Wei Zhongxian, once known as Li Jinzhong, had castrated himself with a knife to abandon his gambling habit, and later joined the palace as a eunuch, learning the subtler arts of ingratiation. He chose to align… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Ye Mengxiong watched keenly as the court finally agreed to a formal inquiry into Yang Yinglong's conduct, his relentless pleas having frayed tempers in the capital and brought about the investigation. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJHGP4ZB #MingDynasty

Pang Bao and Liu Cheng served in Consort Zheng's household, attending her daily, their close relationship sparking suspicion as the scandal unfolded night after night at the imperial court. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Wei Zhongxian walked in on the emperor, bent over his woodworking planing a board, sweating through his neck, bare-chested and wiping his brow with the back of his hand. At that instant, he unloaded his list… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Zhu Youxiao ascended the throne abruptly, thrust into rulership with scant education and little grounding in scholarship, his formal installation as crown prince having been postponed indefinitely. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Deng Zilong threw caution to the wind, riding out at the head of his men as cannon fire thundered across the sea, before the Japanese could close, they had already lost over a hundred vessels. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJHGP4ZB #MingDynasty

Zhu Changluo ascended the throne on the 21st day of the seventh month, 1620, and declared the era name would be changed to Taichang. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Zhu Changluo sat at his desk, quill poised, as he pondered his father's dying wish to elevate Consort Zheng to empress, amidst the tumult of palace politics in early August. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Li Ruzhen hastily assembled his troops, racing towards Tieling as the Later Jin army began its formal assault on the 25th of July, 1619, his decision made more urgent by the commander's urgent report. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Cui Zhousong, the Wanli Emperor, dug in his heels, refusing to appoint the eldest imperial son as crown prince, despite mounting pressure from his mother, Empress Dowager Li, and the court. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Ukita Hideie summoned captains to devise a response to the Ming's presence, warning that abandoning Hanseong without a fight would bring shame. He argued that even in retreat, they must offer battle, and… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJHGP4ZB #MingDynasty

Fu Zong, the crown prince, was lodged in Ciqing Palace, where a lone figure slipped in, just after dusk in May, and attacked the old gate eunuch with a jujube wood club before forcing his way into the prince's… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Nurhaci pressed the point, emphasizing that the marriage was an honor no amount of money could buy, and Li Yongfang would be counted among the Khans kin, wrapped in glory and riding a current of wealth and… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Wang Zhicai hit on a trick: tempt him with food. You're from Jizhou, he said, where the poor scrape by on coarse grain, when have you ever tasted real delicacies? If you tell the truth, you'll get to feast at… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Ma Lin commanded the secondary main force, over twenty thousand men, with the backing of the Yehe clan. He split his army into three camps, adopting a tight, defensive posture, arrayed like the Chinese… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Du Song steeled himself and led his troops into a bold charge, swords and pikes clashing as the two sides locked into a deadlocked struggle at the high, jagged outcrop by Jilin. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Seonjo waited anxiously at Yizhou on the Yalu's banks, clinging to hope for Ming reinforcements, as the court debated his fate in Beijing, with the Wanli Emperor's unexpected return sparking a heated argument… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJHGP4ZB #MingDynasty

Du Song led his troops, his face hardened, as he waded into the shallow Hun River, despite the cries of alarm from his men. He spurred his men on, pushing forward with a portion of his cavalry, leaving the… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty

Liu Ting marched with 30,000 men from Qijiang, his father's military reputation preceding him, as the Ming forces converged on Bozhou in the early spring of 1600 AD. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJHGP4ZB #MingDynasty

Du Song led the northern column through Shanhaiguan, his force of thirty thousand men forming the core strength of the attacking army, as Commander Ma Lin brought reinforcements from Shandong and Hebei, while… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FT1QBD7N #MingDynasty