Chapter 174: Beautiful Legs

The same question plagued Xu Yanzhu as well—how had he lost so inexplicably? It was like a spring dream: just a few days earlier, he had written to Zhang Shusheng, urging an invasion of Hanoi to reclaim all of Vietnam. Yet within two days, he was utterly defeated, without even understanding what had happened. The French artillery had reached Binh Ninh, and their army rushed in like an avalanche.

To this day, he still didn’t understand how he lost. Logically, there were seventy or eighty battalions in Binh Ninh, along with 30,000 troops from Guangxi’s elite forces. The commanders were experienced generals from the Hunan and Huai armies, and they had countless modern guns and fortifications built under Huang Guilan’s supervision—so how could the French have easily taken control?

After just one night, the French vanguard had arrived. Countless officers abandoned him, the governor of Guangxi, and fled in panic. He didn’t understand what was happening and simply followed the crowd toward Lang Son.

“Three years of effort, all ruined in an instant…” Zhao Wo, a former famous general from the Chu army, sighed repeatedly. “These spears were never put to use. In the past, when quelling the Nian rebels, these spears were used to cut through mountains—yet they were deemed useless.”

Huang Guilan, whose official robes were torn, retorted coldly, “What profound knowledge! When I followed Shao Quan to suppress the Nian rebels, we already used modern guns and cannons—no need for those spears. A hundred of those spears aren’t even worth one modern gun. You always listened to villains in the past—now see who has doomed you!”

Xu Yanzhu’s face turned grim. Huang Guilan’s words clearly implied that he had listened to wrong advice and caused disaster. “You… you still say such things? Think about how to explain this to the imperial court.”

“What’s there to explain?” Huang Guilan replied carefree. “I, Huang, came from a poor family as a youth with no chance to succeed. After twenty years of fighting, I’ve had enough. I’ve slept with countless women and killed countless people. I’ve even become a governor and formed a good marriage alliance. My children are taken care of—my life has no regrets.”

“What’s the big deal about dying? It’s not hard!” He laughed loudly and stood up. “I’m going to see some beauties. These Vietnamese women are quite interesting.”

With that, he laughed maniacally, untied his official robes, and headed outside. “I’ll never deal with those clerks again!”

“To die beneath peonies—even as a ghost, one remains elegant!” Huang Guilan’s wild laughter echoed in the air. This made Xu Yanzhu slam the desk in anger. “You…”

He wasn’t like Huang Guilan—so carefree. Gritting his teeth, he said, “A high-ranking official, a real governor, giving up like this, treating state affairs as trivial… How detestable!”

But he could see that Huang Guilan was already determined to die. As the governor of Guangxi, he couldn’t escape his responsibilities. So he chose to revel before death. Before any imperial orders arrived, he would surely take his own life first.

Huang Guilan couldn’t escape his responsibilities, but could Xu Yanzhu? Yet the governor still tried desperately to find a way out.

Zhao Wo, standing nearby, said dejectedly, “I’ve fought alongside Zuo Zongtang across the country. Though I haven’t achieved much, I still have some family to support. Now that my children are grown, I have few regrets.”

But Xu Yanxu hadn’t achieved enough—he even had dreams of joining the military. Moreover, he bore an immense responsibility, with many people counting on him. There were numerous superiors and subordinates, loyal officials who recommended him, as well as family and friends. With so many expectations resting on his shoulders, he couldn’t give up. Yet the defeat at Beining was starkly before him. Tens of thousands of troops had been sent out for years without success; they suffered heavy losses and lost territory without even fighting—a crime too severe to bear in any era. To this day, he still didn’t know exactly how many troops he had lost, but even under the most optimistic estimates, the casualties numbered five or six thousand—a figure rarely seen even during the Tongguang Restoration. The veins on his arms bulged tightly. Suddenly, as if he’d found a lifeline, he said, “It’s the Black Flag Army that betrayed me! It’s the Black Flag Army that ruined the Great Qing! It’s all the Black Flag Army’s fault…” Zhao Wo was shocked by Xu Yanxu’s nonsense. “Censor?” “It’s not you who betrayed me, it’s not you who caused trouble,” Xu Yanxu shouted. “When our troops clashed with the Black Flag Army, the situation seemed favorable at first. But the Black Flag Army broke their promises—not only refusing to help but also attacking our flanks, exposing flaws in our entire strategy and ruining everything. For the defeat at Beining, the Black Flag Army will face eternal disgrace and surely the wrath of the Empress Dowager of the Great Qing.” Zhao Wo came to his senses and almost grabbed Xu Yanxu’s hand. “That’s right, that’s right! Tens of thousands of our troops were stationed in Beining—a situation that should have been foolproof. It was the Black Flag Army who caused trouble. Instead of attacking the French, they stood by, luring our soldiers into traps. Then, when the battle turned, they attacked our flanks. Our troops were unprepared, leading to total collapse…” His eyes narrowed to slits. “I must submit a special report to clarify this matter. Please convey it to the Emperor on my behalf.” “Good! Good! Good!” Xu Yanxu finally came up with a way to survive. “Get back the report sent yesterday—I also need to submit one.” Seeing the stack of rice paper on the table, he thought of something else. “By the way, if the Imperial Secretariat asks for evidence, I can present my diaries from the past few months—everything will be clear at a glance.” He himself didn’t keep a diary, but creating one wasn’t difficult—just fill in the dates, rewrite based on memory and official records, and add evidence of the Black Flag Army’s misdeeds. History would prove how wise Xu Yanxu’s idea was. “The Black Flag bandits led by Liu Yu repeatedly claimed they made outstanding contributions in the war against France, while portraying the Qing army as utterly weak. This book, based on the newly released diaries of Xu Yanxu from the Beining campaign, clearly shows that the Qing army was the main force in the war. It reveals how the Black Flag bandits took advantage of the war to pursue a counter-revolutionary strategy—using the conflict to advance their own interests while attacking the Qing army, leading to the defeat at Beining.” “These campaign diaries are the most important and objective records of the Beining battle, and so far, the only firsthand accounts. Their value is immeasurable. We believe more such materials will be released today.”

“My teacher, Dr. Jack, after twenty years of studying modern Chinese history, clearly stated that the Black Flag bandits were the source of all evils in modern China. The period of revival and reform during the Tongzhi and Guangxu reigns represented the best opportunity for modern China to rise again. If that path had been pursued, China would have embarked on a path of people’s democracy and prosperity, rather than becoming a cradle of hegemonism. Internally, it would have implemented lenient policies, offering minor perks to a small portion of the Chinese people through superficial democracy, at the expense of the interests of the majority of people around the world. Externally, it would have opposed the most powerful civilized nations in the world, exporting war and arms under the guise of democracy to seek illegal profits. In particular, the people of Asia, Africa, and parts of Europe suffered greatly, especially those in East Asia…”
“We will reveal the little-known truths of history through this book, expose the outstanding historical contributions of officials like Governor Xu Yanxu and other proponents of self-strengthening reforms, and uncover the criminal nature of the Black Flag bandits. We hope that the Chinese people will carry out a great revolution based on the principles of American people’s democracy…”
Sun Yat-sen, 1907, United States of America, New York, Asia-Africa Spring Magazine, “Tell You the Truth About the Beining Campaign – Based on Diaries from the Battlefield” (inscribed personally by an American citizen; part of the “True Reactionary China – False Democracy, True Hegemony” series, Volume 7, essential reading for American citizens)
…
But Liu Yu had no idea such valuable materials were right under her nose; what concerned her were Chen Tingqin’s beautiful legs.
Regarding the situation in Beining, although he asked Tang Jingsong to provide as much help as possible and even allowed the frontline troops to bear significant losses, he was well aware that even if he wiped out the entire Black Flag army, he wouldn’t receive much praise from the Qing officials. This was the cruel reality of that era: there was no way to serve the country, and even if one wanted to betray it, there might not be an opportunity—all one’s passion would end up wasted.
Moreover, the French finally sent additional troops to Hanoi, and the good days at the gates of Hanoi were coming to an end.
Tang Jingsong had nearly ten battalions in Taiyuan and took in thousands of Qing troops, yet he still clamored that they lacked sufficient forces. Only the old officers from the Black Flag army, who knew the actual situation better, made Liu Yu understand that as long as they continued to resist Tang Jingsong’s reckless commands, there wouldn’t be major problems on the Taiyuan front in the short term.
However, once Beining was captured, enough French troops would be freed up, and he needed to decide early where those troops would be used.
Today, he came to consult military maps. After hearing his request, Chen Tingqin, who was in charge of the archives, immediately went to the archive room to retrieve the materials.
Liu Yu also followed, taking the chance to see something interesting.
The archive room was quiet, with a faint fragrance in the air. It contained all the archives from the establishment of the Xiliu Army, as well as many documents from the Kingdom of Vietnam, captured French documents, and old archives of the Black Flag army.

But all the files under Chen Tingqin’s control were in perfect order. Military maps, for example, were kept in a small filing cabinet on the side. Chen Tingqin fetched a lightweight ladder and climbed up directly: “Ayu, the map you wanted is right here…”
She had no idea that her beautiful legs and everything else about her were exposed to Liu Yu’s eyes.
Her legs were extremely slender, of the most perfect shape, and absolutely stunning when she moved.
Liu Yu felt he should take action.
“I found it. I’m coming down…”
Liu Yu’s hand was already on her delicate legs.