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

This is the most incisive and hurtful statement ever made!

When Zhu Dijun tore open the massive web of conspiracy that spanned several years and involved the imperial court and harem, bloodily revealing it to everyone, the myriad worlds and timelines were plunged into unprecedented terror!

This is not a battle of swords and shadows.

This is the most extreme and cold-blooded calculation, using time as a knife, kinship as bait, and human relationships as a trap!

The chat in the [Modern Live Room] has gone completely crazy!

"Holy crap... my scalp is tingling! Is this some kind of plan even a human could come up with?"

"Empress Dowager Zhou was Zhu Jianshen's biological mother! Why would she do this? Just for the power of her maternal family? Even a tiger wouldn't eat its own cubs!"

"The person upstairs is too naive! In the face of power, what does family ties matter! Isn't Zhu Jianshen her own son? She still watched him be imprisoned in Nangong for seven years!"

"I get it! It's a perfect closed loop! They first killed the son born to the emperor's favorite concubine, driving the emperor to despair, and then presented him with a son they had 'raised' themselves. Everything about this new crown prince, from his identity to his thoughts, was under their control! It's terrifying!"

"Now I think Consort Wan was the most tragic! Her son, whom she risked her life to give birth to, died young, and she was smeared by posterity for centuries, called a poisonous woman! In the end, the real culprits were actually the Empress and the Empress Dowager!"

"I feel sorry for Emperor Xianzong for a second... no, for ten thousand seconds! The court was full of wolves, and the harem was full of tigers and leopards. How did he manage to survive his entire life?"

In the ancient setting, the audience's sympathy and anger transformed into a chilling sense of dread and murderous intent.

Xuande Time and Space.

Zhu Zhanji slumped in his chair, panting heavily.

He thought of his mother, Empress Dowager Zhang.

Although Empress Zhang had interfered in court affairs, she never intended to use this method to control her descendants!

Then look at your daughter-in-law, Zhou!

"A wicked woman! A wicked woman!"

He pointed at the sky, trembling with anger.

"How could Qi Zhen have married such a vicious woman?!"

He finally understood why his grandson, Zhu Jianshen, had become so cold and ruthless.

What else could a child who has lived in such vicious scheming since childhood have in his world but darkness?

The Hongwu Era.

Zhu Yuanzhang was so angry that he couldn't speak.

He just stared intently at his son, Crown Prince Zhu Biao.

"Biao'er, listen up!"

Old Zhu's voice was hoarse, yet carried an undeniable authority.

"In the future, if our Zhu family emperors encounter such interference in politics by the empress dowager, attempting to manipulate the crown prince..."

"No need for further explanation!"

"Directly imitate the old system of the Northern Wei Dynasty!"

"Zigui's mother is dead!"

"The day the crown prince is established will be the day his birth mother... is forced to commit suicide!"

"Our Zhu family's empire will never be allowed to be used as a stepping stone for any woman to become her maternal relative!"

"Zigui's mother is dead!"

These four words were like a curse, causing the temperature in the entire hall to drop to freezing point!

Empress Ma's face turned deathly pale, but when she looked into Zhu Yuanzhang's bloodshot eyes, she ultimately chose to remain silent.

She knew that the woman named Zhou on the sky, as well as Sun Ruowei and Zhang, the fourth son's daughter-in-law, had all done this. This had completely touched the most sensitive and cruel string in her husband's heart!

The Chenghua Era.

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Wan Zhen'er held Zhu Jianshen tightly. She could feel that the man in her arms was not trembling, not angry, and even his heartbeat was frighteningly steady.

He simply gazed quietly at the sky, at the woman he called "mother," and at the woman he called "wife."

His eyes were as empty as a bottomless ancient well.

All emotions, all love and hate, seemed to be completely drained away the moment the truth was revealed.

Only... utter silence remained.

However, Wan Zhen'er knew that beneath this deathly silence lay a volcano about to erupt, powerful enough to destroy everything!

"Family members, you might ask, isn't this plan flawed?"

Above the sky, Zhu Dijun's voice rang out again, pulling everyone's thoughts back.

"Of course."

"The biggest flaw was that they underestimated one person."

"Emperor Xianzong of Ming, Zhu Jianshen!"

"They thought that Zhu Jianshen, who had experienced the pain of losing his son and then regained another son, would be grateful and would take great care of this hard-won heir. He would also listen to them, these 'meritorious ministers'."

"But they forgot."

"The emperor before us is a ruthless character who, within a month, deposed the empress, executed the emperor's father-in-law, and demoted a senior eunuch!"

"He was a ruthless monarch who, for the sake of peace on the frontier, ordered the 'Chenghua Purge of the Court,' wiping out an entire ethnic group!"

"Moreover, he is a vengeful person who has been tormented by them in the cold palace for over a decade, leaving only hatred in his heart!"

The scene depicts the moment when Zhu Jianshen made Zhu Youcheng the crown prince.

He did not show the ecstasy recorded in the History of Ming.

He simply looked calmly at the six-year-old child, noticing the caution and aloofness in his eyes that were beyond his years.

Then, he slowly shifted his gaze to his mother, Empress Dowager Zhou, who was standing behind the child.

And his own empress, Lady Wang.

Their faces held just the right amount of satisfaction and affection.

But in Zhu Jianshen's eyes, those two faces slowly overlapped with the nightmares that haunted him countless nights.

Those were the faces of his father's enemies, Shi Heng and Cao Jixiang!

They are the same!

It's all hypocrisy! It's all scheming! They're all enemies trying to kill him!

"Therefore, Zhu Jianshen made a decision that surprised everyone."

"Whom did he entrust to raise Crown Prince Zhu Youcheng?"

Zhu Dijun paused, then spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Wan! Zhen! Er!"

"He handed over the 'future puppet' painstakingly prepared by the civil service and Empress Dowager Zhou directly to their 'number one enemy,' Consort Wan, whom they had slandered as a 'venomous viper'!"

This move was earth-shattering!

Cut off the fuel supply at the root!

Everyone was stunned!

This was practically a slap in the face to Empress Dowager Zhou and Empress Wang right in front of everyone!

Didn't you want to control the Crown Prince?

Ok.

I'll make him spend every day with the person you hate the most!

I'll make him call your mortal enemy "Mother"!

"This is the emperor's counterattack!"

"Subtle and understated, yet utterly devastating!"

"From that moment on, Zhu Jianshen understood that to break the deadlock, to protect this child, and to prevent him from becoming a second version of himself, he had to establish a power that completely transcended the court and the harem, a power that belonged only to him!"

"One that can help him monitor the world and eliminate all his enemies..."

"A secret service agency!"

Zhu Dijun's voice suddenly rose in pitch, and the scene abruptly changed!

A eunuch dressed in a flying fish robe, with a delicate face but sharp, piercing eyes, appeared in the center of the sky!

Behind him were countless guards dressed in the same attire, wielding curved swords!

Their flag was embroidered with a ferocious "West" character!

"In the thirteenth year of the Chenghua reign, a major case involving a 'fox demon' occurred in the capital, causing widespread panic."

The Emperor issued an edict citing "the Eastern Depot's ineffective performance" as the reason!

"In addition to the Eastern Depot, a Western Investigation Depot will be established!"

"Wang Zhi, a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial, is appointed as the commander!"

"Their power surpasses that of the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard!"

"High-ranking officials can be arrested arbitrarily without prior notification, and torture can be inflicted directly without the approval of the three judicial departments!"

"Act first, report later!"

"By imperial permission!"

"Family members!"

Zhu Dijun's voice carried a release that had been suppressed for a long time!

"That sword hanging over the heads of all conspirators!"

"That man who struck fear into the hearts of the entire court!"

"The most powerful secret service team in the Ming Dynasty, the head of the Western Depot—"

"Wang Zhi!"

"They've made their appearance!"

The Chenghua Era.

Inside the deathly silent Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Jianshen slowly, very slowly, opened his eyes.

Light rekindled in those empty eyes.

That was the light of revenge.

He turned his head and looked at Wan Zhen'er, who had been by his side the whole time, and then at the thin crown prince in the distance, who was being taught to read by a palace maid.

A smile finally appeared on his face.

That smile was so gentle it broke your heart.

Yet, it was so cold it sent shivers down your spine.

He called softly towards the door.

"Wang Zhi".

A figure appeared silently outside the palace gate, like a ghost, and knelt on the ground.

"This servant is here."

Zhu Jianshen's voice was very soft and gentle, as if he were talking about a trivial matter.

"My mother seems to have taken a liking to playing with fire lately."

"My empress seems to have a particular fondness for water."

"you go."

"Make the arrangements."