Chapter 142: Collision

“If ammunition runs low, he will lead his twelve regiments in a determined bayonet charge.”
“Even with sufficient support, he will still launch such an attack.”
Bo Hua let out a long sigh.
A bayonet charge by twelve or more regiments?
“I’ll provide him with reinforcements.”
General Bo Hua didn’t want to repeat the failure at Lord Wilde’s estate. In today’s battle, he had made progress—seizing the Great Buddha Temple, heavily guarded by the Black Flag Army—and so far, he had not deployed his main forces; only his vanguard and some reinforcements had engaged the Black Flag Army.
The vanguard commander’s suggestion suited his tastes. If there was anything that determined the outcome of a war, Major Bo Hua, along with the vast majority of French officers, agreed: a determined bayonet charge!
That’s right—standing shoulder to shoulder, following the commander’s orders, and fighting with fearless sacrifice to secure victory, charging at the enemy’s formations with dense regimental, battalion, or even regimental squares.
In past battles against the Black Flag Army, the French continuously refined their tactics as the fight progressed—scattered line attacks, two columns advancing together… As they improved, they never forgot the core of their fighting spirit.
In fact, the military theories of any European power at that time were far behind the times. They firmly believed that offense was the only way to win.
As time went on, the old aristocrats led the field of military science down a wrong path. Before World War I, none of them had even a glimpse of modern warfare. The Germans launched numerous large-scale dense formation attacks in 1914 and 1915, but all they achieved were endless piles of corpses.
The Russian commander-in-chief declared all military theory books to be heresies, so he hadn’t read a single one. British Marshal Kitchener, based on his experience in colonial warfare, believed that artillery had no impact on the outcome of battles. Even the Americans, across the ocean, were just as outdated. General Hugh L. Scott, the U.S. Army Chief of Staff from 1914 to 1917, said to his assistant in 1916, in a solemn tone: “I often hear young people talking about the Battle of the Marne. What is this Battle of the Marne? When did it happen? Who fought against whom?”
The French, however, went the farthest down this wrong path. In 1913, before World War I, they issued new field regulations that began with these words: “The French Army, having restored its traditions, shall henceforth know no other laws but offense.”
As for the combat principles established by these military aristocrats for the French army (similar to those of Germany and Russia at the same time), there were six points:
1. How to win? The answer is offense! Always offense! Only offense can bring victory.
2. How to attack? The answer: There’s no need to consider the enemy’s deployment or intentions. The attacker only needs to know one thing—where is the enemy? Once the enemy is spotted, an attack must be launched immediately; nothing else needs to be considered!

3. What is the key to victory? Advanced weapons or a numerical advantage? Answer: Neither. The most important thing for victory is the soldiers’ strong will and unwavering confidence in victory.
4. Which is more important, a rifle or a machine gun? The answer is the rifle, because it’s easy to carry—everyone can carry one! Machine guns, on the other hand, are bulky. Rifles are reliable while machine guns often malfunction, and their biggest drawback is wasting bullets!! So although the French army had only four machine guns per regiment at the start of World War I, many still considered them too many and often left them in the barracks during training! By the same logic, our French army doesn’t need large-caliber artillery either!
5. How to launch an attack? Answer: Form a dense formation by regiment, shoulder to shoulder! Officers lead from the front, and all soldiers should equip their rifles with bayonets and advance, pointing the bayonets at the enemy’s chests!
If they were to consider a nuclear war, after careful study, they would conclude that a shoulder-to-shoulder bayonet charge is the only effective way to win such a war.
However, even this tactic faced difficulties even against the already weakened Qing forces, let alone the Black Flag Army. While there were successful examples of French bayonet charges, there were also disastrous failures like at Wangcun in Huaidu Prefecture.
The most famous and critical bayonet charge during the Sino-French War was at Zhenan Pass, where the 141st French Regiment launched an attack with four companies—two companies targeting the Qing forces on the flanks and two companies charging from the front—against the Qing forces defending the long walls. But they were facing a well-prepared Qing army of nearly 200,000 to 300,000 men. This battle was a desperate assault.
As a result, four French officers were killed, one was wounded, 27 soldiers were killed, and 57 were wounded—89 people in total lost combat capability. These four companies lost one-fifth of their total strength, and under the overwhelming counterattack of the Qing forces, they retreated in disarray.
But after this defeat, the French finally managed to hold their ground at Zhenan Pass. They lost 258 officers and soldiers in two days (about one-tenth of their strength), while this fearless bayonet charge accounted for one-third of their losses there.
Now, facing around 1,500 to 1,600 Black Flag Army soldiers along with numerous mortars and rapid-fire rifles, they were slightly outnumbered, but their ten direct-fire artillery pieces could provide comprehensive fire support.
Moreover, the four companies were able to withdraw intact after launching a bayonet charge against the well-fortified Qing forces of 200,000 to 300,000 men—including elite troops led by Feng Zicai and Su Yuanchun. This shows that the combat effectiveness of the Qing army had declined to a rather embarrassing level. Yet it also demonstrates that, before the advent of machine guns, their mass charges supported by artillery still posed a significant threat.
Boisdeffre quickly provided maximum support to Major Béjart, who commanded the vanguard. Another French company was sent to reinforce them, bringing the vanguard to 13 infantry companies. Although they lost nearly 200 men in the initial exchange of fire, they still had over a thousand soldiers available for combat.

A platoon of infantry was pulled to the embankment for close-quarters firing, while eight more cannons advanced toward the Great Buddha Temple under the cover of the two infantry platoons. Bo Hua sent most of his ammunition to the vanguard. Orders to launch a decisive attack had reached everyone; all the soldiers remained silent. They took out their rations and devoured them greedily on the ground, knowing it might well be their last meal. Some soldiers passed on their last words to each other, while others quickly found paper and pencils to write their final letters. The atmosphere was utterly oppressive. The gunfire between the two sides ceased at that moment, and the front line seemed to calm down, except for the snipers from the Crow Camp who continued to search for targets, with people occasionally falling into the mud. Everything was ready, and the French blew the charge horn. Ye Chenglin said excitedly, “Give them a good show.” But Liu Yu wanted to keep all the enemy troops trapped in this muddy ground. Under the scorching sun, the French soldiers neatly laid down their packs, suddenly rose from the mud, and formed neat ranks. They stood straight, bayonets fixed on their rifles, aiming at the positions of the Black Flag Army. At the forefront were the officers of each company, who faced the Black Flag Army’s positions with unwavering determination. Neither mud nor rain could hide their refined demeanor. Shoulder to shoulder, they stared at the Black Flag Army with sharp eyes. Then, urged by their officers, the indigenous infantry also began to rise. The officers shouted orders, just as Napoleon’s officers had done to the soldiers of the Old Guard: “Straighten your backs—it’s just bullets.” The neat formations shone brightly in the sunlight. At the same time, ten cannons fired simultaneously, setting fires on the Black Flag Army’s positions, with soldiers falling dead from bullets from all sides. The charge horn sounded, accompanied by military music. “Forward!” The French advanced in neat formations, firing volley after volley using linear tactics, ignoring the fact that they had little ammunition left. There was only a hundred meters of open space ahead of them. The three infantry battalions of the Black Flag Army formed a crossfire. Almost as soon as they rose, they opened fire simultaneously. Bullets from all directions quickly knocked down many soldiers, and shells tore huge holes through their neat formations. But Colonel Beige seemed unfazed. He simply shouted orders through the smoke from the exploding shells: “Close ranks!” The entire formation seemed to regain its original shape. Despite many casualties, the French continued to advance in neat steps. Military music played, and guns roared. With such an easy target, the Black Flag Army certainly wouldn’t let it slip away, especially their rapid-fire guns, which fired bullets like there was no end to them, with flames from the barrels seemingly never stopping. Round after round, the entire Crow Camp formed a wall of fire. Any area caught in this firestorm left no survivors. The French continued to advance in neat formation, their ranks breaking through again. Then Major Beige shouted loudly, “Close ranks!”

It seemed they hadn’t suffered any casualties; only the ranks of the indigenous infantry appeared quite disorganized. However, several French officers stood behind them with pistols, ready to execute anyone who dared retreat. The Crow Battalion was clearly the focus of French artillery fire, with their shells raining down on Liu Yu’s positions, causing heavy casualties. But the French forces’ main focus was on the front battalion. After more than six hours of fighting, the front battalion was exhausted and had even lost the Great Buddha Temple. Yet Deng Shichang and Huang Shouzhong continued to urge their soldiers to fight bravely. The French knew well that once they broke through the front battalion’s defenses, they could penetrate Danfeng Village and create an opening for their main forces. The orderly ranks of the enemy were getting closer, and their precise and intense gunfire caused many soldiers in the front battalion to fall. But the various rifles of the front battalion were no weaklings either: “Fire hard!” Standing in the flooded trench, under the scorching sun with his lower body completely submerged in water, Deng Shichang could clearly see the determination on the faces of the enemy infantry and their gleaming bayonets: “Fire!” In just a short moment, the French forces had lost two hundred men to the crossfire of the Black Flag Army, roughly equal to their casualties over several hours of fighting. But soon, bad news came from the soldiers in the front battalion: “Commander! We’re running out of ammunition.” “I have no bullets left!” “The mortar shells are exhausted.” Among all the battalions, the front battalion had the most resources, but their own ammunition wasn’t enough to sustain such a fierce battle. Over six hours of fighting, each rifle had fired over thirty rounds. With such intense gunfire, not only the front battalion but even the Crow Battalion itself was suffering heavy losses. “Our company’s ammunition is gone!” Bad news came from all sides. Without the firepower suppression of the two front battalions, the French forces became frenzied and rushed toward them. Commander Deng removed the lid from a grenade and said to his soldiers, “Use grenades!” Grenades rained down, but even the initial intense crossfire hadn’t broken the French forces, let alone these grenades. Amidst the explosions, the French soldiers endured the flying shrapnel bravely. Some brave soldiers even threw the grenades back at the enemy, causing heavy casualties among them. The French artillery fire never ceased, and it was precisely this suppression that greatly weakened the Black Flag Army, allowing the French to reach the front battalion’s positions. They were getting closer and closer—only a dozen meters apart. What separated them was the floodwater, up to chest height. Both the front battalion and the French forces had almost run out of ammunition. Commander Deng immediately jumped out of the trench. Behind him were countless fearless figures wearing grass-green uniforms and armed with various weapons—Mauser and Remington rifles with bayonets, as well as spears, iron halberds, swords, and darts. Major Beige was the first to jump into the chest-deep water; his red trousers disappeared into the muddy yellow water, leaving only his blue uniform visible. “Come closer to me!”

The Black Flag Army’s mortars had stopped firing out of fear of accidentally hitting their own troops, and Captain Deng also rushed into the water up to his chest. Soldiers from both sides rushed into the water in large numbers, and even the indigenous soldiers were kicked into the mud by French officers. The French soldiers showed no hesitation; they charged forward shouting, convinced that they would pierce the Danfeng forces with their bayonets. In fact, they were extremely skilled in close combat. The Japanese army’s tradition of favoring hand-to-hand battles originated from the French army, and their initial infantry manuals were also translated from French. They considered themselves the best in bayonet combat, with a glorious tradition in close combat, and believed they were invincible. Despite the water up to his chest, Captain Wu rushed forward, even throwing his personal guards aside, and shouted, “The vanguard shall always be at the forefront!” Two streams of people in different colors collided immediately in the muddy water.