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

Meanwhile, in a modern live streaming room.

In the AI-simulated live stream room, the barrage of comments flooded the screen like a burst dam.

"He's dead! He's finally dead!!"

"Awesome! This is fucking awesome! I've been waiting for this day for six hundred years!"

"Yu Qian! Chen Xun! Wang Wen! Look at what happened to you! History books praise you to the skies, calling you 'ministers of the state' and 'meritorious officials who made crucial decisions'—bah! A bunch of sanctimonious, self-serving rats!"

"Hey bro upstairs, don't get agitated, or you'll get attacked by Yu's fans! They'll say you're distorting the truth and slandering loyal officials!"

"A loyal and virtuous official? A Minister of War who, after the Tumu Crisis, didn't think about how to rebuild the military, but instead rushed to install a new emperor so that he could rise to power? A Grand Secretary who, under the banner of the 'Defense of Beiping,' took the opportunity to replace the entire court with his own southern faction? Is this what you call a loyal and virtuous official? This is a traitor!"

"When I read history before, I always thought the Jingtai reign was chaotic and corrupt, and that Zhu Qiyu was cruel and ungrateful. Now, after watching with Brother Jun, I realize where the root of the problem lies! The entire court was hollowed out by these Jiangnan gentry!"

The bloody scene at the execution ground in the West Market was broadcast live without any cuts to the eyes of all viewers. The towering blood did not cause discomfort; instead, it ignited a pent-up anger in the hearts of countless people.

This is to set the record straight on to the truth of a distorted history.

This is the ultimate judgment on the whitewashed "loyal ministers".

When Zhu Qizhen said, "I will continue to use the reign title 'Jingtai'", the emotions in the entire live broadcast room reached their peak.

"I cried...I really cried! The God of War of Tumu Fortress has finally grown up!"

"That's true brotherhood! The reason he didn't change his ways is to declare to the whole world that he acknowledges everything about the Jingtai Dynasty and the legitimacy of all his brother's ruthless methods! In this way, he gave his brother, who is about to embark on a distant expedition, the greatest support!"

Zhu Qizhen: "Brother, go ahead and chop people down. I'll sharpen your knife and hand it to you from behind!"

"I'm so envious, so incredibly envious. Look at their brotherly love, and then look at my younger brother who only ever tries to steal the remote from me..."

"Stop talking, I'll go and give my brother half of the hidden stash of money right now..."

Amidst the frenzy of the barrage of comments, the perspective of the sky had already followed that black torrent of iron, leaving behind the capital city where the stench of blood had not yet dissipated.

……

The army marched off, sweeping away the remaining clouds in a whirlwind.

Tens of thousands of soldiers from the Beijing garrison were divided into two routes.

The main force consisted of infantry, carrying a large amount of siege equipment and supplies. They boarded thousands of grain transport ships that had been waiting in Tongzhou and sailed south along the Grand Canal in a grand procession. The black banners with the character "朱" (Zhu) in gold on a black background fluttered in the wind at the bows of the ships, obscuring the sky.

The other route was led by Zhu Dijun himself, with 30,000 elite cavalrymen, each riding two horses, who, like a black lightning bolt, tore through the silent winter of the North China Plain along the official road.

The horses' hooves thundered as they pounded the cold, hard earth. The biting wind, sharp as a knife, stung the faces of every soldier, yet it could not dispel the fanaticism and greed in their eyes.

They are hungry wolves.

The destination they were heading towards was Jiangnan, the most fertile and prosperous pasture in the entire Ming Dynasty.

The team did not rest for a moment, except for necessary watering and rotation of horses, and traveled almost day and night.

Wearing a black cloak, Zhu Dijun rode a magnificent black horse, leading the charge at the forefront of the army alongside the most elite scout battalion.

There was not a trace of fatigue on his face. His eyes remained calmly fixed on the distant south, as if they had pierced through layers of space and seen the raging waves that were about to rise there.

"Report—"

A messenger with a command flag on his back rushed from behind, his voice sounding somewhat hoarse in the wind.

"Your Majesty! General Shi and Chief Steward Cao request your instructions: the army has been marching at full speed for two days. Should we set up camp for rest?"

Zhu Dijun didn't turn around, but simply uttered two words.

"No need."

His voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached the ears of every guard behind him.

"Pass down the order: the entire army shall continue to accelerate."

"Tell Shi Heng and Cao Jixiang that our enemies are not the garrison soldiers of Jiangnan, nor the servants kept by those gentry."

Zhu Dijun reined in his warhorse, slowly turned around, and glanced at the generals who also looked puzzled.

Our enemy is time.

He took a map from his pocket and unfolded it on horseback.

"From the capital to Yangzhou, a carrier pigeon can arrive in a day. But our cavalry will take at least five days."

"In other words, by last night at the latest, the news that Yu Qian, Chen Xun, and others had been executed along with their entire families in the capital had already been placed on the desks of all the top gentry in Jiangnan."

Upon hearing this, all the generals around him turned pale.

They were only thinking about making a name for themselves and getting a share of the pie in Jiangnan, but they overlooked this most fatal problem.

The other party already knows!

Shi Heng rode up and caught up, his bloodthirsty excitement replaced by a hint of solemnity.

"Your Majesty, then... then haven't they already made preparations? What if they moved their gold and silver treasures in advance, or... or joined forces to defend the city..."

"They will."

Zhu Dijun's answer was frighteningly calm.

"Transferring wealth, making connections, and keeping a watchful eye on things... these are all things they will inevitably do."

His finger traced a path down the map from the capital city, finally landing heavily on a single point.

Yangzhou.

"This is the throat of the canal, the lifeline of the north-south grain transport, and the only way for the wealth of Jiangsu and Zhejiang to enter the capital."

Judy Jun raised her head, looked around at the crowd, and spoke in a cold and resolute voice.

"I'll give you three days."

"Within three days, the vanguard must reach the walls of Yangzhou! Not just besiege the city, but completely cut off all land and water routes connecting Yangzhou to the outside world!"

"I will ensure that not a single ship's worth of grain or a single tael of silver leaves the Jiangnan region!"

Shi Heng gasped.

A three-day, nearly 1,000-mile march—this was an almost impossible task!

"As for the wealth they hid..."

A sinister smile curled at the corners of Judy Jun's mouth, a smile that sent chills down the spines of all the generals present.

"Let them hide."

"I am not here to confiscate property and conduct accounting."

"Land, salt permits, mines, shops, shipping... what I want are the very foundation upon which they depend for survival!"

"As for the gold and silver, they are merely fruits growing on the roots. If the roots are severed, where can the fruits go?"

He paused, then spoke to the pack of hungry wolves in an almost seductive voice:

"Once we take over the land and these properties, they will eventually be begging you to take all the gold and silver they've hidden away, just to get a bite to eat to survive."

"And you," he said, his gaze sweeping over each person, "will become the new masters of Jiangnan."

boom!

It was as if a thunderclap exploded in the minds of all the generals.

They finally understood.

This retired emperor's appetite was far greater than they had imagined! Great enough... to swallow up the entire Jiangnan region!

This was not a punitive looting.

This is a war from beginning to end, a war in which one class replaces another!

"This humble general... obeys!"

Shi Heng was the first to react. He dismounted, knelt on one knee, and his voice trembled with extreme excitement.

"This humble general is willing to serve as the Emperor Emeritus and vows to take Yangzhou at the cost of my life!"

"We vow to take Yangzhou at all costs!"

The other generals also dismounted, and their frenzied shouts formed a terrifying torrent across the wilderness.

Zhu Dijun nodded in satisfaction.

He turned his gaze back to the south, where the winds of change were blowing.

The first high-stakes gamble with Jiangnan has begun.

On either side of the gambling table were him and the entire Jiangnan gentry group.

And his first bet was speed.