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

On the big screen, the silver mine in Yunnan, which had been divided up by civil officials and military leaders, turned into a glaring blood red.

Zhu Dijun sat upright in front of the camera, a cold, extremely mocking smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Family members, 273 officials involved in the case."

"This kind of systemic corruption would be a fatal problem for any emperor."

"Kill them? The law doesn't punish everyone, and it could very well incite local rebellion."

"If we don't kill them, the emperor's prestige will be completely destroyed, and the national treasury's money will be wasted."

Zhu Dijun tapped a key on the keyboard.

In the center of the screen, a portrait of an old minister wearing a crimson official robe and with an upright expression popped up.

"Just as Emperor Wuzong was holding Cui An's crucial memorial and coldly observing it from the sidelines in the Leopard Chamber."

"The civil service group in the outer court has finally become restless."

"The Minister of Revenue at that time was named Gu Zuo."

"He had just succeeded Han Wen, the former Minister of Revenue who had been ousted, in the first year of the Zhengde reign. He was considered the God of Wealth of the Ming Dynasty at that time, and also one of the core leaders of the civil official group."

"Gu Zuo stepped forward."

"On behalf of the Ministry of Revenue, the Grand Secretariat, and the entire outer court of the Ming Dynasty, he submitted an extremely 'profoundly righteous' and extremely 'maturely strategizing' memorial to the fifteen-year-old Emperor Wuzong!"

Zhu Dijun deliberately emphasized the phrase "deeply understanding righteousness," conveying a strong sense of sarcasm.

On the screen, Gu Zuo's memorial was enlarged word by word.

"That's what Minister Gu said."

"Your Majesty, the case concerning the embezzlement of mining taxes in Yunnan involves a wide range of people. It involves not only local officials but also the local military garrisons."

"The southwestern border region is in a turbulent time. If the imperial court rashly issues an order for mass arrests, it may be too forceful and incite local mutinies and rebellions, shaking the very foundation of the Ming Dynasty!"

Upon hearing this, the civil officials from all the worlds nodded in agreement.

That's what you call being a wise and experienced strategist.

The law does not punish the masses, and stability overrides everything.

But Zhu Dijun's next sentence ripped this fig leaf to shreds.

"Therefore, Gu Zuo came up with an extremely ingenious solution that was extremely considerate of the emperor."

He said: "[Your Majesty, I believe that the old scores from before the sixteenth year of the Hongzhi reign are too long ago to be clearly clarified. It would be better to simply show Your Majesty's boundless grace and not pursue the matter further.]"

"The imperial court only needs to issue an edict to severely investigate the embezzled funds from the sixteenth year of the Hongzhi reign to the second year of the Zhengde reign. In this way, it will both demonstrate the emperor's grace, punish corruption, and ensure that the overall situation in Yunnan remains stable!"

The live stream went silent for a second.

Then, Judy burst into deafening laughter.

"Hahahahaha!"

"Incredible! Absolutely incredible!"

"Family members, did you understand this old fox's tactics?"

"He spoke with great passion, all for the sake of the Ming Dynasty and the peace of the borders. But what was the reality?"

Zhu Dijun abruptly stopped smiling, his eyes turning as cold and sharp as knives.

"This is treating the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty like he's an idiot!"

"They're treating the emperor like a great victim!"

"We just reviewed what the local officials did when Emperor Wuzong sent Wei Xing to Huguang to audit the accounts."

"Hundreds of government offices were set ablaze simultaneously, creating a fiery inferno!"

"A deficit of 68,000 taels has now been uncovered in Yunnan, spanning a full fourteen years!"

Gu Zuo jumped out and said: "We will not investigate anything before the sixteenth year of the Hongzhi reign, only the last two years."

Zhu Dijun slammed his fist heavily on the table.

"If Emperor Wuzong really compromises and agrees to this plan."

"Believe it or not, by tomorrow morning, those corrupt officials in Yunnan will have their accounts perfectly made!"

"They would tell the emperor with utter innocence: 'Your Majesty, we have been honest and upright officials these past few years, and we haven't embezzled much at all. That deficit of over 60,000 taels is all old debt from before the sixteenth year of the Hongzhi reign!'"

"Since the imperial court has said that past debts will not be pursued, we only need to scrape together a few thousand taels of silver to repay the national treasury, and that will settle the matter!"

Zhu Dijun pointed at the screen.

"Fourteen years of shocking corruption, fourteen years of extortion."

"With a single, casual remark, Gu Zuo essentially granted these 273 corrupt officials a legal 'get-out-of-jail-free card,' or even a 'certificate of laundering their ill-gotten gains'!"

"They used the emperor's money to enrich their own families, and in the end, they even gave the emperor a false reputation for being 'benevolent'."

"These guys are really scheming; I'll hear them even in 2026!"

The barrage comments in modern live streaming rooms exploded after this meticulous dissection of financial interests.

Netizens were both angry and amused by this blatant shamelessness.

"Holy crap!!! That's way too shady!"

"What the hell? They're only investigating for two years! Isn't this a classic case of money laundering through bankruptcy reorganization?"

"They packaged all the bad assets into years where they wouldn't be held accountable, then restructured the debt at an extremely low price. If those Ming Dynasty officials were to travel to the modern era, Wall Street capitalists would have to shine their shoes!"

"They embezzled for 14 years, but then told the emperor they'd only repay two years' worth of ill-gotten gains. And how much they could actually repay in those two years was entirely up to them!"

["Zhu Houzhao: Do ​​I look like that idiot who got completely fooled by you guys at the beginning?"]

"These guys really treat the imperial court like their own personal ATM, they don't even bother to pretend!"

The era of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty.

The temperature inside the Fengtian Hall plummeted to freezing amidst the intense, boiling rage.

That was Zhu Yuanzhang unleashing his killing intent without reservation.

"Good, very good."

Zhu Yuanzhang's voice was deep and hoarse, like a fierce tiger ready to devour its prey.

He kicked over the heavy golden nanmu imperial desk in front of him.

Inkstones and memorials were scattered all over the ground.

"Our rule is that anyone who embezzles sixty taels of silver will be skinned alive and stuffed with straw."

"They embezzled for fourteen years, amassing nearly 70,000 taels of silver!"

"Now someone jumps out and says, 'Let's not pursue the past, just give us some money to settle this score,' and that's it?"

"Fear of inciting a popular uprising? Is the law lenient towards the masses?"

Zhu Yuanzhang strode down the imperial steps, drew the embroidered spring knife from the guard's waist, and cleaved the wooden railing in front of the palace gate in one stroke.

Wood chips flew everywhere.

"If all officials in the land acted like this, would the Ming Dynasty still exist?"

"To hell with the law not punishing everyone!"

"Anyone who dares to mention such a memorial about protecting corrupt officials in front of us, we'll wipe out their entire family!"

"Mao Xiang!"

"Your subject is here!"

"Send word to the Yunnan garrison commander! Arrest all 273 bastards! If the garrison dares to rebel, slaughter the entire garrison!"

"Our Zhu family would rather turn this southwestern border into a wasteland than allow these parasites to leech blood off the bones of the Ming Dynasty!"

At this moment, Zhu Biao stepped forward, somewhat embarrassed, and said:

"Father, that was the Zhengde reign of later generations, not the Hongwu reign of today."

Suddenly, Zhu Yuanzhang was speechless, completely overwhelmed with anger, forgetting that this was the Zhengde reign of later generations, not the Hongwu reign of today.

The Yongle Era of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Di sat on the dragon throne, looking down at the trembling civil officials with a mocking expression.

He shook his head and let out a cold laugh.

"Gu Zuo?"

"Truly worthy of being the Minister of Revenue, handpicked by your civil service group."

"His skill in smoothing things over and protecting his colleagues is truly masterful."

"You think you can just erase a fourteen-year-old debt with a simple 'it's been too long to clarify'?"

Zhu Di stood up, the Emperor's sword dragging on the gold bricks with a harsh scraping sound.

"Do you really think the emperor's sword is only meant to kill ordinary people?"

"Issue an imperial decree! Order Ji Gang to clear out the imperial prison for me!"

"If I ever find anyone daring to present such a memorial to me again, I will not punish them. I will throw their entire family into a furnace filled with silver, so that they will be burdened with those old, untraceable debts for all eternity!"

The Hongzhi Era of the Ming Dynasty.

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Emperor Xiaozong of Ming, Zhu Youcheng, who had always touted his benevolence, was now slumped on his dragon bed.

His eyes lost focus.

"Fourteen years... all of it was embezzled during my reign."

"What I leave to Houzhao is not some kind of revival of the nation."

"It's a mess riddled with holes, devoured by these beasts."

Zhu Youcheng let out a bitter laugh.

He finally understood why his descendants, such as Judi Jun, so despised him as a "wise ruler."

His proud courtiers were using the most insidious rhetoric to deceive his fifteen-year-old son.

The era of the Zhengde reign of the Ming Dynasty.

The Leopard Chamber Hall.

Zhu Houzhao looked at the memorial belonging to Gu Zuo on the sky.

He didn't yell or shout angrily.

On the contrary, the fifteen-year-old emperor curled his lips into a chillingly arrogant smile.

"Alright, Gu Zuo, right? The Minister of Revenue, right?"

Zhu Houzhao casually picked up a document from the Ministry of War and threw it into the charcoal brazier.

The firelight illuminated his defiant face.

"Liu Jin".

"This servant is here."

"Bring out Cui An's memorial, which the cabinet has been suppressing, for me by force."

Zhu Houzhao turned his head and looked towards the distant southwest.

"Didn't they say they couldn't investigate further, for fear of inciting a popular uprising?"

"Aren't they trying to make a fool of me?"

"Then I'll show them who truly rules the Ming Dynasty!"

Zhu Houzhao drew the knife from his waist and slammed it onto the general's desk.

"Send an order to the Eastern Depot and the Inner Depot!"

"There's no need to go through the Ministry of Justice's official channels anymore."

"Dispatch the best of the Eight Tigers, along with the most elite Imperial Guards, and send them day and night straight to Yunnan!"

"Those 273 people, I don't want them alive, I want their heads to roll!"

"Those who dare to steal my money, I will make them pay with their lives, with interest!"