The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 144: Xianfeng: Are they deceiving the emperor? (asking for monthly votes)

Luo Yaoguo was doing something bad, but Wang Kuiyi was honest and might not be able to see through it.

But if Zuo Zongtang couldn't see it, how could this "Jin Liang" still be like this?
Although he had no evidence, he had guessed that Wang Kuiyi had defected to Luo Yaoguo and was a spy sent by Luo Yaoguo!

The plan proposed by Wang Kuiyi to let the captured Han officials "borrow money to redeem themselves" was actually a strategy to spread spies throughout the Qing Dynasty and even in the officialdom of Hunan. It was impossible for these captured Han officials to leave the Taiping Army's cage to borrow money, so it could only be done through Wang Kuiyi.

And in the process of agency, there will definitely be a handle in Wang Kuiyi's hands!
If Wang Kuiyi was a spy of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, then their handle would be in the hands of the angel of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom!

And this is not just an ordinary handle, but a handle for them to deceive the emperor and aid the enemy. Concealing the fact that they were captured is deceiving the emperor!
Giving money to the Taiping Army to buy your own freedom is aiding the enemy!
This handle is so big and deadly!
Although Zuo Zongtang saw through the conspiracy, he couldn't expose it. Not only could he not expose it, he had to cooperate!
Because Zuo Zongtang also needs these handles!
They borrowed money from Zuo Zongtang and other Hunan gentry through Wang Kuiyi, and the handle would of course fall into Zuo Zongtang's hands.

The twenty or so Han Chinese civil servants who were arrested were basically the magistrates and county magistrates who were waiting in the governor's office! Through the manipulation of Luo Bingzhang, the governor, these magistrates and county magistrates could take up their posts in any county that Zuo Zongtang wanted them to take up - they could take up their posts formally, on trial or as a caretaker. Anyway, the result was the same, which was to help "Master Zuo" control the government of a county.

A prefecture usually has a few to a dozen counties, with more than twenty candidate counties, so the counties of two prefectures can be filled.

As for the former county magistrates and county magistrates, a militia leader like Zuo Zongtang had his own way of getting them to leave.
The county magistrates and county magistrates controlled by Zuo Zongtang and others had to use the Hunan scholars arranged by Zuo Zongtang and others as their legal advisors. Through these Hunan legal advisors, the territories of more than 20 counties were firmly controlled by Zuo Zongtang and others.

Could Zuo Zongtang reveal such a good thing?

Zuo Zongtang saw through it but didn't say it. Shengbao, Fucheng, Luo Bingzhang, and Luo Raodian, no matter whether they saw through it or not, would not say it now. If they did, the dozens of Han officials who couldn't come back would be a small matter, but how would they raise the money to redeem the more than 400 Eight Banners masters who "could suck but not fight"? How would they be punished for losing half of Changsha?
After all the calculations, Wang Kuiyi's method is still the best!
Thinking of this, Shengbao sighed and said, "It seems that this is the only way. Let's submit secret memorials to the emperor separately!"

Then he said to Wang Kui, "Bo Wen, you and Jin Aduo have to run back and forth for this matter, which is also a merit. Lord Luo, Lord Luo, Lord Fu and I will all speak for you in the memorial. The emperor is a benevolent monarch, and he will definitely remember your merits and forgive you the crime of losing the land!"

Haha, this Han official must have "rebelled" to be able to hold his position comfortably!
Wang Kuiyi pretended to be overjoyed, clasped his hands, and bowed to Shengbao: "Master Sheng, you have given me a new life, Kuiyi will never forget it. From now on, Kuiyi is willing to follow in your footsteps!"

At first glance, his words sounded like he was trying to surrender to Shengbao, but in fact, he was reminding Shengbao that the two of us are on the same boat. If I'm finished, you won't be either!

Shengbao nodded gently: "Okay, okay, from now on, we are family! Next, you and Ji Gao will have to work together to redeem the people from the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. By the way, Ji Gao is still a commoner now, right?"

"Zongtang is still a commoner from Xiangyin!" Zuo Zongtang simply replied.
Shengbao smiled and said, "Then we will recommend you to be an official as well!"

"Thank you."

Zuo Zongtang responded lightly, and then he bowed to Shengbao, Luo Bingzhang, and Luo Raodian, and said: "My lords, the most urgent task now is to redeem the people and recapture the entire city of Changsha.

Sai Zhongtang and Cheng Zhijun will definitely come to Changsha to help, but Sai Zhongtang only has a few thousand soldiers in Quanzhou and more than ten thousand in Lingling, and Cheng Zhijun only has three or four thousand soldiers in Hengyang, a total of no more than 20,000. Including the soldiers in Changsha, Yuezhou and other places, it is estimated that there are no more than 30,000. And the rebellious army of the Guangdong bandits is probably no less than 100,000! "

After hearing Zuo Zongtang's analysis, the atmosphere in the meditation room suddenly became extremely solemn. Thirty thousand versus one hundred thousand. The advantage is on the enemy!
Zuo Zongtang paused, then emphasized, "The only solution now is to organize a large-scale militia and recruit Hunanese warriors to defend Xianghu Lake. Zongtang is willing to go to Xiangyin, Yiyang, and Changde Prefecture to recruit warriors. I also hope that Lord Sheng, Mr. Ru, and Mr. Su will issue the ticket documents."

Luo Bingzhang and Luo Raodian must have supported the establishment of the Hunan Army - only if the Hunan Army rose up could they secure their positions as famous officials and leaders of the literati!
"I wonder how many Hunan warriors Ji Gao wants to recruit?" Luo Bingzhang asked with a smile.

Luo Raodian said: "Ji Gao, you have to recruit more people!"

Shengbao was definitely on guard against Zuo Zongtang, and would report him to Emperor Xianfeng in a secret memorial. However, at this moment, he still had to encourage Zuo Zongtang to bring back more cannon fodder from Hunan, so he said generously, "Ji Gao, why don't you recruit ten battalions of militia first? If necessary, you can recruit more."

"Okay!" Zuo Zongtang immediately took over Shengbao's words and said with a bow: "Then I will go to Xiangyin, Yiyang, Changde and other counties to recruit ten battalions of Hunan warriors. The number of these ten battalions of Hunan warriors will be taken from my name, Gao, and we will call them Gaozi Ten Battalions!"

Ten battalions! Also "Ten Battalions of Gaozi"!
The Manchus, Shengbao and Fucheng, were so shocked by what they heard!
If we calculate based on 500 to 600 people per battalion, Zuo Zongtang would have recruited 5,000 to 6,000 troops in one go! That's too many! During the Three Feudatories Rebellion, the Shang and Geng clans had only 3,000 bannermen. Zuo Zongtang just opened his mouth and recruited 5,000 to 6,000.
The secret memorial submitted by Shengbao, Luo Bingzhang, Luo Raodian and Fucheng to deceive the emperor was finally sent out on the morning of the third day after the "great victory" in Changsha, and was delivered to the Old Summer Palace shrouded in the solemn atmosphere of late autumn on the second day of October in the second year of the Xianfeng reign.

Emperor Xianfeng had been waiting for these memorials for several days. Although he did not have an "electrical order" and could not send a plane to drop a "handwritten order", he had 600-mile express and 800-mile express. Therefore, the Imperial Commissioner Sai Shang'a and the Assistant Minister Sheng Bao, who were supervising the battle at the front, had "one memorial a day". Cheng Yancai, Luo Bingzhang, Luo Raodian, Fucheng, Hechun, Xiang Rong and others also sent secret memorials to Beijing every now and then.

So Emperor Xianfeng was “well aware” of the situation on the Hunan front, right?

Although I read secret memorials every day, it is hard to say how true the contents are.

Anyway, judging from the report, the situation is very good!
And how come this traitor on the front line is getting closer and closer to Beijing?
Sometimes, Xianfeng even suspected that these people were deceiving the emperor!
But in the past few days, there has been no news of reports from Shengbao, Luo Bingzhang, Luo Raodian and Fucheng, while the confused old Sai Shang'a only reported good news and not bad news. He did not mention the situation in Changsha at all in his reports, but only said that the Qing army had repelled the rebels in Quanzhou and Lianzhou and gained a lot!
It was also reported that the Taiping army was divided into two routes. One was the main force, led by the pseudo-Eastern King Yang Xiuqing, who fiercely attacked Lingling; the other was a detachment, led by the pseudo-Western King Xiao Chaogui, who fiercely attacked Hengyang.

Among them, Lingling is defended by more than 10,000 soldiers directly under the command of the imperial commissioner. The current situation is still good. He Chun, Jiang Zhongyuan, Bao Qibao and other generals have made many gains. Xiang Rong also attacked from Quanzhou to cooperate with Lingling in defending the city and made considerable contributions.

Hengyang was guarded by the Huguang Governor Cheng Yancai himself. Sai Shang'a could not command him. The situation on his side was not good and he might not be able to withstand the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. He also said that if Hengyang was lost, Changsha would be in danger!

The Governor of Huguang, Cheng Yancai, reported that the Taiping army attacked Lingling with a small army and Hengyang with a main force. They also sent Luo Niyaoguo, a pseudo-angel who was "suspected to be the Bull Demon King", to lead more than 10,000 elite troops to bypass Hengyang and attack Changsha along the Xiangjiang River. He was worried about the safety of the provincial capital, so he decided to abandon Hengyang and return to Changsha. He also sent a letter to Sai Shang'a, inviting him to come to the north to help. But Sai Shang'a did not respond, which was suspected of delaying military opportunities!
These two guys spoke in two different ways, and they were blaming each other in their reports. But what is the truth?
There must be one person between Sai Shang'a and Cheng Yancai who is deceiving the emperor, right?
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty"

In the Western-style Haiyan Hall in the Old Summer Palace, Emperor Xianfeng was wondering who was more loyal and who was more treacherous between Sai Shang'a and Cheng Yancai, when he suddenly heard the voice of An Dehai, the little Anzi, calling out, "The memorials from Shengbao, Luo Bingzhang, Luo Raodian, and Fucheng have arrived!"

finally reached!

Xianfeng's heartbeat quickened, and his voice trembled slightly: "Quick, show it to me!"

(End of this chapter)