Chapter 155 Zeng Guoquan’s Massacre of the City in Jinling (5)
On the fourth night of the night, there was a group of thieves, pretending to be officers and soldiers wearing uniforms and carrying weapons and guns. About a thousand people clashed towards the gap in the Taipingmen tunnel. After Kunzi, Xianghou, left and right battalions intercepted and burned them with fire barrels and eggs, many people and horses were killed, and about six to seven hundred people still rushed out on horseback and fled all the way to Xiaolingwei and Dinglin Town.
Wu Weishou, Yang Diannan, Tao Lizhong and others quickly led their cavalry to pursue them. As soon as Zeng Guoquan heard that the cavalry thieves had escaped disguised as officers and soldiers, he sent an additional cavalry of 700 horses including Zhang Dingkui, Li Taishan, Huang Wanpeng and Huang Tingjue to pursue them. They also flew to Lishui and Dong The defenders of Ba and Jurong joined forces to pursue and suppress them.
On the 19th, Wu Weishou, Huang Wanpeng and others returned to the camp to report. They chased to Chunchen Town and captured the puppet king Li Wanchai alive. They led the pursuit to Hushu Town. When they saw the fleeing thieves in front, they were surrounded by cavalry and killed them all. , leaving no one behind. They pursued them to Liyang, and according to the people, there was no trace of the thieves on the road ahead.
After being personally informed by Zeng Guoquan, Li Wanchai testified that after the city was destroyed, the pseudo-loyal king's brothers Juwang, Youxiwang, Younanwang, Dingwang, Chongwang, Zhangwang, etc. rushed out at night and were chased by the army and cavalry. By the lakeside bridge, all the leaders were killed, and no one was left.
According to the confessions of thieves in the city, Hong Xiuquan, the first rebel, actually died of poisoning during a fierce attack by the official army in May of this year. In the courtyard of the puppet palace, various puppet officials pushed the puppet young master to attack the puppet again. After the city was broken, the false young master accumulated salary in the palace, set fire to himself and so on.
When the fire in the puppet palace is extinguished, Hong Xiuquan's body should be dug up, the evidence of his self-proclaimed death should be found out, and the memorial should be continued.
When Li Xiucheng, the puppet loyal king, committed a crime, the city was destroyed and injured, and he hid in a private house in the mountains.
On the 19th, Admiral Xiao Fusi personally searched it out. They also searched for Hong Renda, the second brother of the puppet king of Qin. On the 20th, Zeng Guoquan was interviewed personally and confessed. Please consult us to decide whether you should send him to the capital, or whether he should be rectified in Jinling.
The rest of the gangsters from Guangdong, Guangxi, and Jiangbei for many years, on the 17th and 18th days, including Zeng Liangzuo, Zhou Guangzheng, Deng Jishan, Liu Taicai, Nie Fuhou, Tan Xingao, Hu Ke'an, Zhu Lianjia, Wang Chunhua, Li Guanxiang, Peng Weixiang, Chen Wanhe, Zhu Liansi, Xie Sanhong, Li Chenhu , Peng Yutang, Liu Jinlan and others searched and killed in sections. In three days, more than 100,000 thieves were killed. The corpses in the Qinhuai River were like hemp. There were about three thousand false kings, false kings and generals, heavenly generals and chiefs of all sizes. Half of them died in the rebel army, and half of them died in the city, rivers, ditches or self-immolation. For three days and nights, the fire continued.
On the 19th, there were still thieves standing on the top of a high house and sniping at the officers and soldiers with foreign guns. This is the situation in which the cavalry pursues the escaping thieves and searches and kills the rebels and the group of thieves.
Now we are sending camps to put out the fire, bury the corpses of the thieves, resettle refugee women, and deal with the aftermath. Everything is waiting to be done. It is strange to remember that the first army of Jinling besieged it for two years. More than 10,000 people died of diseases and eight or nine thousand people died in battle. It is sad and unbearable to look back.
The ministers and others investigated Hong Ni and promoted chaos in western Guangdong. They have been in Jinling for fifteen years now and have been in Jinling for twelve years. They have poisoned the sea and made gods and men angry. The martial arts of our dynasty surpassed those of ancient times, and we have overcome great difficulties many times, making our country famous in the annals of history.
However, like the Jiaqing Sichuan-Chu Campaign, only four provinces were ravaged and no more than ten cities were captured. During the Kangxi War of the Three Feudatories, only twelve provinces were ravaged and more than three hundred cities fell. Today's bandit rebellion in Guangdong has ravaged sixteen provinces, and more than 600 cities have fallen. Among them, fierce chieftains and fierce party members such as Li Kaifang defended Fengguantun, Lin Qirong defended Jiujiang, and Ye Yunlai defended Anqing. They were all stoic and unyielding. This time Jinling City was destroyed, but none of the more than 100,000 thieves surrendered. They even gathered a crowd to burn themselves on fire without regret. This is indeed a rare giant bandit in ancient and modern times.
However, the death can be leveled one by one, and the original evil can be eradicated. The ministers and others deeply defended the reason. This is because our Emperor Wenzongxian Shengde Hongmo was able to quell the chaos early. Although the palace officials were extremely frugal, they did not hesitate to pay huge sums to recruit soldiers; although the emperor was extremely cautious, they did not hesitate to break rules to reward meritorious service; although the temple calculations were extremely sophisticated, they did not hesitate to bend themselves to follow the plans of the generals.
The Empress Dowager and the Emperor keep these three things in mind, follow the old rules and add them to them, eliminate evil and gain fruit, seek talents and gain wisdom, use their abilities to eliminate blasphemy and hypocrisy, and complete the cause of Zhongxing.
I have been grieving that Emperor Wenzong could not see the day when the great work was completed, and I also think that the lives of the people have been ruined for too long. However, I should always be cautious and sweep away the remaining bandits, so that the people of Suli are in trouble and worry about midnight.
A list of those who should be awarded this time will be compiled separately to appeal for kindness. After paying homage to the feudal lords of the state, they immediately went to Jinling. Whether Li Xiucheng and Hong Renda should sacrifice prisoners will be decided upon arrival at Jinling.
The reason for the recovery of Jinling and the annihilation of all the bandits, I would like to join forces with the Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu, Yang Yuebin, the Minister of War, Peng Yulin, the Governor of Jiangsu, Li Hongzhang, and the Governor of Zhejiang, Zeng Guoquan, to march from six hundred miles to the Empress Dowager, and The emperor's sacred inspection tour.
The queen mothers of the two palaces were overjoyed when they heard that Jinling had recovered.
Prince Gong Yi Xin said: "The gold and silver that the thieves looted were all hidden in Jinling City, and the Zeng brothers didn't say a word about it. What did they think?"
Empress Dowager Cixi said: There is no need to be anxious, this matter will be followed up, and when Jinling is restored, praise must be given and an edict must be issued quickly to comfort people's hearts.
On that day, the two palaces issued an edict: To the cabinet, today Guan Wen and Zeng Guofan stepped up the red flag to play victory from 600 miles away, conquered Jiangning Provincial City, rebelled and self-immolated, annihilated all the thieves, and captured Li Xiucheng, Hong Renda and others alive. After reciting the poem, I felt deeply joyful with all the people in the world.
Hong Xiuquan, who rebelled against Hong Xiuquan, started the rebellion in the 30th year of Daoguang's reign. He spread from Guangxi to the two lakes and three rivers, and divided his forces to disturb Zhili, Shandong and other provinces, and traveled all over the country several times. In the third year of Xianfeng's reign, he occupied the capital of Jiangning Province and assumed a false name. The people in the southeast were tortured by him, and they suffered unspeakably cruel and sinful crimes. Gods and men were indignant.
Our Emperor, Kao Wenzongxian, was furious and respectfully punished God. The governor of the two lakes was specially appointed as the imperial envoy to clear the upper reaches of the north and prepare for the Eastern Expedition. Fute granted Zeng Guofan the title of Governor of Liangjiang and appointed him as the Imperial Envoy to conquer bandits in Jiangsu and Anhui in the east. His orders were specific and his achievements were outstanding. In July of the eleventh year, our emperor Kaolong Yu Shangbin. At that time, half of the counties and counties in Jiangsu and Zhejiang were occupied. He left an edict earnestly, thinking that he could quickly eliminate the negative atmosphere, but it was a pity.
Since I was a child, I was appointed as Shao Piji. I only inherited the martyrs. I respectfully served the empress dowagers of the two palaces to listen to the affairs behind the curtain and give instructions on the affairs. I awarded Zeng Guofan the co-organizer of the bachelor's degree, controlled the military affairs of the four provinces, and had the power of one thing.
Since taking office, the minister proposed to separate the campaign from the upper reaches. He ordered Peng Yulin, Yang Yuebin, Zeng Guoquan, etc. to advance by land and water, overlapping more than a hundred city passes along the river, capturing tens of thousands of foreign-aided rebels, and taking their left ears. Encircle Jiangning and cut off its support.
On June 16 of this year, Zeng Guoquan led his soldiers to conquer Jiangning. Within three days, more than 100,000 bandits were killed. There were about 3,000 false kings, false chiefs, generals and chiefs, big and small, but none of them escaped.
All of this was achieved thanks to the blessings of Haotian, the empresses and empresses of the two palaces, the diligent pursuit of governance, the recognition of talents, the use of internal and external skills, and the dedication of soldiers and soldiers to achieve this great success. The emperor's spirit is comforted in heaven, and the hope of his subjects in the sea is lowered. How can you deserve this if you maintain your modesty and cool virtues? Reminiscing about the late emperor's unfinished ambitions, how can one be so sad without witnessing his success?
This flood initiated chaos in western Guangdong. In the past fifteen years, Jiangning has been occupied, and in the past twelve years, it has ravaged more than ten provinces and captured hundreds of cities. In order to level up the troops one by one and eradicate evil spirits, the ministers who should lead the army should brave the wind and rain and prepare for hardships. It is appropriate to receive special favors and reward their hard work.
Zeng Guofan, the imperial envoy and the governor of Liangjiang, was co-organized by the Imperial Envoy. In the fourth year of Xianfeng's reign, he initiated regiment training in Hunan, established a boat division, and made many extraordinary achievements. He protected the counties and counties in Hunan, conquered Wuhan and other cities, and purged the entire territory of Jiangxi. This minister was responsible for all the planning. , possess both resourcefulness and courage, know people well and assign them well, and manage things appropriately.
Zeng Guofan was granted the title of Crown Prince Taibao, a first-class marquis, hereditary superintendent, and a pair of flower feathers. Zeng Guofan was granted the title of Prince Shaobao, a first-class earl, and a pair of flower feathers. The other generals were Li Chendian, Xiao Fusi, Zhu Hongzhang, etc. were all rewarded generously as appropriate; provincial governor generals, Guan Wen, Li Hongzhang, Zuo Zongtang, Yang Yuebin, Peng Yulin, Bao Chao, Feng Zicai, etc. were all rewarded generously.
Hong Xiuquan's body was found. After it was found, it was filed and revealed, and the place where he was killed was still mentioned to vent the public's anger. The two criminals Li Xiucheng and Hong Renda were sent to the capital by officials appointed by Zeng Guofan and others, and they would be punished according to law after being interrogated.
