The Wolf Troops Strike

1. First read the table of contents to grasp the time span of the fifteen parts, then enter the main text, so you are not put off by the dense opening of names and places.
2. While reading, jot down changes in Wei Zhengbao's age and titles; this makes the depth of four generations of wolf soldiers marching out clearer.
3. Readers unfamiliar with the background of the Japanese pirate scourge in the mid-to-late Ming can learn about the situation along the southeast coast during the Jiajing reign before reading the latter half.
4. Read the rebellion-quelling and pirate-resisting sections in comparison, and note how the author uses the fate of the same wolf soldier force to link different wars.

Lijiang Publishing House focuses on Chinese and foreign literature, humanities and social sciences, cultural life, and parent-child education, and is particularly known for translating and introducing foreign literature; its "Nobel Prize in Literature Laureates Series" has had a lasting influence on readers. Judging from the 193 books in the collection, the press publishes modern prose classics such as Lu Xun's Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk, ancient poetry and Eastern philosophy texts including Qu Yuan's The Songs of Chu and the works of Xunzi, educational works such as De Amicis's Cuore, and philosophy titles such as The Origin and Goal of History. Its authors include well-known Chinese and foreign writers and scholars such as Lu Xun, Qu Yuan, Xunzi, Hu Dalei, and Xia Mianzun. Overall, the press balances the organization of classic texts with the introduction of foreign works, forming a publishing profile that gives equal weight to literature, philosophy, and education.