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

Zhu Dijun's cold question has stirred up a tremendous response across countless times and spaces.

"He deserves to die!"

Inside the Oirat army tent, Zhu Qizhen, with his eyes closed, squeezed out these two words through gritted teeth.

He wasn't answering the sky; he was answering himself.

The Hongwu Hall of the Ming Dynasty.

A murderous glint flashed in Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes, and he let out a heavy snort.

"They deserve more than just death!"

"If we had encountered a general like that back then, who controlled the Beijing garrison and harbored rebellious intentions, we would have wiped out his entire family long ago!"

"Keeping him alive is like putting a noose around your own neck!"

In the Yongle Palace of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Di's expression was even colder and more stern.

"Military power is a vital instrument of the state; how can it be handed over to others as a handle?"

"This Shi Heng was already a dead man from the moment he was installed."

"Let's see if our great-nephew has the guts to use this knife against his own people!"

At this moment, the emperors of all realms and timelines reached an unprecedented consensus.

They knew better than anyone else that an uncontrolled warlord posed a far greater threat to imperial power than ten greedy civil officials or a hundred jealous concubines!

In modern live streaming rooms, the barrage of comments explodes.

"Kill! They must kill! Is there even a question?!"

"Holy crap, it just dawned on me! Isn't Shi Heng the Ming Dynasty version of Cao Cao? 'Holding the emperor hostage to command the princes'! Zhu Qizhen just returned, and he already has all the military power of the three major camps in the capital. This emperor is having such a frustrating time!"

"That's right! He can lift you up, and he can pull you down! Today you're the emperor, but if you disobey him tomorrow, he can stage another 'coup' and replace you!"

"I get it! Zhu Qizhen's enemies have changed from the old officials of the Jingtai era to the new nobles who supported him! The difficulty has jumped directly from hard mode to hell mode!"

Above the sky, Zhu Dijun looked at the boiling public opinion and the corners of his mouth slowly turned up.

"Family members, it seems you all know a lot."

"That's right, a 'meritorious official' with a criminal record who now commands a large army is a nightmare that no emperor can tolerate."

"But the question is, how do we kill them?"

Zhu Dijun posed a new question, which instantly silenced the live stream.

"Simply issue an imperial edict accusing him of treason, and then order the Embroidered Uniform Guard to arrest him?"

He shook his head.

"no."

"Shi Heng was the most meritorious official in the 'Seizing the Gate' coup. Zhu Qizhen had just been restored to the throne, and his power base was not yet stable. If he were to take action against a meritorious official without any reason, it would only make the people of the world think that he was an ungrateful, mean-spirited, and heartless monarch, and the people's hearts would be scattered."

"More importantly, his nephew Shi Biao also commands a large army, and the generals of the Beijing garrison are all his cronies. If pushed too far, Shi Heng could easily raise an army and a mutiny could erupt in the capital! At that point, Emperor Zhu Qizhen might not even be able to sit on the throne for a single day!"

Zhu Dijun's words made everyone gasp.

This is a complete dead end!

Killing them would immediately trigger a mutiny.

Not killing is tantamount to handing your life over to someone else.

"Holy crap... how... how do we break this deadlock?"

"This is too difficult! It's even harder than fighting the Oirats! The enemy is right next to us, and they're also our 'saviors'!"

"What exactly is Zhu Qizhen going to do? I'm completely baffled!"

In all the myriad realms and timelines, all eyes were fixed intently on the sky.

They all wanted to know how this emperor, who had returned from hell, would make this fatal move.

Zhu Dijun didn't keep them in suspense. The scene behind him shifted to the first year of the Tianshun reign, showing a scene in the Golden Palace.

"Family members, please enjoy the supreme imperial strategies of Emperor Tianshun."

"His first step was called—'killing with praise'!"

In the scene, Zhu Qizhen, who had just ascended the throne, showed Shi Heng unprecedented favor and trust!

"On the very day he ascended the throne, an imperial edict promoted Marquis Yongqing, Shi Heng, to Duke of Zhongguo!"

"A month later, another imperial edict was issued, promoting Shi Heng's eldest nephew, Shi Biao, to the position of Vice Commander-in-Chief!"

"The bestowed mansions, gold, silver, and beautiful women flowed into the Duke of Zhongguo's residence like a river!"

For a time, Shi Heng and his nephew were unparalleled in their influence and power!

Throughout the entire capital, everyone knows that Duke Zhongguo, Shi Heng, is the most important person under the current emperor!

"??? I don't understand. What kind of move is this? Are they trying to make him die even faster, so they're speeding him up?"

"Is this an attempt to appease him? To reassure him with high-ranking positions and generous salaries, and lower his guard?"

"I have a bad feeling about this... This reward is too much! Too much of a good thing can be bad! There's definitely something fishy going on here!"

Judy Jun looked at the comments and smiled like a fox.

"Family members, do you consider this a favor?"

"No."

"This is a death warrant!"

"Zhu Qizhen did this for only one purpose—to put Shi Heng and his nephew in a very difficult position!"

"Let them become incredibly arrogant and conceited, let them become a thorn in the side of all civil service officials and all established noble families!"

"When everyone starts to envy you, be wary of you, and hate you..."

"You're already all alone!"

"This is the emperor's art of sowing discord! The higher they're lifted, the harder they fall!"

Zhu Dijun's voice made countless people suddenly realize the truth!

high!

That's brilliant!

This is not a favor, it is creating countless enemies for him!

And this is only the first step.

"The second step is to lure the tiger away from the mountain!"

Zhu Dijun's voice suddenly turned sharp.

"In the second month of the first year of the Tianshun reign, news of war came from the border, and an excellent pretext appeared."

Zhu Qizhen immediately issued an edict appointing Shi Biao as a guerrilla general and transferring him to Datong to patrol the border!

"A month later, in March of the first year of the Tianshun reign, another urgent report came from Yansui, Shaanxi, one of the nine important border towns: Commander Li Mao had been killed in battle!"

"Zhu Qizhen was immediately enraged. In the court, he overruled all objections and appointed Duke Zhongguo Shi Heng as the Generalissimo of the Northern Expedition, commanding all troops to go to Yansui to annihilate the enemy!"

"Family members, look!"

Zhu Dijun pointed at the map on the sky, a cold smile curving his lips.

"One Great Harmony, One Yansui."

"A nephew and an uncle."

"Two seemingly ordinary military transfer orders easily drew away the two fierce tigers entrenched in the capital, who held considerable military power, from their lair!"

"This cup of poisoned wine, called 'Grace,' has been happily drunk by Uncle Shi Heng and his nephew!"