The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 152: Fight to Xiangxiang and Capture Zeng Guofan Alive

Many old wooden boats from the countryside were moored in a disorderly manner beside the creek pier south of Xiangxiang County. Unlike previous years, these open wooden boats were not loaded with newly harvested rice, but with boxes of various sizes, baskets of copper coins, and landlords and their wives from various towns and villages in Xiangxiang County.

Because there were too many open boats coming in too fast, they were all blocked outside the small creek pier, and had to queue up to be unloaded. I don't know how long I waited? The gaps between the sides of the boats were filled with vegetable leaves and garbage surrounded by white greasy foam, swaying and emitting an unpleasant smell.

On the riverside, a group of old men and young masters wearing melon-shaped hats and long gowns put aside their usual airs and took the initiative to greet the porters on the pier with smiles on their faces, stuffing handfuls of copper coins into the pockets of their dirty short coats, just asking them to be faster and more careful.

But those porters were all very skinny and didn't look very strong. They worked from morning to night, and after ten days or half a month, they were almost too busy to move. No matter how many copper coins were stuffed into their pockets, they would only carry the goods slowly.

Moreover, the longer these masters who were hiding from the Taiping Army were blocked, the more copper coins they would give out.

It's a rare opportunity like this, why rush?

Liu Shiba, the leader of the Tiandihui who was in charge of things at Xiangxiang Pier, was even more distinguished. He was half sitting and half lying in a shed beside the pier, smoking a cigarette and chatting with a woman with a curvy figure and a seductive face.

The woman said her surname was Xu and that she had escaped from Hengzhou Prefecture to avoid the Taiping rebels. She said she had come to seek refuge with her distant cousin, Master Zeng Zhuting. She had come to Master Zeng's hometown, Heyetang, and Baiyangping, but had come to nothing. So she wanted to try her luck in Xiangxiang County. She brought with her a skinny little boy named Zeng Shijiu, who was held by a sturdy maid and was staying aside.

Liu Shiba, who was dark and thin, swallowed a few mouthfuls of mist, and then used his triangular eyes to look at the bulge on the woman's body for a few times, and then glanced at the little Zeng Shijiu, thinking to himself: "Look at your gangster air, you are definitely not a decent woman, could it be that you are the outdated top girl in Hengyang Mansion, and are kept outside by Master Zeng, and now you heard that Master Zeng's first wife passed away, so you come here to look for an opportunity to be a concubine?
The little boy's triangular eyes look a bit like Master Zeng's. Could he be Master Zeng's son who was raised outside?

I think you're overthinking it. Zeng Disheng, the son of Master Zeng, is a minister. Even if Master Zeng wants to remarry, he has to marry a lady from a rich family. How can it be your turn? You are a prostitute, and you want to be Zeng Disheng's stepmother? Is that reasonable?
But this woman is really sweet, calling me Brother Liu all the time, and stuffed a heavy bag of foreign currency into my pocket. Forget it, I'd better help her. Maybe my luck will turn, and I can really become Zeng Disheng's stepmother?"

After thinking about it for a while, Liu Shiba finally put down his beloved pipe and said to the woman surnamed Xu with a smile: "Sister Xu, your cousin Zeng Zhuting is indeed in Xiangxiang City. He arrived more than a month ago and brought a large group of children and grandchildren with him. He lives in the Zeng family's mansion in the city. But his eldest son is Minister Zeng, a high-ranking official who even the county magistrate has to kneel down to see. You have to think it through!"

When the woman surnamed Xu heard the words "Minister Zeng", she was immediately overjoyed. She took out a large bag of opium from a servant beside her and stuffed it into Liu Shiba's hand, saying with a smile, "Thank you, Brother Liu. I brought a lot of things this time, and the boat is blocked outside. Can you help me?"

Seeing her reaction, Liu Shiba thought to himself, "It turns out that she is not Zeng Zhuting's woman, but Zeng Disheng's mistress. This makes it even more difficult! Zeng Disheng is in mourning now. According to the rules, he cannot take a concubine!"

However, he still accepted the opium, and then called over a disciple to help this generous and beautiful woman arrange a queue-jumping position. He also asked his disciple to help the woman surnamed Xu rent a small courtyard in the narrow and crowded county town.

No matter what, you always have to settle down first
The Zeng family mansion in Xiangxiang County.

This big house is actually not big at all. It is much smaller than the Zeng family’s house in Baiyangping, Heyetang, their hometown. It is also old and dilapidated. I don’t know how many years it has been built?
Zeng Guofan was very proud of his official career. He passed the imperial examination in the 18th year of Emperor Daoguang's reign and became a cabinet scholar and minister of the Ministry of Rites in the 26th year of Emperor Daoguang's reign. It took only eight years! It took him only eight years to get from the examination to the vice-ministerial level! Moreover, he didn't spend much money along the way. He got there by relying on the emperor's grace.

Although his rankings in the joint examination and palace examination were not high, he did well in the imperial examination, and his essays touched the heart of Emperor Daoguang. His appearance also pleased Emperor Daoguang, so Emperor Daoguang personally selected him as the second in the imperial examination and appointed him as a Hanlin. Then he was promoted to Hanlin Academy, provincial examination chief examiner, tutor, tutor, concubine, and daily record officer. In eight years, he became a "deputy minister". This official luck cannot be said to be bad, but his financial luck is not very good. He was a "clean official" all the way up. How could he make money as a "tutor and tutor" for the emperor and the prince? Collect tuition fees? He couldn't make money even if he compiled daily records for the emperor! In other words, he could make a little money by serving as an examiner.

Being an official in Beijing was very expensive. The rent alone was enough to give Zeng Guofan a headache - he was already a "deputy minister" and still didn't have a house! So the Zeng family, the so-called bureaucratic landlords, were not actually wealthy.

The brothers Zeng Guofan and Zeng Guohua are now in mourning together. According to the system of the Qing Dynasty, Han officials who died had to return home to observe mourning and be filial sons. During the period of mourning, the court would not pay them salaries. So Zeng Guofan and Zeng Guohua, who originally had official positions and could use their salaries to honor their parents, now have to return home to rely on their father for support because their mother has died!
What a filial piety!
The Zeng brothers’ “living off their parents and observing mourning” can no longer go on these days!
Because just now, a few clansmen who were guarding the Heyetang Baiyangping property for the Zeng family ran to Xiangxiang and told Zeng's father and son a piece of news that was like a bolt from the blue. The only source of income for the Zeng family, the land of Heyetang Baiyangping, had all been distributed by Changmao to the local poor people!
"Reporting to the old master, the first master, the fourth master, the fifth master, and the ninth master, three or four thousand Taimao came to Baiyangping, Heyetang a few days ago. They are all elite soldiers. They are equipped with thousands of muskets and more than a dozen cannons. The leader is some Western King!"

In the Zeng family mansion, the old grandfather Zeng Linshu, the eldest filial son Zeng Guofan, the fourth filial son Zeng Guohuang, the fifth filial son Zeng Guohua, and the ninth filial son Zeng Guoquan were all surprised.

"The Western King? Xiao Ni Chaogui? What is he doing leading three or four thousand people to Baiyangping, Heyetang?" Zeng Guohuang, Zeng Guofan's second brother and the fourth in the family, who had always been in charge of family affairs, looked at a member of the Zeng family in front of him with an expression of inexplicable surprise.

The Zeng family member replied: "They... They seem to be here to divide your land!"

"Ah?" Zeng Guohuang, like his brothers, opened his mouth wide with a nasty look on his face, looking just like a wealthy landlord in the late Qing Dynasty. "Xiao Chaogui didn't go to Changsha, but brought thousands of troops all the way to the countryside of Xiangxiang, just to divide my family's land?"

"Yes, yes," the Zeng family nodded repeatedly, "That's what they said. They divided up your family's land, and the land of the gentry in the neighboring townships was ignored. Master, Master Five, did you offend this Xiao when you were an official outside?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Second brother, stop talking."

Zeng Guohuang wanted to say a few more words, but Zeng Guofan stopped him and waved his hand to tell the man to go away.

"Guofan, what do you think?"

As soon as the Zeng family left, Old Master Zeng Linshu looked at his most outstanding son Zeng Guofan and asked questions.

Zeng Guofan stood up suddenly, a panicked expression appeared on his ferocious face, and he said in a hoarse voice: "Not good! This Xiao must be here to arrest me. Go and invite County Magistrates Zhu and Huang. Third brother, fourth brother, you go in person, and be quick!"

(End of this chapter)