Chapter 114: Yielding the Position

The rain stopped, and the clouds dispersed.
Liu Yu wrapped his arms around Sister Teresa in his embrace, quietly savoring the tender moment.
Sister Teresa smiled sweetly and beautifully. “I never expected you to come here. I thought I’d have to search for you in Shanxi.”
Although Shanxi wasn’t far from Hanoi, they could only spend time together once every month or two. “My husband is so kind.”
Liu Yu kept his eyes closed, feeling her gentle scent. After a while, he replied, “Send someone to Shanxi tomorrow to fetch thirty French rifles. I’ve prepared 1,500 rounds of ammunition for you.”
Sister Teresa lay quietly in Liu Yu’s arms. Hearing this, she turned to look at him. “Hm?”
Liu Yu smiled and touched her cheek. “Everyone is expanding their forces; you need to do the same. Do you have enough people?”
“Enough!” There were only fifty warriors from the Flower Garden Sect’s core group in Hanoi. It wasn’t due to a lack of fervent and loyal believers, but rather a severe shortage of weapons—only over forty rifles and a few revolvers. “My husband is so kind!”
She licked his lips. “I like such a good husband.”
Liu Yu enjoyed this rare moment of tenderness. “Mm, I’ve prepared 300 grenades for your sect, 10 small explosive packs, and one 60mm mortar.”
Sister Teresa didn’t understand Liu Yu’s intentions. Her eyes were filled with curiosity. Liu Yu smiled. “You’re my wife. If I don’t treat you well, who will?”
He continued, “I’ve planned to expand Shen Sheng’s independent company into a small battalion, with a strength of no more than 300 men. I’ll leave its management to you.”
Sister Teresa asked, “How much ammunition will be provided for Shen Sheng?”
On the battlefield in Hanoi, the Thin Willow Camp had two separate forces: Sister Teresa’s Flower Garden Sect troops and Shen Sheng’s independent company. Theoretically, Shen Sheng had more troops, but the foundation had been laid by the Flower Garden Sect, and they relied on its support wherever they went. The command structure remained unclear.
Now, Liu Yu was handing over Shen Sheng’s troops to Sister Teresa’s command, so she had to ask where the necessary weapons and equipment would come from.
“Both of your groups have sufficient funds now, so expansion isn’t a problem. But as for weapons… Zi Ning, since you’re my wife, you’ll get more. For Shen Sheng, I’ll only provide 16 officers with sidearms, plus 10 rifles and two mortars. The rest will have to rely on their own efforts.”
Sister Teresa found it hard to understand Liu Yu’s arrangement. Shen Sheng’s independent company was a new unit formed from search platoons, with just over a hundred men and a shortage of rifles. Even if they expanded further, they could fill the staffing gap, but the weapon shortage would remain severe.
But upon reflection, she liked Liu Yu’s favoritism. “With so many firearms now, our Flower Garden Sect warriors can be expanded to over a hundred.”
Liu Yu gave her another piece of advice: “If Shen Sheng wants guns, he’ll have to find a way in Hanoi.”

A considerable amount of weapons was given to the Hua Jian Sect and Shen Sheng, and even resources from the inventory were reallocated to strengthen these two forces. If the French forces in Hanoi were compared to a wild ox, this ox would desperately exert pressure on Shanxi upstream, while these two guerrilla forces downstream could precisely lead the ox away—should the ox try to force its way through, it would end up in trouble. This was the second front he had set up.
……
August 1883. June 10th.
Hanoi.
After the war, this city gradually regained its vitality. The French brought in ship after ship of soldiers and took away ship after ship of corpses. Now, the French had 1,800 regular troops in the city, more than half of whom were true Frenchmen, with the rest being indigenous infantry. The Catholic militia was also reorganized and equipped with about a hundred rifles. The French frantically recruited indigenous soldiers in the city, offering them much better conditions than the Black Flag Army—free food and lodging, along with two sets of uniforms. As a result, many of the indigenous infantry units could be quickly reformed even if completely destroyed. Large quantities of Remington rifles were brought in from Hong Kong. These breech-loading rifles cost only eight dollars each, making them an affordable choice and the preferred equipment for the indigenous infantry. After just four or five days of hasty training, the French armed these soldiers to stand guard. It was a last resort—since the Black Flag Army hadn’t gone far, staying only a dozen miles away in Huaidfu, they would occasionally send dozens of soldiers to harass Hanoi, with one incident even seeing an entire battalion of the Black Flag Army wipe out a squad of French Marines. Under such circumstances, the French had no choice but to rely on these puppet troops as cannon fodder. It was said that many Vietnamese were also recruited as indigenous infantry in Haiphong and Nanning, with very low requirements for their qualifications. Even so, only Catholics were willing to serve under a new military banner. What was even more troublesome was the coalition of the Hua Jian Sect and Shen Sheng, who intercepted all ships passing along the Red River, demanding protection fees. Otherwise, even French warships would be attacked. Some merchant ships transporting supplies for the French were forced to pay these fees. They spared no effort in harassing Hanoi, even deploying their entire forces for night attacks on the indigenous infantry units. The newly formed indigenous infantry were not very combat-effective, having already lost many rifles and ammunition, while the French lacked the courage to pursue them—remembering clearly the failure at Zhiqiao. Now, the French in Hanoi had only one goal: to endure these difficult times until reinforcements arrived from home and the indigenous infantry could be trained properly, after which they could launch a decisive attack on Shanxi City. Even if they couldn’t train good indigenous infantry in Hanoi, they had enough time to do so in Haiphong and Nanning, so they remained highly optimistic about winning the war. What they didn’t know was that in Shanxi City upstream along the Red River, the Black Flag Army shared exactly the same thoughts. In the battle of Hanoi, the Black Flag Army’s losses were unprecedented. Liu Yongfu even doubted his calculations: “A thousand people? We lost nearly a thousand?”

The numbers were quite clear: in the Battle of the Paper Bridge, the Black Flag Army’s various battalions suffered 240 casualties, while the Xiliu Battalion lost 140, totaling 380. In the subsequent siege of Hanoi, the Xiliu Battalion bore the brunt of the losses, with 320 casualties, while the Black Flag Army’s battalions suffered 260 casualties each, bringing the total casualties for the entire campaign to 960—nearly reaching the 1,000 mark.

Liu Yongfu had never seen such high casualty figures. They had only fought a few battles against the French, and it was said that even before their reinforcements arrived in Tonkin, the losses were already so severe that he found it hard to accept.

Liu Yu took over the conversation: “The losses are truly enormous. It’s a shame we didn’t capture Hanoi…”

With that, everyone’s attention shifted to him: “Commander Liu, how much of the ammunition I mentioned can we use?”

“Commander Liu, at least take care of our Right Battalion! Although our Yang Battalion’s officer died in action, things can’t just stop there.”

“Our Front Battalion and the Xiliu Battalion have always been close allies—please provide some support.”

Liu Yu knew he couldn’t avoid this question. Shaking his head, he said, “I wanted to recruit another battalion commander, but we still haven’t filled the position.”

“Enough! Stop being modest!” Liu Yongfu said bluntly. “I know that battalion commander—you mean Lian Jincheng, right? He refuses to return from Hong Kong. Just pick another officer.”

There were many concerns. Liu Suiyun’s unit had fired only a few shots during the Hanoi siege and remained the best-preserved force. Yet Liu Yu couldn’t deploy them in subsequent battles and still had to supply them with weapons.

This independent battalion unit had taken two 82mm mortars, six 60mm mortars, along with plenty of ammunition and mules. But Liu Yu had no choice but to do this.

Their next mission was crucial to the outcome of the war.

The three battalions that suffered the heaviest losses totaled 460 casualties. New recruits had now joined and were being trained, and the fourth battalion commander for the Xiliu Battalion could also be appointed. All infantry companies were ready for combat.

However, the chosen battalion commander ran into problems. Liu Yu had left this position to Lian Jincheng, but he stayed in Hong Kong under the pretext of purchasing supplies. Several attempts to urge him to return were unsuccessful. A few days ago, Lian Jincheng even sent a letter saying there were arms for sale in Hong Kong and that he needed to stay for several more months. What the letter didn’t mention—something Liu Qing pointed out—was that Lian Jincheng still owed over 30,000 francs after completing those purchases.

That was a significant amount of money. After arriving in Hong Kong, Lian Jincheng converted it into dollars, enough to live comfortably there for a long time—no wonder he was reluctant to leave.

This angered Liu Yu, and even Deng Cunyu blamed Lian Jincheng. But Liu Yu thought, “This man is unfit for duty!”

Not only had he backed out under the siege of Haiyang City, but he had also abandoned his task at the mint before completing it. Thinking of all this, despite his anger, Liu Yu found it difficult to identify a suitable battalion commander.

There are too many people who could serve as battalion commanders, but each has some shortcomings. Moreover, he still needs to form a fifth battalion; the personnel and weapons can be ready immediately, but there is a severe shortage of officers. Each battalion also has its own problems—they have recruited a large number of new recruits, who, unlike the veterans around forty years old in the past, are now mostly young people in their twenties. The losses suffered in the Battle of Hanoi have been made up for, and each battalion plans to expand its strength to over a hundred men. Huang Shouzhong even renamed his infantry units as the Infantry Companies of the Xiliu Battalion. Subsequently, all the infantry battalions were organized exactly according to the structure of the Xiliu Battalion’s infantry units, leaving Liu Yongfu with no choice. They were satisfied with what they captured in Hanoi—after all, the number of rifles they obtained was only slightly less than that of the Xiliu Infantry Regiment. The rifles captured by the Xiliu Infantry Regiment were enough to arm two large infantry battalions of three companies each, totaling nearly five hundred rifles. But the problem was that they didn’t have the same resources as the Xiliu Infantry Regiment, especially since Liu Yongfu had established another infantry battalion, leaving a severe shortage of rifles. This new battalion was formed based on Lian Mei’s two elite squads and was considered a combat-effective force. However, all expansions lacked weapons; in the past, they could only make do with some old-fashioned rifles. But in Hanoi, Liu Yu played all his cards, showing these Black Flag Army troops that it wasn’t necessary to rely on rifles to arm troops: “Mortars, grenades, and explosive packs are even more effective than rifles!” Each piece of equipment could replace rifles and significantly enhance a troop’s combat effectiveness. They quickly realized that the Shanxi armory of the Xiliu Battalion had the capacity to produce such equipment, so they demanded purchases using silver and Black Flag currency, even offering amounts far exceeding the armory’s production capacity. Liu Yu had avoided this for a few days, but now he couldn’t hide any longer and said directly, “Apart from Shen Sheng’s battalion having to fend for itself, I plan to form another battalion in a few days, aiming to complete it by July.” Liu Yongfu calculated for him: “That’s five battalions? Not including Liu Suiyun’s detachment and Shen Sheng’s independent battalion.” Currently, excluding Liu Yu and adding Lian Mei’s new battalion, the Black Flag Army also has exactly five battalions. But Huang Shouzhong’s original battalion will soon split into two, and if Shen Sheng’s independent battalion is added, the entire Black Flag Army will have twelve battalions. Liu Yu knew Liu Yongfu was sensitive to this: “The power of the civilian forces is too strong, and there are too many reinforcements. Even at the cost of everything, we can only have these five battalions. The independent battalions are of inferior combat strength and can’t compare to the older battalions.” Liu Yongfu sighed slightly. He could see that although Liu Yu was the second-in-command in the Black Flag Army, he could make decisions on many issues on his own. Now the east wind had overtaken the west wind, but he himself seemed quite pleased: “It seems I should start leading the troops too.” He glanced at Wu Fengdian and then at Tang Jingsong: “Commander Liu, I’m handing over the Right Battalion left by Yang Zhenen to you. Please don’t treat them poorly.” Wu Fengdian had wanted Yang Zhenen’s Right Battalion several times, but Liu Yongfu had never agreed.

Now he finally made up his mind: “You want to form infantry regiments—I think that’s great! Our Black Flag Army can form some troops, and I, Liu Yongfu, can serve as an infantry regiment commander.” Yet as he said these words, Liu Yongfu felt as if a heavy stone had been lifted from his heart: “That means we have twelve battalions, and with additional troops, we can form about five regiments. I, Liu Er, can then act as a mere figurehead.” His words carried an undertone of willingness to step down, but someone like him still had to plan his own future: “You’ll have to cover part of the equipment for those five regiments!” “Your Black Flag Army has two regiments, Jin Chen has one, and I’ll lead two regiments myself.” He calculated everything meticulously; as the supreme commander of the Black Flag Army, he actually needed more strength. Two infantry regiments, six infantry battalions—at least three thousand loyal troops—this was something he had dreamed of but never achieved before. Liu Yu was also surprised; he didn’t expect Liu Yongfu to have such ambition. But Wu Fengdian felt quite aggrieved. With Liu Yongfu’s decision, Liu Yu gained real benefits, while he, as the third-in-command of the Black Flag Army, suffered greatly. Originally, his strength was just enough to lead one regiment—his own Left Battalion, Yang Zhenen’s Right Battalion, and Liu Chengliang’s Rear Battalion. But now that Liu Yongfu claimed to also be an infantry regiment commander, he was still reduced to being a battalion commander. As for the three additional infantry battalions Liu Yongfu planned to form, they had originally been Wu Fengdian’s share, but now Liu Yongfu intended to lead them himself. Looking up, he saw Tang Jingsong smiling, realizing it must have been him who suggested this to Liu Yongfu. Feeling annoyed, he bowed to Liu Yongfu and said, “General, as the commander-in-chief of the entire army, how can you be so reckless?” Tang Jingsong replied, “Yao and Shun yielded power rather than passing it on to their sons—this was the virtue of ancient times! If General Liu yields to those more worthy today, he will surely earn eternal fame.” Huang Shouzhong also disagreed. Although he had always been on good terms with the Xiliu Battalion, this situation made him the true third-in-command of the Black Flag Army, with less power than Liu Yu or Liu Yongfu. His claim to authority within the Black Flag Army was based on having greater strength than the others, yet now he hadn’t gained anything except the nominal title of an infantry regiment commander, with no troops for the third infantry battalion either. He said, “This must not happen. Although Commander Liu is wise and decisive, he still lacks experience.” He glared resentfully at Tang Jingsong, who had always supported innovative approaches, but who unexpectedly suggested such a plan to Liu Yongfu at a critical moment. Tang Jingsong, however, was well accustomed to the intrigues in the court. He simply gave Liu Yongfu a deliberate look. Liu Yongfu wasn’t a bold gentleman; he valued his own interests more. He glanced at Liu Yu, who remained frozen in place, reflecting on how everyone was scheming for themselves. He remembered Tang Jingsong’s advice to him: “With six battalions of personal troops, everything will be possible.” His original plan was to establish four battalions under his command, but he never intended to train them into elite troops like those of the Xiliu Battalion. Yet Tang Jingsong’s words completely enlightened him.

Currently, the position of leader of the Black Flag Army is a huge burden, to the point where Liu Yongfu cannot even control the troops. Even his closest allies, Liu Chengliang and Wu Fengdian, show tendencies to rebel, while Liu Yu and Huang Shouzhong act completely independently. Yet, although he appears to yield power, he actually retains control over a powerful force. He turned to Liu Yu and asked, “I have spent over twenty years founding the Black Flag Army with great effort. Now I want to pass on this black flag to you. Do you dare to take it?” Huang Shouzhong, anxious, blocked Liu Yu’s view and shouted, “General, this is too absurd!” Wu Fengdian also suggested, “Perhaps we should make Liu the leader your adopted son first to gain experience.” But his words were cut off. Liu Yu said firmly, “Who opposes me from carrying forward the Black Flag?”