Yang Xiuqing
In January 1848, Feng Yunshan was arrested and banished to Guangdong. Hong Xiuquan left for Guangdong shortly thereafter to reunite with Feng. In the absence of both Feng and Hong, two new leaders emerged to fill the void: Yang Xiuqing and Xiao Chaogui. Both claimed to enter trances which allowed them to speak as a member of the Trinity: God the Father in the case of Yang and Jesus Christ in the case of Xiao. While speaking as Jesus or God the Father, Xiao and Yang would necessarily have more authority than even Hong Xiuquan. Upon their return in the summer of 1849, Hong and Feng investigated Yang and Xiao's claims and declared them to be genuine.