Chapter 161: French Reinforcements

“Lian Jincheng?”
At the mention of this name, Liu Yu’s eyelids twitched. “Has he returned?”
Ruan Menglian hesitated before asking, “Who is he?”
All the female officials raised their heads, waiting for Liu Yu to give them an answer.
No such person had appeared in previous records. Liu Yu said softly, “Back when our Xiliu Camp had only four infantry battalions, I wanted to appoint him as their commander, but he didn’t return…”
……
Meanwhile, Liu Yongfu was also in conversation with Tang Jingsong. “What? You want me to go to Thanh Hóa?”
“That’s right. It’s the unanimous decision of the council. We also hope to get Brother Yuanting’s approval. Right now, China and Vietnam together have 3,800 troops, but they lack a force capable of fighting tough battles, let alone someone to lead them. For Brother Liu, establishing a base there would be a truly fulfilling experience.”
Tang Jingsong, acting on Liu Yu’s behalf, also put forward Liu Yu’s conditions: “When going to China and Vietnam, Brother Liu can bring along two regiments, four infantry battalions, and all attached troops. Additionally, after arriving there, he can expand by two more infantry battalions. Commander Liu has already ordered people to recruit new soldiers in China and Vietnam, so Brother Liu only needs to bring the officers. All weapons for these two battalions can be brought from Bắc Kỳ.”
Liu Yongfu had to admit that Liu Yu’s conditions were very favorable, especially the opportunity to establish a base, which was highly tempting to him.
In middle age, one often lacks drive and sharpness. He knew he was in a situation where he had to keep moving forward or fall back. Although he still had four infantry battalions, his position within the Black Flag Army had weakened significantly.
The reason was simple: the infantry units under Xiliu Camp had expanded over the past year from three infantry battalions—Wuya, Xiliu, and Hanhai—to eleven battalions, with three infantry regiments as the core. This didn’t even include Shen Sheng’s independent battalion or his forces in China and Vietnam, let alone the tens of thousands of local armed forces and allied troops.
Liu Yongfu’s own troops had also grown to over 2,000 men, but they still only had four infantry battalions, often having to rely on the two infantry battalions under Tang Jingsong to make up the number.
Yet just at the end of last month, Tang Jingsong took back his two infantry battalions to form a single regiment, further reducing Liu Yongfu’s influence in the Black Flag Army.
Now was a great opportunity for him. Even if he couldn’t make progress in China and Vietnam, he could gain control of an entire brigade. He simply looked up and asked Tang Jingsong, “But in Trung Kỳ, there’s still Liu Yinguang with nearly 4,000 men. He’s Liu Yu’s direct subordinate—whose orders will they follow?”
Tang Jingsong shook his head. “Does Brother Liu not have even this much confidence? Last year, Liu Yinguang was just a company commander in Xiliu Camp. How can he take on such a heavy responsibility? He’s done okay in China and Vietnam, but not excellently.”
This indeed hit a sore spot for Liu Yinguang. Although he was a competent company commander, battalion commander, and even regiment commander, he wasn’t someone who could handle things independently. During his time in Trung Kỳ, his strength lay in military affairs, but his weakness in managing overall operations became evident.

If Liu Yongfu had been sent instead, perhaps the entire Central Cochin China could have been under his control by now. But after some thought, Liu Yongfu finally agreed to Liu Yu’s conditions: “Alright! I can go to Central Cochin China, but there are conditions—I can’t just take my own troops there.” “I need full sets of weapons and supplies for three battalions. In addition to two infantry regiments of six battalions each, I also want to form a guard battalion.” “That’s no problem! I can approve it on behalf of the council.” Tang Jingsong also breathed a sigh of relief, while Liu Yongfu felt as if a dragon had entered the sea—once he arrived in Central Cochin China, he would be a commander in charge, no longer a subordinate but rather in a position of authority. Although some people in Central Cochin China were unfamiliar with the area, with seven full battalions heading south, he could easily suppress the relatively weaker Liu Yinggong. Together, the two forces numbered no less than eight thousand men—a large army he had never commanded before. It was these thoughts that filled Liu Yongfu with enthusiasm: “Tell Liu Yu that as soon as my troops are fully equipped, I can set out for the south at any time. Also… I’ve assigned Lian Jincheng as the commander of the guard battalion.” … “Lian Jincheng? Commander of the guard battalion?” Sima Tai had always had a moderate conflict with Lian Jincheng: “This guy has really made it—he even managed to get preferred over Liu Yongfu.” If he had simply left Haiyang City, it was still within their tolerance; causing trouble at the mint was also common. But staying in Hong Kong without returning this time really angered them. “Does he really think our Xiliu Battalion is a hotel? Coming and going as he pleases!” Jing Shi Yi, who rarely agreed with him, said, “I think this man shouldn’t be used.” These core officers of the Xiliu Battalion sat together discussing this appointment, while Sima Tai continued to complain angrily: “He spent 17,000 yuan more in Hong Kong this time and can’t explain where it went. What do you think this is?” Liu Suiyun also frowned and said, “If he had returned to Hong Kong on time, he would probably be one of us today.” He was indeed right. Back when the Xiliu Battalion had only four infantry battalions, he was already appointed as an infantry battalion commander—a sign of great trust and an example of Liu Yu’s willingness to use talent in unconventional ways. Yet he stayed in Hong Kong for over half a year, not returning until after the decisive victory in the Shanxi campaign. Sima Tai said unhappily, “Mr. Deng wrote to ask the commander to assign him a position. That shouldn’t have been a problem—after all, Mr. Deng recently delivered 15 tons of picric acid to us. We owe him a favor, and a vacancy as a company commander isn’t a big deal. But instead, he went to Liu Yongfu.” Liu Suiyun sneered, “So what if he went to Liu Yongfu? Do you know what the commander thinks of him? He’s not someone you can rely on in tough times.” “Not trustworthy, not trustworthy!” Sima Tai grabbed his teacup and drank. “Liu Yongfu really… He can use anyone else, but not Lian Jincheng.” Just then, the door opened, and a female official stepped out, handing a document to Liu Suiyun: “This is an order issued by Commander Liu!”

“Damn… that birdman really succeeded!” Sima Tai glanced at the order and said irritably, “Anyway, it’s Liu Er who suffers, not us!”
“Liu Er actually got an advantage this time,” Cai Yunnan spoke up for once, “With seven infantry battalions plus the archers, he has almost ten thousand men.”
Of course, no one really cared much about this number. Even if it was close to ten thousand, what did that matter? The troops from Beiqi were battle-tested and far superior in quality to those from Zhongqi.
But Liu Suiyun was concerned about something else: “Hmm! Tang Jingsong also gained an advantage. His two small battalions will be expanded into an infantry regiment of 1,200 men, giving him more weight in the council.”
Sima Tai was also frustrated by this. In terms of seniority, he was older than Ye Chenglin, but it was Ye Chenglin who entered the council. As compensation, however, he became the first commander of an infantry brigade under the Xiliu Camp system.
But these infantry brigades currently resembled temporary wartime formations. Both he and Ye Chenglin personally served as regiment commanders. “Sigh… Although Liu Yongfu isn’t that powerful, who do you think he’ll push into the council?”
According to the prior agreement, Liu Yu and Liu Yongfu could each recommend one person for the council. Liu Yu recommended Ye Chenglin and added Tang Jingsong as a backup, while Liu Yongfu’s candidate hadn’t been finalized yet.
But since he intended to head south to Central Vietnam, he would inevitably lose his voice in the highest council. Given this, he needed a representative in the council.
Liu Suiyun then lowered his voice and shared a rumor: “I heard Huang Shouzhong has agreed to fully join us.”
“Hm?” Everyone was curious about this.
It should be noted that although the former camp system had always been friendly with their side, that didn’t mean they belonged to Xiliu Camp. After years of gradual integration, both sides were now finalizing the process of bringing them under control.
“Don’t we already have three infantry regiments?” Liu Suiyun had some insider information: “The commander plans to form four infantry brigades, each capable of operating independently. Liu Yongfu will lead one, Sima another, and the remaining spot might go to Old Ye…”
“The last spot was originally intended for Huang Shouzhong. If he hands over two battalions to us, we can give him six. But Huang Shouzhong is quite stubborn; he still values his own territory. He talked to our commander and said he’s only willing to be a regiment commander.”
“As long as he stays as regiment commander, he’s willing to hand over his troops,” Liu Suiyun said softly. “The commander will provide him with an additional infantry battalion and reorganize the three battalions into four companies, making the entire regiment around 1,800 men with full equipment.”
“Brilliant!” Sima Tai said, “That Huang really is clever.”
Although Xiliu Camp now had over a dozen direct-controlled infantry battalions, as the war progressed, there were few infantry units as well-equipped as the Xiliu Infantry Regiment. Infantry battalions were generally structured with three companies, and some regiments had fewer than 1,200 men. Huang Shouzhong’s plan aimed to make his regiment the most well-equipped in the entire Heiqi Army system.

“That’s unlikely!” Jing Shi Yi thought for a moment before saying, “Only Sima’s Xiliu Infantry Regiment in the entire army has such a large scale.”
“Mm,” Liu Suiyun nodded. “How can his infantry regiment compare to Xiliu Infantry Regiment? It can’t even compare to Lao Ye’s.”
As they were discussing such trivial matters, they heard someone running over with hurried footsteps: “Urgent military news! Urgent military news!”
“What’s going on?” Liu Suiyun immediately straightened his clothes and went forward with a few officers. “What happened?”
“The French reinforcements have arrived at the coastal defenses.”
“After so many deaths, they still come?” Liu Suiyun asked anxiously. “How many have arrived?”
“Four infantry battalions.”
Liu Suiyun was surprised. “Just that many?”