In the 14th year of the Ming Dynasty's orthodoxy, Emperor Yingzong Zhu Qizhen, instigated by the eunuch Wang Zhen, personally conquered Oara, but suffered a disastrous defeat at Tumubao. Hundreds of thousands of elite troops were wiped out, and the emperor himself was captured, which shocked the world. This was the turning point from prosperity to decline of the Ming Dynasty.
This book takes this as the background and reproduces the thrilling disaster through the perspective of a fictional character - the guard general Xiao Yun. Xiao Yun, an idealistic but humble young officer, managed to survive a frenzied rout. Carrying the entrustment of his comrades and the shame of the empire, he struggled to return to the already precarious city of Beijing. At that time, in the capital, Zhu Qiyu and Yu Qian, the governors of the country, were planning a battle to defend Beijing against all opinions; in the harem, Queen Qian spent all her wealth and prayed for her husband's return day and night; and on the grasslands of Mobei, Emperor Yingzong was experiencing the humiliation of going from emperor to prisoner, and also witnessed Yexian's ambitions and tribal disputes.
Xiao Yun was involved in this historical torrent. He was both a witness and a promoter at a critical moment. He must make a choice between loyalty and survival, national hatred and family hatred. This is a story about disaster, redemption, loyalty and growth. It tells how the Ming Dynasty regained its backbone amidst the ruins in the midst of the deepest crisis.
