the way for his brother and nephew, he calmly chose a path that would inevitably lead to death.

"A worthy death..."

Zhu Qiyu murmured these four words, a deep self-mockery creeping onto his lips.

He thought of himself.

He recalled how, in order to preserve his throne, he had deposed his nephew Zhu Jianshen from the position of crown prince and replaced him with his own frail and sickly son.

She recalled how she had become suspicious of her brother, and how, together with Sun Ruowei and the civil officials, she had placed him under house arrest in the Southern Palace, keeping a close watch on him day and night.

He recalled how he had struggled between the support and obstruction of civil officials like Yu Qian, leaving him physically and mentally exhausted.

"I... am not as good as him."

After a long while, Zhu Qiyu closed his eyes, and two lines of clear tears slid down from the corners of his eyes.

"I do not have his wisdom, his skill, or his... great perseverance to sacrifice himself for his country."

He lost.

They lost convincingly.

He knew that if he were in that situation tonight, he absolutely could not have done all of this.

He might panic, or he might choose to compromise, but he could never come up with such a groundbreaking, tragic, and resolute way to break the deadlock.

"but……"

Zhu Qiyu suddenly opened his eyes, and a flame he had never seen before ignited in those eyes that had been somewhat dim.

"I... can learn!"

"I, too, will be that kind of executioner!"

……

The Ming Dynasty, the Tianshun Dynasty in a parallel world.

Inside the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Qizhen, who had been restored to the throne and whose temples were now streaked with gray, stared blankly at the sky.

Beside him, beneath the dragon throne, lay a still-warm corpse.

That was his younger brother, Zhu Qiyu.

The deposed emperor Zhu Qiyu, who just passed away from illness.

Zhu Qizhen's gaze shifted back and forth between the spirited and determined "Zhu Qiyu" on the sky and the withered and resentful Zhu Qiyu on the ground.

Same face, same name.

However, they were completely different lives, two different endings.

His heart was filled with mixed feelings.

Regret, guilt, and a hint of... indescribable envy.

in case……

If back then, his younger brother was this "Zhu Qiyu" on the screen.

If back then, the two brothers could have set aside all suspicions and fought side by side, just like in the sky.

How wonderful that would be!

"Qi Yu, oh Qi Yu..."

Zhu Qizhen bent down, looking at the lifeless face on the ground, his voice hoarse.

"Why...aren't you him?"

"If you... had half his magnanimity and decisiveness, how could I... have ended up like this today?"

He reached out, wanting to close his brother's unseeing eyes on the ground.

But his hand trembled violently in mid-air.

"If it were you back then...like you in the sky."

Tears welled up in Zhu Qizhen's eyes.

"I... am willing to go to the southeast, to die for you..."

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

When brothers are of one mind, their strength can break even metal.

Unfortunately, history has no "what ifs".

……

The Ming Dynasty, in a parallel world during the Chenghua era.

Zhu Jianshen, who had already ascended the throne, looked at his uncle in the sky, who was determined to pave the way for his future with his own death. He was already in tears and sobbing uncontrollably.

"uncle……"

"uncle……"

He called out that name over and over again.

His childhood was spent in the shadow of being deposed, monitored, and ostracized.

He harbored resentment towards his uncle who had deposed him from his position as crown prince.

But at this moment, all resentment vanished.

All that remains is endless sorrow and respect.

He remembered the "himself" in the sky, being held in his mother Empress Qian's arms, sleeping peacefully.

Meanwhile, his uncle was plotting a momentous, self-sacrificing act for his future.

"uncle……"

Zhu Jianshen wiped away the tears that he couldn't stop with his sleeve, his voice choked with emotion.

"If my uncle back then had been you..."

"Jian Shen... Jian Shen is willing to be a pawn in your hands!"

"Even if...even if I die in the southeast, I, Jian Shen, will...be willing!"

He knew that the "uncle" in the sky was not just paving the way for his father, Zhu Qizhen.

It is also clearing away the most fundamental obstacles for him, for him, the future emperor of the Ming Dynasty!

This kindness is heavier than Mount Tai!

This sacrifice is truly moving!

At this moment, from Hongwu to Zhengde, from emperors to common people.

Countless commoners were suffocated by the massive gentry class, countless loyal ministers and generals were utterly disillusioned with the government, and countless members of the imperial family and princes longed for the Ming Dynasty to regain its former glory...

As they gazed at the resolute figure against the sky, determined to face death, they all uttered the same sentiment.

"Your Majesty (Prince), please emulate the later portrayal of Emperor Jingtai, Zhu Qiyu, by his descendant Zhu Dijun!"

"We are willing to be the vanguard, even at the cost of our lives!"

Those people whose families were destroyed and whose lives were taken by the rebellion in the southeast knelt down on the ground, kowtowing to the sky with tears of blood.

"Oh, Your Honor!"

"Please come quickly!"

"Come and kill those heartless, treacherous officials and landlords!"

Judy Jun, with an action yet to begin, a prophetic death.

This completely ignited the pent-up resentment that had been building up throughout the Ming Dynasty for nearly a century!