Chapter 68: The Defense Forces (Part 2)

“The general of a defeated army” – this description is not an exaggeration.
These three men were the top commanders of the Qing dynasty in Vietnam during the first phase of the Sino-French War. Others might not have performed any better than them, but certainly no worse.
They were promoted to these positions because they were Vietnamese experts among Qing officials. Yet compared to those Chinese experts during the Japanese invasion of China, they only had a superficial understanding of Vietnam.
Take Xu Yanzhu, who claimed to know Vietnam best. His rise to prominence relied on two factors: first, he was related by marriage to Lu Chuanlin, which allowed him to connect with the Qing elite and gain the favor of figures like Zhang Peilun. Second, he claimed to be well-versed in Vietnamese affairs, though in reality he had only visited Vietnam a few times. Once, on a rainy night, while taking shelter in a household, he found some documents about Vietnam. By copying them, he became the first Vietnamese expert of the Qing dynasty.
Now he continued to dwell on the issue of the Ming descendants: “Hmm… the Liu family in Hedong County must be prominent among the Ming descendants. Presumably, Commander Liu also comes from there. Let me add that nowadays, the Ming descendants are inferior to the Qing people.”
At that time, Vietnam indeed divided the Chinese into Ming descendants and Qing people. The Ming descendants were remnants of the Ming dynasty who fled to Vietnam during the transition between the Ming and Qing dynasties. They retained Ming-style clothing, and the Vietnamese government governed them separately. The Qing people referred to those like Liu Yongfu, who shaved their heads and kept queues. Xu Yanzhu was clearly confused.
Liu Yu didn’t want to get entangled in this issue: “Hair is given by one’s parents; I dare not damage it. Sir Xu, it’s better you make plans for my Black Flag Army sooner.”
Xu Yanzhu was clearly very proud. Seeing that Liu Yu and Ye Chenglin still wore Ming-style clothing, he became extremely dissatisfied. When Liu Yu rejected his good intentions, he flew into a rage: “Commander, these two still harbor loyalty to the Ming dynasty and should not be trusted.”
He added fuel to the fire: “Even Li Yangcai, though a criminal deserving execution along with his entire family, still remembers the kindness of the Qing dynasty and the custom of shaving heads in Vietnam.”
He was referring to an old incident: when Li Yangcai entered Vietnam, he did not mistreat captured Vietnamese soldiers but simply shaved their heads and released them, showing his intention to defend Vietnam for the Qing dynasty. Later, during the Sino-French War, the troops from Yunnan and Guangxi also forced the Vietnamese to shave their heads.
Huang Guilan shared the same mindset: “Yuanting, this is your fault. Why didn’t you persuade them properly…”
He glared at Liu Yu: “If you’re not completely loyal to our Qing dynasty, you’ll suffer consequences later.”
Liu Yu had prepared to remain low-key when entering the camp, but hearing this, he became furious. Yet he held back and said, “I’ve learned my lesson.”
Huang Guilan then glanced at Ye Chenglin beside Liu Yu: “Who is this?”
Liu Yongfu quickly intervened to defuse the situation: “This is Ye Chenglin, the commander of the Crow Camp.”
Xu Yanzhu immediately slandered him: “This Ye Chenglin is from Dongli in Qinzhou; he’s not one of the Ming descendants.”
Zhao Wo promptly retorted, “Such people are truly forgetful of their ancestors.”

Ye Chenglin’s Ming dynasty attire became their best target for attack. Huang Guilan, on the other hand, was even more domineering: “Since you are a Qing person and not a remnant of the former Ming dynasty, why do you forget your ancestors and disregard the kindness and grace of our Great Qing?”
“Although you come from humble origins, your ancestors for generations have benefited from the grace of our Great Qing. Yet today you imitate the clothing and customs of barbarians—your intentions are clearly malicious.” Huang Guilan’s words hid a murderous intent: “I ask you, Commander, shall you keep your hair or your head?”
More than two hundred years later, the same question was posed by a Han Chinese commander. Liu Yu felt a chill in his heart. He gave Ye Chenglin a subtle signal, but Ye Chenglin was surprisingly firm: “If Commander Liu wants me to keep my head, I’ll keep it. If he wants me to keep my hair, I’ll keep it.”
Huang Guilan immediately shouted, “Commander Liu, give me an answer—keep your hair or lose it!”
As expected, words failed to bridge their differences, and Liu Yu retorted right away, “This matter needs careful consideration.”
Xu Yanxu, however, lacked the magnanimity of a prime minister. He simply said two words: “Execute him.”
Hearing this, the officers of the Black Flag Army were furious, but Huang Guilan remained relatively calm.
He knew this was Vietnamese territory, not comparable to within Zhennan Pass. These rebel remnants in exile abroad always operated with little oversight—neither the southern regions nor the Great Qing could control them. “Commander Liu, I give you half a month. After that, give me an answer.”
Zhao Wo also wanted to utilize Liu Yongfu’s military force: “Commander Liu, perhaps you can atone for your crimes by showing merit in the campaign against Lu Zhiping.”
He added, “Commander Liu, Commander Ye, this campaign against Lu Zhiping is carried out under the orders of Commander Huang, following the instructions of Lord Zhang. If you succeed, if you desire blue-plumed merit badges, they will be given to you. If you want titles such as named guerrilla commander or deputy general, those can also be granted.”
Liu Yongfu immediately thanked behalf of the Black Flag Army. Merit badges and named official titles were indeed very attractive to them.
Liu Yu, however, didn’t take it seriously. After Huang Guilan and Zhao Wo said some words of encouragement, Huang Guilan clapped his hands and said, “Stay and have a quick meal.”
This meal was extremely luxurious. Whether in his past life or this one, Liu Yu had never seen such an extravagant feast, especially in Vietnam at the end of the 19th century.
In front of him was a combined eight-immortals table, already set with over forty dishes. Many of these dishes were something Liu Yu had only heard of before, and he only picked at them a little.
Dozens of quite beautiful Vietnamese young women served at the meal, but by Liu Yu’s standards, they didn’t seem particularly beautiful.
Huang Guilan was especially exaggerated. Without the authority he had in the central army, he surrounded himself with six Vietnamese women, his language becoming vulgar: “Commander Liu, have you ever enjoyed such pleasures in Shanxi?”
“Do you want some women here today to satisfy your desires and broaden your horizons?”
He seemed quite skilled at drinking wine. Looking at Xu Yanxu and Zhao Wo, they each had a Vietnamese woman in their arms, while the officers of the Black Flag Army remained more restrained.
After drinking a few sips of wine, Huang Guilan’s tongue grew even more loose: “This southern land is a barbarian region, not as prosperous as the Great Qing. But at least this is decent. Look at our two provincial officials—they’re also experts in such matters.”

The Qing Dynasty had strict regulations governing officials’ prostitution. Although there were always ways to circumvent these rules—such as keeping concubines in Beijing—now that they were abroad, all such regulations meant nothing. Thus, this simple meal turned into a drunken revelry. Two officials in their sixties behaved recklessly, and Zhao Wo even joked, “This isn’t anything for me. Gentlemen, have you heard? Cui Ting has taken another concubine and even had a son with her.” Zhao Wo held no respect for Feng Zicai and went out of his way to attack him: “Is this the fifth or sixth concubine? I heard he’s relapsed in his old habits from Zhenjiang—he even has trouble walking, yet he still seems full of energy in this regard.” Xu Yanxu laughed heartily, “Doesn’t he get to hire others to do it? Of course a woman can cheat on her husband.” Huang Guilan retorted sarcastically, “You’re praising Feng Junmen’s exploits—aren’t you afraid they’ll reach his ears? But when I followed Lord Li Hongzhang on campaigns in Jiangnan, I knew Feng Cui Ting was reliable if he defended a position. If sent to attack, he’d suffer a crushing defeat.” Their conversations still revolved around Feng Zicai. They exchanged vulgar jokes, creating a relaxed atmosphere, but the officers of the Black Flag Army felt uneasy. They could see that the Guangxi governor was clearly in decline. A governor was merely a second-rank military position, while the most important role in Guangdong and Guangxi was that of governor-general—held by figures from the Hunan-Huai Army, whether it was the former Liu Kunyi, the current Zhang Shusheng, or others. After the fall of the Taiping Kingdom, the Hunan-Huai Army took control of local areas,suppressinging former generals from other military factions. Feng Zicai’s background was questionable—he had once joined the Tiandihui and later followed Zhang Guoliang in the Jiangnan camp, never associating with the Hunan-Huai Army, making him a target for exclusion. Last year, Feng Zicai and the Guangxi governor jointly dealt with Zhao Wo, but due to Liu Kunyi’s influence, only a light punishment was given, further emboldening them. If Feng Zicai could be removed, a vacant governor position would become available. Huang Guilan didn’t expect to rule his own territory; achieving the rank of governor was enough to satisfy him. He laughed and said, “Since Cui Ting has such energy, why not focus more on military affairs? Wasting it on these women is truly pointless.” Zhao Wo patted the woman beside him and said, “Wrong! Wrong! With everything calm now, he should enjoy himself more.” Xu Yanxu, a cunning man, glanced at Liu Yu and added, “People like Officer Liu should be busy working hard. Officer Ye, you’d better return to the Qing Dynasty soon—I’ll guarantee you a prestigious position.” “Are you from Qinzhou? How many years have you been away from home? Don’t you want to return triumphantly?” Liu Yu stood up, glanced at these three defeated generals, and drained the wine in his cup. “I’m sorry, I’m drunk! I’ll take my leave now.” With that, he turned and left, leaving only his stubborn back behind. Ye Chenglin also stood up. “I’m drunk too.” Huang Guilan’s face turned pale as he said just four words: “Death-defying fools.” When Liu Yu left the camp, it was already dark, too dark to see anything.

Looking up south, the sky was covered with dark clouds, with not a single star in sight. Thinking of the faces of Huang Guilan and the others, he gave them a four-word evaluation: “Reckless.”
Ye Chenglin followed behind and asked, “Ayu, are we going back to Shanxi?”
Liu Yu turned around and glanced back; the members of the Black Flag Army also came out. “We’re drunk too.”
Without hesitation, he said, “No! This is our last small battle.”
This must have been the last drill for the Xiliu Camp before the Sino-French War.