Common sayings note, "The storytellers' words, the opera performers' legs."
In the spirit of "lengthy discussions in books, brevities without," this tale, as we reach this point, necessitates that I again introduce a rapid transition.
With that said, it was now late June.
After traveling for a month, Huang Donglai, his companions of three including Terrell, successfully made their peril-laden arrival at the Capital, also known as Shuntian Mansion.
Since Emperor Yongle had relocated the capital here over two-hundred years ago, and because the Great Ming's national fortunes were thriving without any sign of decline, the Capital had prospered exceptionally after so many years of stable development.
During this time of Yong Tai, the Capital of the Great Ming excelled in architecture, population, commerce, administration, security, and cultural arenas, reaching a world-leading level by that era, comparable if not superior to the resplendent Golden Age of Tang.
