Member-only story
The Great Chinese Demon Hunt That Led to the Death of 70 Million People
The little known tale of the Taiping Rebellion and the Heavenly Kingdom
In 1837, at the age of 23, Hong Huoxiu failed the Chinese state civil service examinations for the third time. It was a crushing failure. Hong Huoxiu had been born into a poor Hakka family in southern China with very few prospects. Despite his poor rural upbringing, Hong had shown great interest in scholarship and teaching from a young age and his parents had striven to provide him with ample opportunities to succeed as a Chinese civil servant.
In order to be accepted into the prestigious ranks of the bureaucracy, one had to first pass the rigorous civil service examinations but it seemed that Hong Huoxiu was incapable of doing so. After years of studying, training and financial investment by his family Hong found himself thwarted from his goals yet again.
It was too much for him to bear.
Upon returning home from his latest failure, Hong fell into a state of delirium. He lay ill for many days and was so weak that his family feared that he was on the verge of dying. But he survived.
While recovering from his breakdown, Hong had several vivid visions of heaven that changed his life forever.
