The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 189 There are too many people in the world. If I don’t kill them, who will?

"Where is this place? Why are there so many wild longhairs?"

It took Senggelinqin a while to react. He turned his head and looked at Jiang Zhongyuan and asked.

"Your Highness, this is Xiangxiang County of Changsha Prefecture, close to Heyetang Town." Jiang Zhongyuan replied in a hoarse voice.

"What?" Senggelinqin was stunned. "Could it be that Zeng Disheng really..."

He got stuck in the middle of his words, his face, which looked a little pale, was filled with fear.

Senggelinqin was now on his way to Changde Prefecture, and Zeng Guofan was now organizing militia training in Changde Prefecture. If Zeng Guofan really rebelled, where could he escape to?
"It's impossible, Your Highness is worrying too much." Jiang Minqiao saw that Senggelinqin's face was not right, and quickly patted his chest and guaranteed, "Zeng Disheng will never betray the court or the emperor because Xianghu scholars will never betray the court or the emperor! If Your Highness doesn't believe it, you can catch a few wild longhairs and ask them."

"Ask, what?"

Jiang Zhongyuan said word by word: "Ask the Taipings whether they have been given land? Have they been led to burn debts? Have they been led to share the wealth of the gentry? Have they been forced to kill the landowners?"

He smiled coldly again: "Your Majesty, no matter what, Zeng Disheng is the leader of the Xianghu gentry, not the leader of the Xianghu small farmers!"

"What the Taiping rebels did was like a savior to the small farmers, but an enemy to the gentry. If Zeng Disheng wanted to join the Taiping rebels, those who were loyal to the Taiping rebels would have to break off relations with them. Not only would those who were loyal to the Taiping rebels have to break off relations with them, but even Zeng Disheng's classmates, disciples, clan members, and fellow villagers would have to break off relations with them!"

"By then, how can he afford to raise private soldiers, occupy the state capital, and dominate the area?"

"If he loses his capital and joins the Taiping rebels, what will he achieve? Will he be content to be a penniless hanger-on?"

Jiang Zhongyuan finally said confidently: "So, Your Majesty can rest assured that Zeng Disheng will never rebel. At most, he will lead his own army and establish his own lord. As long as the court can show leniency..."

Senggelinqin had a very clear mind. He was just confused just now, but after hearing what Jiang Zhongyuan said, he immediately understood.

Zeng Guofan is not a traitor. As long as the imperial court can adapt to current events and constantly adjust the standards for traitors, he is not a traitor!

If the imperial court insisted on being serious, then not only was he a traitor, but all the Hunan Army leaders including Zuo Zongtang, Jiang Zhongyuan, Huang Shijie, Chen Qishu, Luo Zenan, etc. were traitors!

Moreover, Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang, Jiang Zhongyuan, Huang Shijie, Luo Zenan and other people were really not on the same side as the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The reason why this group of people were able to build up a militia team was because they had a huge network of interests behind them consisting of a large group of local tyrants and evil gentry including teachers, classmates, disciples, clansmen, and fellow villagers!

The basis of this network of interests is these people's possession of land, but the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom now wants to deprive them of their land!
Therefore, the conflict between the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the gentry of the world is very difficult to reconcile!
Even though the "Anti-Classic" that Luo Yaoguo brought out was only intended to incite the gentry and Han officials throughout the world to stop being slaves and become masters, he did not try to pull these people into joining the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom because the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom could not offer any corresponding benefits and could not change its own land policy.

After all, the foundation of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is the poor people who have no food to eat! They have to lead them to kill the rich and help the poor. If this changes, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom will be gone.

Senggelinqin paused and nodded gently: "Minqiao, I understand what you said! Because I am actually a big landlord! It's just that I own the pastures and livestock on the Horqin grassland. Most of the Mongolians on the grassland are herdsmen of Mongolian nobles like me. They are just as hungry and cold as you Han poor peasants. Whoever wants to share my grassland is the same as killing my parents!
Fortunately, the number of herdsmen on the grasslands is not as large as that of you poor Han people, because too many of them have become monks."

Jiang Zhongyuan sighed, "I think the reason why the world is in trouble is that there are too many poor Han people. There are 400 million poor people, less than 100 million mu of land, tens of millions of people cannot afford to eat, and they are unwilling to live in peace and starvation. This is the source of chaos. Apart from a bloodbath, I'm afraid there is no other solution!"

"Hahaha!" Senggelinqin suddenly laughed, "There are so many people in the world who are suffering. This is a situation that even gods can't solve!"

He waved his hand again and said loudly: "Brothers, have you rested enough? If you have, let's continue on our way to Xiangxiang County. Zeng Disheng's Xiangyong troops are stationed there. Zeng Disheng is reliable. We will be safe there!"

At this point, he suddenly lowered his voice and whispered, "When we get to Wuling, I will ask Zeng Disheng on behalf of the emperor. There are so many poor people in the world who are hungry and want to rebel. What countermeasures does he have?"

Changde Prefecture, Wuling County, and the Office of the Minister of Militia of Hunan.

As the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom became more and more prosperous in Hunan Province, the capitals of prefectures, states, and counties changed hands one after another, and the poor people in the villages, under the instigation of the God Worshipping Society lecturers and the Taiping Army squads, took up arms and joined the vigorous land distribution movement. The landlords and gentry, who had been somewhat dull and numb, finally realized how powerful it was!

The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom not only wants to kill the Qing Dynasty, but also their lives and their very lives!
Moreover, the Qing army seemed to be no match for the Taiping Army. They were defeated again and again, from the town to the provincial capital, and then the entire Hunan province would be gone. By then, these Hunan gentry would have to cross provinces to beg for food.

Therefore, after Zeng Guofan took office as the Minister of Hunan Militia, gentry leaders from Hunan prefectures such as Changde, Baoqing, Chenzhou, Yuanzhou, Yongshun, Jingzhou, Lizhou, and Yuezhou, which had not yet been captured by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, as well as militia leaders who escaped from prefectures such as Yongzhou, Hengzhou, Chenzhou, and Guiyang, which were occupied by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, gathered in Changde.

By the eleventh month of the lunar calendar, the office of the Hunan Militia Minister in Wuling County was already crowded with people. Every day, many gentry leaders and militia chiefs came to visit Zeng Guofan, who was dressed in mourning clothes. Most of them came to ask him for soldiers, or to ask him for money, food, and official positions.

Of course, some people had heard about the "Exhortation to Punish the Invaders and Revive Confucianism" and knew that some people in Xiangxiang were using Zeng Guofan's name to "restore clothing and practice Zhou rituals."

Therefore, there were many rumors in Wuling City about Zeng Guofan being loyal to two countries and serving two masters. Some even said that Zeng Guofan had been appointed as the governor of Hunan by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and that he now worshipped the emperor during the day and God at night.
It was under such circumstances that Senggelinqin, with his defeated army of less than 4,000 men, arrived at Wuling County, where rumors were rife and people were restless.

Although Senggelinqin led a dejected and defeated army, Zeng Guofan still led Huang Shijie's three battalions of militia and Zeng Guoquan's two battalions of militia, a total of 2,500 elite soldiers, and went out of the city 20 miles to meet them.

"Disheng, I have been staying in Beijing for these years, and I really don't know the suffering of the people! This time the Taiping rebels made such a big fuss, not only because the rebels colluded with the Western demons to cause chaos in our Qing Dynasty, but also because there are too many poor people in the world who can hardly survive. After I return to the court, I will definitely report the truth to the emperor. But the emperor wants to ask me how to solve the problem, and I don't know how to answer."

"Disheng, you are a capable minister valued by the late emperor, and you are also the leader of the Xianghu gentry. Can you teach me how to answer?"

In the lobby of the Hunan Militia Office, Senggelinqin, who had just been welcomed by Zeng Guofan, exchanged a few words with Zeng Guofan and then asked Zeng Guofan this most difficult question in front of a group of Hunan officials and gentry.

Zeng Guofan smiled bitterly, squinting his triangular eyes to scan the officials and gentry in the hall and the courtyard, then sighed again and clasped his fists to Senggelinqin: "Your Highness, there are too many people in the world now, but too little land to support them. The eighteen provinces of Han support more than 400 million people, and the land is exhausted. The world is in chaos, and I don't know how to remedy the chaos. But as a minister of the emperor and the leader of Xianghu, I should share the worries of the emperor and solve the problems of the Xianghu gentry."

Zeng Guofan suddenly showed murderous intent: "If there are really too many people in the world, who will kill them if I don't?"

(End of this chapter)