Late Qing Tragic Winds · Biography of Wen Tingshi

Author: Xiao Maqing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: Zhang Jianqi sings "Great River Eastward," startling fish and dragons. Who swung the halberd too hastily? Unlocked Cuojiao and Tongque, not counted as heroes! Drinking wine to the sky, I still drift like a cloud. Unfurling my robe to enjoy "King's Wind." When will the long sword be leaned outside the sky? Straight up to Kongtong. Wen Tingshi's "Lantao Sand - Remembering the Red Cliff" This was the late bleak winter of the ninth year of the Xianfeng era. Jiaoying Prefecture in northern Guangdong, a small southern city that shouldn't be too cold, suddenly felt a chill. The prefecture city was filled with a deeply tragic atmosphere. A fierce battle was about to descend upon this place. The Taiping Army's Shiguozong division, numbering tens of thousands, had occupied Dapu from Longyan and Yongding in Fujian, entered Jiaoying Prefecture through Songkou, and now stood before the city, besieging it tightly for three full days. In the dim night outside the city, flames flickered, and shouts echoed, as the Taiping Army showed a strong momentum to swallow the prefecture whole. On the city walls, a man stood grimly watching the outside for some time—this was Wen Sheng, the Huizhou Prefect temporarily taking over as Jiaoying Prefect. His face was ashen, and his heart burned with anxiety. Jiaoying Prefecture lies at the intersection of Fujian, Guangdong, and Jiangxi, making it a strategic location. Three days ago, the Taiping Army had sent a letter to Prefect Wen Sheng, claiming it was a "request to pass through." They demanded the city gates be opened, supplies provided, and promised no harm would come otherwise. Otherwise, they would raze the city to the ground! But Wen Sheng believed the "request to pass through" was merely a ruse. Once the Taiping Army entered, how could the prefecture city escape destruction? He ordered the messenger to return and tell Shiguozong: "As long as I Wen Sheng am alive, the city gates will never open. Please take a detour!" At the same time, he instructed his son Xingrui to leave the city immediately and request reinforcements from Governor Huang Shouchen.
The messenger returned with Wen Sheng's words, and Shiguozong flew into a rage. With a single command, tens of thousands of Taiping soldiers began scaling the city walls. Wen Sheng had originally thought he could hold out against the Taiping Army for some time, waiting for reinforcements to arrive and turn the tide. But he never expected an unexpected turn of events to catch him off guard: the city's defending general Pan Fayuan, fearing death and seeking to preserve his own strength, falsely claimed to "defend against the enemy" and led six hundred soldiers out, only to disappear without a trace. As a result, only the elderly, weak, and soldiers remained in the prefecture city. Wen Sheng had no choice but to rally the remaining troops and hold firm, using stones and boiling water to repel the Taiping Army's attacks. Day after day, they fought with all their might. But Wen Sheng began to faintly sense that, with their meager strength, the fall of the prefecture city was only a matter of time.
By the fifth day, the siege tightened, and the situation grew increasingly desperate. Wen Sheng, along with the soldiers and civilians, was already fighting with his last ounce of strength.
"Grandpa—" Suddenly, a child's cry pierced the air. Wen Sheng froze at the sound. The one calling was his most beloved grandson, Yunge, the third son of Xingrui, who was only four years old.
"Grandson!" Wen Sheng, already desperate, broke out in a cold sweat. The battle was so dire, yet his daughter-in-law Peng had brought the child into the city. He couldn't bear for the child to suffer if the prefecture fell—even if he himself perished, it didn't matter. Besides, in Wen Sheng's eyes, this grandson was extraordinary.
Several years ago, during an early winter, his pregnant daughter-in-law Peng had a strange dream. She found herself on an unknown mountain, shrouded in mist and clouds, breathtakingly beautiful like the legendary Pengla. The winding path was overgrown with exotic flowers and grasses. Amidst the mist, a immortal drifted by, holding a dazzling white treasure—a jade qilin. With a gentle smile, the immortal lightly took her hand and placed the qilin in her palm.
To dream of a qilin was auspicious! Before giving birth, Peng had dreamed of the immortal bestowing a jade qilin,ing that her newborn grandson would be extraordinary. Moreover, the day after the child was born, the Crown Prince Zai was born. That same year, the Empress Dowager Nala was enfeoffed as the Yi Concubine, who would later become the Empress Dowager Cixi. These imperial events happening simultaneously filled the family with immense joy. They felt that this child would achieve great things and be connected to the capital.
After the grandson was born, Wen Sheng gave him the childhood name Qisheng, in line with his daughter-in-law Peng's dream.
He couldn't let his grandson die for him! At this thought, Wen Sheng grew even more agitated. He called Peng to him and said loudly, "The prefecture city is about to fall. You must take the child and leave Jiaoying Prefecture quickly!"
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