Preface

The leader of the Jinyiwei stationed at Longmen is also a Qianhu. He has a well-proportioned appearance, hence he has no nickname. His name is Xia Shiyu. He is capable in both martial and literary pursuits. Although Zheng Danao has more soldiers, he always feels a head shorter than Xia Shiyu, yet he fully acknowledges this disparity.

Hit! If you cannot convince you, then hit you to death

The protagonist of my story, along with the *illustrated* books, starts from a humble beginning, being a minor commander of the Jinyiwei under Xia Shiyu.

Currently, the leader of the Longmen Society is Qianhu Zheng Danao, whose official title is forgotten by all, a man as coarse as a beam.

Located in the military stronghold of Longmen Station, northwest of Datong Town and adjacent to Tatar, this border defense station is one of the most inconspicuous places. This small station, which accommodates a thousand households, is honored to have the Jinyiwei stationed here, a rarity among border defense stations. Many stationed border reconnaissance Jinyiwei operate covertly, with independent structures and actions, maintaining a high degree of secrecy. However, the Jinyiwei at Longmen Station is uniquely stationed alongside the regular border troops, specifically tasked with reconnaissance missions against border banditry. Thus, establishing a Jinyiwei base at Longmen Station is akin to enshrining a great deity in a small temple, highlighting its exceptional nature.

The Yongle Emperor was vigorous in his governance, reforming the bureaucracy and reorganizing the military to address the remnants of the former Yuan dynasty and fortifying the nine borders. Currently, the former Yuan has fragmented into three factions: on the left are the Wala, on the right the Ula and the three guards, while in the center, the Tatars have recently been probing on the left and seizing opportunities on the right, gradually growing stronger and expanding their ambitions, believing themselves to be formidable enough to challenge the Yongle Emperor.

You are so occupied that you don't even have time for procreation

In order to eliminate future threats from the northern desert, Zhu Di devoted himself wholeheartedly to the task. He not only stationed heavy troops along the borders for defense but also deployed the elite Jinyiwei throughout the nine borders. Both overt and covert, external and internal, he established a network for gathering various intelligence, with a clandestine espionage network extending to depths unimaginable to ordinary citizens.

In the nineteenth year of the Yongle era of the Ming Dynasty (1421)