1848 Great Qing Charcoal Burners

Chapter 184 To deceive me is to deceive Heaven; all my sons and sons-in-law may be made kings.

"Isn't this Zhou Xineng, the commander-in-chief of the Right Army? Didn't he go back to his hometown of Bobai to recruit soldiers a few days ago? Why is he back so soon, and is he having a secret rendezvous with his wife here?"

Upon getting closer, Chen Chengrong recognized the two men rustling and acting suspiciously in the grass as Zhou Xineng, the commander-in-chief of Wei Changhui's right army.

After they finished, the two fumbled around for their coarse cloth clothes and put them on.

"Governor Zhou has already granted me the rank of a fifth-grade official. You should make do with these coarse clothes for a few more days. Once you get through these days, we and our children will have endless fine silks and satins to wear!"

Zhou Xineng looked at Cai Wanmei, who was putting on coarse cloth clothes, with some heartache and said.

"It's getting late, let's hurry back so we don't get discovered. Once this is done, my husband and I can be together every day and work together day and night."

Zhou Xineng, who was like parched land receiving rain, wanted to do it a few more times, but he was worried about being caught by too many people, so he had to suppress his desire and hold back.

The Taiping army has been conquering cities and territories recently, so the imperial treasury is naturally not short of silks and satins.

However, the Taiping army's high command had already issued an order to strictly adhere to etiquette, prohibiting everyone except the emperors, the emperor's father, and the two prime ministers from wearing silk and satin.

Not to mention Zhou Xineng, even Chen Chengrong, who was one rank higher than Zhou Xineng and was a general, was not qualified to wear silk and satin.

Governor Zhou? A fifth-rank official?

Could it be that Zhou Xineng has subdued a Qing demon?

Having sobered up and regained his senses, Chen Chengrong realized that something was seriously wrong.

It's highly likely that Zhou Xineng, this traitor, secretly colluded with the Qing forces while recruiting soldiers in his hometown of Bobai, and then rebelled.

This matter is of great importance, and Zhou Xineng is a member of Wei Changhui's right army. The various armies of the Taiping Army are not subordinate to each other, and the central army has no jurisdiction over the right army.

After careful consideration, Chen Chengrong did not disturb Zhou Xineng and Cai Wanmei, but instead reported the matter to Yang Xiuqing overnight, leaving it to Yang Xiuqing to make a decision.

Since the uprising began, there has not been a traitor in the Heavenly Kingdom.

Given that Zhou Xineng was a high-ranking official in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the seriousness of this matter is self-evident.

However, Yang Xiuqing saw more than just the outward appearance of Zhou Xineng's rebellion.

What worried him most was that each army was independent and did not communicate with each other.

The power of the Heavenly Kingdom was too decentralized, and the Heavenly King was powerless to command the thousands of kings, with each army often fighting independently.

For the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven's great cause, the Kingdom of Heaven needs a new secular king with real power to coordinate all the armies.

Looking to the heavens, who else but Yang Xiuqing could be the new king!
Yang Xiuqing's biggest rival, Xiao Chaogui, recently suffered a defeat on the Xijiang River, causing his prestige to decline, while Yang Xiuqing is at the height of his power.

The only person who could rival him in merit was Peng Gang, who was far away in Liuzhou Prefecture.

At this time, being granted the title of king would be most advantageous for Yang Xiuqing.

Yang Xiuqing had always coveted the highest secular power in the Heavenly Kingdom, and Zhou Xineng's rebellion was an excellent opportunity to seize it.

“Zhou Xineng is a member of the Right Army of the Zhengbao. According to custom, members of the Right Army should be dealt with by the Zhengbao.” After pondering for a long time, Yang Xiuqing had an idea.

"This matter should not be publicized for the time being."

“Your Excellency, it is likely true that Zhou Xineng rebelled against the Cao family. We have no concrete evidence. If Your Excellency were to handle this matter, Zhou Xineng would certainly not admit it,” Chen Chengrong said hastily.

Aside from vows of eternal love, most of the things men and women say in bed are true.

Chen Chengrong was 99% certain that Zhou Xineng had indeed rebelled against Cao Cao, but he just hadn't obtained concrete evidence.

Your esteemed officials are always protective of their own, so if Wei Changhui is put in charge of handling this matter, it will most likely end up being left unresolved.

Zhou Xineng wasn't stupid; if he was caught and wanted to survive, he could only insist that he hadn't rebelled.

“That’s why I told you not to make a fuss. You didn’t catch us in the act, but came to me instead. That’s good.” Yang Xiuqing said, patting Chen Chengrong on the shoulder with a confident air.

“Zhou Xineng must have accomplices. Don’t alert him, lest you make a mistake. Keep a close eye on him and find his accomplices to bring to me first. Chengrong, you’ve been with me for years. If you handle this well, I’ll promote you to inspector!”

A fifth-rank official is a relatively high-ranking official position, and even if it's just a nominal title, it still commands a considerable price.

If Zhou Xineng were the only one to rebel against the Qing dynasty, Zhou Tianjue would not have granted him such a high-ranking official position.

Even though Zhou Xineng had already rebelled against the Cao, he still returned to the Cangwu camp and told his wife that he would leave in a few days.

This indicates that Zhou Xineng is carrying a mission from a new master, and he definitely has accomplices.

Yang Xiuqing planned to take this opportunity to eradicate the traitors who rebelled against Cao Cao, leaving no future trouble.

The inspector was a high-ranking official second only to the prime minister.

The position of Inspector did not originate from the "Capital Inspector" position during the Five Dynasties period, as is widely believed in later generations.

There were no highly educated people in the Taiping Army; very few were well-versed in the "History of Ming" or the "History of Song".

The official titles of the Five Dynasties were such obscure facts that almost no one knew about them.

The position of Inspector actually originates from the fifth chapter of "Journey to the West," where "Luo Hou Xing is the head Inspector."

Currently, the Heavenly Kingdom only has two prime ministers, making the position of inspector highly valuable.

If Chen Chengrong could skip two ranks and be promoted directly to Inspector, his position would be second only to Qin Rigang and Hu Yihuang.

Yang Xiuqing knew in his heart that he considered Yang Fuqing and others as his own family, and that allowing them to enjoy the treatment of the imperial clan made Chen Chengrong and other generals who were not surnamed Yang feel resentful.

However, Yang Xiuqing also had his own difficulties; this was a strategy he had to take to consolidate his position.

The purpose of appointing Chen Chengrong as a supervisor was twofold: firstly, to compensate Chen Chengrong and appease his resentment, and secondly, to ensure that Chen Chengrong would perform his duties diligently.

"Thank you for your promotion, Your Excellency!" Chen Chengrong was overjoyed and bowed deeply to thank Yang Xiuqing.

"Go and do it well, and keep a close eye on Zhou Xineng," Yang Xiuqing nodded slightly.

Yang Xiuqing's prediction was correct; Zhou Xineng did indeed have accomplices.

Chen Chengrong was alarmed by the number of Zhou Xineng's accomplices. Under the guise of recruiting new soldiers, Zhou Xineng brought back more than a hundred new soldiers from Bobai. They were all Qing spies who had infiltrated the Cangwu camp. The two Qing spies who were in charge were named Zhu Ba and Chen Wu.

They constantly spied on the camps of the various armies in Cangwu, spreading rumors and sowing discord among the troops.

Zhou Xineng not only had accomplices, but also attempted to win over two fellow townsmen, Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an, who were serving in the front army.

However, Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an remained ambiguous in their stance, neither giving a clear answer. Chen Chengrong informed Yang Xiuqing of the information he had gathered over the past two days.

After a moment's thought, Yang Xiuqing quickly came up with a plan.

Yang Xiuqing instructed Chen Chengrong to bring Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an to him for questioning.

Yang Xiuqing was overjoyed. It was truly a stroke of luck! Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an were both from the vanguard.

After Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an were brought to the capital, Yang Xiuqing, the Heavenly Father, descended to earth and questioned them, "Heaven has treated you well, but have your consciences been stolen by dogs? Why did you harbor such thoughts of subjugating the Qing demon?"

Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an were greatly shocked, never expecting that the Heavenly Father knew about such a top-secret matter, and that the Heavenly Father knew exactly what Zhou Xineng had told them.

The two were so frightened that they dared not lie to Heaven. They then told him in detail about how Zhou Xineng had persuaded them to rebel against the herdsmen and everything they knew.

The following day, as several high-ranking officials gathered at the Heavenly King's Palace (Wuzhou Prefecture) to discuss military affairs, Yang Xiuqing suddenly convulsed and the Heavenly Father descended to earth, claiming that someone in the Heavenly Army had rebelled. He specifically named Wei Changhui and ordered him to bring Zhou Xineng to the capital, and instructed Wei Changhui to interrogate Zhou Xineng himself.

Although Zhou Xineng was terrified, in order to save his life, he insisted that he had not rebelled.

Despite his anti-grassroots stance, Zhou Xineng was, after all, a general who had fought his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood. He still possessed the mental fortitude to remain calm and composed even when faced with a collapsing mountain.

Zhou Xineng's acting skills fooled almost everyone except Yang Xiuqing.

The high-ranking officials of the Heavenly Kingdom dared not and were unwilling to believe that an old comrade like Zhou Xineng would betray the regime.

“Father, Zhou Xineng is an old man who has followed the Heavenly Army. Could it be that you have mistaken him for someone else?” Wei Changhui said unhappily.

Wei Changhui and Yang Xiuqing's relationship was not exactly harmonious. As for the speculative act of the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother descending to earth, Wei Changhui naturally did not believe it.

After the establishment of the new emperor, the relationship between Wei Changhui and Yang Xiuqing deteriorated, with Wei Changhui believing that Yang Xiuqing was deliberately picking on him.

"Yes, Father, is there some misunderstanding?" Seeing that the situation was getting out of control, Feng Yunshan quickly stepped in to smooth things over.

Yang Xiuqing did not heed Feng Yunshan's words and continued to interrogate Zhou Xineng as the Heavenly Father.

Yang Xiuqing looked down at Zhou Xineng, rolling her eyes and staring intently at him as he knelt on the ground, seemingly calm but actually panicked and drenched in sweat. She bombarded Zhou Xineng with questions.

“Zhou Xineng, you know that I have saved you several times. If you have done something wrong, just tell me directly, and I will take it as your repentance and forgiveness.”

Zhou Xineng instinctively pointed to the sky and swore: "Father, I have no intention of rebelling against the Heavenly Kingdom, nor have I done anything to rebel against it. I swear to Heaven that I have no disloyalty to the Heavenly Kingdom!"

"I am Heaven! To deceive me is to deceive Heaven! I know whether you are of one mind or two!" Yang Xiuqing suddenly raised his voice and shouted sternly.

"Zhou Xineng! How dare you defy Heaven! I ask you, what were you doing the other day?"

"Go back to our hometown of Bobai and gather our brothers and sisters to come to Cangwu to follow the Heavenly Army and become holy soldiers." Yang Xiuqing's imposing manner made Zhou Xineng feel a little breathless.

"How many people did you bring?!" Yang Xiuqing asked with a cold smile.

"Reporting to Heavenly Father, I have brought one hundred and five men from Bobai." Cold sweat streamed down Zhou Xineng's face.

"I know. I have already sent Chengrong to bring them to the Heavenly King's Palace. Judging by the time, they should have arrived by now." Yang Xiuqing glanced at the door and saw that Chen Chengrong had brought Zhou Xineng's 105 men, along with Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an, into the Heavenly King's Palace. He then shouted.

"Zhou Xineng! You are truly audacious! These men you brought are holy soldiers who follow the Heavenly Army?! They are clearly spies of the Qing Demons!"

Seeing all 105 people brought to the Heavenly King's Palace along with Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an, Zhou Xineng knew that his plan had been exposed and wilted like a frostbitten eggplant.

Yang Xiuqing not only allowed Chen Chengrong to arrest Wei Changhui's men without consulting him, but he also arrested the men of the vanguard.

Although the details of the matter are still unclear, Xiao Chaogui has always been a man of loyalty, which is why Lin Fengxiang, Li Kaifang and others are willing to follow him.

Xiao Chaogui felt that Yang Xiuqing was going too far and was about to retaliate, intending to use the Heavenly Mother and Heavenly Brother descending to earth to put on a show against Yang Xiuqing.

Today's events were completely unexpected by Feng Yunshan. Fearing that the situation would get out of control, Feng Yunshan hurriedly pulled Xiao Chaogui back.

That's how we avoided the embarrassing situation of the Heavenly Father and Heavenly Brother arguing in public.

Yang Xiuqing felt it was time to end things, and turned to Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an, saying, "You two are just not firm in your resolve, but you have no ulterior motives. Now tell my brothers in detail how Zhou Xineng tricked you into joining the Qing dynasty!"

Zhu Xikun knelt down and confessed: "Yesterday, Zhou Xineng and Zhu Ba misled me into joining the Qing Dynasty, saying that the Qing leader Zhou would be richly rewarded and could get a sixth-rank official hat and reunite with his wife. I angrily cursed them for being traitorous and heartless, and did not follow them."

Huang Wen'an followed up by saying, "Zhou Xineng also contacted me yesterday."

With numerous witnesses present and all the Qing army spies captured, Zhou Xineng has no chance of turning the tables or making excuses.

Xiao Chaogui and Wei Changhui's faces turned pale and then red, unsure of what to say.

"Zhou Xineng and the Qing spies were beheaded and their heads displayed to all the troops as a warning to others!"

For the first time, Yang Xiuqing directly intervened in worldly affairs in the name of the Heavenly Father, and made judgments based on the severity of the crimes committed by Zhou Xineng and others. Moreover, the judgments were made against generals outside the central army.

"Zhu Xikun and Huang Wen'an, you two lacked resolve and failed to expose Zhou Xineng in time, forcing me to descend to the mortal realm to handle worldly affairs. You may be spared the death penalty, but you cannot escape punishment. Considering that you are veterans of the Heavenly Army, each of you will receive one hundred strokes of the military rod."

To be fair, Yang Xiuqing's verdict was fairly impartial.

However, Yang Xiuqing's public punishment of the vanguard and right wing in front of so many people still made Xiao Chaogui and Wei Changhui very uncomfortable.

Moreover, Yang Xiuqing made the judgment in the name of the Heavenly Father.

Wei Changhui, in particular, felt deeply uneasy, as he had no right to be possessed by a deity.

If one day Yang Xiuqing, the Heavenly Father, were to descend to earth and punish him in the same way he punished Zhou Xineng, Zhu Xikun, Huang Wen'an, and others, by beating him with military rods, how would he respond?
"Where is my son Xiuquan?" Yang Xiuqing demanded.

"Heavenly Father, your son is here!" Hong Xiuquan hurriedly knelt down in front of Yang Xiuqing.

"Xiuquan, do you still have your brothers in your heart?" Yang Xiuqing questioned.

“We are all children of the Heavenly Father. How could Xiuquan not have brothers in his heart?” Hong Xiuquan had an ominous premonition.

"Whether you have brothers in your heart isn't just a matter of words!" Yang Xiuqing said coldly. "Xiuquan, you'd better watch yourself. I'm going back to heaven!"

The following day, Zhou Xineng and others were executed, and their heads were sent to the various armies. Yang Xiuqing even remembered to send a few heads to Peng Gang, who was far away in Liuzhou Prefecture.

Following the Zhou Xineng case, Xiao Chaogui and Wei Changhui, along with the vanguard and right wing armies under their command, suffered a significant loss of prestige.

After all, it was disgraceful that traitors and wavering individuals had appeared in their armies.

Yang Xiuqing's prestige soared, reaching its zenith.

The calls for bestowing the title of king, especially for Yang Xiuqing, grew louder and louder.

(End of this chapter)