Great Ming: The System Raises an Army and Captures the Capital from the Start

On the nineteenth day of the third lunar month in the seventeenth year of Chongzhen, the day Li Zicheng broke through Beiping, a modern young man named Li Qiang unexpectedly transmigrated into the body of Zhu Ciyu, Prince An, the little-known third son of the Chongzhen Emperor. The imperial city was in chaos. The emperor had hanged himself at Coal Hill, while the favored princes had either fled or died. Abandoned like a pawn, Zhu Ciyu faced the deadly threat of the rebel army's blades.

At his most desperate moment, the System from the Age of Empires game Li Qiang had played in his previous life activated in his mind. His starting 8,000 Influence became his only hope of survival. He summoned You Baiyi, a top general from the game, along with 7,000 heavily armored soldiers.

Under You Baiyi's command, this System army, equipped far better than the forces of the late Ming, became a killing machine. Its shield wall crushed the rebels' disorganized ranks, crossbow bolts rained down on the fleeing soldiers, and it cleared out the remaining enemies in the imperial harem. The army seized Xuanwu Gate, Donghua Gate, and Xihua Gate, then fought a bloody battle at Chengtian Gate, driving the main rebel force out of the imperial city and retaking the Forbidden City.

Standing on the bloodstained steps of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, Zhu Ciyu, formerly Li Qiang, watched his Influence keep climbing on the System screen. Simply surviving was no longer enough. Li Zicheng's army still surrounded the city, while the Jianzhou forces beyond Shanhai Pass watched like tigers. With the System and his army of steel at his command, he swore to establish himself in this chaotic age, reverse the fate of the Ming dynasty, and rewrite the darkest chapter in the nation's history.