North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 285 Bombarding Hong Kong!

There were already countermeasures in place for these surrendered Qing officials.

All those who had served as officials in the Qing court were thoroughly vetted, and corrupt and incompetent officials were all expelled.

A small number of honest and capable officials were sent to California to study at a university for a year. After obtaining their diplomas, they were put on a one-year probationary period in the California administrative system. Only those who passed the probationary period were officially appointed.

Over two years, these honest and capable officials will be truly enlightened, their worldviews will be reshaped, and they will become truly effective people.

……

They captured the entire city of Guangzhou more easily than expected. Before they could celebrate, Shi Dakai and Wu Qingfeng headed straight for the Wu family mansion located in the outer city.

Here, he finally saw his elderly mother whom he had not seen for many years.

Shortly after Shi Dakai went to California, Wu Qingfeng arranged for the Wu family to bring his elderly mother to Guangzhou to enjoy a comfortable life.

Now, Shi Mu is no longer the old rural woman who has experienced many hardships. Under the meticulous care of the Wu family, she looks much more prosperous and fair-skinned.

With a "thump...!" Shi Dakai, dressed in military uniform, knelt firmly before his elderly mother.

"Bang bang bang...!"

Shi Dakai kowtowed three times firmly: "Your unfilial son has been gone for three or four years, causing my elderly mother to suffer...!"

"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back...!"

Tears streamed down Shi's mother's face as she helped her long-absent son to his feet, looking him up and down. "You're amazing! You've grown taller and stronger these past few years... You're a grown-up now, a grown-up...!"

……

The mother and son, reunited after a long separation, naturally had a long and intimate conversation.

Meanwhile, as originally planned, the Restoration Army divided into several routes and swept across the entire Guangdong province with lightning speed.

With the cooperation of Ye Mingchen, the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, and officials such as Jiang Guolin, Tao Yu, and Wu Yuanyou, the capture of Guangdong seemed remarkably smooth.

Most of the prefectures and counties under Guangdong's jurisdiction surrendered without a second thought.

Only a few prefectures and counties put up a stubborn resistance. But under the powerful firepower of the Restoration Army, the city walls that the defenders thought they were relying on would often collapse after just a few shots, and the Restoration Army could easily take them down with a single charge.

In just over half a month, the entire Guangdong province was under the control of the Restoration Army.

In such a short time, the Qing court had only just learned of the fall of Guangzhou and was still discussing countermeasures, deciding which army to send to reinforce Guangdong.

……

After completely seizing Guangdong, in accordance with the established strategy, the first step was to place all the key officials in each prefecture and county with his own people.

Next came the improvement of the political and judicial system, which basically copied the existing model in California, establishing a modern governance system including courts, prosecutors, police departments, tax authorities, finance departments, education departments, civil affairs departments, and so on.

Then, the province exempted itself from taxes for that year, in order to reassure the people.

Then, a thorough population census and land survey were conducted to lay the foundation for subsequent governance.

Then, Huamei Bank was established throughout all the prefectures and counties of Guangzhou, forming the prototype of a modern financial system.

The next step was to establish a new education system, setting up primary and secondary schools in all prefectures, counties, and towns, and establishing Guangdong University in Guangzhou Prefecture.

Next, we started to develop industries, based on the resource endowment of GD province, starting with textile factories with the lowest barriers to entry, followed by smelting plants, agricultural implement factories, machinery factories and so on!
At the same time, all prefectures and counties in Guangdong began large-scale municipal infrastructure construction, starting with water supply and drainage systems.

Roads connecting various prefectures, counties, and towns are also undergoing extensive repairs and expansions.

During the off-season for farming, the government recruited laborers to build municipal facilities and roads, providing them not only with meals but also with wages, which indirectly increased farmers' income...!
……

Everything is proceeding rapidly and in an orderly manner according to the original plan.

Under this well-thought-out and orderly governance system, the entire Guangdong province quickly achieved social stability and peace of mind.

More than half of the members of the Restoration Army were people from Guangdong who had immigrated there in recent years.

The fact that these officers and soldiers of the Restoration Army returned to their hometowns to visit their elders and fellow villagers after the situation had just stabilized brought great reassurance to the people of Guangdong.

These are our own soldiers returning, not some Western soldiers...!
……

People in Guangdong were at peace, but in Hong Kong, just a stone's throw away, the British Hong Kong government could no longer sit idly by in the face of the dramatic changes that had taken place in neighboring Guangdong in a short period of time.

In late August 1854, the Hong Kong British government dispatched two warships, the HMS Rattlesnake and the HMS Barracota, to the Pearl River Estuary in an attempt to test the attitude and strength of the new Guangdong government.

The two warships, each over a thousand tons, were subjected to relentless and fierce shelling as soon as they approached the fortified positions of Dajiao and Shajiao, even when they were still more than ten thousand yards away.

Although England's naval power was formidable and hailed as "invincible," its sailing and steam-powered warships were currently equipped with muzzle-loading smoothbore cannons with a range of only two to three thousand yards.

A distance of 10,000 yards was well beyond the firing range of the British ships.

On the two gun emplacements of Dajiao and Shajiao, the two British ships were completely overwhelmed by the fierce bombardment of more than a dozen 203mm and 155mm heavy guns.

After taking several heavy hits, the damaged "Rattlesnake" and "Barrakota" could only turn around and flee the Pearl River Estuary in disgrace.

Upon receiving news that a British warship had intruded into the Pearl River Estuary, Shi Dakai only uttered a few words.

"It is impolite not to reciprocate!"

Three days after the British warships entered the Pearl River Estuary, the armored cruisers "Guangzhou" and "Fuzhou" also brazenly entered Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong.

Upon discovering the intrusion of enemy ships, the Victoria Battery on Victoria Peak, the Mount Davis Battery at the western end of Hong Kong Island, and the Sulphur Channel Battery on the eastern shore of Causeway Bay all prepared for battle.

Meanwhile, several warships docked at Hong Kong Island, except for the damaged and repairing HMS Rattlesnake and HMS Barakota, also lit their boilers and rushed out of the harbor.

But before the British ships could get close, the Guangzhou and Fuzhou, more than 10,000 yards away, launched the first bombardment of Victoria Battery on Victoria Peak.

Victoria Fortress, situated on high ground, is Hong Kong's most important coastal defense fortress.

In addition to eight 32-pounder shore guns, the Victoria Battery also housed two 68-pounder cannons.

But even a 68-pound cannon only has a range of three to four thousand yards!

When the Guangzhou and Fuzhou opened fire from 10,000 yards away, both the British ships and the coastal defense batteries could only take a one-sided beating without any power to fight back!
"Boom, boom, boom...!"

Dozens of 203mm and 155mm shells exploded around Victoria Battery.

Even if only a few shells hit the fort directly, the shock they brought to the British was unimaginable!

"Boom... Boom... Boom!"

"Boom... Boom... Boom!"

After three rounds of rapid firing, the Guangzhou and Fuzhou ships, regardless of the effectiveness of the shelling, turned around and withdrew from Victoria Harbour at speeds far exceeding those of the British ships.

The British ships, panting and churning, were desperately chasing after the Guangzhou and Fuzhou, but could only watch helplessly as they got further and further away until their sternlights disappeared from sight.
……

For nearly two hundred years, only the British Empire has ever bombarded the coastlines and forts of other countries.

When has the mighty British Empire ever suffered such a humiliating disgrace?!

Upon receiving news that Victoria Battery had been openly bombarded and suffered heavy losses, Sir John Bowring, who had been in office for less than six months, was instantly enraged.

Before becoming Governor of Hong Kong, Sir John Pauline had served as the British Consul in Guangzhou, and was very knowledgeable about the internal affairs of the Qing Dynasty.

Sir John Paulson had a particularly deep understanding of the corruption and backwardness of the Qing Dynasty.

It was precisely for this reason that Sir John Pauline dared to send the HMS Rattlesnake and HMS Baracotta to test the attitude and strength of the new Guangdong government.

Two British warships were damaged by shore artillery fire at the mouth of the Pearl River, which was one thing.

Now, the new government in Guangzhou is getting too big for its britches and is openly bullying the British Empire.

How could Hong Kong Governor Pauline tolerate this?
But even if you can't stand it, you have to!
Currently, the British Army troops stationed on Hong Kong Island number only 1240, including the 12th Royal Artillery Battalion of the Coastal Artillery, the 3rd Royal Engineer Company of the Fortification Engineers, and the 2nd Battalion of the 59th Infantry Regiment.

In addition, there are auxiliary forces including the Hong Kong Volunteer Corps, the Sikh Cavalry Squadron, and the Chinese Detective Team.

This was the entirety of the Hong Kong British Army's strength.

In the recent shelling, the 12th Royal Artillery Battalion stationed at Victoria Battery suffered heavy casualties; of the 180 men, fewer than 100 were still in good health.

The Royal Navy's Far East Fleet, with Hong Kong as its home port, consists of four warships with a total tonnage of 4450 tons. Even combined, they are no match for the "Guangzhou"!

As for the damaged "Rattlesnake" and "Barrakota", their home port is Singapore, not Hong Kong.

When the furious Governor Pauline gradually calmed down, after thinking it over, he had no choice but to swallow his anger!
At present, the British Empire, with hundreds of thousands of troops and the main fleet of the Royal Navy, is engaged in a bloody battle with Tsarist Russia in Crimea in the Black Sea, and has no time to deal with the situation in the Far East.

In this round of shelling, although the British Empire suffered heavy losses, even if it wanted to take revenge, it would have to wait until the Crimean War ended and the British Empire was free to deal with the matter.

A gentleman's revenge is never too late!
Governor Pauline had to console himself with this old Chinese proverb.

Prior to this, Sir John Paul Wong decided that it would be best to keep a low profile and avoid any direct conflict with the new Guangdong government.
……

Meanwhile, Shi Dakai ordered two armored cruisers to retaliate in kind, bombarding Hong Kong. After that, he had no time to deal with the matter further.

With the land and naval strength he possessed, it would be fine if the Hong Kong British government backed down; otherwise, Shi Dakai wouldn't mind taking back Hong Kong ahead of schedule and wiping away his previous humiliation...!
At present, Shi Dakai is so busy with various political and military affairs that he has no time to pay much attention to the British.

Wu Qingfeng, along with Ye Mingchen, Jiang Guolin, and a group of Qing Dynasty officials who had surrendered, had left Guangdong and were on their way back to California.

Only Shi Dakai remained, shouldering both political and military responsibilities, which he simply couldn't handle.

Moreover, everything is difficult at the beginning!

To start from scratch and create a completely new Guangdong, there are so many things that Shi Dakai needs to personally worry about and make decisions on. These days, he is under immense pressure.

Since taking over Guangdong, Shi Dakai has often worked through the night without rest.

If he weren't so young, only twenty-three years old, and not exceptionally gifted with a naturally strong and energetic body, he really wouldn't be able to handle it all.

Whenever he was dealing with official business late into the night, Shi Dakai longed for Mr. Feng to break with the Taiping Army and come to Guangdong to relieve some of his burden!
……

By early September, the earth-shattering news that the Restoration Army had easily seized the entire Guangdong province had spread throughout the country.

Feng Yunshan, who was far away in Nanjing, naturally heard about this shocking news.

Compared to others, Feng Yuanshan, who had anticipated this, appeared quite calm.

More than a year ago, Azu had expressed his desire to fight back to China in front of Feng Yunshan.

The five-year agreement and the ten-year promise still resonate in my ears.

Given his decisive and daring style, Feng Yunshan would never believe that he was just talking.

But things happened so quickly and progressed so smoothly, which was really beyond Feng Yunshan's expectations.

"King Nan, have you heard...?"

Shi Dakai's cousin, Shi Xiangzhen, a Taiping general, excitedly arrived at the Southern King's mansion and found Feng Yuanshan: "Southern King, my cousin has led his army back and captured the entire Guangdong province!"

After Shi Dakai broke away from the God Worshipping Society, all his clansmen came under the command of Feng Yunshan, the Prince of the South.

Back then, it was Shi Xiangzhen who, after Feng Yunshan was wounded by artillery fire, risked great danger and traveled thousands of miles to escort him all the way to Hong Kong.

That's why Feng Yunshan survived.

When Feng Yunshan returned from overseas, Shi Xiangzhen and other members of the Shi family became his trusted generals.

In the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, a place rife with intrigue and power struggles, Shi Dakai's clansmen were also key members of Feng Yunshan's faction.

Therefore, Feng Yunshan had no reservations and trusted Shi Xiangzhen unconditionally.

"Xiangzhen, I just received this news too... It was that same official who sent my personal guard to deliver this message to me...!"

The person Feng Yunshan was referring to was a platoon of bodyguards that Azu had assigned to him, specifically to be responsible for his safety.

At present, Feng Yuanshan is in a very bad situation within the entire Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

He returned to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom full of hope and ambition, but he never expected that his current situation would be exactly the same as what Azu had predicted.

Not only did Hong Tianwang not tolerate him, believing that he had returned to fight for power and profit, but Yang Xiuqing, Wei Changhui, and others also tried their best to ostracize him.

Once most people taste the power, they become completely addicted and find it difficult to extricate themselves.

Unrestricted power can distort humanity and turn people into monsters!
This was especially true for figures like Hong Tianwang, Yang Xiuqing, and Wei Changhui!

These people, who were originally from the bottom of society, became extremely arrogant and power-hungry once they suddenly rose to high positions and held great power.

But power is finite, and Feng Yunshan's return undoubtedly weakened their power to some extent.

Especially Yang Xiuqing!
Before Feng Yunshan's return, Hong Xiuqing was basically just a spiritual leader, and the entire Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was controlled by Yang Xiuqing alone!
Even Hong Tianwang was publicly humiliated by Yang Xiuqing several times!

Feng Yunshan's return undoubtedly threatened Yang Xiuqing's position.

It should be noted that within the entire Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Feng Yunshan's prestige and connections were in no way inferior to Yang Xiuqing's, and perhaps even surpassed them.

During the year that Feng Yunshan returned, like Hong Tianwang, he was essentially sidelined by Yang Xiuqing and held virtually no real power. Even when Feng Yunshan preached his new ideas, Yang Xiuqing openly refuted him as "spreading heresy" and forbade him from appearing in public.

It was only at this point that Feng Yunshan sadly realized that the entire Taiping Heavenly Kingdom had become Yang Xiuqing's personal fiefdom, and he would absolutely not allow anyone to threaten or challenge his authority and position!
As for Feng Yunshan, who returned from overseas full of ambition, he found himself becoming a dispensable marginal figure.

Knowing full well that the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom would inevitably perish if things continued this way, but being powerless to stop it, Feng Yunshan was tormented by this sense of helplessness and despair.

Fortunately, within the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, there were generals like Shi Xiangzhen who supported him both openly and secretly, which provided Feng Yunshan with some comfort.

Then Shi Xiangzhen continued excitedly, "Prince of the South, may I be so bold as to ask, what are your plans?"

"What are your plans...?"

Feng Yunshan recalled the earnest advice that person gave him before he left California.

"Yes!" Shi Xiangzhen nodded emphatically, then looked around to make sure no one was watching before lowering his voice and saying, "I've seen through the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom... it's simply incapable of achieving anything great!"

"King Hong is incompetent and immoral; King Dong is talented but immoral; King Bei is a despicable and shameless villain... The rest of the generals are brave but lack wisdom and strategy, and are unlikely to achieve great things..."

"Only you, Prince of the South, possess both virtue and talent, yet you are marginalized and sidelined! You have great ambitions, but no opportunity to use them."

Shi Xiangzhen may seem like a rough and uncouth man, but he is actually quite shrewd and has an excellent eye for people: "If the Prince of the South stays here for too long, not only will he find it difficult to realize his ambitions, but he may even... face danger to his life sooner or later!"

"Sigh...!" Feng Yunshan sighed helplessly.

If Shi Xiangzhen could see it clearly, how could Feng Yunshan not see it clearly?
But he was truly unwilling to give up ten years of hard work and leave the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom!
Shi Xiangzhen continued, "King of the South, instead of sitting here and waiting to die, we should head south and seek refuge with my cousin!"

"You know my cousin best, Prince Nan. He is magnanimous, loyal, brave, and upright. As long as you join forces with him, Prince Nan, what great things cannot be accomplished?"

“That’s true, but…!” Feng Yunshan was still quite hesitant.

"King Nan, I know that the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was the culmination of your life's work!"

Shi Xiangzhen continued, "However, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is now beyond saving!"

"Instead of this, why not join forces with my cousin? One day, we will surely be able to fight back and rebuild a new heaven!"

Feng Yunshan looked Shi Xiangzhen up and down and said in surprise, "Xiangzhen, this doesn't sound like something you would say?"

"Hehe!" Shi Xiangzhen scratched the back of his head and chuckled, "These two sentences are from a letter my cousin wrote to me...!"

"I see!"

“However…!” Shi Xiangzhen said solemnly, “King Nan, we have also contacted many like-minded brothers in private. They are also utterly disappointed with the current Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and are all willing to follow you…!”

"Oh...?" Feng Yunshan raised an eyebrow: "Who are they?!"

"Besides our Shi family members, there are also Luo Dagang, Chen Yucheng, Li Xiucheng...!"

Luo Dagang was also an old man of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and Feng Yunshan knew him very well!
Luo Dagang was a brave and fierce general, swift and decisive in his military campaigns, surpassing all other generals. In particular, he loved his soldiers like his own children, sharing their joys and sorrows, which earned him great respect and admiration.

Luo Dagang is currently in charge of guarding Zhenjiang, which is the eastern gateway to Nanjing and a very important location.

As for Chen Yucheng and Li Xiucheng, these two names were somewhat unfamiliar to Feng Yunshan. He had only occasionally heard that they were two promising young generals.

Seeing the puzzled look on Feng Yunshan's face, Shi Xiangzhen explained, "Luo Dagang is our old brother, and he has long been extremely dissatisfied with the Eastern King's abuse of power."

"So after a little persuasion, he immediately agreed to follow the Southern King!"

"As for Chen Yucheng and Li Xiucheng, these two are people my cousin wrote to me a year ago, specifically asking me to befriend them."

"I see...!" Feng Yunshan suddenly realized.

Since it was a letter from Shi Dakai, it must have been at the behest of that person.

Given that person's foresight and insight, there must have been a deeper meaning behind his deliberate befriending and persuading these two.

Although Feng Yunshan was puzzled, he did not question the other person's intentions in the slightest.

As it turns out, that person's predictions have never been wrong.

Everything he experienced after returning to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom completely proved that person was absolutely right!
After pondering for a long time, Feng Yunshan finally made up his mind: "Xiangzhen, if we want to break away from the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, it will definitely cause a great disturbance. I don't want to fight with my old brothers. Do you have any plans?"

Shi Xiangzhen chuckled softly, "My cousin had already planned this all along...!"

"Luo Dagang is currently stationed in Zhenjiang, our Shi family's troops are concentrated in Jiujiang, while Chen Yucheng is currently in Wuchang... The Southern King and Li Xiucheng are in Jinling... Just do this and that...!"

So Shi Xiangzhen whispered in Feng Yunshan's ear for a long time.

After listening to the whole thing, Feng Yunshan pondered for a moment before slowly nodding, "Very well...!"

Shi Xiangzhen said excitedly, "King Nan, now that the plan has been made, I will contact my cousin and arrange everything!"

"Can……!"

Having made up his mind, Feng Yunshan nodded emphatically without any further hesitation.

……

In mid-October 1854, an extremely large fleet suddenly appeared on the wide surface of the Yangtze River!

The massive fleet, consisting of more than ten steam warships and over a hundred steam merchant ships, easily overwhelmed the Qing navy's interception and brazenly entered the Yangtze River waterway.

More than a dozen steam-powered warships led the way, and any forts along the way that dared to fire were all blasted into the sky by the cannons of these warships.

Even the iron chains laid across the river by the Manchus and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom were directly blasted into iron fragments by artillery fire.

This sudden and massive fleet completely ignored the Qing army and Taiping army that were fighting each other, and went upstream to Wuchang City.

The Qing and Taiping armies along the way were completely helpless against this fleet that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and could only watch as it swaggered around and ran rampant.

Both the Qing army and the Taiping army tried to figure out the purpose of this huge fleet.

But no matter whether signals were sent or messengers were dispatched, the fleet did not respond at all, and simply continued to sail upstream on its own.

The massive fleet finally came to a stop at the gates of Wuchang.

Here, the fleet met up with a small Taiping army unit of over a thousand men, and then, under the watchful eyes of the Qing and Taiping armies, sailed downstream as if no one else was there.

Then, in Jiujiang City, this massive fleet met up with more than 20,000 Taiping soldiers and continued downstream.

Afterwards, the fleet stopped on the river near Nanjing, picked up a small team of only a few hundred people, and then continued downstream.

Finally, the fleet docked at Zhenjiang Port.

Here, they received another 30,000 Taiping Army troops.

The fleet, having filled with a full 60,000 Taiping soldiers, was finally satisfied and disappeared into the mouth of the Yangtze River, sailing away triumphantly!

The Manchu army was completely baffled by this fleet that appeared and disappeared so suddenly!

The Taiping army, realizing what was happening, flew into a rage!

……

Jinling, the Eastern Prince's Mansion!

Yang Xiuqing, the Eastern King, was only thirty-one years old and illiterate. At this moment, he was in a fit of rage.

"Wei Changhui, what are you saying...?"

Enraged, Yang Xiuqing pointed at Wei Changhui, who was kneeling at the foot of the jade steps, and cursed, "Feng Yunshan has disappeared, Luo Dagang has disappeared, Shi Xiangzhen has disappeared, Li Xiucheng and Chen Yucheng have all disappeared...?"

"A total of 60,000 Taiping soldiers also disappeared along with them...!"

"Even Jiujiang and Zhenjiang fell into the hands of the Qing army...!"

Enraged, Yang Xiuqing grabbed a paperweight from the table and hurled it at Wei Changhui, who was kneeling.

"Boom...!"

Caught off guard, Wei Changhui was immediately smashed on the head and bled profusely!
Even so, Wei Changhui remained kneeling obediently, not daring to move an inch.

"Eastern King...Eastern King, please calm your anger!"

At this moment, although Wei Changhui was the King of the North, he was no better than a lapdog in front of Yang Xiuqing. He was so docile that he didn't even dare to bark.

Wei Changhui was in charge of "assisting in the affairs of Heaven." All matters, large and small, of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom had to be reported to him first, and then he would report to Yang Xiuqing for decision-making and imperial decree.

So now, the only one facing Yang Xiuqing's wrath is this unlucky guy!

Enraged, Yang Xiuqing pointed at Wei Changhui's bleeding head and continued to berate him: "Such a big thing, and you didn't even hear a whisper of it beforehand? What were you all doing?"

"The entire Nanwang Mansion was deserted overnight, which is quite something!"

“Ever since Feng Yunshan returned, he has not been of one mind with us old brothers. He left without a second thought.”

"Ke Luo Dagang and Shi Xiangzhen are both generals who command large armies!"

"These two men, one guarding Zhenjiang and the other guarding Jiujiang, are both crucial strongholds protecting our capital, Tianjing!"

"With the loss of Zhenjiang and Jiujiang, Tianjing is in grave danger!"

"And my 60,000 elite troops... I'm absolutely furious!"

The Taiping Army is currently at the peak of its military strength, but its total force capable of fighting is only around 300,000.

Overnight, they lost one-fifth of their troops.

How could Yang Xiuqing not be heartbroken!

Wei Changhui, prostrate on the ground, replied tremblingly, "Reporting...reporting to the Eastern King, Feng Yunshan and 60,000 elite troops have gone missing. We...we suspect that it's related to that scoundrel Shi Dakai!"

"Shi Dakai...!"

The image of that dashing figure resurfaced in Yang Xiuqing's mind.

Before the God Worshipping Society uprising, Shi Dakai was also one of the core members. In terms of status, he was comparable to Wei Changhui, second only to Hong Xiuquan, Feng Yunshan, Yang Xiuqing and Xiao Chaogui.

But just before the uprising began, Shi Dakai mysteriously disappeared.

It was only much later that people heard that Shi Dakai had gone abroad alone.

It wasn't until the last month or two that I heard that Shi Dakai had led his troops back and captured the entire Guangdong province in one fell swoop.

Just over a month ago, Yang Xiuqing and others were overjoyed when they heard the news that Shi Dakai had led his army to seize Guangdong.

In any case, Shi Dakai was an old friend of the Guangxi God Worshipping Society.

Now that our old comrades have captured Guangdong in one fell swoop, they have undoubtedly done the Taiping Army a great favor.

It's important to understand that Guangdong was the most crucial source of revenue for the Qing Dynasty. Especially now, with the Jiangnan region embroiled in fierce fighting and reduced to ruins, Guangdong's tax revenue was undoubtedly even more vital to the Qing court!
When the cannons roar, gold pours in! War is undoubtedly a contest of who has the deepest coffers!

Now that Guangdong has lost its financial resources, the Qing Dynasty's power will surely suffer its heaviest blow!
More than a month ago, Yang Xiuqing even wrote a passionate letter to Shi Dakai.

The letter roughly means that it invites Shi Dakai to launch a northern expedition as soon as possible, to join forces with the Taiping Army, to jointly seize the Qing Dynasty's territory, and then to divide the land among kings, etc.!
However, since the letter was written, it has disappeared without a trace, without any response.

Unexpectedly, Wei Changhui brought up Shi Dakai's name again today, in such an infuriating situation.

Wei Changhui continued, "That scoundrel Shi Dakai returned from overseas with his troops and seized Guangdong in one fell swoop, but he ignored the invitation from our Heavenly Kingdom. It's clear that he's no longer of one mind with us!"

"Besides, Feng Yunshan is also said to have gone to California in North America, which is the same place as Shi Dakai."

"During the year or so that Feng Yunshan was overseas, the two of them must have been plotting something."

"Since his return, Feng Yunshan has been very close to Shi Xiangzhen and others."

"And Shi Xiangzhen is Shi Dakai's cousin!"

Wei Changhui added, "And Luo Dagang and others had very close relationships with Feng Yunshan, Shi Dakai, Shi Xiangzhen, and others back then!"

"When Feng Yunshan and Shi Dakai returned one after another, they most likely persuaded Luo Dagang to go and join them in Guangdong...!"

"That massive fleet that appeared on the river a few days ago was most likely sent by Shi Dakai...!"

Although Wei Changhui was a despicable man, he was absolutely brilliant. Otherwise, he would have been able to climb to such a high position despite having no notable military achievements. His ability to scheme, manipulate people, and win over others is evident.

In just a few words, Wei Changhui guessed the inside story of the matter with remarkable accuracy.

Yang Xiuqing, a powerful and ruthless man, quickly calmed his anger and slowly sat down on the throne.

"So... Feng Yunshan, Shi Dakai, Luo Dagang, Shi Xiangzhen, and that other guy, colluded to abduct my 60,000 elite Taiping soldiers?"

Still prostrate on the ground, Wei Changhui nodded vigorously: "Reporting to the Eastern King, this humble servant can think of no other reason besides this...!"

"If that's really the case, is there any way to salvage it...?"

(End of this chapter)