Chapter 10: The Formation (Part 1)

The old camp of Liu Ziying was located beside a small river on extremely flat ground, far from the main roads. It was originally a village abandoned during the wars, but after some repairs, it became the old camp.

The entire camp consisted of only dozens of hastily built thatched huts and a few stilted bamboo buildings—nothing particularly distinctive. Though it was an old camp, it could be abandoned at any time. Yet among the huts and stilted buildings, many gun emplacements, loopholes, and ditches had already been prepared to defend against invading enemies.

The most important defensive structure were the four watchtowers placed at each corner, with guards stationed there day and night.

At that moment, two middle-aged men in their thirties were idly chatting on one of the watchtowers, occasionally getting up to check for any approaching enemies. After nearly two hours of chatter, covering every possible topic, the plate of peanuts on the ground was already empty, the shotguns lay casually aside, and the sun grew increasingly scorching.

The view remained unchanged—just mountains and waters, with not a single person in sight. Bored, the two men resorted to their earlier topic: “It’s still better back in Guangxi. I wonder if we can go back this time.”

When they left home, they were still young boys, but now they had long passed their thirties. Yet they had discussed this topic many times before: “Haohao is pretty honest, just a bit reckless…”

The two fell silent, feeling a sense of bitterness. Suddenly, one of them looked up, as if he had noticed something.

“Someone’s coming!”

They quickly raised their shotguns, and the two began ringing the bells. Soon, a large group of people stopped what they were doing and turned their attention this way. Two more shotguns were raised, loaded to the brim. Someone jumped onto a watchtower and asked, “What’s going on? What’s going on?”

The two sentries grew even more nervous. They could already see the flag with the character “Liu”: “It’s Ayu and the others returning.”

“Ayu? Why are you ringing the bells and raising guns?”

But as soon as he spoke, he realized it was inappropriate: “Should we really lower our guns?”

“That was what the leader himself said!”

“No! I refuse!”

By then, several shotguns had been raised on top of the small bamboo watchtower, creating a tense standoff. Suddenly, everyone gasped in surprise: “What’s going on?”

“Something’s wrong!”

“What’s wrong? Aren’t they them? Is someone pretending?”

A subleader close to Liu Haohao shouted, only to find that the two sentries had their eyes wide open, staring intently. “What’s the matter?”

He turned to look carefully at the troops under the black flag.

Seeing this, his eyes also widened like copper bells as he stared fixedly. After a while, he blinked, wiped his eyes fiercely with his left hand, then looked again. Before lowering his hand, he wiped his eyes with his sleeve before taking a deep breath in shock: “Did I missee it?”

His tone was uncertain, drawing everyone’s attention. The scene fell silent, and soon everyone wiped their eyes at the same time, staring intently, with almost identical words coming from their mouths.

“Did I missee it?”
“You also missaw it?”
“My eyes must be failing too!”
“I didn’t missee it!”
“That’s impossible! My eyes are working fine!”
Even the sentries were confirming what had just happened: “What should we do now?”
Just then, the small leader realized what was going on. He rushed down the ladder in one stride: “Hurry! Follow me!”
At the center of the old camp stood a tall bamboo building. A few people had been arguing loudly when the news from earlier interrupted them, causing a stir.
“What? Liu Yu has brought people back?” Liu Haohao, under thirty and a burly man, blurted out, “I’ll go greet him!”
But as soon as he said that, he regretted it: “As you said, take his gun away!”
Across from him was a pale, thin old man with white hair and a short beard. His eyes were deep and somewhat terrifying. Wearing a blue hat and official robes, he lacked the demeanor of a court official and instead had a more rogue-like air: “There’s no need for an official from Liu’s camp. Just send someone to bring him here!”
“Lord Shi…” Liu Haohao hesitated, “It might not be a bad idea to involve Liu Yu in this!”
“Hmph!” Lord Shi’s gaze was terrifyingly sharp: “I appointed you as a camp official not only because of Governor Feng’s approval but also out of General Li’s kindness. Do you want to give that brat the position?”
“It doesn’t matter if I give it to him!” Liu Haohao was rather simple-minded: “It’s still Liu’s camp after all.”
Lord Shi spoke harshly: “Then won’t you accept General Li’s kindness? The general only recognizes you. Don’t you want to secure an official position for the hundreds of men in Liu’s camp? Let me tell you—there are plenty of people eager to become camp officials for wealth and status. Your Liu’s camp isn’t essential! Do you want to be a camp official in the Qing Dynasty? Do you want its glory and wealth? If you won’t think for yourself, think for your men!”
Liu Haohao was impulsive. After hearing Lord Shi’s words, he didn’t know what to do and tried to convince himself, “I don’t care… I really don’t care!”
But deep down, he did care. Which of these exiles abroad didn’t long for the day to return home in glory, to wear fine clothes and enjoy life’s triumphs? People like Liu Yongfu had become high-ranking officials in Vietnam, holding second- or third-rank positions and defending their territories with success—truly glorious. Yet even he privately said he would rather be a low-ranking official in the Qing Dynasty than a high-ranking one in Vietnam, reflecting the feelings of many like him.
But achieving such glory wasn’t easy. After much effort, an opportunity finally came when the general left to defend northern Vietnam and needed to recruit brave troops. Because he appreciated them, he sent Lord Shi with a letter of appointment.
Under the Qing military system, a camp consisted of over 500 men. Liu’s camp had only about 150, but it was still considered its own camp—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Seeing that Liu Haohao was silent, Lord Shi waved his sleeve authoritatively: “Sit down! Have that brat brought here!”
Liu Haohao immediately sat down like a schoolchild. Seeing this, Lord Shi was extremely pleased: “In Annam, who dares to oppose Governor Feng or General Li? This matter is under my control!”

“I’m waiting for this brat to show up!” Shi Yujie added another vicious remark, “Let him come!”