The Tale of Xiao Qi

This is the story of a salt merchant’s son turning his fortunes around amid the chaos at the end of the Ming dynasty.

“I’m the old man’s legitimate eldest son! What does Li Yongzhong amount to?”

“What kind of person is he? Chen Qianhu’s son-in-law, a salt peddler! Look at him, all skin and bones. How can he lead troops? What does he know about fighting a war?”

This is the struggle for survival of someone swimming against the current.

“My whole family is dead. I’m the only one left, with nothing to my name. But I don’t want to die. I’m afraid to die! I want to live!”

“I’m a salt peddler, and you’re laborers who carry water. On the battlefield, blades and bullets don’t care who they hit. I don’t want to die! What about you? Do you want to live?!”

The one destined for greatness began as a nobody.

“I am no sage. I led several hundred salt workers through hardship, rising in Sichuan and Shaanxi. We hacked our way through the wilderness and fought in rivers of blood, reclaimed the Western Regions, pacified the northern frontier, defended the Central Plains, and prospered in the south. The people stood united and the soldiers gave their all, keeping the bloodline of our people unbroken and the civilization of the Han alive! With the ancestors of Huaxia looking down upon us, from this day onward, all within the four frontiers shall be Han territory, and all beyond the seven seas shall be our subjects!”