Chapter 85: The Governor’s Decision

“General!”
Colonel Li Weiyeh, dressed in a blue jacket and red breeches, gave Governor Lu Mei a proper military salute, which won him considerable goodwill from Ruan Youming standing by.
He was also a typical Frenchman—romantic and rigid—though his hair had turned gray. He remained a simple soldier, still dreaming of becoming a general. Born in 1827, he joined the French Navy at 16 and participated in the expedition to Mexico. Few navy colonels in France had more experience than him, yet he had achieved nothing militarily; he had only received his rank due to seniority.
A navy colonel in his fifties had no future ahead. He was ready to retire, and the position of commander of the Cochinchina Fleet was likely to be the last in his military career.
But the French were so romantic. Didn’t Li Weiyeh also dream of becoming a general like Napoleon, either rising to marshal rank by age thirty or dying honorably in battle? He was not only a soldier but also a poet. He had published his own collection of poems, written many novels, and staged several plays. Yet among all his achievements, he longed to be known as “General Li Weiyeh, Conqueror of the Protectorate of Annam.”
Admittedly, the position of commander of the Cochinchina Fleet was not one that inspired envy. Its duties involved patrolling the Indochinese coast from Singapore to the Qiongzhou Strait, as well as river routes between Cochinchina and Cambodia. It was a tedious task, and it was difficult for a Frenchman to adapt to the local climate. Before him, two French officers had already refused the appointment, but Li Weiyeh accepted the mission without hesitation. He arrived in Saigon at the end of last year, in 1881.
Indeed, by the Gregorian calendar, it was already January 17, 1882. The tenth month of the lunar calendar in 1881, when Liu Yongfu returned to his country, corresponded to December 1882 by the Gregorian calendar.
Li Weiyeh understood what Governor Lu Mei’s summons meant. He also saw the priest holding a cross and knew his fate. This was his last military position. If there was no war, he should retire this year or next, becoming one of France’s countless obscure navy colonels, just another speck in the world.
Praise God! Just a month after arriving in Annam, he stumbled upon France’s most exciting campaign to conquer Vietnam!
Colonel Li Weiyeh was filled with passion; he was ready to challenge any enemy in the world.
Lu Mei was satisfied with Li Weiyeh’s enthusiasm, but he also knew he didn’t have enough authority. Starting a war was not the governor’s responsibility but that of the cabinet. All he could do was prepare in advance, seize the opportunities God bestowed, and not wait until desperation struck.

He opened the folder and read solemnly to Li Weiyeh, “Due to the attack on two French tourists holding valid passports, along with the prolonged and deliberate attacks on the Catholic Church, I am forced to protest to the Annamite government, demanding that it expel the Chinese mercenaries it harbors, known as the Black Flag Army. The Hue court did not reject my request, but it kept claiming that these irregular troops had once served it. In truth, it is its own weakness that prevents it from fulfilling our demands; it merely replied that it would try to get them to leave the Red River.”

“On the other hand, I heard that Liu Yongfu recently traveled to China, where he was welcomed like a military leader along the way. He carried a large sum of money, clearly intended for recruiting new soldiers. Meanwhile, customs confirmed that he received a substantial supply of rapid-fire guns and ammunition.”

Only after finishing speaking did he cast a meaningful glance at Li Weiyeh. Li Weiyeh’s gaze was enthusiastic yet rational—he was ready.

“Under these circumstances, I believe it is necessary to protect our troops from sudden attacks. Therefore, I have decided to double the garrison in Hanoi. I ask you to order the Dou Lak to set sail this week with two companies of reinforcements to Tonkin. I hope you can oversee this matter. Of course, I must emphasize that this requires the approval of the Minister, but you must be ready to set sail at any time.”

Li Weiyeh gave a standard military salute. He had longed to achieve military glory and become a second Napoleon for forty years. His heart was filled with emotion and enthusiasm, as well as a sense of romanticism.

He still harbored youthful fantasies—after conquering a protectorate, might he be treated like the Count of Baliqiao?

The governor’s words next were particularly meaningful: “You know the intentions of the Republic government. The government will never wage war 4,000 kilometers away from France, as that would draw the country into serious conflicts. We must use political and administrative means to expand and strengthen our influence in Tonkin and Annam. Therefore, the measures we take today are essentially defensive. Thus, you should only use force in absolute necessity. I trust you will act cautiously to avoid accidents, which are still unlikely at present.”

Li Weiyeh understood. The Republic government needed to wage war 4,000 kilometers from France, and France had to use military means to expand and strengthen its influence in Tonkin and Annam.

More importantly, the measures taken today were largely offensive in nature; force was absolutely necessary, and accidents were inevitable—this was also what Governor Lu Mei had emphasized. The key was to ensure victory.

If Li Weiyeh failed, Colonel Li Weiyeh would bear all the blame alone. But if he succeeded, France would reap the benefits of his achievements. Li Weiyeh was ready to make sacrifices: “I will certainly carry out the governor’s instructions.”

The governor continued reading his documents: “You must under no circumstances establish direct or indirect contact with the Black Flag Army. To us, they are bandits. If you encounter them, you should deal with them in the same manner. However, since we need to show respect for human life, do not execute them; instead, take them to Saigon so that I can lock them up on Kunlun Island. If you encounter Chinese troops—which is highly unlikely—you must avoid conflict with them.”

He laid all his cards on the table for Li Weiyeh to see. It was clear that now was not the time to fight against Chinese troops. After all, France’s forces in Tonkin, even after Li Weiyeh’s reinforcements arrived, still only consisted of five marine regiments, which were more than enough to deal with tens of thousands of Qing troops. At present, Li Weiyeh’s main goal was to deal with the Black Flag Army.

As an experienced colonial administrator, Lu Mei knew how to provide the greatest convenience for his subordinates.

“I don’t think it’s necessary to give you more detailed instructions, as that would only cause inconvenience, as unforeseen situations and needs may arise. But I believe your patriotism and wisdom will prevent the Republic from taking a path it doesn’t want to take. My overall advice can be summed up in one sentence: avoid firing. Weapons only bring trouble.”

Li Weiyeh also understood that what the governor was really saying was that war wasn’t scary; what was scary was failure. As long as victory was achieved, there would be no blame: “I will only use force when absolutely necessary. All my actions will be for self-defense. I’ll go prepare to set out right away.”

Conquering a country almost as large as mainland France with just a few infantry regiments was the greatest dream of any Frenchman!

But Lu Mei closed the documents with a smile: “No! No! No! This document needs to be submitted to the Naval Colonial Department for approval. But the minister is about to change, so the approval might take a day or a week or two. Nevertheless, you must be ready to set out at any time.”

He was confident that no matter how bureaucratic France’s cabinet was, Liu Yongfu could manage to get things done in five months. Next came the issue of practical implementation: “Colonel Li Weiyeh, this is Father Nguyen Huu Minh. Your defense measures in Hanoi require close cooperation with the Archdiocese of Hanoi.”

Just like the Xiliu Camp and the Hua Jian Church, the French and the Catholic Church were on the same side. But Nguyen Huu Minh was concerned about something else: “Lord Lu Mei, are you really going to let Colonel Li Weiyeh take on such a difficult task of defending Hanoi with just two regiments?”

Colonel Li Weiyeh clearly thought Nguyen Huu Minh was questioning his capabilities: “In addition to the two marine regiments, I will also bring two Doulat-class ships and the Basval, two artillery teams with fifteen gunners, plus fifteen Annamese infantrymen.”

This was exactly the same force Li Weiyeh had used in his historical expedition, but their opponents were different. Nguyen Huu Minh had to make it clear: “According to our intelligence, the Black Flag bandits now have a large number of rapid-fire rifles and ample ammunition. Since they have official Vietnamese licenses, the customs is unable to stop them.”

“So far, the Black Flag bandits have four to five thousand soldiers, and more can be mobilized for war. Among them, the best-equipped Liu faction has about five to six hundred rapid-fire rifles, while the other units have around four hundred.”
“One thousand rapid-fire rifles?” Li Weiye remained cautious about such enemies. “I’ll increase the number of Annamese native infantry from fifteen to thirty.”
Governor Lu Mei made an immediate decision: “Fifty Annamese native infantry then.”
These Annamese native infantry were veterans trained by the French over many years, with long service histories. They had participated in numerous battles to suppress uprisings by Viet Cong people in Cochinchina. More importantly, they were all loyal Catholics.
As history progressed, these Annamese native infantry might become vulnerable, but right now it was still the rising period for these colonial troops. They had decent morale and combat effectiveness, and their equipment was also good—1874 model rifles, only one tier below those used by the French regular forces.
Increasing the number from fifteen to fifty seemed sufficient to Li Weiye. Then, Ruan Youming added that the Hanoi diocese could also provide a considerable number of Catholic militias to assist in combat, even without pay, as long as he allowed them to purchase rifles in Hong Kong.
He further explained that the Black Flag bandits used the best rifles—American Remington rifles—which cost only eight dollars in Hong Kong. The diocese had enough funds to buy fifty Remington rifles for combat use.
However, just thinking about money made Ruan Youming feel pain. Last time, he had taken a large sum of money and several agents to Baosheng, only to lose his entire army; only Qiao Erchi managed to escape, without even retrieving a single Black Flag currency note.
Worse still, those people later became heretics. Whether it was Su Sui or others, they were ruthless in dealing with Catholics. As a result, the Hanoi archdiocese also faced severe financial shortages.
But the governor had no plans to fund the church’s deficits. He simply glanced at Ruan Youming and said, “In that case, I’ll inform the customs. You can buy… one hundred Remington rifles and ammunition in Hong Kong.”
He had received intelligence that the Black Flag forces had acquired two hundred Remington rifles, but Ruan Youming immediately protested, “The Black Flag forces got four hundred from customs; we can only get five hundred.”
Under Ruan Youming’s protest, Lu Mei said, “You have the protection of the marine corps. How about this? I agree to let you buy one hundred and fifty Remington rifles.”
He then said to Li Weiye, “That’s all the help I can provide. Well, you can take another hundred and fifty spare rifles from the warehouse.”
The 1874 model rifles were the standard equipment of the colonial troops, while older equipment was only available in the warehouse—stock prepared by the governor for recruiting troops in times of crisis, now handed over to Colonel Li Weiye in advance.
Li Weiye now had much stronger forces than before, and his confidence grew even more. “Don’t worry! Even a single marine corps company of ours can defeat a thousand Black Flag soldiers.”

They possess such confidence; at Baliqiao, they achieved one of the easiest victories in human history, and now Li Weiyeh’s expeditionary force has even greater firepower. Times are changing—this small force’s firepower surpasses that of the entire Anglo-French allied army. They can fire hundreds of shells and thousands of bullets in a minute; any old-fashioned army would collapse quickly under such firepower. No one can stop my advance! Li Weiyeh is filled with romantic ideas; he’s already considering challenging the tens of thousands of Qing troops stationed in Beining. They are ordinary Chinese soldiers, easily defeated. Though they have decent equipment, they don’t know how to use it—they’re nothing but clay giants. As for the Black Flag Army, they’re not even a problem. At this moment, Liu Yongfu is equally full of confidence. He received the warmest reception, and more importantly, a high-ranking official from the Qing government came at his superior’s orders to discuss matters related to resisting the French. This official’s superior is a Daoist official, and this high-ranking official also has significant influence over many affairs—his position itself represents seniority. It’s not an ordinary position; it’s that of a county magistrate. This is the highest-ranking official Liu Yongfu has encountered since returning to his country.