Chapter 419: Entry Ceremony

After days of clearing, most of the Qing troops in Wuchang were killed or surrendered. The Red Army opened a porridge factory in the city to provide relief to the victims, and mobilized the army and civilians to collect corpses and clean up the streets.

At 9:00 p.m. on June 10, Cen Danchu, escorted by his personal soldiers, entered Wuchang through Wenchang Gate and organized a simple yet solemn entry ceremony.

The cavalry was at the front, about a thousand of them, all riding large Western horses and wearing Ming armor. Most of the war horses were captured, tall, strong, and fat. The cavalry all held Dinglu-style flintlock rifles, about three hundred of them held lances and wore waist swords, and they were from the Huben Town Cavalry Corps. Another six hundred or so held rifles and wore swords, and they were from the Huben Town Personal Guard Corps.

The war horses were sharp, the cavalry were mighty, the muzzles of their guns were black, and their bayonets were sharp. The cavalry passed through Yuecheng from Wenchang Gate and entered Xiguan Street.

Many Wuchang residents had gathered on both sides of the street to watch the Red Army cavalrymen. Seeing their majestic posture, they could not help but exclaim in admiration:

“I never thought that I would be able to see the might of the Han Dynasty in my lifetime!”

“Such heroic cavalry, strong war horses, and sophisticated firearms, I’m afraid even if Taizu and Chengzu were still alive, it would be hard to see such a scene!”

“After seeing the Red Army cavalry today, I realized that there is hope for the Han people to recover. We have survived until now, and we don’t have to suffer from the Tartars anymore!”

……

A group of children chased the Red Army cavalry, back and forth, with admiration in their eyes.

There were a few young and strong men who survived and were envious of this. They looked around and said:
“A good man should join the army. If you can become a Red Army cavalryman, ride a good horse, hold a sacred weapon, kill all the Tartars, and make great achievements, you will die without regrets!”

“I don’t want to talk about making achievements. I just want to join the army and avenge my parents and sisters!”

“The Red Army wiped out the Tartars and did not harm anyone after entering the city. My old man finally gave in and allowed me to join the army. Tomorrow, I will go to the Hongshan Camp to sign up!”

“Brother, you are both civil and military, if you can join the Red Army, you will definitely kill the enemy and make great contributions!”

“I really envy you. I have an old mother to take care of at home, so I can’t leave for the time being.”

……

The cavalry moved fast and passed Wenchang Gate in less than two quarters of an hour. After them came the Huben Town artillery, first three 100-meter cannons, then three red cannons, three sky-rocketing cannons, and finally six heavy mountain-splitting cannons.

The Red Army attached great importance to artillery, especially the mobility of artillery. Each artillery piece was equipped with a gun carriage. The Shicheng Cannon, the Red Cannon, and the Chongtian Cannon were all heavy artillery pieces, requiring a four-wheeled gun carriage, with the wheels covered with iron rings to increase strength. The Shicheng Cannon and the Red Cannon were extremely heavy, requiring four draft horses. The Chongtian Cannon was slightly lighter, requiring two draft horses. Although the heavy-duty mountain-splitting cannon had the word “heavy” in its name, it was actually much lighter than the Chongtian Cannon and could be towed by only one draft horse.

The cannons and gun carriages had been wiped clean, and the artillerymen and draft horses had also been washed by the river, looking very energetic.

The Shicheng Cannon and the Red Cannon were in the front, looking very majestic. The cannon carts passed through the stone road, making the stone slabs rattle. The wheels collided with the bricks and stones, sparks flashed from time to time, and the edges of the bricks and stones were ground by the wheels.

The artillery commander, Ferreira, was a European with red hair and blue eyes, riding in the front. There were also a dozen European gunners in the team, which opened the eyes of the people of Wuchang.

Cen Danchu rode a white jade-flowered horse, wore a golden helmet and golden armor, and followed the artillery into the city.

The Red Army did not favor sedan chairs, but rather horses. The high-ranking officials and nobles followed suit, and all were good at riding horses. This time when entering the city, Danchu did not ride in a sedan chair either. Behind him were two hundred personal soldiers armed with Dinglu rifles, which made him look particularly heroic.

The people of Wuchang had never thought that the famous Red King Cen Danchu was actually a young man under 30 years old. Old and young women, young and old, rushed to watch, fearing that they would be left behind.

Danchu waved to everyone and observed the surrounding environment. The Red Army dug holes at Wenchang Gate and broke into the city from Wenchang Gate. Therefore, the battle at Wenchang Gate was the most intense, and the surrounding residential areas were most severely damaged.

Now it seems that many residential buildings were destroyed in the war, but the city order has been basically restored. The people are all pale and thin, but with light in their eyes, warmly welcoming the Red Army into the city.

The Red Army besieged the city for three months, causing great damage to Wuchang. But the people’s hearts are with us, and we have to rebuild after the war, so we think there should be no problem. After the personal soldiers, there are infantry, selected from the fourth infantry regiment. The infantry is not as powerful as the cavalry, artillery, and personal soldiers of the Huben Town, but it is enough to show the military power, which is refreshing.

Sandwiched between the infantry were Qing prisoners. After the fall of Wuchang, the Red Army captured and killed countless people, including more than 70 military commanders above the rank of assistant commander.

During the Qing army’s occupation of Wuchang, they destroyed people’s houses, killed people for food, and committed countless crimes. The common people hated them to the core, so Cen Danchu specifically ordered that no Manchu or Mongolian Tartars should be spared, the Han army should be screened and dealt with, and the Green Camp should strive to recruit them.

Aobai’s body had been found, but it was hot in early summer and the body had already rotted. The Red Army burned it, picked up the bones, put them into a cannon, and fired at the Yangtze River, leaving nothing behind.

The Red Army wanted to execute all the remaining 70-odd Manchu and Mongolian officers by slow slicing, but they couldn’t find enough executioners at the time, so they had to settle for the next best thing and found dozens of butchers to skin them alive.

The more than 70 prisoners were tied with hemp ropes, with their hands behind their backs. To prevent them from shouting, wood was stuffed into their mouths and tied with cloth strips.

When the common people saw the prisoners, they were already filled with hatred and picked up bricks, stones and pieces of wood to throw at the prisoners.

These Manchu and Mongolian generals who were once arrogant and proud now all had sad faces, like eggplants hit by frost, and moved their feet listlessly. But no one dared to delay a step, because the Red Army was right beside them, and anyone who dared to lag behind would be whipped.

“Beasts! Bastards! I won’t be satisfied even if I chop you into pieces!”

“You Tartar dog, I want to avenge my parents and sisters!”

Suddenly, a middle-aged man in his forties rushed into the crowd, holding a wooden stick and started hitting a Tartar nearby.

A Red Army lieutenant standing by hurriedly advised: “Fellow countryman, please restrain yourself. None of these Tartars will survive. The Red Army will punish them severely soon!”

He knew very well that the common people hated the Qing army to the core, and although he tried to dissuade them, he did not take action to stop them.

The middle-aged man was pale and thin, with little strength, and the blow he struck on the Tartar did not do much harm. The Tartar, who was hit by the stick, turned his head and looked at the middle-aged man, his face was fierce, with a hint of contempt in his eyes.

The middle-aged man was so shocked that he dropped the stick in his hand to the ground. He knew he was incompetent and cried to the Red Army soldier beside him:
“General, I am a seafood merchant in Wuchang. This Tartar leader came to rob my shop. When my father tried to dissuade him, he hacked him to death. I only hate myself for being incompetent and unable to avenge my father. General, I beg you to avenge me!”

The entry ceremony had not yet ended, and the Red Army lieutenant did not dare to delay. Seeing that the Tartar did not repent and was still so arrogant before his death, it was really hateful.

He took a dagger, called two soldiers to hold the prisoner, and skillfully peeled off the Tartar’s scalp, threw it to the middle-aged man along with the braid, and said, “Keep this scalp for now. When we reach the parade ground later, the Red Army will avenge you.”

After the entry ceremony, Danchu and his confidants stayed at the Governor’s Office. A thousand infantrymen from the Fourth Regiment were stationed around the parade grounds to maintain order while dealing with the more than 70 “distinguished” prisoners of war.

There were two people who attracted the most attention. One was Li Guoying, the governor of Huguang and Sichuan in the Qing Dynasty. He was originally a general under Zuo Liangyu. After surrendering to the Qing Dynasty, he was incorporated into the Zhenghong Banner of the Han Army. Li Guoying was determined to surrender to the Qing Dynasty and committed many evil things. When the city was broken, he wanted to resist and was captured alive by the Red Army. The other one was named Banbulshan, a member of the Aisin-Gioro clan, with the title of Fuguogong. After the city was broken, he fought hard and refused to surrender. He was captured because he was exhausted.

These two people will naturally be cut into pieces. Cutting into pieces is very difficult and must be carried out by a special executioner.

The common people hated them so much that every time the executioner cut the meat, people would scramble for the pieces of meat. The impatient ones would chew them on the spot, while the slow ones would keep them and cook them at home. To prevent the two from fainting, the executioner would pour salt water on them every time he cut the meat.

Although people say that flaying is cruel, the common people find it very satisfying. Li Guoying and Bambulshan claimed to be heroes and refused to surrender, but they could not endure the flaying and shook their heads desperately, wanting to surrender to the Red Army.

The executioner ignored him and continued to cut the meat slowly.

Most of the remaining captives were skinned and their bodies thrown into the Yangtze River, where they floated down the river to serve as a warning to the Tartars along the way.

(End of this chapter)