There are many active figures in Chinese history, and their experiences are often twisty and bizarre, full of dramatic reversals. Today we will talk about Hong Xiuquan and Zeng Guofan.
Hong Xiuquan and Zeng Guofan were both from the 1800s, and they were both born in ordinary peasant families, and their families were not well-off.
According to the tradition of that era, the greatest hope of their family was that their son would be able to pass the examination and change the fate of the family.
The two have set the goal of studying to gain fame since they were young. But fate played a big joke, not only did they fail repeatedly, but they even hit a wall in the examination room repeatedly. The article written by Zeng Guofan was also used as a negative teaching material, you can imagine how embarrassed he was back then.
Defeat is a blow to anyone, especially a poor boy who dreams of fame. Both Zeng Guofan and Hong Xiu both experienced this setback. However, after that, they chose a completely different path in life.
Zeng Guofan did not give up, but continued to study hard, and finally broke through the encirclement in his 30s, and was admitted to Xiucai and Juren in one go, and finally obtained an important position in the editing of the Hanlin Academy, and became an important official in the imperial court.
In contrast, Hong Xiuquan's experience is even more tortuous. After several successive failures, he became obsessed with Christianity, and claimed to be the younger brother of Jesus Christ, leading the people to launch the Taiping Rebellion to overthrow the Qing Dynasty.
The choices of these two people are completely different, one is to stick to the status quo and continue to work hard, and finally succeed; The other is an attempt to change the existing social order through radical means, which leads to unrest.
Their stories reflect different attitudes and values in life. Zeng Guofan adhered to his ideals, but never went against the general direction of the country and society; And Hong Xiuquan did not hesitate to take the extreme route in order to realize his ideals.
The Taiping Rebellion was later completely wiped out by the Qing Dynasty army led by Zeng Guofan. One day, Zeng Guofan opened Hong Xiuquan's coffin, and Hong Xiuquan's decomposing body and disgusting smell made him vomit on the spot.
Hong Xiuquan had bad habits such as opium smoking before his death, which accelerated the decomposition process of the corpse. In order to completely eliminate Hong Xiuquan's influence, Zeng Guofan even ordered his ashes to be launched into the Yangtze River.
This practice is undoubtedly extreme and cruel. Although Tsang pacified the unrest, his treatment of the corpses of his deceased enemies caused a lot of questions and controversy, and was considered to lack humane care.
The fact that the two have different endings reflects their different attitudes towards power, ideals and humanity.
For Zeng Guofan, maintaining national unity and social order is the most important thing; And Hong Xiuquan did whatever it took to realize his ideals, and finally ended up badly.
From their stories, we can see the complexity of history. It warns us that while pursuing our ideals, we must always keep a clear head and weigh the costs and gains. If we blindly pursue our own selfish desires, we will only end up in chaos and destruction.
After the pacification of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, Zeng Guofan did not stop there, but began a series of changes and reforms.
As a person who came from a humble background and finally achieved fame after enduring hardships, he has a different kind of feelings and sense of mission for the future and development of the country.
At that time, the Qing Dynasty faced many internal and external troubles, such as the corruption of the bureaucracy and the lag of the imperial examination system, which brought the country to a standstill.
Zeng Guofan hopes to bring new vitality and vitality to the country through his own strength.
He proposed a number of reforms in an attempt to address the Qing dynasty's ills, but was opposed by many conservatives. Even so, Zeng Guofan did not give up and insisted on using his own way to promote change.
It can be said that Zeng Guofan had a deeper understanding of power and life in his later years. He began to reflect on some of his previous practices, and realized that there is no absolute right or wrong in many things, and he needs to empathize and remain open-minded and tolerant.
For example, in the practice of dealing with Hong Xiuquan's body, Zeng Guofan later also reflected. He thinks there may be a more humane and far-sighted approach, rather than being so brutal and extreme.
This shows that even Zeng Guofan, who commanded the army on the battlefield, was thinking about how to maintain order and promote change in a better way in his later years. He did not rest on his laurels, but had the courage to accept new ideas and concepts.
In contrast, Hong Xiuquan, after establishing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, fell into the myth of power. He originally wanted to use religious movements to improve people's lives and fight against corrupt rule, but he later moved further and further away from this original intention.
The increasingly arbitrary and extreme administration of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom led to internal contradictions and turmoil, culminating in a catastrophe that led to defeat and destruction.
It can be seen from Hong Xiuquan's experience that if a good ideal and motive is too much and unrestrained, it will eventually go to the other extreme, which is contrary to the original intention.
Therefore, in the process of pursuing ideals and goals, it is very important to keep a clear head and a peaceful way of doing things. If you rest on your laurels and act on your own, you will end up with nothing.
Zeng Guofan and Hong Xiuquan are actually ordinary people, but their later choices and practices have led to completely different endings in their lives.
Zeng Guofan adhered to the righteousness all his life, fought for the interests of the country and the nation, and even at the peak of power, he was not a bad person; Although Hong Xiuquan initially cherished the ideal of reform, he was eventually blinded by selfish desires and extremism and suffered defeat.
The story of the two men shows a truth: while pursuing our goals, we must always maintain high ethics and a broad mind, and realize our vision in a correct and peaceful way, rather than degenerating into a tyrant or extremist who has lost his reason.
Only by mastering the art of moderation and moderation, and respecting rules and order while driving change, can we truly succeed, win the approval of others, and promote social progress.
Overall, the life trajectories of Zeng Guofan and Hong Xiuquan and their final ending are a powerful inspiration and warning for each of us.
Their experiences illustrate the importance of power, ideals and values, and remind us to keep a clear head and high ethics at all times while pursuing our goals, so that we can make our lives brighter and more exciting.