※Introduction to "Nanming Smoke and Clouds"
——Hu Sang
The sun has set where the singing rests,
There are remaining flowers that smell fragrant across the courtyard,
Countless towers and countless grass,
Talk about hegemony and vastness.
The overthrow of the Ming Dynasty began in Wanli. Jiashen's country changed, and Chongzhen hanged himself. Zhu Ming Dynasty suddenly fell to the ground. The mountains and rivers are broken, and we will fight to the end. Choosing songs and dancing, drunken life and dreams. There were endless internal strife and repeated defeats. Bitter wind, bitter rain, and displacement.
Shi Kefa was at a loss, Li Dingguo became king after two defeats, Zhang Huangyan pledged his loyalty, Zheng Chenggong held high the flag of righteousness, Emperor Yongli fled to Burma, Emperor Shaowu followed Chongzhen's example, in troubled times, people are worse than dogs, struggling to survive under the iron hoof.
"The Smoke and Clouds of Nanming" reproduces the ups and downs in the decades from the Wanli period to the fall of Nanming, and reinterprets the tragic past of this period of national struggle.
