Chapter 200: The Decisive Battle (Part 2)

Time-honored yellow battle flags were raised among the scattered debris, and the shrill sound of trumpets drew the focus of the entire battlefield to them. Wang Debang’s troops launched a fierce counterattack as if inspired by adrenaline, causing the Black Flag Army’s assault to falter immediately.

Su Yuanchun’s ten infantry battalions assembled beneath the battle flags. Waving them vigorously, they rushed into the battlefield at full speed, while Su Yuanchun personally directed the artillery units from behind: “See that black flag? Fire fiercely at the main force of those traitors! Use up all the shells! I’ll guarantee you a high rank!”

The artillerymen bit their lips, hesitating. “Lord Su, it’s not that we dare not exert ourselves—it’s just that Lord Wang Debang’s own elite troops are there too!”

In the direction Su Yuanchun pointed, over a thousand Qing troops were fighting fiercely against two main units of the Black Flag Army. The two sides engaged in a brutal battle across a narrow front line, with grenades flying through the air amid a hail of bullets. It was only because Wang Debang had sent his own troops forward that the front line could be stabilized.

“Fire! Fire fiercely!” Su Yuanchun drew his saber and shouted. “If you refuse, I’ll execute you on the spot!”

The artillerymen were on the verge of crying. Though they were equipped with twelve rapid-fire cannons purchased from the French, reputed to be invincible in battle, they knew full well the limitations of their skills. They couldn’t even hit the walls of Taiyuan accurately, let alone the intertwined forces at the front line—one misfire could hit their own men.

A silver gleam flashed as Su Yuanchun’s saber moved. A murderous intent flashed in his eyes. “Fire all the shells until they’re gone. If Wang Debang has any objections, let him come to me—I’ll take full responsibility!”

Boom! Boom! Boom! The twelve Western-style rapid-fire cannons fired simultaneously, unleashing all their shells without restraint, ignoring the fact that the fighting sides were so close together. They simply displayed their power on the ground.

“My elite troops! My elite troops!” Wang Debang’s heart felt as if it had been cut apart. “That damned barbarian Su! I’ll settle accounts with him! Even if it means going to court, I’ll make him pay!”

After this barrage, his hundreds of elite troops were utterly destroyed. The indiscriminate artillery fire shattered their bones. Apart from some who retreated in tears, their battle flags were also lost.

He couldn’t help but feel heartbroken. Even if ten other battalions were destroyed, he wouldn’t be so enraged. But these hundreds of troops were truly his most precious assets—his most trusted old subordinates, including his two own nephews. They died not at the hands of the Black Flag Army but from their own troops’ artillery fire. How could he not seek a clear resolution with Su Yuanchun?

But his anger wasn’t limited to this. Another tragedy unfolded on the other side.

While the Qing army’s artillery fire had destroyed Wang Debang’s elite troops, the two companies of the Black Flag Army also suffered heavy losses. Soon after, Su Yuanchun’s infantry battalions launched an attack under their battle flags—but it wasn’t they who served as cannon fodder.

“Fight back! Fight back! Fight back for me, or face execution on the spot!” Several battle commanders mercilessly beheaded several soldiers. The retreating troops, crying, were forced to go back under gunpoint, met with a dense barrage of shots from the Black Flag Army, inflicting hundreds more wounds on Wang Debang, leaving him crying without tears: “Su Yuanchun! Su Yuanchun, I’m not done with you!”
He gritted his teeth, while Su Yuanchun managed to stabilize his forces: “Keep firing the cannons! Bring in all the cannons—I refuse to believe we can’t overwhelm these bandits!”
His infantry was also very strong, holding off two waves of counterattacks from the Black Flag Army. Although they suffered heavy losses, the overall battle situation began to turn in their favor.
On the battlefield, the Qing army had a formidable force of seventy infantry battalions, two to thirty thousand highly combat-effective troops from the south of the Qing Dynasty, armed with Western weapons provided by the French. Thus, the assault by the Second Xiliu Regiment was finally halted.
After all, the Black Flag Army had only deployed the Second Xiliu Regiment, which numbered just over 1,500 men. Even including reinforcements from within Taiyuan City, their total strength was only about 4,000 to 5,000.
Both sides continued to launch attacks, resulting in increasing casualties. The battlefield of Taiyuan had become a melting pot, with both sides pouring iron and blood into it.
The cannons roared. Since the rise of the Taiping Army, the Qing Dynasty had never used so many cannons in a single battle. Yet, despite this large number of cannons, they failed to gain the upper hand.
Both sides’ mobile formations suffered heavy losses under each other’s artillery fire. Su Yuanchun’s officers cried out, “Where are the cannons? Where are they? We need the cannons!”
The Black Flag Army’s coordination between infantry and artillery far surpassed theirs. Although they had more cannons, these two infantry battalions had already taken nearly twenty cannon shells in just the recent attacks.
“There are no cannons! Fight to the death! That’s Commander Su’s orders—now it depends on you!”
Their opponents also called for artillery support. The commander grabbed a telegraph and shouted, “We need artillery! There are too many enemies! Hurry, we need fire support! Any kind of cannon—just get artillery!”
It was as if they had rushed into an ant nest—enemies everywhere. They would defeat one group only for another to surge forward. If it weren’t for this battle-hardened army that had fought countless battles against the French, other troops might have already collapsed.
Artillery support was needed to suppress enemy attacks, to prevent enemy movements and formations, and to counter enemy artillery. Both sides engaged in this intense battle with tens of thousands of firearms.
Su Yuanchun was driven mad: “Send all my elite troops forward! We must live up to Lord Pan. And pass my order—anyone who dares to retreat will be executed without mercy!”
From the sky, the entire battlefield was covered in black smoke, white mist, sand, and shrapnel, making it impossible to see anything. Apart from the sounds of gunfire and fighting, nothing else could be heard.
Pan Dingxin finally breathed a sigh of relief: “This time, it all depends on Yuanchun!”

Although he was a clerk, it was through battles against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Nian rebels that he earned his reputation. He could see that the tide of the war was turning in their favor.
Pan Dingxin stood far away on his horse and said to his aides, “Yuan Chun truly has the talent of a general. It’s my Ding Army’s turn to take action now!”
Jieken didn’t even bother bandaging his head; he personally picked up a rifle and started shooting. “Tell the regiment commander—I need at least one infantry platoon here!”
The combat officer frantically shook the magnetophone, but no message came through as he wanted. “Damn it, battalion commander! The line is broken! Should we withdraw?”
“We are the Xiliu Battalion! Remember our motto!”
At the same time, the Second Xiliu Regiment also deployed its last reserve force. Gunfire echoed across the front lines, and communication between units was impossible. The regiment’s available troops numbered just over a hundred.
This was the Second Xiliu Regiment’s last strength. Aside from one complete infantry platoon, the rest consisted of troops who should have been protected by infantry. A combat officer gathered several signalmen, gave them rifles, and shouted at Zhang Biao, “Regiment commander, which direction should we attack?”
“Our Xiliu Battalion has only one principle: advance toward the sound of gunfire!”
“Advance toward the sound of gunfire!”
“Advance toward the sound of gunfire!”
As a branch of the Xiliu Infantry Regiment, the Second Xiliu Regiment placed even greater emphasis on honor than the main regiment. But Zhang Biao’s assault wasn’t a reckless deployment of their last forces—he had chosen the perfect opponent.
The Ding Army!
Pan Dingxin’s own troops, also his reserve force for the battlefield, carried all his hopes. He expected them to change the course of the entire war as soon as they entered combat.
But after disbanding in Shandong, these troops had not fought for a full ten years. They were essentially brand-new forces, with soldiers not even familiar with their officers. They couldn’t imagine facing such fierce battles.
They marched forward in neat formations, terrified and unsure of their target. Many officers were already shaking.
All of them had some wealth, and the thought of their loved ones crying at home filled them with fear. As for the soldiers—these conscripts from the countryside—they were utterly panicked.
A single mortar shell from Zhang Biao scattered their entire formation, after which the Black Flag Army on the high ground launched an attack on this fearful army.
The soldiers and officers of the Ding Army barely managed to form a defensive line, but an entire infantry battalion was on the verge of collapse at the sound of gunfire. Many officers and soldiers didn’t even try to fight back; they just sought a suitable obstacle, with many jumping straight into a small river by the road.
Zhang Biao, seeing their cowardice, shouted orders, “Mortars, fire at full speed! Infantry, prepare bayonets and charge across those battalions!”
Those who had been nervous before now became brave after experiencing the bombardment. They raised their rifles, ready to engage in close combat.

The five infantry battalions of Ding’s army failed to organize effectively under the firepower, and even their artillery unit played no role at all, collapsing due to attacks by the Black Flag Army’s snipers. Pan Dingxin clearly noticed the chaos in Ding’s army and shouted loudly, “Send Yuan Chun to command Ding’s army! We must crush these black thieves! We must defeat them!” He saw hope for victory—after reaching a stalemate, the Black Flag Army was suffering increasing losses, and he could wait for their total collapse. Yet he had to admire Liu Yu’s Black Flag Army. In his own eyes, the number of soldiers in the Black Flag Army fighting in the field was at most seven or eight thousand, yet they forced his nearly 30,000-strong army to retreat step by step, even though his side had built numerous fortifications. “Soldiers, if we win this battle, everyone will receive rewards equivalent to those of princes!” he shouted to boost morale. “Victory or defeat depends on this moment!” But Ding’s army showed no improvement. Although they fired a few shots at the Black Flag Army sporadically, it seemed the Black Flag Army had the upper hand, especially after a nearby Black Flag Army unit joined the battle, making their chaos even more apparent. “We need the artillery! The artillery!” “We also need cavalry to cover the flanks!” “There aren’t enough infantry—send more quickly!” But Zhang Biao didn’t have extra troops to expand his advantage. However, he knew well that he wasn’t alone. Around the same time as the Second Xiliu Regiment, several Black Flag Army units set out from Hanoi to reinforce Taiyuan. Though smaller in size—ranging from one battalion to one reinforced company—they weren’t isolated! Xiliu Battalion and the Black Flag Army—always that slogan! Advance toward the gunfire! It turned out Zhang Biao’s assessment was correct. Three and a half hours after the battle began, gunfire resounded on the east side as two infantry companies under Huang Shouzhong joined the fight, followed by another reinforced company from the north. Though only three companies, this was like another mountain collapsing for Pan Dingxin. The only good news was that Ding’s army finally organized itself and managed to launch an attack on the smaller enemy force ahead. “Brothers, Commander Ding orders: capture one enemy soldier and you’ll get 200 taels of silver as a reward—go ahead!” “Let’s go!” But Ding’s army’s offensive advanced only about a hundred steps before being stopped by a volley of shots from the flank. Pan Dingxin cried out, “Bad!” His aides were even more panicked. “It’s the enemy troops inside the city!” “Bad!” “How could this happen? The enemy inside the city has allied with those outside!” Strictly speaking, the Black Flag Army hadn’t united the forces inside and outside the city to completely isolate the Qing army; it was merely the fastest-reacting reinforced company inside the city that coordinated with Zhang Biao’s Second Xiliu Regiment. Yet on the battlefield, this nearly caused Su Yuanchun to fall off his horse. He threw himself into battle with all his strength, charging several times and finally capturing the positions of two Black Flag Army companies, driving out all the defenders. Just as he planned to pursue further, trouble arose on the flank again.

“Hurry! Send two battalions to support the Ding Army—we must prevent them from joining forces! Under no circumstances let them unite!”
On the walls of Taiyuan City, Tang Jingsong, witnessing the fierce battles outside, finally gained confidence: “Send another battalion! Hmm, add half another battalion too, but still be cautious—very cautious!”
He had no idea that his military commanders had already sidelined him. In their eyes, Tang Jingsong was a complete layman in military affairs. Without even waiting for his orders, these commanders had decided to deploy all available troops inside the city, leaving only a few to guard it, determined to meet up with the reinforcements.
“Don’t worry about losses! If we win this battle, we can easily expand to ten battalions!”
As one of the highest-ranking officers in the city, Chen Tiansong, commander of the Song Battalion, led his personal troops and the two Song battalions into battle. They swiftly routed Wang Debang’s defeated troops and then engaged in fierce combat with the Ding Army.
Wang Debang watched Su Yuanchun riding around shouting and felt a sense of relief: “Let him fight to the death against those black thieves! What a shame about my personal troops, my efforts!”
Now, Su Yuanchun’s ten infantry battalions were the main force on the battlefield and thus bore the brunt of the losses. Three of his battalions were already more than half damaged and would take months to recover.
Yet Wang Debang knew what was at stake. He understood that if Su Yuanchun failed, he too would be unable to hold out. So, gritting his teeth, he gathered over a thousand men to launch another attack. But when he looked up, he was shocked and cried out repeatedly, “What do we do? What do we do?”
Su Yuanchun spurred his warhorse fiercely, wishing he had a hundred battalions at his disposal. The battlefield was riddled with gaps, and he didn’t know which to fill first. Despite having so many troops, his forces struggled in every sector. No matter how many battalions he sent in, there was no improvement.
Several artillery shells whizzed by, killing another dozen of Su Yuanchun’s personal troops. He gritted his teeth and ordered, “The artillery unit, prepare to blow down that black flag!”
Near that black flag wasn’t Wang Debang’s troops but Su Yuanchun’s own forces. He was determined to destroy the black-flagged army, even if it meant letting his own troops be destroyed by the artillery.
“Shatter your bones now! I don’t believe you’re all made of iron!”
By now, the black-flagged army’s fighting spirit had been greatly diminished. Many units suffered heavy casualties, ran out of ammunition, and could only rely on bayonets to continue fighting. Most of their mortars had also been used up.
But after making his final decision, Su Yuanchun glanced at his troops fighting on the front lines and suddenly became inspired. He shouted, “Soldiers, it’s time to fight with our lives!”
Pan Dingxin also cursed his incompetent subordinates. But the Ding Army was his own loyal force, so he could only shout, “Tell those worthless scum of the Ding Battalion—if they don’t fight harder, I’ll cut off their heads! This isn’t a joke!”
No sooner had he spoken than the Ding Battalion began to retreat uncontrollably, retreating like a tide, even abandoning their banners and weapons. Pan Dingxin roared, “I’m going to kill people! I’m going to kill people!”

Some shrewd officers had already noticed something was wrong: “Bad news! It’s the Black Thieves! It’s the Black Thieves!”
Under the setting sun, Pan Dingxin also looked up and saw those two battle flags.
They were the bizarrely named battle flags mentioned by the French—on one side were two willow leaves with a large character for “willow,” while on the other side, above the two willow leaves, was a crow.
In the eyes of the French, these two flags symbolized disaster, destruction, and death. Pan Dingxin couldn’t help but take a deep breath.
These were the two strongest units of the Black Flag Army—Xiliu and the Crow!
He heard the cheers from the enemy across the field; they were shouting, “March toward the gunfire!”
“March toward the gunfire!”
Their previously stalled offensive suddenly became smooth, and all their troops became extremely enthusiastic.
Thousands of fresh troops from the Black Flag Army appeared before the Qing army. This force possessed the determination and confidence to sweep everything before them, while their enemies let out cries of despair.
They could barely handle even the Black Flag Army of that single infantry regiment, let alone such a large number of reinforcements.
But what terrified them even more was that name—“Liu Yu”!