Tecendo a Luz
No décimo primeiro ano do reinado de Chongzhen, o Império Ming foi assolado por desastres naturais frequentes, deixando milhares de quilômetros de terra árida e o povo disperso. Nesse mesmo ano, grandes bandoleiros como “Oitavo Grande Rei” Zhang Xianzhong e “Cao Cao” Luo Rucai renderam-se um após o outro; o “Rei Rebelde” Li Zicheng foi derrotado em Tongguan, restando-lhe apenas dezoito cavaleiros, com os quais fugiu para as montanhas de Shangluo. O cenário parecia extremamente favorável e a dinastia Ming parecia ter alcançado uma nova oportunidade de recuperação e renascimento. No entanto, em setembro desse ano, tropas Qing invadiram a região da capital Ming, e o imperador Chongzhen ordenou que Lu Xiangsheng comandasse as tropas de várias regiões para resistir aos tártaros. Qual será o destino da dinastia Ming?
Tecendo a Luz
On the evening of the second day of the tenth month in the eleventh year of the Chongzhen era of the Great Ming Dynasty, a convoy of more than forty fine horses galloped swiftly along the official road from Xuanfu toward Juyong Pass. Mounted on these horses were over twenty fierce riders, each appearing as if riding double, clad uniformly in long armored coats. Their armor featured iron sleeves and was broad and imposing, yet concealed plates lay beneath the dark armor, its surface studded with large copper rivets.
Each rider’s saddle was outfitted with heavy weapons such as thick-backed sabers or iron clubs, and slung across their backs were double quivers filled with strong bows. Additionally, every man bore a matchlock firearm, carefully wrapped in gun covers, yet their exquisite design suggested they were high-quality Rumichu muskets.
Leading the group was a lone rider, spurring his horse ahead. Though appearing to be just over twenty years old, his features were refined and handsome, dressed unmistakably as an officer of the Ming army. Mounted on his horse, he looked especially heroic and imposing.
He wore a front-closing chainmail shirt, an iron-tasselled helmet, and a thick woolen cloak draped over his shoulders. A Kaiyuan bow and quiver hung diagonally at his sides. On the victory hook attached to the right side of his saddle dangled a hooked-blade club about seven feet long. The club’s head bore a short, two-inch duckbill-shaped blade with a ridge on one side and a blood groove on the other. This weapon could chop, smash, and thrust, combining
