In July 1864, Li Xiucheng was discussing a battle plan with his generals, when the young king Hong Tianguifu walked in in a panic, saying that the Xiang army 'Jizi Battalion' had invaded Tianjing, was plundering the city, and was preparing to kill this side. Li Xiucheng had no choice but to bid farewell to his nearly 80-year-old mother, and then break through with the young Heavenly King. At this time, the war horses were seriously insufficient, and Li Xiucheng let the young king break through first, and after he broke off himself, he was captured by the Xiang army.
Tianjing fell, and Li Xiucheng was captured by the Xiang army and hanged. You know, when Tianjing fell, Hong Xiuquan allowed Li Xiucheng to leave and let him find a way out on his own, but Li Xiucheng did not leave, but continued to stay in Tianjing to resist the Xiang army. The Heavenly King allowed to leave, so why didn't Li Xiucheng leave?
In November 1863, Li Hongzhang, the governor of Jiangsu, "did not talk about martial virtue" and executed eight major generals such as Gao Yongkuan, who had already surrendered, at a banquet, along with 40,000 Taiping troops in Suzhou who had laid down their weapons. After the "Suzhou Killing" incident, Gordon pretended to find Li Hongzhang to single out and defend the "knight honor", but after getting the white flowers and silver, there was no follow-up.
In Suzhou, the base camp of Li Xiucheng, the king of Zhong, the Chu army and the Huai army swept through all parts of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and the soldiers distributed in various places of the king of Zhongwang could not take care of themselves, and Li Xiucheng could only think of another way. At this time, Zeng Guoquan's Xiang army "Jizi Battalion" attacked Tianjing, and Hong Xiuquan was in a hurry, asking Li Xiucheng to return to preside over the defense and defend the safety of the Heavenly King.
After returning to the Capital Division, Li Xiucheng suggested that Hong Xiuquan retreat, "let the city not go", go to Guanzhong to develop, and make a comeback. Who knows, Hong Xiuquan reprimanded him to his face, saying: "There are as many heavenly soldiers as water, and there is no fear of those who have been demons." Ru wants to go, leave Beijing, follow Ru." It can be said that Hong Xiuquan is not willing to go, but it has been clearly stated that Li Xiucheng can go.
Hong Xiuquan is allowed to leave, so why not leave? From the analysis of the situation at that time, Hong Xiuquan may just be talking angrily, but if Li Xiucheng really wants to leave, Hong Xiuquan cannot be stopped. The reason is very simple, Li Xiucheng has many soldiers and horses under his command, and Hong Xiuquan is only a "light rod commander", what to use to restrain the king? At this time, Li Shixian, Wang Haiyang and other generals did not give Hong Xiu a comprehensive son, and refused to return to the capital division to "Qin Wang".
Li Xiucheng said in the "Self-Statement Book": "I will send hundreds of thousands of soldiers outside, let me have a good time, and whoever suffers from this!" I also knew that his anger would be full, and he would have nowhere to escape, so he died loyal to the Lord. "This means that I have hundreds of thousands of soldiers under my command, and Hong Xiuquan can help me." The reason why I didn't leave was because the Qing Dynasty didn't tolerate it and must kill the people of Liangguang.
According to Li Xiucheng, he stayed in the Beijing division and insisted on resisting because the Qing Dynasty did not accept the surrender of the "old brothers" of liangguang, so he had to fight to the end. So, can what Li Xiucheng say be true? The answer is no, Lee So-sung did not tell the truth.
The "old brothers" of liangguang were brave and good at war, and their will to fight was firm, the Eight Banners and the Green Camp were suppressed and beaten, and the Qing Dynasty was once in danger of extinction. Therefore, for the "old brothers" of liangguang, the Qing Dynasty naturally hated them very much, and as long as the "old brothers" were caught, almost all of them were executed by Ling Chi. For example, the 14 generals of the Northern Expedition were all executed by Ling Chi.
Li Xiucheng, a native of Tengxian County, Guangxi, was a typical "old brother" who, under normal circumstances, would not accept surrender unless forced to surrender. However, Li Xiucheng was not without a place to escape, as long as Li Xiucheng was willing, he could leave Tianjing at any time and successfully evade the pursuit of the Qing army. The reason is very simple, Li Xiu's adult network is too wide, and there are a bunch of "foreign brothers" to help.
As we all know, when Tianjing fell, many old brothers quietly returned to their hometown of Liangguang under the cover of "foreign brothers" and enjoyed their old age in peace, and Li Shouchun, the prime minister, was a typical example. Prior to this, the Xiang army blockaded the Yangtze River, and suffered flooding, and 100,000 Taiping troops were stranded in the north of the river and fell into trouble. The result? Li Xiucheng took the ship provided by the "Foreign Brothers" and returned directly to the Beijing Division, and the Xiang Army could only stare dryly.
For the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Qing Dynasty showed no mercy, but also had to give face to the "foreign brothers". Therefore, as long as Li Xiucheng wants to leave the Beijing Division and never set foot on his homeland again, he can do it at any time and experience a trip to "travel around the world". Later, the Qing Dynasty also ordered the pursuit of the rebel generals, and once they went overseas to hide, the Qing Dynasty was helpless.
Therefore, Li Xiucheng did not leave the Beijing Division, not because the Qing army pursued, nor because he was afraid of Hong Xiuquan, but for another reason. So, what is the reason? The author believes that Li Xiucheng is worthy of the four words of "eternal loyalty and righteousness", and Li Xiucheng is loyal to Hong Xiuquan, even if the front is a sword mountain and a sea of fire, he will not quit.
Li Xiu became the King of Zhongzhong, and Hong Xiuquan personally wrote the four characters of "Wangu Zhongyi" and made a plaque for him? In 1860, Li Zhaoshou rebelled and lured Li Xiucheng to surrender, and Hong Xiuquan blockaded the Yangtze River, preventing Li Xiucheng from returning to Tianjing and sending troops to rescue him. The result? Li Xiucheng fought alone, and after more than a month of hardening the Qing army in northern Jiangsu, Hong Xiuquan let down his guard and was canonized as a "loyal king" as compensation.
In October 1862, the Xiang army besieged Tianjing, and due to slight differences between the fighting sides, Li Xiucheng did not want to return to Beijing immediately, but first captured Shanghai. Hong Xiuquan severely reprimanded him, issued three holy decrees in one day, and said that Li Xiucheng had plans to stand on his own, saying that he was not loyal enough. Li Xiucheng had no choice but to send his mother back to the crisis-ridden Tianjing and bring troops back to the rescue to show his bold loyalty.
Li Xiucheng was loyal and worthy of the title of "Wangu Zhongyi", and Hong Xiuquan knew it very well. Therefore, when Hong Xiuquan refused the suggestion of "let the city not go", he dared to put down his harsh words and allow Li Xiucheng to leave, because he knew that Li Xiucheng would not leave, if he did not leave. A month later, Hong Xiuquan died of illness, and Li Xiucheng did not leave, but continued to assist the young lord.
When Tianjing fell, Li Xiucheng bid farewell to his mother, who was nearly eighty years old, broke through with the Young Heavenly King, and gave his war horse to his young lord, only to be captured by the Xiang army. Just think, if Li Xiucheng is not loyal enough, how could he do this? When the city fell, he tearfully bid farewell to his mother for the safety of the young lord, which required a lot of courage.
Bibliography: Li Xiucheng's Self-Description