Those Things in the Ming Dynasty, Part Seven (2021 Expanded Edition)

This is the seventh volume of Those Things in the Ming Dynasty. It mainly recounts the twenty-seven years from the war between China and Japan during the Wanli reign to the period around the enthronement of the Tianqi Emperor. During the Wanli reign, the Ming faced troubles at home and abroad. Japan and Korea threatened from beyond its borders, while rebellions flared across the country. The warring lords of Japan were nearing the end of their civil conflicts, but they had their sights set on the Ming. Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and others all coveted its territory. From negotiations to war, the Ming, which had always underestimated Japan, was caught completely off guard. Many renowned generals rose to the occasion, and the war with Japan also brought Toyotomi Hideyoshi's life to an end. The imperial court was no more peaceful. The arrival of Shen Shixing ushered in a new political era. After Zhang Juzheng's death, Shen Shixing shouldered the burden of the next twenty years of the Wanli reign alone. His adversaries included Ding Cilu, Li Zhi, Jiang Dongzhi, Yang Keli, and many others. Another storm of blood and intrigue was brewing at court. But the upheavals of the Wanli reign did not end there. The Donglin faction's rebellion followed, along with palace rivalries between consorts and contests for the throne. And then a eunuch named Wang An appeared on the stage of Ming history.