Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.
—— Shakespeare, "All's Well That Ends Well"
On a gloomy and wet afternoon in London, the sky suddenly tore apart, and torrential rain gushed down like a waterfall, sweeping over the entire city. The streets and alleys instantly transformed into a vast expanse of water, with the cobblestone and blue stone brick roads becoming extraordinarily muddy under the deluge. Every rut was deeply embedded in the sticky mud, appearing like the scarred veins of the earth.
And amidst the dense curtain of rain that pressed heavily on the breath and obscured the view ahead, was the chaotic and heavy sound of hobnailed boots striking the ground.
They wore simple, homemade oilcloth raincoats, and topped their heads with bowler hats whose brims dripped with sparkling water droplets. Their epaulets shimmered with a faint but radiant light in the rain.
