The "Counter-Classics" have been printed in massive quantities!
There are not only "Volume One", but also "Volume Two" and "Volume Three".
When Luo Yoguo arrived at the Big Hall of Nanwang with Jiao Hong and Xu Yuela, Feng Yunshan was personally inspecting a batch of newly printed "Counter-Classics" that had just been delivered.
Seeing Luo Yoguo enter, Feng Yunshan warmly called out, "Old Eight, come quick and take a look at the 'Counter-Classics' that just got printed. There are several thousand copies!"
In the Big Hall of Nanwang, Jiao Hong and Xu Yuela had to continue being respectful "kissing bugs" and bowed respectfully to Feng Yunshan.
Feng Yunshan gestured for them to rise and speak, while Luo Yoguo waved his hand at them, inviting them in together with him.
"Is that all?" Luo Yoguo asked.
"That's all for now!" Feng Yunshan smiled and said, "There will be many more in the future, I guarantee it will be enough to distribute!"
Luo Yoguo pointed at the "Counter-Classics" still emitting the scent of ink in their wooden boxes, addressing Xu Yuela and Jiao Hong, "These are Volume Two and Volume Three. You need to arrange for the brothers of Tian Ti Hui to disperse as soon as possible!"
"Only Volume Two and Three?" Xu Yuela was taken aback, "Where's Volume One?"
Luo Yoguo smiled and said, "Volume One is for our people to read, while Volumes Two and Three are for our enemies to read! The further it spreads and the more enemies who read it, the better!"
"Will they no longer be our enemies after reading it?" Xu Yuela asked.
"No, the enemies who read Volume Two and Three of 'Counter-Classics' are mostly still enemies," Feng Yunshan took over the question and replied leisurely, "But they won't just be our enemies; they will also become the enemies of the Manchu Emperor!"
Guangxi, Quanzhou.
A group of vagabonds, looking ragged and tired, were slowly entering the east gate of Quanzhou. They were carrying lances, swords, flintlocks and wearing tattered uniforms. With the leading of a prefectural official in 5th rank clothing, if it weren't for their military equipment, the guards at the gate would have mistaken them for genuine vagabonds.
This group of beggar soldiers, who were actually Wang Kuiyi, Huang Shijie, and Zhang Dingxiang, loyal to the Great Qing Dynasty and carrying copies of "Counter-Classics," were recruits gathered from the city of Daozhou.
Although the recruits from Daozhou endured a lot of hardships during their journey, they suffered minimal losses and kept their ranks intact. They started with about 700, and by the time they reached Quanzhou, there were still over 700. Moreover, most of their weapons were still in their possession, with at least one weapon in the hands of each recruit!
To suffer a defeat yet still maintain such numbers and equipment is considered to be honorably defeated in the Qing army's ranks.
However, Wang Kuiyi, who was the highest-ranking official among the three, did not feel any sense of "honor." Instead, he had a feeling of impending doom.
Because he is a crime of loss of land!
In the Great Qing Dynasty, if a minister in charge of guarding the territory loses the city where his office is located, it usually means two things: either he retains his dignity or he loses it.
To retain one's dignity in death means to sacrifice one's life for the king and die a nobly honorable death, obtaining a burial with dignity, but in vain – a tomb without a corpse!
Without dignity, of course, one would be arrested and taken to the capital for a judgment by the court.
For a minister who lost the territory, being sent to Ili in military service is already relatively light. Even being beheaded, if the sentence is death withholding, they still need to express gratitude. To be executed at Liucai Market is indeed what they deserve.
Although Wang Kuiyi had a stake in the Daozhou recruits, it was indeed just a small amount.
Wang Kuiyi was not from Daozhou, nor was he a native of Hunan, and he did not serve as a military officer in the Green Camp. The local gentlement from Daozhou had little to do with him, and the Green Camp soldiers who served as officers in Daozhou did not recognize him.
It seems quite challenging for Wang Kuiyi to gain a dignified and honorable death by leveraging military power.
"Sir Wang, the residence of the Imperial Commissioner has arrived!"
A voice interrupted Wang Kuiyi's thoughts, and he quickly raised his head to find himself standing outside a heavily fortified official residence. The flag of the Imperial Commissioner was flying high outside the office! Several dozen uniformed, armed, and ready-to-fight guards were standing guard outside!
"A Sir Wang," a Green Camp military officer, leading Wang Kuiyi, Huang Shijie, and Zhang Dingxiang into the city, smiled and bowed respectfully, then pointed to the residence of the Imperial Commissioner. "Hu Yanzheng is inside. Please go in." "The 700 recruits you brought will be led to the temporary barracks by me," he said.
Huang Shijie said to Wang Kuiyi, "Sir Wang, I'll accompany you inside. Let Commander Zhang take the troops to set up camp first."
"Okay, okay" Wang Kuiyi had no other choice now and nodded in agreement. He then instructed Zhang Dingxiang to lead the troops first to the camp and followed by himself and Huang Shijie, trembling slightly, walked into the Imperial Commissioner's residence, presented the document, brought the door gift, and waited for Xie Zhan to receive them and speak to them.
At this moment, Xie Zhan was. reading sutras.
Reading "Counter-Classics"!
Jiao Hong and Xu Yuela are still top leaders in the Heavenly Union and are the local bosses in the border areas of Hunan, Guangdong, and Guizhou. It would be extremely easy for them to spread "Counter-Classics" to high officials of the Qing Dynasty like Sao Zhan'a. They just need to send someone to directly deliver the "Counter-Classics" to a Heavenly Union office in Quanzhou. Then, local officials from Quanzhou, including government employees, militia, even soldiers from Yung Wing's and Qin Dengsan's forces, would seize copies of "Counter-Classics" and bring them up to the central government officials.
In short, focus on "targeted recommendations" and ensure that every parent and leader of local gentry families in Quanzhou City can get a copy of "Counter-Classics".
Of course, Sai Shang'a was also on the recommendation list of the Heavenly Union in Quanzhou, and he had received three copies: one was "The Rebellions of Han Officials," and two were "The Rebellions of Gentry Families." At this moment, he was silently reading them with his two trusted counselors, both from Shaoxing, Kong Xianglin and Wang Shengming, each holding one copy.
The three people were all reading with worried expressions, and Sai Shang'a sighed continuously. While the two Shaoxing counselors kept exchanging glances.
Both of the counselors were top-tier Shaoxing "screen-writer" officials. They no longer dealt with trivial matters like finances, criminal affairs, but had reached the level where they could assist the Imperial Commissioner in handling official documents and planning political maneuvers. The King Shengming counselor had also read many military texts and had a fair understanding of military strategies and tactics.
It was thanks to the careful planning of these two counselors that Sai Shang'a had been able to "win victory after victory" since he had sent troops out.
Facing the growing Taiping Army, these two counselors could only come up with a good strategy to encourage the powerful gentry of Hunan, Guangdong, and Guizhou provinces to establish militia. However, with the publication of Volume Two of "Counter-Classics", the concept of establishing militia and seizing power seems to be just one layer away!
As for letting Han officials manage the militia heads below, "Counter-Classics" Volume Three, "The Rebellions of Han Officials," also points out a path of collusion between the upper and lower ranks to form a network of students, marriage connections, and brothers-in-law.
Moreover, both volumes of "Counter-Classics" not only point out an upgraded approach for Han officials and gentry to amass wealth, maintain their own troops, and seize power through establishing militia and harboring enemies for their own benefit but also suggest that this is not a new idea. It's actually a "master's path" that has been tested by history many times.
Who wrote the two volumes of "Counter-Classics"? What is their intention?
After an unknown amount of time, a "slap" sound was heard, followed by the exhausted and hoarse voice of Sai Shang'a: "Who wrote this 'Counter-Classics'? What does the person who wrote it want to achieve? Do they want to sow discord between my Great Qing government and the Han officials and gentry across the empire? It's a foolish idea! A truly foolish idea!"
As he was speaking, a family member came to report at the door. Wang Shengming, the counselor from Shaoxing, quickly put down the "Counter-Classics" in his hand and walked out briskly to speak in low tones with the person. After a few words, he approached Sai Shang'a and whispered, "Minister, Wang Kuiyi who lost Daozhou has come to the residence. Will you see him?"
"He still has the nerve to come?" Sai Shang'a's face darkened. "Does he know the rules? Ministers who lose their land have committed the crime of losing their territory! He should have kept his dignity when he lost his post and position. Why should he come again?"
"The Minister," Kong said, taking over the conversation, "why don't I go and ensure he maintains his dignity? At least he can have a grand funeral and all his debts to the capital can be forgiven with his death. His descendants will also not suffer.”
Just as Sai Shang'a was about to nod, the Wang counselor suddenly said, "Not allowed!"
Sai Shang'a and Kong counselor both looked at him with surprised expressions.
Wang counselor said: "Wang Kuiyi brought the 800 recruits from Daozhou."
"What? He..." Sai Shang'a instinctively picked up the "Counter-Classics" on the desk and took a look, feeling shocked.
The Kong counselor also muttered: "He has 800 soldiers not to defend the city, but to bring them here. What does he want?"
Sai Shang'a gritted his teeth: "Of course, it's to gain power by controlling their own troops!"
