1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 301 Establishing the Capital in Tianjing
As plumes of smoke rose in front of the barricades, bullets from various firearms, including muskets, matchlock guns, rifles, and cannons, rained down on the Taiping soldiers charging towards them like hailstones.

The twenty-odd holy soldiers who charged alongside Li Yiwen at the forefront were instantly riddled with holes, their blood mist filling the air.

Li Yiwen, who had luckily escaped the Qing army's artillery fire, was only slightly moved and did not stop his advance despite the death of his comrade.

From Teng County in Wuzhou Prefecture, Guangxi, to Jiangning, Li Yiwen fought on the front lines for a long time. He rose from an unknown soldier to the position of military commander by relying on his sword and shield.

Li Yiwen knew that the demon soldiers of the Qing Dynasty were most afraid of close-quarters combat.

The Qing demon soldiers in front of him were only a dozen steps away. As long as he and his holy soldiers rushed fast enough, the Qing demon soldiers behind the barricades would not have a chance to fire a second volley of gunfire.

As for retreating and temporarily avoiding the Qing demons' sharp edge, this option was not within Li Yiwen's consideration.

The Eastern King has issued a death order: Jiangning must be fought to the last man; advance is not an option!

If you retreat in the face of battle, all your previous efforts will be wasted.

"When two armies meet on a narrow path, the brave shall prevail! My old brothers of Teng County, follow me to slay the Qing demons!"

Li Yiwen resolutely led his fellow soldiers from his hometown towards the Qing army's barricades.

"Kill the clear demon!"

"Give my life to redeem the sick! Go to heaven!"

The veteran soldiers of Teng County responded with shouts, and not one of them retreated.

As the smoke in front of the barricade gradually dissipated, the Eight Banner soldiers behind the barricade were terrified and astonished to see that a volley of gunfire had taken down more than twenty Taiping rebels, but the remaining Taiping rebels did not retreat but continued to charge forward.

Have these long-haired bandits been bewitched? They're not even afraid of death.

This charge, which completely disregarded death, terrified the flag bearers.

Even the Eight Banners commander Sebo Xing'e panicked as the Taiping soldiers drew closer. He brandished his saber, repeatedly striking the clumsy, musketeer and gunners with the back and hilt of the blade, urging them to load their weapons quickly.

"Load the explosives! Load the explosives now, damn it!"

"Fire another round of gunfire, and the Taiping rebels will surely retreat!"

Sebo Xing'e's urging had no effect on these poorly trained Eight Banner soldiers.

The hands of these Manchu soldiers who were filling the medicine container were still trembling uncontrollably. Of the ten coins' worth of medicine they poured out, six or seven tenths of it would spill out.

Many Eight Banner musketeers would forget to pour the gun puff and hastily fire a blank, leaving the ramrod in the barrel.

"Archers! Fire! Fire!"

Huo Longwu, the seasoned deputy commander of Jiangning, appeared more composed and calm, and organized forty or fifty archers behind the barricades to fire arrows at the Taiping army.

However, the Eight Banners garrison in Jiangning had been in a state of peace for a long time and had long since become rotten to the core.

It wasn't just the firearms soldiers of the Eight Banners garrison in Jiangning who were neglecting their training; the archers were the same.

Of the forty or fifty archers that Huo Longwu organized, less than a third of them could even draw their Qing bows halfway, let alone fully draw them.

The Eight Banners archers mostly used heavy arrows. These archers could not fully draw their bows, and the heavy arrows they fired were not only weak and powerless, but also very crooked.

Such arrows might frighten ordinary people, but they would be completely ineffective against seasoned veterans on the battlefield.

Li Yiwen and his shield-wielding men raised their shields with their left hands and easily blocked the arrows fired straight at them by the Eight Banners archers.

Li Yiwen sneered inwardly. The so-called Eight Banners archers who started out as horsemen and archers were not even as good as the Green Standard Army and militia archers he had fought in the past.

At the same time, dozens of veteran soldiers behind Li Yiwen took out fire pots and oil bottles laced with fuel from their waists, ignited them, and threw them at the Eight Banner soldiers behind the barricades. The fire spread rapidly with the help of the wind, thick smoke billowed, and the scorching heat forced the defenders to retreat repeatedly.

While the Manchu soldiers behind the barricades were rubbing their eyes and coughing from the smoke, they took advantage of the moment.

Li Yiwen nimbly leaped over the chest-high barricades and headed straight for Huo Longwu, the deputy military commander of Jiangning, whose armor was the most brightly colored and distinctive.

Huo Longwu's dozen or so personal guards reacted quickly, hurriedly protecting Huo Longwu in the middle, while keeping an eye on the Taiping Army and retreating towards the inner city.

The musketeers around Li Yiwen fired in unison at Huo Longwu's personal guards.

After a burst of gunfire resembling popping beans, nearly half of Huo Longwu's personal guards fell.

With quick reflexes, Li Yiwen used a shield in one hand to deflect the incoming blade, and with the other hand, he grabbed a knife and thrust it towards Huo Longwu's face.

Huo Longwu was already old and was wearing heavy armor, which made him difficult to move. He was unable to dodge in time and was stabbed in the face by Li Yiwen, falling to the ground and unable to get up.

The spearmen around Li Yiwen reacted quickly, swarming around him and stabbing the seams of Huo Longwu's armor with their spears to ensure that Huo Longwu was dead.

The Taiping army had already crossed the barricades, and the deputy commander of Jiangning was killed in battle by Li Yiwen.

The remaining Eight Banner soldiers, like deflated balloons, followed the demoralized commander Seboxing'e as they retreated towards the inner city.

Li Yiwen could not let go of the opportunity to strike a blow against the Eight Banners soldiers, so he led his old brothers from Guangxi in hot pursuit.

The heavily armored Eight Banner soldiers were ultimately no match for the unarmored Taiping soldiers. Most of these Eight Banner soldiers, along with their commander Sebo Xing'e, were killed by the Taiping army.

Only about thirty Manchu soldiers, who were quick enough to disarm themselves, managed to escape into the inner city.

Meanwhile, upon learning that the Taiping army had already entered the Eight Banners garrison city of Jiangning, General Xianghou of Jiangning personally led his most elite Goshha and eight hundred elite Eight Banners soldiers from Xihua Gate to the North Wall, attempting to block it. He ran right into Lin Fengxiang, a fierce general of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom who had stormed into the Eight Banners garrison city.

"Raise your rifles! Launch the cannons! Fire!"

After entering the Jiangning Eight Banners garrison city, Lin Fengxiang went straight to the inner city. His entourage carried matchlock guns and light mountain cannons weighing around 100 jin (50 kg) as support weapons for the assault.

At his command, Lin Fengxiang's gunners reacted swiftly, stopping abruptly with a sudden brake.

The matchlock guns used by Lin Fengxiang's men were flintlock guns that Lin Fengxiang had acquired in Wuchang by exchanging antiques and paintings with the Northern Palace. They were much easier to handle than the matchlock guns fired by the Qing government.

Like the musket squad of the North Palace, the musketmen under Lin Fengxiang's command were also in groups of three, each with their own duties.

The gunners acted as human gun supports, some detonated the fuse, others opened fire, and they quickly completed a round of shooting.

The muskets were firing shotgun shells. Although it was only seven or eight muskets firing at once, and the shots were not very even, after one round of fire, they still caused chaos and defeat for Xianghou's Goshha and eight hundred elite Eight Banner soldiers. Thirty or forty Eight Banner soldiers were knocked to the ground on the spot.

Immediately following the sound of three cannon shots, nearly twenty more Manchu soldiers were swept away.

Lin Fengxiang gave Xianghou's Eight Banners troops no chance to react. After the cannon fire, he personally led his elite swordsmen to swarm forward, tearing through the Eight Banners troops' formation like a hot knife through butter, and heading straight for Xianghou.

A fierce hand-to-hand battle erupted between the two sides. Lin Fengxiang, wielding a large steel saber, was unstoppable, slashing down four or five armored Manchu soldiers in succession.

Xianghou fought and retreated, preparing to go to the Xi'an Gate of the inner city to enter the inner city, but unexpectedly, the Xi'an Gate was already surrounded by Li Yiwen.

Helpless, Xianghou had no choice but to retreat to his Jiangning General's Office, which was nearby.

How could Lin Fengxiang allow Xianghou to retreat to the Jiangning General's Office as he wished? He led his troops to entangle Xianghou's Eight Banners soldiers and refused to let them go.

Upon learning of the fierce fighting near the Jiangning General's Office, the various Taiping Army units that entered the inner city led their troops to join the battle and support Lin Fengxiang.

As Qin Rigang, Zeng Shuiyuan, Li Kaifang, Yang Fuqing, Zhu Xikun and others joined the battle one after another.

Xianghou's Qing troops gradually lost ground, and one by one, the Goshiha (heroes) around Xianghou fell.

Lin Fengxiang and Xianghou finally clashed head-on, and for a moment, swords and spears clashed and sparks flew.

Although Xianghou was not a lazy and idle member of the Eight Banners, he had some martial arts skills, but he was old and his strength was exhausted from the repeated fierce battles.

After only managing to parry Lin Fengxiang's three consecutive slashes, Xianghou's already chipped and nicked sword was cleaved in two by Lin Fengxiang's large steel blade.

After a long hand-to-hand combat, Lin Fengxiang, panting heavily, roared, "This is a great demon! Stab him to death!"

Several Taiping Army spearmen rushed forward, piercing through Xianghou's armor with their spears and pinning him firmly to the ground.

With his body riddled with thorns, Xianghou coughed up blood and mumbled a few words that Lin Fengxiang and the others couldn't understand before dying with resentment.

The Taiping army attacked the Eight Banners garrison city of Jiangning, and key Eight Banners military officers, including Jiangning General Xianghou and Deputy Commander-in-Chief Huo Longwu, were killed in battle one after another.

Without a leader, the Eight Banners troops could no longer organize an effective counterattack.

Only the Liangjiang Admiral Hong Zhufu'a, who managed to retreat to the inner city, led two thousand banner soldiers to stubbornly resist, relying on the inner city.

However, under the fierce attack of the Taiping army, Hong Zhufu was ultimately outnumbered and failed to defend the inner city.

The inner city held out for less than two days before being captured by the Taiping army.

The deafening shouts of battle did not cease as the city fell. This once lofty city within a city was no longer the gentle haven and sanctuary of the Manchus, but their final battleground.

"The Heavenly King and the Eastern King have decreed! Today, the Manchus shall pay for their blood debt! Every Manchu in the city, regardless of gender or age, shall be executed without exception! This is the divine punishment of the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother!"

Taiping Army messengers, their heads wrapped in red turbans, ran around in hoarse voices, relaying orders from Hong Xiuquan and Yang Xiuqing.

The Taiping soldiers were covered in blood from months of fighting, and their hearts were burning with an inextinguishable flame of revenge.

For the families who died from exorbitant taxes and famine, for the brothers who fell on the road to war, for the national hatred of two hundred years, today we must make these Qing demons, who have been waited on hand and foot and greedily sucked our blood, pay for their blood debts!
The entire city was already in chaos.

The Taiping army searched every household for demons, and any Manchu people who tried to hide, regardless of gender, were dragged out and executed. Even the "little demon cubs" with queues were not spared.

The once arrogant and domineering Manchus, who considered themselves superior, retreated into the streets and courtyards to hide until they had nowhere left to hide. They then attempted to kneel and beg for mercy, kowtowing repeatedly while incoherently shouting: "We surrender! We surrender! We are willing to follow the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother to slay the Qing demons! Emperor Xianfeng deserves to die! The Qing Dynasty deserves to perish! The Heavenly Kingdom shall rise! Long live the Heavenly Father! Long live the Heavenly Father! Long live the Heavenly Father!" and other such nonsense.

But the Taiping soldiers, blinded by rage and ordered to exterminate demons, were not about to let them off easily.

The search and extermination of demons lasted for a full ten days before it finally ended.

Including the two sons and two wives of General Xianghou of Jiangning, all 40,000-plus Manchu bannermen in Jiangning were captured without exception.

Just like two hundred years ago, the Qinhuai River was once dyed red, and the riverbed was blocked by corpses.

To prevent any demons from escaping, Yang Xiuqing personally issued a proclamation: anyone who captures and presents a Manchu bannerman will be rewarded with ten taels of silver and two and a half shi of rice.

Encouraged by the generous reward, the residents of Jiangning, especially those living near the Eight Banners garrison in the eastern suburbs of Jiangning, rose up to assist in the battle, searching everywhere for the fleeing Manchus. Even Manchus who had fled Jiangning before the battle were recognized and captured by the residents of Jiangning, handed over to the Taiping Army soldiers, and executed on the spot.

Jiangning was once the former capital and secondary capital of the Ming Dynasty, a place where tigers crouch and dragons coil.

During the Qing Dynasty, Jiangning was also the city with the highest political status in the south.

The Taiping army captured Nanjing and eliminated the Manchu city. After two hundred years, the Han Chinese regime finally regained control of Nanjing, which had great political significance.

After the Manchus were purged, the aftermath in Jiangning City was carried out in an orderly manner.

The Taiping soldiers extinguished the scattered fires within the city and cleared away the piles of corpses to prevent the fires and plague from spreading.

The Taiping soldiers in the local camp also repaired the damaged city walls at a rapid pace under Yang Xiuqing's orders to prevent a Qing counterattack.

Of course, this was Yang Xiuqing's way of taking precautions and preventing problems before they arise.

Currently, no Qing military force near Jiangning is capable of recapturing the city.

The people of Jiangning who had fled the city before the war to escape the flames of war returned to Jiangning one after another after learning that the war in Jiangning had ended.

However, the damage the war inflicted on Jiangning City was still evident. Jiangning City, which had a population of over one million before the war, now had only over three hundred thousand people.

Most Jiangning residents remain hesitant and have not returned to Jiangning immediately.

Even so, Jiangning City, a city that has suffered many disasters, still showed a tenacious vitality and regained some of its former vitality.

After taking control of Jiangning, Hong Xiuquan, Yang Xiuqing, and others established Jiangning as the capital of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and renamed it Tianjing, calling it a small paradise. In name, they were fulfilling the promises they had made to the God Worshippers in Guangxi.

Just like in Wuchang, the princes temporarily used the former Qing government offices as their residences.

The Viceroy of Liangjiang's office was designated as the Heavenly King's Palace, the Jiangning Provincial Administration Office was designated as the Eastern King's Palace, the Jiangning Provincial Surveillance Commissioner's Office was designated as the Southern King's Palace, the Jiangning Prefectural Office was designated as the Western King's Palace, and the Jiangning County Office was designated as the Assistant King's Palace.

Although Wing King Shi Dakai led the main force of the Wing Palace to be stationed in Anqing, the capital of Anhui Province, and not in Jiangning, the immortal brothers of the Shentian family still thoughtfully designated the Shangyuan County Government Office as the Wing King's Mansion and invited Shi Dakai's family to move into the Wing King's Mansion and enjoy happiness in the little paradise.

As for the Northern King's Mansion, there were not many royal relatives in the Northern Palace. Hong Xiuquan and Yang Xiuqing knew that Peng Gang was not Shi Dakai and would not allow his family to move to Xiaotiantang. They simply hastily designated the Jiangning Textile Bureau as the Northern King's Mansion, and nominally established the Northern King's Mansion in Xiaotiantang.

After finalizing the locations of the princes' residences, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom princes carried out simple renovations on their new residences.

All the plaques and ceremonial regalia of the Qing court were burned on the spot, and holy water was sprinkled inside and outside the venue to perform rituals to cleanse the Qing court of its evil influences.

Once these preparations were complete, Hong Xiuquan, Yang Xiuqing, and others decided to officially enter the city and move into the palace.

In terms of convenience, Taiping Gate in the northwest of Jiangning and Jubao Gate in the south are the closest to the Heavenly King's Palace, making it the most convenient way to enter the city and reach the Heavenly King's Palace.

However, in order to allow more new believers in the Little Heaven to experience the holy power and grace of the Heavenly King and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Both Hong Xiuquan and Yang Xiuqing chose to enter the city through the Yifeng Gate in the northwest, which was the city gate furthest from the Heavenly King's Palace and the Eastern King's Capital.

On the day they entered the city, it was just dawn, and the east had not yet fully turned white.

The streets along the route from Yifengmen to Tianwangfu are: Yifengmen Street, Sanpailou, Matai Street, and Hongwu Street.

Old brothers from Guangxi, dressed in new clothes and armed with knives, guns, and muskets, were on guard to welcome the Heavenly King and his princes and officials into the Little Paradise.

The people of Tianjing City, whether organized or simply out of curiosity, lined the streets early to catch a glimpse of the majesty of the Heavenly King and the Heavenly Kingdom.

The elderly men from Guangxi, who were on guard duty at the behest of the Heavenly King and the Heavenly Kingdom, did not drive away the people of Tianjing who had come spontaneously to witness the majesty of the Heavenly King and the Heavenly Kingdom. Instead, they told them in heavily accented Guangxi Mandarin that once they arrived, they were not allowed to leave. When the Heavenly King, the Heavenly Kingdom's kings, concubines, civil and military officials arrived, they were not allowed to move around freely. They had to kneel to greet them and were not allowed to look up at them, as this would be disrespectful to the Heavenly King and the Heavenly Kingdom's kings and officials.

Before the Heavenly King arrived, his entourage arrived first.

Before long, the area around Yifeng Gate was filled with the sounds of gongs and drums, colorful banners fluttering, and dust flying everywhere.

The carefully selected flag bearers, with their regular features and robust physiques, were the first to carry the flag into the city.

Following closely behind the flag bearer was a procession of hundreds of junior officers, wearing red jackets embroidered with the words "Group Leader," "Platoon Leader," and "Company Commander," with swords at their waists and riding warhorses.

These core members of the Taiping Army marched in orderly formation, their horses arrayed, toward the Heavenly King's Palace, singing as they went.

"The Heavenly King has arrived!"

"Welcome, Heavenly King!"

Before they even saw the Heavenly King, an irresistible aura of majesty made the people of Tianjing feel suffocated.

The people of Tianjing, either spontaneously or under the stern urging of the imperial soldiers, knelt down and shouted "Long live the Emperor!" three times.

"Long live the Heavenly King of Taiping! Long ...

Following the ranks of junior officers came the Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan, carried in a sedan chair by sixty-four men.

Dozens of musicians played joyful tunes before and after the Heavenly King's palanquin, creating a festive atmosphere.

Although the holy soldiers on both sides of the street had ordered that no one should look up at the Heavenly King, lest they offend the Heavenly King's majesty.

However, it still couldn't stop a few curious Tianjing residents.

These people from Tianjing came here specifically to catch a glimpse of the Emperor. If they didn't take this opportunity to see what the Heavenly King looked like, wouldn't their trip have been in vain? How could they then boast about having seen the Heavenly King when they returned home?

Thinking of this, driven by strong curiosity and vanity, a few Tianjing citizens took advantage of the fact that the holy soldiers on both sides of the street were not paying attention and secretly glanced at the yellow sedan chair in the center of Yifengmen Street, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan's face.

Inside the Heavenly King's palanquin, the triumphant Hong Xiuquan looked down upon the kneeling masses on both sides, enjoying their worship and gradually losing himself amidst the thunderous shouts of "Long live the Emperor!"

Without a doubt, today is the most triumphant and triumphant day in his thirty-eight years as a down-on-his-luck scholar from Huaxian County, Guangdong, who has repeatedly failed the imperial examinations.

Having effortlessly conquered his way from Guangxi to Nanjing, Hong Xiuquan, who had seized power without lifting a finger, became increasingly convinced that he was the second son of God.

If he were not the second son of God, with the protection and assistance of the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother, how could all this have gone so smoothly?
After leaving Hunan, they swept through the country with unstoppable momentum, easily capturing Wuchang, Anqing, and Jiangning, achieving victory after victory.

This also made Hong Xiuquan increasingly arrogant.

Since Wuchang, Anqing, and Jiangning were able to be taken quickly.

The capital city to the north, where the demonic aura is heaviest, is naturally no exception.

With a slight blessing from the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother, all the great and old demons in the capital city could be annihilated in the blink of an eye, and Emperor Xianfeng would surrender himself. The unification of the country would be within reach.

He only needs to enjoy himself in his little paradise and make up for the thirty-eight years that the world owed him, God's second son.

Thinking of this, Hong Xiuquan looked forward to the blissful days he would enjoy in the Little Paradise.

After the Heavenly King, there were Hong Xiuquan's thirty-six Heavenly King Consorts (Queen Consorts).

The people of Tianjing were not surprised at all by the large number of the Heavenly King and his consorts; on the contrary, they felt that there were not enough.

Emperor Xianfeng in the Forbidden City is said to have had seventy-two concubines. In comparison, the thirty-six imperial consorts are only half of that, which is not much.

When Tianjing was still called Jiangning, although it was not under the emperor's nose, it was still the largest city in the south with many officials.

The people of Tianjing felt that they were well-informed and knowledgeable.

However, the processions of governors, provincial governors, and even the Jiangning General that they had seen in the past were simply no match for the Heavenly King's procession.

Today, at least my early morning wake-up call wasn't in vain.

Having witnessed the Heavenly King's imposing procession, the people of Tianjing lining the streets felt that the trip was well worth it.

Following the Heavenly King was the Eastern King's retinue, which was slightly less imposing than the Heavenly King's. Then came the Western King (Young Western King Xiao Youhe), the Southern King, the Assistant King, and the Wing King's retinue, which had rushed from Anqing to participate in the Little Paradise's entry ceremony. The people of Tianjing were treated to a great feast for the eyes.

Of the four kings of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom—the East, West, South, North, and North—the Northern King was conspicuously absent, a fact that the people of Tianjing (Nanjing) could not comprehend.

The original five-bay vermilion gate of the Viceroy of Liangjiang's Yamen has been completely demolished and replaced with a nine-dragon screen wall and a painted archway. A golden plaque hangs high in the center, with the five characters "Gate of True God's Glory" personally written by Hong Tianwang.

Inside the Heavenly King's Palace, drums and music resounded. As soon as he entered the palace, Hong Xiuquan offered sacrifices to the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother.

Three hundred holy soldiers, each holding a yellow flag, lined both sides of the passageway and chanted in unison: "Heavenly Father, Heavenly Brother, Heavenly King, Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, may you live ten thousand years!"

After offering thanks to the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother, Hong Xiuquan, in high spirits, specially summoned Li Yiwen, who had made the first contribution in attacking the Mancheng of Jiangning and had also made the great contribution of killing Huo Longwu, the deputy commander of Jiangning: "Summon, General Li Yiwen to an audience!"

Not long after, Li Yiwen was summoned to the Heavenly King's Palace to pay homage to the Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan.

"This humble general, Li Yiwen, pays his respects to the Heavenly King! Long live the Heavenly King! Long live the Heavenly King!" Li Yiwen's loud voice trembled slightly upon first meeting Hong Xiuquan, whether from excitement or fear, it was hard to tell.

Hong Xiuquan did not immediately wake Li Yiwen. Instead, he slowly rose, stepped down the heavenly steps, stopped in front of the young general of the Heavenly Kingdom, and ordered Li Yiwen to raise his head.

"Keep your head up."

Li Yiwen raised his head, and Hong Xiuquan carefully examined him before clapping his hands and laughing heartily, praising him.

"What a brilliant talent! Before attacking Jiangning, I received a revelation from the Heavenly Father. He said that he had sent down the Heavenly General of the Imperial Curtain to help me conquer Jiangning, wipe out the city, and cleanse Jiangning of its evil influence. Seeing him today, I can confirm that he is indeed extraordinary!"

As he spoke, Hong Xiuquan suddenly bent down and personally helped up the astonished Li Yiwen: "I ask you, when the city fell, you were the first to leap onto the city wall of Jiangning. What did you see?"

Li Yiwen's Adam's apple bobbed, and after a long silence, he replied, "Your Majesty, I only saw my brothers fighting a bloody battle, entering the city to kill the demons!"

A barely perceptible hint of disappointment flashed across Hong Xiuquan's face, as if he was not satisfied with Li Yiwen's answer.

Hong Xiuquan patted Li Yiwen on the shoulder heavily and said somewhat insincerely, "Well said! Do you know that Nanjing is the ancient capital of six dynasties, a place where tigers crouch and dragons coil? Today, my heavenly soldiers and generals have descended upon Nanjing in less than a month. This is not something that can be done by human power, but is truly due to the protection of the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother!"

Hong Xiuquan smiled, but his eyes were as deep as an abyss: "I received divine revelation from the Heavenly Father that your original name contains the characters 'Yi Wen' (meaning 'literature'), which, while in accordance with the Holy Teachings, lacks a certain murderous aura. Now that the Heavenly Kingdom has just been established, it is time to cultivate both literary and martial skills."

You have rendered meritorious service in being the first to ascend Jiangning. Therefore, I hereby bestow upon you the name 'Xiucheng,' and I wish you to continue your efforts and achieve even more earth-shattering feats!"

In China, there is a tradition of avoiding using the names of superiors. The emperor is the supreme ruler. Whether it was his more down-to-earth original name, Hong Huoxiu, or his current name, Hong Xiuquan, which means "the king of men," both contain the character "Xiu." Being able to use "Xiu" in one's name is a great honor.

Li Xiucheng silently recited the new name in his heart, knelt down again, and said in a choked voice, "This humble general, Li Xiucheng, is willing to die for the Heavenly King!"

Hong Xiuquan said gently, “Before attacking the Manchu city, the Eastern King promised that whoever first stormed the city would be promoted five ranks below the rank of Grand Commander. You should have been promoted to Inspector. But you not only made the first contribution to storm the city, but also killed many Qing demon leaders, both big and small, and contributed greatly to the attack on the inner city of the Manchu city. There are still vacancies in my six ministerial positions of Heaven, Earth, Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. These positions are reserved for meritorious officials. Let the Eastern King see which ministerial position is still available and appoint him as a Deputy Minister.”

(End of this chapter)