Chapter 23

On a winter night with the north wind howling, on the side of the Taihang Mountains, a feng shui treasure land had been occupied by the Manchu royal family for over a hundred years. This was the best mountain closure and forest conservation effort in human history, and it could be considered the strictest soil and water conservation plan you could imagine. In the face of the stern imperial authority, even picking a blade of grass from inside would result in beheading.

It's easy to imagine that under such protection, how could the forests on the mountain not grow lush? Moreover, the generations of tomb guardians planted a large number of pine trees brought from the northeast, which were like natural torches, with trunks rich in pine oil becoming the best fuel.

The mountain fire crackled and swirled up the mountain, the north wind fiercely blowing, providing ample oxygen for the fire. The thick layer of fallen leaves on the ground, the top layer being the leaves that had just fallen in the autumn, were dried to a crisp by the sun, and would ignite into a raging fire at the slightest spark.

The sound of gongs and cow horns echoed everywhere, and countless terrified people ran out from the guard camps and the surrounding Manchu villages, each carrying a broken wooden bucket or a rudimentary fire engine, rushing to the fire scene.

"It's Tai Ling! It's Emperor Yongzheng... our ancestors, how could this happen..."

"This is a capital offense, this is a capital offense, the imperial tombs are on fire, we will all die..."

"Quick, cut down the trees and shrubs... don't let the fire spread to the Minglou and the main hall..."

Tens of thousands of guards and civilians rushed up the mountain like ants, bursting with combat power under the threat of death. And every single one of them was Manchu, how could they not care about the resting place of their ancestors?

At this moment, Lian Er, despite his weak body, wrapped in a bear skin coat, climbed onto the roof, looking at the distant mountain glowing with light, feeling dizzy.

"Don't let the fire reach the main hall, don't let it... " Before he could finish, the old coffin fell into the arms of the lazy monkey, fainting.

At this moment, Shi Dakai and Liu Lang were stunned. Even though they had prepared mentally, when the back of Tai Ling was completely turned into a mountain of flames, the remaining Heavenly Kingdom followers on Taibai Peak were dumbfounded.

The raging fire shot up to the sky, visible for dozens of miles around. That night, all the villages fell into a sleepless night, and the Eight Banners cavalry galloped through every village, forcing every able-bodied person to go and fight the fire. The entire Western Qing Tombs turned into a chaotic vortex.

"Haha... Hahaha... Hahahaha..." Liu Lang laughed maniacally, "You have guts, real guts. I used to look down on the military advisor, but today I am thoroughly convinced. The military advisor really has guts..." At this point, the gray-bearded Liu Lang even knelt on the ground, banging his head three times.

"Mr. Xiao, I have offended you in the past, I apologize..." Shi Dakai smiled bitterly, shook his head, and at this moment, a rustling sound came from the opposite forest, along with a few chirps of cold sparrows.

"Mr. is back! Mr. is back..." As he spoke, several figures, led by Liu Lang, disappeared into the darkness. Soon, the soldiers carried Xiao Letian out. Shi Dakai thought the military advisor was injured, but upon closer inspection, it turned out that the brothers were so excited that they carried the military advisor through dozens of miles of mountain paths without his feet touching the ground.

"Prince, how does this fire look?" Xiao Letian said arrogantly.

"Truly spectacular! But I don't understand why Mr. only burned the back mountain and not the Minglou and the main hall? That would have been even more spectacular," Shi Dakai asked.

Xiao Letian shook his head, "No, our goal is to use the hands of the Manchu royal family to eliminate Lian Er, and also to prove our capabilities to traitors like Liu Sanbian, so they will never dare to betray us again."

"Remember, our goal is not to fight the Manchus to the death now. Have you forgotten the plan I discussed with you before? Now we need to be low-key and quietly amass wealth. If we burn the Minglou and the main hall, Beijing will go crazy. We still need to give them some face..."

Xiao Letian was right. The entire plan was to use others' hands to kill, but not to drive them mad. If the ground structures of Tai Ling were really destroyed, the Forbidden City would really send troops to fight to the death.

The Western Qing Tombs were not far from Yixian County, and the fire could be seen from a distance of over thirty miles. The people of Yixian, who had experienced the chaos of that night, did not dare to go out, but they all secretly climbed onto their rooftops to watch the red glow in the west, wondering what had happened.

As for Liu Sanbian, he stood on the city wall, gazing in the direction of the Western Qing Tombs, with no one to serve him. Liu, the county magistrate, could hear his teeth chattering and feel his hands and feet gradually turning cold. He finally understood what kind of ship he had boarded, and from that moment on, he dared not have any thoughts of betrayal. Getting off the ship was out of the question.

The news of the Tai Ling mountain fire was reported to Beijing by fast horse on the evening of the next day. The Imperial Household Department did not dare to delay and immediately reported to the emperor and the two empress dowagers. At this time, the Tongzhi Emperor was only nine years old, and the actual power of the empire was completely in the hands of Empress Dowager Cixi and Empress Dowager Cian.

When Cixi heard that such a major incident had occurred at Tai Ling during the New Year, she was furious and immediately issued an edict to arrest Lian Er and a dozen other high-ranking tomb guardians. However, Cian, as recorded in history, was gentle and kind, and did not want the matter to escalate, so she only issued an edict for the Imperial Household Department to investigate thoroughly and make a decision after everything was clear.

"Why be so angry, sister? Let the servants investigate. If it's just an accidental mountain fire, we shouldn't make a big fuss. We finally captured Nanjing this year, and it's a time for celebration. Too many incidents would be embarrassing," Cian, with her enamel nail caps, was gently sniffing the fragrance of the tea in her hand, her demeanor so elegant that it could drive women mad.

Cixi sighed inwardly but could not refuse Cian's face, as she was the Empress Dowager of the Eastern Palace, while Cixi was only the Empress Dowager of the Western Palace, and there was a significant difference in status.

"Sister, you shouldn't be so kind. If you don't be strict with these servants, they will become arrogant. Look at what the memorial says: the fire burned for a whole day and night, almost burning the main hall. If we don't punish them severely, such incidents will only increase in the future..."

"It's the New Year, let's prioritize harmony..." Cian still had a calm face and did not respond to Cixi's words.

That night, the Imperial Household Department sent people by fast horse to the Western Qing Tombs. However, when they arrived the next day, they found that Lian Er had already suffered a stroke, his mouth twisted, his eyes askew, and his speech slurred.

As for the others, they could not provide any useful information. Only a few of Lian Er's stewards mentioned the incident of bandits in Yixian County to the officials of the Imperial Household Department.

"Your Excellencies, there were no bandits. It was just that Lian Er wanted to take Fan Lian's daughter, Hu Niu, and she had a lover who was an American. This led to a conflict..."

"I saw with my own eyes that night when the whole city was locked down for bandits. The Western Qing Tombs guard brought in over 200 men, causing chaos in Yixian County, but in the end, only the fat innkeeper was a notorious bandit. Where were the other bandits?"

"Mr. Xiao? You mean Xiao Letian? Oh, he is a genuine American Christian. After the incident, a pastor from Beijing sent a fast horse with an identity document, all in foreign script, and with the seal of their church. I don't know the words, but the men from the escort company said he was really a Kunlun slave from Dongjiaomin Alley..."

"Kidnapping a civilian woman? Mr. Xiao? That's a joke. Mr. Xiao is as fair-skinned as jade, more handsome than a young actor. Why would he need to kidnap? He just had to wave his hand, and Fan Lian's daughter would fall for him. I heard... hehehe, I heard they had already rolled together in the mountains. The one who really wanted to kidnap was Lian Er..."

"Your Excellencies, I'm not saying this to be rude, but Lian Er is so old and still indulges in women. This is not a way to maintain stability..."

The officials of the Imperial Household Department were stunned. They did not expect Lian Er to be so despicable, and not a single official in the county had a good word to say about him. No matter how they probed or threatened, these officials all spoke ill of Lian Er, and the leader of the team was so angry that he slammed the table.

"Regardless, the incident at Shalang Slope was real, right? Two or three hundred bandits attacking the Fan family's caravan, could this be fake? Don't forget, Fan Ru is in Beijing, and we have already questioned him..."

What they did not expect was that Liu Sanbian, known for his weakness and indecision, would stand up to the pressure at that moment. He bowed and said, "Your Excellency, if there were two or three hundred bandits in my jurisdiction, why had they never committed any crimes before? How could such a large group of people live without money?"

"After the incident, I sent the head constable, Wang Hu, to investigate the mountains. It turned out that they were just passing bandits. Who knows where they have fled to, to Shanxi or Rehe? The Taihang Mountains are so vast, not just my Yixian County. If you don't believe me, you can send people to search the mountains..."

With that, Liu Sanbian turned and left, infuriating the officials of the Imperial Household Department. A mere Han official, a seventh-rank county magistrate, had the nerve to be so bold? Fine, just wait for me to return to Beijing and see how I deal with you. Do you really think you are the brothers of Zeng Guofan?

The anger of the officials of the Imperial Household Department lasted only half a day. That night, when Liu Sanbian secretly met the officials with his secretary, the dark clouds finally cleared.

Large pieces of white jade, pearls, three-foot-tall corals, and even a whole box of gold, worth a hundred thousand taels, were presented, making the officials smile with delight.

"County Magistrate Liu is too kind. We were too hasty earlier, but the two empress dowagers were alarmed, and we had no choice..." The faces that were sour in the morning were now like blooming chrysanthemums.

The crisis was thus resolved. A hundred thousand taels of silver were enough to turn arson into an accidental mountain fire. In the end, a few nearly dead old men who guarded the mountain were arrested to take the blame, and the case was closed. As for Lian Er, who had already suffered a stroke, he could not be further investigated and had to return to Beijing to report everything to the emperor.

Cixi was clearly very angry with this conclusion, but she could do nothing about it because Cian's one sentence left her speechless.

"It's just a mountain fire. Even if all the servants are killed, it cannot be undone. It's already the twelfth month, and we should prioritize harmony. Besides, after the New Year, Zeng Guofan will come to Beijing for his report. Sister, you should focus more on this matter." Cixi immediately fell silent.

In the Qing Dynasty, the most pressing issue was the 500,000 troops under the command of the Zeng brothers, which was far more important than the mountain fire at Tai Ling.