Chapter 56 Section 6 The censor participated in the impeachment, the Ting army mutinied, and Zeng Guofan's melancholy deepened

Fuming is easy to dismiss, but it is difficult to stop the world's long-winded mouth. When Zeng Guofan left Jinling and returned to Anqing to cook for more than a month, and officially moved the Liangjiang governor's office into the original Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Yingwang's mansion, the ruling and opposition parties were already full of opinions. The Hunan army ransacked Jinling City and gave Zeng Guoquan an extremely ugly nickname: "Old Glutton".Zeng Guoquan heard that the damp poison had worsened and his liver disease had recurred. Zeng Guofan was also worried, always worried about the imminent disaster.

On this day, Zeng Guofan picked up "Book of Songs Fan Tai Biography" again in trepidation.When I read Fan Tai's words to Situ Wanghong, "The affairs of the world are vast, but the power is hard to live in. Brother Qing is full, and when Shen Cun surrenders", I feel that this is exactly the wake-up call for him and Yuan Fu. .He picked up the pen, added a long series of small circles next to this sentence, and then wrote the next sentence on the top of the sky: "Being in a high position and enjoying a great name, since ancient times, how many people can be good at the end of the road? Try to push back the word "power and position" by a little bit, and if you subtract a few percent, the end will come to an end." As soon as he put down his pen, he thought that Yuan Fu had always been narrow-minded, and it was appropriate to use these stories of predecessors to enlighten him.So he called Wang Jingqi and ordered him to give this book to Jiushuai. For the sake of solemnity, he wrote another short letter: Brother Yuan: My brother's anger cannot be calmed down, and he is depressed, which is deeply worrying.Brother don't have to be depressed.Since ancient times, there have been great meritorious workers, but they only got a noble ear, while the younger brother earned a noble himself and gave his elder brother a noble.When the younger brother presents this gift, people may ignore it suddenly, and the younger brother may be modest and stay away, but I know it well, and I have already informed my wife in detail, and I will tell my family and family members in the future.From now on, you should keep your family alive with your brother-in-law.Jing Qi is now sent to send a piece of "Fan Tai Biography", I hope my younger brother will read it carefully.In ancient times, apart from Guo Fenyang, who has achieved great success and fame for a thousand years, there have been so many turmoil and disasters, it is easier said than done!I would like to work conscientiously with my younger brother, each with a deep fear of being insignificant, so as to avoid serious violence.

As soon as Jing Qi left, Zhecha sent a stack of messages, which was an important court memorial that the Military Aircraft Department copied to the governors, generals, and governors of all places as usual.Zeng Guofan opened it carefully, there were three copies in total, he looked at it, flustered, his eyes blurred, and finally he was drenched in cold sweat, his face turned pale, and he leaned on the back of the chair, not even having the strength to stand up. It turned out that these were the references of the three censors, all of whom came to his Zeng brothers and the Hunan Army. One is that Yushi Zhuzhen played Chen Jinling's funeral affairs, saying that soldiers should be dismissed if they are brave, land and houses should be returned, refugees should be compensated, and merchants should be recruited. The aftermath became more and more chaotic.Please dismiss Zeng Guoquan from his position as governor, and choose another cadre from the court to handle it.One is that the censor Liao Shimin played Zeng Guohuang in Xiangxiang, relying on his brother's power, blackmailing the county magistrate, interfering in public affairs, setting up private courts, threatening revenge, and even sacrificing the ancestors with human heads, causing the county magistrate to hide in the house every three to five days. Li cried bitterly, saying that Fourth Master Zeng was going to use his hands to kill again.Please ask the imperial court to order the governor of Hunan Province to severely punish the evil gentry Zeng Guohuang, so as to abolish the discipline of the village.The first is that the censor Cai Shouqi played all kinds of illegal activities of the Hunan Army, listing Zeng Guofan, Zeng Guoquan, Li Hongzhang, Li Yuandu, Liu Rong, Bao Chao and others who condoned their subordinates' misconduct. Big.The conquest of Jinling this time was purely due to the exhaustion of the long hair, not a battle.The Hunan Army's gang of hooligans rose up at the right time, and many of them have already occupied high military and political positions. This is not a blessing for the country, but an accident.This generation should only be given a humble position, not a heavy responsibility.

"In this way, the Hunan Army and my brothers from the Zeng family are not the heroes but the chief culprits!" Zeng Guofan sighed desolately in his heart.After a long time, he slowly woke up.The censors were supposed to be able to hear rumors without taking responsibility, and the emperor didn't take everything they said seriously.The three memorials were only copied in the form of a message, and the court did not show any attitude, and the object of delivery was limited to the governor of Liangjiang.That means just knocking and not trying to spread it.After thinking about this level, Zeng Guofan felt a little more cheerful.He called Zhao Liewen, Yang Guodong, Peng Shouyi and others, and circulated the message to them. Everyone agreed with him.

"Zhongtang, do you want to show Jiushuai these messages?" Zhao Liewen asked as he folded the messages and prepared to store them in the cabinet. "Yuanfu is in a bad mood recently, so let's not show him for now!" Zeng Guofan thought for a while and said. "Zhongtang, let's draw up an excerpt to refute these meddlesome crows, and don't let the Empress Dowager be deceived by their lies." Peng Shouyi said angrily. "I want to make an account and make it clear to the Empress Dowager." Yang Guodong agreed. "The booklet will not be available for the time being." Zeng Guofan stroked his long beard and sat quietly, his mood has basically calmed down, "Just copy two more copies of Cai Shouqi's booklet and pass it on to Li Shaoquan and Liu Mengrong in my name It's better to go and defend the empress dowager."

"It's still Zhongtang's thoughtful thinking." Zhao Liewen said, he admired Zeng Guofan's sophistication from the bottom of his heart.As soon as the staff members left, a soldier came in and reported, "Teng Raoshu, the battalion officer of the Ting army, is asking to see him outside the yamen." Bao Chao went back to Sichuan Province, and the Ting Army was led by Song Guoyong, the commander-in-chief of Xuanhua Town, and was currently doing its best to deal with the troops of the Taiping Army Wang Haiyang.Is it because of the critical situation in the war that people need to be dispatched for rescue, or has Wang Haiyang been captured and come to report victory? "Tell him to come in." Ever since Xianfeng sent troops to Hengzhou in the fourth year, he hadn't seen Teng Raoshu for ten years. He saw that Xiangxi Yongding, who was as thin as a small vine, was now a majestic general.Zeng Guofan was overjoyed, and asked with a smile, "What is your official position now?"

"Replying to Mr. Zhongtang, I am currently living in a humble position and I am named Deputy General Ting Junshu as the battalion officer." Teng Raoshu replied sternly. "Promising, he is actually a member of the second rank!" Zeng Guofan praised. "What's the use of this second grade!" Teng Raoshu replied disdainfully. "Why didn't it work?" Zeng Guofan felt strange. "I heard that the army is going to be disarmed. Once the censors like us leave the barracks, they are ordinary people. Not to mention the second rank, even the first rank is empty."

Zeng Guofan hadn't thought about the matter of disarmament maturely, and he knew that there would be many problems in the middle.In the memorial to the empress dowager and the emperor, he mentioned this matter and expressed his determination to resolutely abolish the Hunan army, in order to reassure the court. As for the specific deployment, it still needs to be carefully considered.At a meeting of senior generals of the Hunan Army, Zeng Guofan disclosed the decision to disarm them so that they could hear their reactions to the matter. It seems that Bao Chao has already spread the word among Tingjun.Teng came around the tree, just to take this opportunity to listen to the opinions of the soldiers of the military camp, and also to explain to them.

"Walk around the tree!" Zeng Guofan put down the airs of the governor and said kindly as an elder, "You have worked hard in many battles and made contributions to the country. Who in the village doesn't respect you? Now go back with some severance pay and buy dozens of acres Wouldn’t it be best to have a good paddy field, build a few big tile houses, and live the rest of your life comfortably and freely? Why bother to be an official and fight for power? Besides, you military officers are in the military camp all year round, and you will inevitably have to fight and bleed, and your lives are in danger!”

"Master Zhongtang is certainly right." Teng Raoshu said solemnly, "However, if you buy a field and build a house to live at home, no matter how good you are, you are just a wealthy landowner. What about prestige?" "In this way, you are not willing to be sent back to your hometown?" "Some people are willing, but most of the officials are not." "So what if you don't want to?" Zeng Guofan thought of the riots in Jiziying some time ago, and already had an ominous premonition. "Lord Zhongtang, that's exactly why I'm here this time." Teng Raoshu said with a serious expression, "Nearly half of the Ting army has mutinied."

"Is there such a thing?" There were deserters and riots in the Hunan army, but there was no precedent for a large number of people to mutiny.The Ting Army has always been very disciplined, and only Bao Chao can hold it down.Zeng Guofan was also worried that there would be chaos within the Ting Army, but he did not expect a mutiny.He was extremely angry, "Why did the mutiny happen, and who led it?" "Song Junmen has a letter for you." Teng Raoshu took out the letter from his backpack and handed it to Zeng Guofan with both hands. Song Guoyong's letter stated that the mutineers numbered as many as 8,000, and it happened after hearing the news of the reduction of the Hunan Army on the way to chase Wang Haiyang.They suddenly stayed at Jinxi and asked Song Guoyong for the salary owed. The leader was Shen Mingbiao, the camp official of Qingziying.In the past two years, Shen Mingbiao has secretly developed the elder brother's association in the Ting army. This time, the mutiny is caused by the elder brother's association. This hateful bidder, I regret that I didn't kill him in the first place!Zeng Guofan cursed in his heart.After he was withdrawn from the position of battalion officer that year, he stayed in the personal military camp for half a year, and was later released on bail by Yang Yuebin to the Waijiang Navy. Afterwards, Bao Chao saw that he could fight, so he was allowed a battalion officer position, and he was released from the navy. Transferred to Tingjun.After Teng Raoshu withdrew, Zeng Guofan told Zhao Liewen about the Tingjun mutiny, and took him to the headquarters of Jiziying in a sedan chair. Zeng Guoquan became a little more cheerful after reading the elder brother's letter and "Fan Tai Biography", but his expression was still depressed.As soon as the elder brother came in, he hurriedly took his hand and said, "Brother, I have made up my mind. I have to walk one way to stop the world's slander." "Old Jiu, what are you thinking?" Zeng Guofan was afraid of his younger brother's words, afraid that he would do something unexpected. "I want to learn from brothers Wang Hong and Wang Tanshou, and retire as ill." Zeng Guofan was relieved that this was the way to go.This is actually Zeng Guofan's own thoughts. Given the current situation, it is better for Lao Jiu to return to his hometown for a while to avoid it. There may be this meaning behind asking Jing Qi to send "Fan Tai Biography".But now that Lao Jiu said it out of his mouth, he felt surprised again, especially after watching "Fan Tai Biography", he was worried that Lao Jiu would think that it was his elder brother who forced him to return to his hometown, so he hurriedly said: "All the affairs of Jinling are gone. If I don’t want to leave you, it’s also my elder brother’s business to say I’m sick, and when I have a clear idea of ​​what’s going on in Jinling, I’ll propose to the empress dowager and the emperor to return home.” "Brother, how can you go this way!" Zeng Guoquan said with a wry smile, "Besides, I am physically and mentally ill now. Jinling City is noisy and noisy, and I can't live there. It is very difficult to abolish the Jiziying. I am here, seeing them I bid farewell tearfully, and felt very sad. Besides, I will go back and personally supervise the construction of Youhengtang, my first doctor's office." Zeng Guofan saw that his brother was speaking sincerely, so he said: "Well, we brothers can discuss this matter, and now there is an urgent matter to listen to your opinion." Zeng Guofan took out Song Guoyong's letter. "These bastards will all be beheaded!" Zeng Guoquan read the letter in a hurry, gnashing his teeth with hatred. "Old Nine, this is a knife in our chest, much worse than the outside discussion!" Zeng Guofan looked at his younger brother for help, "How do you think this matter will be resolved?" He said to Zhao Liewen, "Huifu, tell me, the three of us come to discuss a solution that balances both ends." "The humble job must share the worries of Zhongtang and Jiushuai." Zhao Liewen said with gratitude for being trusted. "It's easy to handle. Ask Peng Yuju and Liu Lianjie to take 5,000 troops, disarm them, and bring the bids." Zeng Guoquan blurted out without thinking. "Wouldn't this become a firefight within the Hunan Army, and provide others with an excuse to attack?" Zeng Guofan disagreed with this simple solution. "This is not fighting, it's counter-insurgency! For this kind of rebellious thieves, only by completely eradicating them can we eradicate them." Zeng Guoquan firmly insisted on his opinion. "That's true, but it's not easy to eliminate eight thousand mutinous officers and soldiers!" Zeng Guofan paced with his hands behind his back, and didn't come up with a good idea, but he always felt that Yuan Fu's method was wrong. "Zhongtang, Commander Nine." Zhao Liewen finally spoke after being silent for a while, "I figured out what Zhongtang meant, and wanted to use a more secure method to deal with Tingjun's mutiny in a quiet way." "Yes." Zeng Guofan nodded. "Hizhi also thinks that Zhongtang's idea is better. The Nine Marshals want to use force to eliminate them. Although it is clean and thorough, it is not easy to do. I think the best way to deal with it quietly is to caress." "What kind of caress?" Zeng Guoquan asked.Zhao Liewen came up with many good ideas for Zeng Guoquan's attack on Jinling in the past two years. Zeng Guoquan admired his ability to plan. "I think, no matter how stupid Shen Mingbiao is, at this time, he will lead his troops to mutiny, and he will never join the long-haired Li Shixian and Wang Haiyang. His purpose is probably to grab more gold and silver property before disbanding. The pay is very serious, and some battalions haven’t paid for half a year. If Zhongtang and Jiushuai think it’s okay, they’ll send me to Jinxi to calm the minds of these 8,000 people so that they won’t make a fuss. bigger." "How do you stabilize it?" Zeng Guofan admired Zhao Liewen's idea. "What's the ability of a humble job? It's not about borrowing the prestige of Zhongtang and Jiushuai." Zhao Liewen said with a smile, "I went to Jinxi and told them the disarmament. military spirit." "Oh." Zeng Guofan nodded and said, "Huifu, you can tell them like this, regarding the matter of disarmament, someone Zeng is waiting for the imperial order from the empress dowager and the emperor. There is no specific plan on how to disband the Hunan army. All rumors about this are baseless." "Yes, I don't know how to cut Jizi Ying. I don't know how to cut it. Only Bao Chao, a wooden head, hears the wind and it rains." Zeng Guoquan said angrily, but Zeng Guofan didn't like it. "Zhongtang told me so clearly, I knew it in my heart. When I got to Jinxi, I told them exactly what Zhongtang said just now." "Huifu!" Zeng Guoquan spoke again, "I think you might as well tell them that the matter of disarmament will not be moved for the time being, and we will talk about it later." Zhao Liewen looked at Zeng Guofan, waiting for instructions.Zeng Guofan couldn't agree with Lao Jiu's words, but thinking of what he said just now about retiring from the ancients, he felt that he had made too much sacrifice for himself. According to what Yuanfu said, coax them first." "One more thing," Zhao Liewen continued, "ask the Zhongtang for 300,000 silver, and pay off all the owed wages of the Tingjun. In this way, most of the soldiers who participated in the mutiny will turn back." Zeng Guoquan hurriedly shook his head and said, "No way, no way! You use 300,000 silver to pay off Tingziying's wages, what about the other camps? How can you pay off the debt with so much money?" "Yuanfu's words make sense." Zeng Guofan said after thinking for a long time, "However, the Ting army has mutinied, and the incident is unusual. It seems that it will be difficult to calm down if you don't throw some money out. Let's put forward the 15th anniversary of the Shanghai Customs Tax first." Ten thousand silver, and half the salary." "It's okay to pay half the salary." Zhao Liewen said, "Thirdly, please authorize me to announce that all officers and soldiers who participated in this mutiny will not be held accountable." "You can't take advantage of them like this." Zeng Guoquan objected again, "Brother made a letter to recruit Chun Ting back urgently, and handed over this matter to him, and let him settle accounts one by one slowly." "Yuan Fu is right. Chun Ting must be brought back as soon as possible, but there is no need to liquidate everyone. The ones who need to be liquidated are Shen Mingbiao and other leaders and members of the Gelaohui. After disposing of these people, they will be strictly ordered to each army and battalion. Brothers and Elders' Association, regardless of whether they cause trouble or not, they will be severely punished, and anyone who participates in the mutiny will be killed! Huifu will go this time, and I will give you the privilege to not pursue it for the time being. Let's calm down first, so as not to drive them to a dead end." "Xie Zhongtang and Jiu Shuai trust me, and I will definitely deal with this mutiny quietly as soon as possible!" Zhao Liewen stood up and said firmly.