On June 27, 1863, Shi Dakai, a general of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, was tried in the Chengdu Public Court. The brave and fearless general made a generous speech during the trial, accusing the Qing court of corruption and brutality, and finally calmly surrendered. However, Shi Dakai's son Shi Dingzhong suffered a cruel fate. When the executioner began to torture the 5-year-old, he was already fainting with fear. Why did an innocent child endure such cruel treatment? Why did the Empress Dowager Cixi order the execution of Shi Dakai's son? What kind of conspiracy and power struggle was hidden behind this? Let's find out.
Shi Dakai's family background and early life
Shi Dakai was born in an ordinary peasant family in Guixian County, Guangxi Province (now Dakai Village, Qishi Township, Gangbei District, Guigang City). His father, Shi Changhui, originally came from a well-off family, but died unexpectedly when Shi Dakai was 9 years old, and the family fell into poverty since then. The young Shi Dakai had to put down his books, pick up the burden of the whole family, and do some chores to maintain food and clothing.
Despite the hardships of life, Shi Dakai never gave up his dream of studying. In his spare time, he would sneak into a private school to observe, hoping to one day be able to pass the examination. However, the weight of reality forced him to leave this dream behind. At the age of 16, Shi Dakai met Hong Xiuquan and Feng Yunshan, which changed the trajectory of his life.
It was a sunny day, and Shi Dakai was performing some fist and foot kung fu on the street, attracting many passers-by to stop and watch. Suddenly, a stranger cheered loudly, and Shi Dakai realized that it was Hong Xiuquan and Feng Yunshan watching. The two of them praised this young man with great skills, and immediately came to get acquainted with him, and explained to him the grand ideal of overthrowing the Qing Dynasty and establishing the Celestial Empire.
Although his family is poor, Shi Dakai has had the ambition of serving the country and saving the people since he was a child. The ideals of Hong Xiuquan and others coincided with the expectations in his heart, and he agreed to join without hesitation. From that moment on, Shi Dakai's life was destined to embark on a rugged and extraordinary road.
In 1851, the Taiping Rebellion broke out, and Shi Dakai became one of the first generals to join. With his extraordinary wisdom and martial arts, he soon shined on the battlefield and performed many miraculous feats. Hong Xiuquan appreciated him very much, and soon named him the "Chief General of the Left Army", and then was named the "Wing King".
In the Taiping Army, Shi Dakai can be described as a well-deserved general. He was not only brave and shrewd, but also of noble character, insisting on not taking concubines and having only one wife. In stark contrast to other high-level indulgers in alcoholic pleasures. The generals of the Qing army admired him, and some even compared him to a heroic figure like "Yue Wumu". Even the fierce generals Li Xiucheng and Chen Yucheng in the Taiping Army had to admire his military talent.
Shi Dakai's outstanding performance in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom
After Shi Dakai joined the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, he quickly shined on the battlefield with his extraordinary wisdom and martial arts. In February 1855, he commanded the Taiping army in a decisive battle against the Hunan army under Zeng Guofan's command at the mouth of Poyang Lake.
Shi Dakai adopted the tactic of luring the enemy deep into the encirclement and introduced the Hunan army into the encirclement. Subsequently, the Taiping army fired thousands of arrows, coupled with artillery attacks, the Hunan warships were defeated, and hundreds of ships were burned. Zeng Guofan's boat was also surrounded, and he was so desperate that he even had the idea of committing suicide by throwing himself into the lake.
This victory catapulted Shi Dakai to fame in the Taiping army. Shortly thereafter, he led his army to break through dozens of cities of the Hunan army, and surrounded the camp of Zeng Guofan in Nanchang City. The Hunan army was defeated and retreated, and it was about to be destroyed.
In 1856, Hong Xiuquan ordered Shi Dakai to go to rescue the besieged Tianjing City. Shi Dakai was not afraid of danger, broke the Jiangnan camp of the Qing army, and lifted the three-year-long siege of Tianjing. This brilliant battle achievement brought his prestige among the Taiping army to the peak.
In addition to his outstanding military talents, Shi Dakai's conduct is also highly praised. Unlike the high-ranking officials of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, who indulged in wine and pleasure, he insisted on not taking concubines, only having one wife, and sharing weal and woe with his subordinates. Even Zeng Guofan, the former nemesis, had to admire him as a heroic figure like "Yue Wumu".
The fierce generals Li Xiucheng and Chen Yucheng in the Taiping Army also praised Shi Dakai's military talents. Li Xiucheng said frankly that the general of the Taiping Army he admired most in his life was Shi Dakai. Chen Yucheng said that none of the generals of the Taiping Army were "generals", and only Feng Yunshan and Shi Dakai were worthy of this.
It can be said that among the generals of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Shi Dakai is the most perfect and outstanding member. He was not only brave and shrewd, but also of noble character, which could be called the pride of the Taiping Army. If it weren't for the hindrance of the internal power struggle later, he would have made greater contributions to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
Power struggles within the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom
In the early days of the establishment of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Hong Xiuquan and others worked with one heart and one mind to unswervingly pursue the grand goal of overthrowing the Qing Dynasty and establishing the "Celestial Empire". However, as the war progressed, internal contradictions began to emerge.
In 1856, after Shi Dakai lifted the three-year-long siege of Tianjing by the Qing army, the power struggle within the top leadership began. In September of that year, a drastic change occurred in Tianjing, and Wei Changhui, the king of the north, was ordered to kill Yang Xiuqing, the king of the east, and more than 10,000 of his subordinates.
This tragic scene shocked the entire Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
Previously, Hong Xiuquan had been indulged in the beauties of the harem, indulging in pleasure day and night, contrary to the original ideal of "overthrowing the Qing Dynasty and establishing the Celestial Empire". Not only did he marry thousands of his wives and concubines, but he also connived at other princes and important ministers to follow his example, building a large number of buildings, palaces and mansions, and living a life of luxury and corruption.
In stark contrast to this, it is Shi Dakai's noble conduct. He insisted on not taking concubines, had only one wife, shared weal and woe with his soldiers, and never pursued pleasure. Even Zeng Guofan, the former nemesis, had to admire him as a heroic figure like "Yue Wumu".
The fierce generals Li Xiucheng and Chen Yucheng in the Taiping Army also praised Shi Dakai's military talent and morality. Li Xiucheng bluntly said that the general of the Taiping Army that he admired most in his life was Shi Dakai. Chen Yucheng said that the generals of the Taiping Army were not real "generals", and only Feng Yunshan and Shi Dakai were worthy of this.
It can be seen that among the generals of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Shi Dakai is one of the few who has maintained his original intention and has a noble character. If it weren't for the civil strife and the intensification of the power struggle, he would have made greater contributions to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
In 1859, Hong Xiuquan ordered Shi Dakai to be transferred to Jiangxi, away from the core area of Tianjing. In the following years, Shi Dakai made many miraculous achievements in the Jiangxi region and defeated the Qing army many times. However, as time passed, the contradictions within the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom became more acute, which eventually led to its downfall.
In May 1863, Shi Dakai made a difficult decision to surrender to the Qing general Wang Songlin in order to save the lives of his soldiers. At the trial, he made a generous statement, accusing the Qing court of corruption and brutality, and finally calmly surrendered. However, Shi Dakai's 5-year-old son, Shi Dingzhong, suffered a cruel fate - when the executioner began to torture the child, he was already fainting with fright.
Why did an innocent child endure such cruel treatment? Why did the Empress Dowager Cixi order the execution of Shi Dakai's son? What kind of conspiracy and power struggle were hidden behind this? The fall of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom doomed Shi Dakai and his family to a tragic fate.
Shi Dakai's final tragic end
In mid-May 1863, faced with the heavy encirclement of the Qing army, Shi Dakai made a difficult decision - to surrender to the Qing army general Wang Songlin to save the lives of his soldiers. During the surrender negotiations, Shi Dakai made a special request to Wang Songlin, that is, to save the life of his 5-year-old son Shi Dingzhong. Wang Songlin readily agreed, and personally assured that "the son is absolutely fine".
However, fate is often unforgiving. On June 27, 1863, Shi Dakai was tried in the Chengdu Public Court. This once brave and fearless Taiping army general made a generous statement during the trial, accusing the Qing court of corruption and brutality, and finally calmly surrendered. It is said that he was cut thousands of times without a sound.
After the trial was over, Shi Dakai was sentenced to death, what will be the fate of his son Shi Dingzhong? According to common sense, Wang Songlin should keep his promise to save the life of this innocent child. However, a shocking scene happened - the Empress Dowager Cixi actually ordered the execution of Shi Dingzhong, who was only 5 years old.
By the time the executioner began to use the knife, the young child had fainted with fright. It is sad that an innocent life has been murdered in this way. Why was Cixi so cruel? It is incomprehensible to be so heavy on a five-year-old child.
Some people believe that this is Cixi's order to demonstrate her authority and warn the world not to easily disobey. But for whatever reason, it is a heinous atrocity to inflict such a brutal punishment on a child.
Another theory is that Cixi was so decisive because she feared that Shi Dakai's descendants would later rekindle the war in retaliation against the Qing Dynasty. So he didn't hesitate to kill even this 5-year-old child to prevent future troubles.
However, judging from historical records, Shi Dakai himself does not have much ambition. Although he is one of the best generals in the Taiping Army, he has never pursued to become a "heavenly king" like Hong Xiuquan. He only wanted to contribute his strength to the cause of peace and work hard to overthrow the rule of the Qing Dynasty.
It can be said that Shi Dakai is one of the few members of the Taiping Army who has maintained his original intention and has a noble character. He insisted on not accepting concubines, only had one wife, and shared weal and woe with his soldiers. Even Zeng Guofan, a former nemesis, has to admire him as a heroic figure like "Yue Wumu".
The fierce generals Li Xiucheng and Chen Yucheng in the Taiping Army also praised Shi Dakai's military talent and morality. Li Xiucheng bluntly said that the general of the Taiping Army that he admired most in his life was Shi Dakai. Chen Yucheng said that the generals of the Taiping Army were not real "generals", and only Feng Yunshan and Shi Dakai were worthy of this.
It can be seen that Shi Dakai is a rare hero. His tragic fate is destined to be a regret after the fall of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The death of an innocent child also became a lingering aftermath of this turmoil.