Chapter 203: Breaking Through (Part 1)

One of his subordinates immediately reminded him, “My lord, Lady Huang Guilan has already committed suicide in Lang Son. Xu Yanxu and Zhao Wo are also under punishment…”
These two were guilty of failing to defend Beining, and their defeat had nothing to do with the Black Flag Army—it was purely due to their own incompetence, allowing them to be crushed by the French forces in just one strike. Yet Wang Debang said, “I finally understand their profound insight—preferring to defend against bandits rather than the French! As a commander on the front lines, I am not bound by imperial orders. I will lead my troops to rescue these two lords right away.”
In his heart, he was already 90% confident in victory. He might not be skilled enough to fight against the Black Flag Army, but when it came to political maneuvering, Wang Debang was an expert. He was 90% confident of winning at Zhenan Pass and Guilin.
…
“Ring ring ring…”
“A infantry battalion sent from Xuan Guang has arrived. Excellent!”
“An urgent telegram from Shanxi orders us to immediately arm reserve troops!”
Baosheng was already in a state of chaos. During the war, this city had only been defended by two or three hundred poorly trained troops. But as the situation improved, Baosheng became the rear base for the Black Flag Army to form and reorganize its secondary forces. Many new units and Vietnamese troops reorganized by the Black Flag Army gathered here for training.
If the Yunnan army launched a surprise attack, they might still have a 70-80% chance of winning, as Baosheng only had a few thousand poorly trained new units. But after Pan Dingxin defected, everything changed.
The Black Flag Army’s mobilization capacity exceeded even the Qing army’s expectations. In just two days, three thousand soldiers gathered in Baosheng’s fortresses. Although some of these soldiers were recruits and some were reorganized Vietnamese troops, no Qing official could imagine such a rapid mobilization. To mobilize three thousand soldiers, they would need vast amounts of money and time. Moreover, the quality of these mobilized troops also surpassed their expectations.
Though not all were equipped with breech-loading guns, even among these secondary forces, the proportion of such guns was surprisingly high. Not to mention the large number of mortars—after several victories over the French, the Black Flag Army had captured countless weapons, and some non-standard equipment was given to these secondary forces.
By the third day, several active-duty units from various places also arrived in Baosheng. These units included experienced battalions, ranging from a battalion to a company. It seemed the Black Flag Army had summoned these troops with just a few telegrams and phone calls.
Now, Baosheng had assembled tens of thousands of troops. Although their quality was not as good as the three infantry brigades Liu Yu planned to use in Guangxi, they didn’t need a sledgehammer to kill a chicken. Besides, infantry trained using modern mobilization systems were beyond the reach of these medieval-style Qing forces, even if this modern army wasn’t particularly strong.
The Yunnan army had assembled forty battalions, totaling 14,000 men, to attack Baosheng. But at the Qing army’s mobilization speed, by the time the vanguard reached Baosheng, the rear army hadn’t even arrived in Kunming.

Twenty battalions, carrying the hopes of the Qing army, along with eight thousand infantrymen, were slowly advancing forward, unaware of the situation they faced.
“It’s just a trip out of the pass for fun—nothing serious!” a group of battalion officers said laughing. “We’ll investigate, and it’ll be empty—no soldiers at all. In Baosheng, there are only two battalions of new recruits. We’ll go, loot enough, and then return!”
“That’s right! Although Baosheng has only two battalions of new recruits, it’s a wealthy area. They say there are tens of millions in silver. We can sack the city for three days and let everyone make a fortune!”
“Women, silver—everything!”
They were lost in their dreams.
“Report! We’ve captured Langshan. The Qing army fled at the sight of us—conquered without a fight!”
“We seized about eight hundred tons of supplies and ammunition in Langshan. Although there are many old firearms like muskets and flintlock guns, the usable equipment is enough to arm four infantry battalions!”
“Most of the captured supplies can be used immediately, sufficient for our front-line troops for about half a month.”
As a testament to the Qing Dynasty’s abundant resources, there was a perfect contrast between the well-equipped front-line troops and the fully stocked rear warehouses. Pan Dingxin, sitting as an observer, said with a smile, “There’s still plenty of equipment and supplies at Zhenan Pass!”
Liu Yu, however, raised another issue: “Have all our troops reached their positions?”
Sima Tai marked the locations of various combat units on the map: “All our combat units have reached their positions as per the original orders. With just a command from the commander, we can cross Zhenan Pass!”
Liu Yu then turned to Pan Dingxin and said, “I plan to use three infantry brigades, totaling 15,000 troops, to cross Zhenan Pass and take Guangxi. Six thousand troops will monitor the coastal defenses, and over 10,000 new recruits will defend Baosheng. Do you think we have a chance of winning?”
After learning the actual strength of the Black Flag Army fighting in Taiyuan, Pan Dingxin lost all desire to serve the Qing Dynasty. Now that he was involved, he was determined to give it his all. “General, with three elite brigades breaking through the pass, victory is almost certain. But while the southern pass is easy to take, the province has over seventy counties. Conquering each one one by one, with troops stationed everywhere, will be quite difficult!”
He spoke tactfully. Liu Yu only had 15,000 troops, while Guangxi had so many counties. Even if one company was stationed in each county, that would require seventy companies—almost half of his field army. Moreover, based on experience from the Taiping Rebellion, it was indeed difficult to suppress an entire county with just a small elite force. But Liu Yu smiled and said, “I’ve been in Vietnam for years and still have some strength!”
“I’ve already prepared one battalion of capable and diligent officers, totaling 450 men. They are all loyal sons of China who joined us out of righteous indignation at seeing us fight against the French. They were originally planned for Indochina, but now they’ll be perfect for the province!”
“As for the troops for defense, I’ve also made preparations. There are three independent infantry battalions, each with five companies, totaling 15 companies. Although their firearms are old and not suitable for field battles, they can defend various locations without issue!”
“If things go well, we can form more infantry battalions.”
Knowing that Liu Yu already had preparations in terms of officers and soldiers, Pan Dingxin exclaimed excitedly, “The province can definitely be conquered!”

He was confident that he still had some resources in Guangxi, which he could use to assist Liu. If they could take control of the entire province of Guangxi, the Black Flag Army would have a solid foundation, allowing them to operate with flexibility. With their combat strength, they could even advance eastward and capture Guangdong.
Liu Yuchao said to Cai Yunnan, “Order all units to rest for a day once they reach below Zhennan Pass, then launch a full-scale attack.”
“In this battle, victory is mandatory—defeat is not allowed!”