The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 38 exploded! (Please read, vote, and collect!)
"Why do they sound like a group of women?"

While asking the question, Huang Shijie picked his ears, apparently suspecting that he had too much earwax and must have heard it wrong.

"You heard it right!" The Green Camp captain named Zhang Dingxiang said with a wry smile, "It's just that a bunch of thieves from Guangxi with long-haired male soldiers are besieging Lingling, so they sent a bunch of thieves to attack Lingtang, and they are also clamoring to kill the gentry, divide up their wealth, and divide up their land! Ziying, you are the biggest gentry in the three towns of Lingtang, Etang, and Shuangpai!

Run away quickly, or you'll be finished if they catch you!"

"What's over?"

Huang Shijie couldn't agree to that! His family's 20,000 to 30,000 mu of fertile land were on both sides of the Xiaoshui River. Most of his pawnshops were in the towns of Etang, Lingtang, and Shuangpai. His mansion, granary, and treasury were also in Etang Town.

How much wealth can he take with him if he flees in such a hurry? Even if he really wants to flee, he has to hold on for a while to buy enough time to transfer his property!

Thinking of this, Huang Shijie yelled at Zhang Dingxiang, "Zhang Bo'an, you have been blessed by the emperor for generations, why are you afraid of a group of Guangxi bandits coming here? There are still hundreds of militiamen in Etang Town, why don't you stay and hold on with me? As long as you can defeat the Taiping rebels and kill more bandits, are you still afraid of not getting promoted? If you think the military pay is not enough, how about I give you 5,000 taels?"

As he spoke, Huang Shijie stretched out his palm, raised it high, and deliberately opened his voice and shouted: "I will reward the army with five thousand taels of silver. Anyone who cuts off a long-haired head will be rewarded with another five taels of silver!"

This is really a big investment!

Although the Huang family of Etang is a wealthy family, the economy is getting worse year by year. It is still a bit difficult for them to take out several thousand or tens of thousands of taels of silver at one time.

However, the commander Zhang Dingxiang was not moved at all, and even shouted discouraging words: "Huang Ziying, what do you know? Female Taipings are also Taipings, and they are fierce! Each of them is fearless and can shoot accurately with a musket!

Now General Bao, General He, Jiang Fuzun, and General Sun have gathered 8,000 people, but they dare to defend Lingling! My Green Camp soldiers, your militiamen, only get a few salaries a month? What are you fighting for?"

After saying this, Zhang Dabazong whipped his horse and rode south along Di Street without looking back. Behind him followed a dozen panting, thin, pale-faced elite soldiers of the Green Camp, who had no pipes on their waists and long spears in their hands. In this era, the Green Camp who did not smoke foreign cigarettes, fled when they saw thieves, and had not lost their weapons, were indeed elite!

When they saw Zhang Dabazong running away again, they followed him without saying a word, leaning on their spears.

In fact, they had fought with the ferocious female Taipings in Guangxi before! Otherwise, how did Zhang Dingxiang know that the female Taipings were fierce and accurate with guns? They had already been beaten!
Master Huang was dumbfounded when he saw Captain Zhang leading a dozen or so defeated Green Camp soldiers and running away without looking back.

Although he had three or four hundred militiamen at his disposal, and a cousin who had passed the martial arts exam was the head of the militia, these militiamen and his cousin who was the head of the militia usually only dealt with nearby bandits and pirates, and had no experience in fighting against the long-haired thieves, a particularly large-scale rebel. Moreover, they did not have the courage to do so!

Now they saw with their own eyes that the Green Camp soldiers from Lingtang Station had all fled in a flash. How could they still have the courage to fight against the Taiping rebels?
"Kill the Qing monsters and go to heaven! Kill the Qing monsters and go to heaven!"

At this moment, the slogans of the female Taiping rebels sounded closer and closer, while on Dike Street, there was complete silence. Everyone seemed to be under a spell and just stared at the arrogant Huang Shijie, the great philanthropist in Etang Town!
Suddenly, a voice that seemed to burst out from the chest rang out: "The Taiping Army is coming!"

Then there was a roar of response: "The Taiping Army is coming! The Taiping Army is coming!"

This is a cheer full of expectation from the bottom of the hearts of people in despair!
Huang Shijie had never been so scared as he was now, because he knew very well that as people on Dike Street shouted "The Taiping Army is coming", his rule over Etang Town had collapsed.

"Old, what should I do, Master?"

His old butler Huang Fu was completely panicked.

However, Huang Shijie quickly regained his composure and snorted coldly, "This is the end of the world! No one can do anything without me. They can just wait for cannibalism!

Humph, let's go, right now! Let's go to Shuangpai Town to ask General Yu for troops, and at least kill these ignorant long-haired women first!"

Huang Fu let out a long breath and waved his hand vigorously: "Go and escort the master to Shuangpai Town! I'll reward three taels of silver for each person when we get there." Huang Shijie didn't wait for his butler to finish shouting, and stretched out a slap: "Five taels! Five taels. No matter who accompanies me to Shuangpai Town, I'll reward five taels!"

Now is not the time to save money!
He could already smell the "gunpowder" in the air. Once the Taiping Army's female soldiers entered Etang Town, the poor people here would immediately "explode", and even the militiamen he employed would "explode" along with them!
He must now calm his men's hearts and leave immediately!

Then, Master Huang waved his hand and said, "Let's go!"

"Order!"

The militiamen below were a little hesitant just now, but now seeing how generous Mr. Huang was, they immediately became motivated. They protected Huang Shijie together and went south along Dike Street under the gaze of thousands of poor people with red eyes!

Less than a quarter of an hour after they left, hundreds of female Taiping soldiers led by Su Sanniang marched along the dike street of Etang Town, passed through a low city gate, and entered Etang Town, which was loyal to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Su Sanniang shouted in Cantonese Mandarin: "Welcome the Angel of Peace. Kneel!"

The densely packed poor men standing on both sides of Ezhen Di Street had already knelt down, and some of them were holding up their only property in their hands! Some were holding up a torn bundle, and some were holding up a straw mat. Wang Huoxiu was holding up a broken bowl with a dozen copper coins in it, and his sister Wang Xier was kneeling beside him - this was the last bit of money for them to survive!
Now, Wang Huoxiu and Wang Xier are going to donate all the money they have saved to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. Then they will be left with nothing and join the Taiping Army with empty hands!

Giving away all property, burning down houses, abandoning land, and then joining the Taiping Army with the whole family means leaving no way out and following the Taiping Army wholeheartedly to the end!

Even though most of the people who joined the Taiping Army were from the poorest class and had almost nothing.

However, to them, that last bit of money to survive is probably more valuable than Mr. Huang’s mansion, granary, and treasury combined, right?
Mr. Huang lost the property in Etang Town and Lingtang Town, but he still had properties in Shuangpai Town and Changsha City! He was still the top scholar in Yongzhou Prefecture, a scholar-official of the Jingshi School, and had predecessors like Luo Zenan and Zuo Zongtang. Even if all the money was gone, there would be a time to get it back.

But for people like Wang Huoxiu and Wang Amei, if they give away their last fortune, they will really have nothing. So the determination they have to make is even greater than the one Mr. Huang made when he abandoned his property in Etang Town!

"The Angel of Peace has arrived."

Suddenly, the female Taiping soldiers who were maintaining order on both sides of the dike street shouted together.

Wang Huoxiu, who was kneeling, quickly turned his head and looked towards the north gate of Etang Town, only to see two female Taiping soldiers in red clothes, each holding a red flag, riding in on horseback.

When Wang Huoxiu was a child, he attended the elementary school run by Mr. Huang in Etang Town, so he knew some words. He found that the two red flags were embroidered with "Angel of Peace" and "Chief Lecturer" respectively. What kind of officials are these "Angel of Peace" and "Chief Lecturer"?

Just as Wang Huoxiu was pondering in his mind, his skinny sister suddenly exclaimed: "Oh my God, what is the angel riding on?"

What is it?
Wang Huoxiu looked closely and saw a tall man wearing a yellow robe and a red hood, riding a "self-propelled two-wheeled vehicle", following the two Taiping female soldiers holding flags, and appeared inside the south gate of Etang Town!

How come this car moves by itself without a horse pulling it or anyone pushing it? This must be a magic weapon!
Are there really gods in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom? Is there really an imperial God?

"God the Father, bless us!"

At this moment, the female soldiers cheered.

Wang Huoxiu, Wang Amei, and all the other people who had donated all their property and were about to join the Taiping Army also shouted their loudest cry: "Father God bless us!"

At this moment, each of them had tears in their eyes, and the power of faith was condensed in their whole bodies, as if they were invincible!

(End of this chapter)