Bandit Affairs at the End of the Ming Dynasty

In the first year of Chongzhen, Shaanxi suffered a severe drought;

In the second year of Chongzhen, Shaanxi suffered a severe drought;

In the third year of Chongzhen, Shaanxi suffered a severe drought;

In the fourth year of Chongzhen, Shaanxi suffered a severe drought;

Will it ever end?

Nope, not even close.

This drought was one of the rarest in Chinese and even human history. It lasted an extraordinarily long time and devastated an unprecedentedly vast area, the worst in nearly five hundred years.

Five hundred years? Sun Wukong had already escaped from beneath Five Finger Mountain and set off on his journey west. Moss had covered the stubborn stone, and oceans had turned into mulberry fields. How did the people of Shaanxi in the late Ming end up facing something this extraordinary?

When famine drags on, even landlords run out of grain, and even the emperor runs short of cash. Without taxes, the Forbidden City would have to close its doors.

There's nothing more to say. Taxes still had to be collected, and Shaanxi was no exception.

Damn it, things are already this bad, and they still want to collect taxes? How are people supposed to survive?

After some serious soul-searching, weighing the state of the country and the particular circumstances of their region, the people of Shaanxi decided to rise up. Those with lofty ideals joined the rebel army; those with more modest ambitions became bandits.

Well, that's the situation. Pick up your blades and get to work!