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

Zhu Qiyu's collapse was just the beginning of this storm.

Above the sky, Zhu Dijun's voice, like the most ruthless judge, continued to read the verdict of the Jingtai Dynasty.

"Family members, you may ask, since the national treasury was emptied, where did the massive amounts of money and provisions that Yu Qian used to mobilize troops and reward the army during the defense of Beijing come from?"

That's a very good question.

All eyes were once again focused on the sky.

"The answer is simple, but also more brutal."

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

"When the nation's legal taxes flowed into the private coffers of the civil service, in order to sustain the war and preserve the power they had just seized, they turned their attention to places that should not have been touched."

"They began to investigate the properties of all wealthy households, nobles, and even ordinary merchants, both inside and outside the capital! Under the guise of 'military aid,' they forcibly 'lent' money!"

"They began imposing far heavier taxes on merchant ships along the canal than usual!"

"They even set their sights on the imperial treasury left to their descendants by the founding emperors Taizu and Taizong!"

"In other words, while these corrupt officials enjoy the taxes that should belong to the nation, they make the entire military, civilians, and royal family of the capital pay the price for the war they orchestrated!"

"What a shameless, despicable, and utterly vile act of 'shifting the universe'!"

Zhu Dijun's words were like a poisoned dagger, stripping away the sacred halo of the "Battle of Beijing" completely!

The so-called miraculous turn of events and the so-called national achievement are actually the result of such a sordid exchange of interests and scapegoating!

"Holy shit... I'm totally throwing up... These guys are scum!"

"Taking the country's money and putting it in their own pockets, then forcing the people and the emperor's private funds to wage war? Is this something a human being would do?!"

["Yu Qian's image as a 'loyal minister' has been shattered beyond repair! He wasn't protecting the Ming Dynasty at all; he was protecting his own bureaucratic system where corruption was rampant!"]

"This is outrageous! Outrageous! This is even more outrageous than outright rebellion! Rebellion is robbery, this is theft! And they steal with righteous indignation, reaping both fame and fortune!"

"Now I finally understand why Zhu Qizhen killed Yu Qian after he returned! If he hadn't killed him, where would justice lie!"

The chat room was completely flooded with anger.

People finally understood the disgusting truth hidden behind that distorted history.

Inside the Oirat army camp in the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Qizhen listened quietly, his weathered face expressionless.

However, the knuckles of his hand, which was gripping the water pouch, had turned deathly pale from excessive force.

He once thought that Yu Qian and his ilk simply didn't want him to go back and settle scores with them, and that this was a different way of preserving the Zhu family's empire.

Now he understands.

They are not defending the Ming Dynasty.

They are dividing up his inheritance!

They used his failure to gain the capital to rise to power.

They traded their humiliation for the freedom to engage in corruption.

They hailed his brother merely to create a more obedient puppet, a symbol to endorse their sordid deeds!

A chilling current, a mixture of betrayal, humiliation, and endless hatred, shot from the soles of Zhu Qizhen's feet straight to the top of his head.

He closed his eyes, and only two words remained in his mind.

Liquidation!

A liquidation is necessary!

When he gets back, he will definitely burn these parasites that are eating away at the empire, along with the sinful web behind them, to ashes!

"Besides the financial black hole, there was also the reduction of the power of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot, the abolition of the reinstated [Jianjiao] position in the Six Ministries, and the restoration of the recommendation system."

"Now, family, let's go back to the question we started with."

"After Zhu Qizhen was restored to the throne, why did he abolish Zhu Qiyu's imperial title and bestow upon him the posthumous title 'Li'?"

"Because, in Zhu Qizhen's view, Zhu Qiyu's entire rule was illegitimate, built on betrayal and theft!"

"He wasn't a real emperor; he was just a mascot pushed to the forefront by the 'League of Monarchists'!"

"His so-called 'Jingtai Prosperity' was a false prosperity built on an empty treasury and rampant corruption among powerful officials! It was an era that sacrificed the very foundation of the nation to satisfy the selfish desires of a select few bureaucrats!"

"Therefore, what Zhu Qizhen needed to do was not just to reclaim the throne."

"He wants to completely negate the legitimacy of Zhu Qiyu's seven-year reign from a legal standpoint!"

"Removing him from the ranks of emperors, downgrading his mausoleum from an imperial tomb to a prince's tomb, and bestowing upon him the derogatory posthumous title of 'violent'—all of this is a final political reckoning!"

"This is not a personal grudge between brothers."

"This is the most thorough and resolute declaration of revenge issued by a betrayed emperor against a group of usurpers!"

"The word '戾' (li) is not just a criticism of Zhu Qiyu's incompetence and muddle-headedness."

"It's condemning the greed and shamelessness of people like Chen Xun and Yu Qian!"

"It's a denunciation of the entire Jingtai reign, of all those hypocrites who, under the guise of 'protecting the nation,' were actually engaging in 'usurping the country for personal enrichment'!"

Zhu Dijun's words were resounding, like thunder, echoing throughout every time and space.

The truth has now come to light!

The tenth year of the Hongzhi reign of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Youcheng let out a long sigh, his face full of exhaustion and sorrow.

He finally understood.

That's not a stain.

That was the most helpless yet fierce counterattack his great-grandfather could make after returning from hell.

Looking at the refined and gentle civil officials in the prince's court, he felt only the coldness and vigilance befitting an emperor.

The fifth year of the Zhengde reign of the Ming Dynasty.

Inside the Leopard Chamber, Zhu Houzhao smashed the wine cup in his hand with a "crack".

"Good! What a 'violent' word! Well said!"

His face wore a morbid excitement.

"These bastards deserve to be punished like this!"

He looked at Liu Jin, his eyes revealing a murderous intent:

"Issue the imperial decree! Have the Embroidered Uniform Guard keep a close eye on those officials who dare to dictate the truth! Anyone who dares to invoke ancestral rules again, anyone who dares to plead poverty to me, investigate where their money comes from!"

Meanwhile, in the live stream room on Tianmu, Zhu Dijun watched the boiling barrage of comments and slowly ended today's live stream.

"Alright, family."

"Now that we know just how rotten Zhu Qiyu's court has become."

"Then next time, let's turn our attention to Zhu Qizhen, who has been reinstated after the coup of 1894."