This was the first year after the death of Emperor Muzong Zhu Zaijing of the Ming Dynasty, and the Wanli Emperor Zhu Juoyun came to power. At this time, Zhang Juzheng, Xu Jie, Gao Gong, and the father and son who controlled the court were constantly scheming. The downfall of the Yan family seemed to be the "lubricant" for Zhang Juzheng's implementation of new laws to keep moving forward. Social harmony and everything seemed to be getting better, but this was still the calm before the storm...
