Quentin Easton didn’t answer Shawn Young’s question directly. Instead, he asked, “Brother Shawn, have you heard of the ‘Sacred Treasury’ of the Celestial Peace Kingdom?”
“Yeah, I’ve heard of it. At first, it was all about sharing fortune and hardship together, doing everything for the revolution—kind of like eating from the same communal pot. But after the Celestial Peace Army established the Heavenly Capital, things changed completely! The ‘Sacred Treasury’ system ended up becoming a tool for the Heavenly King and the various princes to amass their own wealth!” Shawn explained.
“That’s right. The Celestial Peace Kingdom had very clear policies and laws about collecting gold. The Heavenly King issued edicts to the entire army and people several times—every bit of property belonged to the Sacred Treasury. The Sacred Treasury was basically the national treasury. Back in the Jintian Regiment days, participants handed over all their belongings and followed a ‘share the food, share the hardship’ policy. Later, it turned into a private ‘treasure vault’ for top generals and the Heavenly King. When the Celestial Peace Kingdom operated out of the Heavenly Capital, the Celestial Peace Army looted and pillaged all over, gathering nearly half of China’s riches into the Sacred Treasury. So, the Sacred Treasury of the Celestial Peace Kingdom held unimaginable wealth!” Quentin Easton explained.
“Wow, so the Celestial Peace Army was loaded! Doesn’t really fit the image of a peasant uprising!” Shawn exclaimed in surprise.
“Yeah, they were originally just a bunch of opportunistic peasants, not exactly high quality. So once they got power, they totally lost control. Uh—let’s not get into all that right now. Let’s talk about something closely related to today’s topic—the ‘Heavenly King’s Mansion Sacred Treasury’! Brother Shawn, have you ever heard the legend of the three great treasures of the Celestial Peace Kingdom?”
“Oh, I’ve heard about that! But isn’t it usually said there are only two great treasures? How come there are three now? Besides, I heard that when the Heavenly Capital fell to the Qing army, all those treasures were split up and taken by Zeng Guofan’s men!” Shawn asked curiously.
“Actually, there are three great treasure mysteries in the Celestial Peace Kingdom: the Heavenly Capital treasure mystery, the Shi Dakai Dadu River treasure mystery, and the Huzhou treasure mystery! But those are just folk legends, not really reliable. What we’re talking about today is the whereabouts of the ‘Heavenly Capital Sacred Treasury’! This treasure includes the biggest and most important secret of the Celestial Peace Kingdom! The secret guarded by our Three Great Houses and the Xiao family is exactly this!” Quentin Easton said.
“Oh—the Sacred Treasury treasure! Didn’t historians say that when Zeng Guofan’s Xiang Army broke into the Heavenly Capital, they looted everything? Even the Qing government wanted Zeng Guofan to cough it up, but he just pretended he didn’t have it! And even if there really was a Sacred Treasury treasure, such a huge haul, how did your Three Great Houses’ ancestors and Annabelle Hung manage to get it out of the city?” Shawn asked in amazement. Note: In 1864, the end of the Celestial Peace Kingdom finally came. After the capital Heavenly Capital (now Nanjing) fell, the Xiang Army flooded in like wild beasts, burning, killing, raping, and looting. They swept the city for three days straight, digging three feet deep and taking every scrap of wealth from the capital.
“Yeah, the treasures inside the ‘Heavenly King’s Mansion Sacred Treasury’ were way bigger than anyone imagined. When the Heavenly Capital fell, Zeng Guofan’s Xiang Army did take a lot, but what they got was just the ‘surface riches’—those were deliberately left behind by Annabelle Hung and our Three Great Houses’ ancestors!” Quentin Easton revealed an astonishing secret.
"Uh—deliberately left behind? Why would she do that on purpose?" Shawn found it hard to believe.
"Because people are greedy! Who wouldn’t grab tempting treasure if they saw it? Annabelle Hung obviously understood this. She didn’t have enough strength to move the huge treasure from the Heavenly King’s Mansion Sacred Treasury on her own, so she had to team up with the three ancestors and use their power. Plus, she had to leave some treasure behind to lure the Qing soldiers. After all, they risked their lives for future riches! When the Heavenly Capital fell, she scattered gold and silver through the houses and streets the Qing army would pass, and left piles of treasure in the Heavenly King’s Mansion. She knew—once the Qing soldiers saw all that loot, they’d go wild, giving us the chance to break through the siege. And it worked! Annabelle Hung really understood human nature. If she hadn’t done that, there’s no way she could’ve left the city with so much treasure!" Quentin Easton said with deep admiration.
"Whoa! Annabelle Hung was no ordinary woman—she really knew what to keep and what to give up! Ruthless and decisive!" Shawn echoed, impressed.
"Back then, the Heavenly Capital was surrounded by the Qing army like an iron barrel. With Annabelle Hung’s help, our three ancestors got in touch with the Xiao family ancestor, who had joined the Small Sword Society in Shanghai. The Xiao ancestor led twelve trusted followers and brought a unit to help. With the Xiao family and the Small Sword Society’s support, Annabelle Hung and our three ancestors used a diversion tactic on a dark, windy night: a tough, well-equipped squad of female soldiers joined up with the Xiao family’s outside team, drew the Qing troops away from the city’s weak western defenses, and then escaped with loads of treasure! They vanished from the Qing army’s pursuit!" Quentin Easton continued.
"Oh—so that’s how it happened! After they escaped the Heavenly Capital with all those treasures and secrets, where did they hide them?" Shawn was most interested in this part.
"After escaping the Heavenly Capital, the treasure was packed in big wooden crates—way too obvious. The hiding spot was chosen by Annabelle Hung, who was skilled in feng shui and black sorcery. It was a hidden and unimaginable place. Annabelle Hung used her magical black sorcery to make the treasure convoy almost invisible on the road! That sorcery was odd—it only worked if you traveled at night and rested during the day. After seven days and nights, they reached the secret hiding place and buried most of the treasure. To keep the Celestial Peace Kingdom’s biggest secret from leaking—or maybe to prepare for a comeback—Annabelle Hung split the secret in two: she kept one part with her, and buried the other with the treasure! All the way until today—" Quentin Easton recounted.
"Oh—so a lot of people knew about the whole thing, including the treasure burial! Weren’t Annabelle Hung, your Three Great Houses, and the Xiao ancestor worried that someone might leak the secret or get greedy?" Shawn asked curiously.
"Heh—Annabelle Hung was way too smart to overlook that. So, before moving the treasure out of the Heavenly Capital, she had already made preparations—after burying the treasure, she used black sorcery to silence everyone!" Quentin Easton sneered.
"Ah! Annabelle Hung was so ruthless. How did your three ancestors and the Xiao family descendants survive?" Shawn exclaimed.
"Annabelle Hung really did use black sorcery to silence everyone. She had planned it all. But when the poison started to take effect, our three ancestors and the Xiao ancestor sensed it thanks to their strong skills, grabbed their weapons, and fought back. Annabelle Hung didn’t want mutual destruction, so she compromised and gave them the antidote, sparing the lives of the three ancestors, the Xiao ancestor, and his twelve trusted followers! Then both sides made a ‘Blood Curse Pact’ to keep the secret together!" Quentin Easton explained.
"Ah! The ‘Blood Curse Pact’—that’s one of the scariest ancient demon curses ever left in the world! They say after making the pact, unless both sides break it in a special way, everyone present and their families will be bound by the curse for generations. If anyone breaks their oath, the demon will claim their soul and their whole family will die! It’s one of the most terrifying curses in existence!" Shawn cried out in shock.
"Exactly. Both sides were bound by the terrifying ‘Blood Curse Pact,’ so the oath was kept! After making the pact, Annabelle Hung left behind the four Celestial Peace Kingdom Divine Beast jade rings, bestowed by Hong Xiuquan, and a method to slowly dispel the curse, as tokens for future generations to recognize each other. Then she parted ways with everyone and vanished from the martial world. That’s how our Three Great Houses and the Xiao family have kept the four Divine Beast jade rings to this day! Every year, we have to perform the ritual she taught us to counteract the curse’s side effects!" Quentin Easton sighed.