Chapter 14: United We Stand! Forward!

Self-defense and counterattack—Liu Yu had already set the tone for this battle. Yet everyone was stunned by his words.

Haiyang! It was a large city with tens of thousands of inhabitants, equipped with sturdy city walls and fortifications. On its ramparts stood numerous bronze and cast-iron cannons imported from abroad, and inside the city, there were several thousand defenders.

If defeating ten thousand government troops seemed like a fantasy, then capturing Haiyang was nothing short of an impossible dream!

That was Haiyang! The capital of Haiyang Province, the seat of the governor!

It was impossible!

Si Ma Tai stepped forward, stretched out his left hand, and cleared his throat slightly: “I am willing to serve you!”

Like a divine voice, Liu Yu made his intentions clear at that moment. He firmly grasped Si Ma Tai’s hands: “I am willing to share hardships and joys with you!”

“Share hardships!” Si Ma Tai’s eyes were free of any impurity. “Share joys!”

He had deliberately chosen Si Ma Tai as a breakthrough point, but at this moment, Liu Yu repeated his promise: “Share joys!”

Si Ma Tai might be moved by these lofty titles, but what about the others?

His sharp gaze began to shift as he waited for their decisions.

Silence reigned.

It was Haiyang.

But according to Liu Yu’s knowledge of Vietnamese history, there were such examples. In North Vietnam, no city was more important, more fortified, equipped with more cannons, or had more defenders than Hanoi.

Yet the French, led by An Nghia, easily captured Hanoi, defended by seven thousand Vietnamese troops, with just under two hundred men. A few years later, history repeated itself—Lee Weiye also captured Hanoi, defended by seven to eight thousand Vietnamese troops, using just two or three marine regiments. In both instances, not a single French soldier died! Their opponents, the seven to eight thousand Vietnamese troops, fled after losing dozens of men each time. In Vietnamese history, such resistance was already considered “brave resistance.”

Vietnamese troops not only maintained a record of complete defeats against the French but also suffered repeated losses against the remnants of the peasant armies that entered Vietnam. Even the provincial capitals of Cao Bằng and Lạng Sơn were captured twice by small groups of peasant rebels. When Lạng Sơn fell, the Vietnamese government troops simply abandoned their commander and retreated honorably, resulting in the death of their leader and governor. Emperor Tự Đức was even forced to issue an edict expressing his remorse.

Of course, surprises could occur on the battlefield, and Vietnamese troops did have good days.

Unfortunately, they lacked the advanced firearms of the French and the strength of the Yellow Flag Army.

Haiyang wasn’t Hanoi. He only had twenty breech-loading guns and a hundred soldiers.

Like two sides of a coin, the outcome of this battle might mean honor or failure—he didn’t know the end result.

All I can promise is: “Share hardships and joys!”

Si Ma Tai had already made his choice. I am waiting for your answers.

Silence.

It was a difficult choice to make.

Liu Yu had never expected to be able to win people’s hearts.

More silence.

He waited for their responses, but his heart echoed with the promise he had just made: “Share joys!”

Liu Suiyun stood up timidly. He unbuckled his Spencer rifle and handed it to Liu Yu.

Liu Yu was surprised, but then heard Liu Suiyun say softly, “Share hardships and joys!”

Liu Suiyun didn’t possess the heroic spiritSima Tai described, but he had a rare determination: “Commander, uncles, brothers, if I fail, please take good care of my mother!”
Liu Suiyun gripped Spencer tightly. “I’ve reached adulthood, yet aside from the Spencer given by the commander, I have nothing—no achievements at all. I truly have no face to face my old mother. At this point in life, why not take a bold chance?”
“Share hardships, share wealth!” His words echoed in Liu Yu’s heart, followed by many others: “Share hardships, share wealth!”
Almost everyone stood up and said the same words: “Share hardships, share wealth!”
Each person had a different expression, but their faces were filled with hope.
He had never before commanded people’s hearts, nor had he imagined his authority could be so great.
He never knew how much impact his two victories and his rifles had had on these people, or how high his prestige was.
In this war-torn country, these exiles were constantly on the verge of disaster, unsure when a conflict might claim their lives.
Liu Suiyun was a living example—he was an only child, but aside from his mother’s love, he had nothing. He had to worry that if something happened to him, who would take care of his mother?
As for marriage and children, in a bandit den, who still harbored such hopes?
Now they could change their fate, and they saw hope for tomorrow.
Rifles! Use rifles to charge in!
If we lose, we already have nothing. Charging in at least brings temporary prosperity.
There was still one person who hadn’t spoken up—Ji Xinghui.
This old fox sat there, his ears filled with Liu Suiyun’s bold words.
Liu Yu had lost hope in this old scoundrel.
Though not old, he was extremely cunning. Judging from his indecision between Liu Yu and Liu Haohao, one could tell what kind of person he was.
Things always took unexpected turns.
Just as Liu Yu was hesitating, Ji Xinghui, that old trickster, slammed his hands on the table loudly and asked, “Once Haiyang is opened, can everyone get a rifle—a breechloader with a seven-shot carousel?”
“Not just a seven-shot one. Once Haiyang is opened, I’ll even get you seventeen-shot carrousels! And a six-shot pistol too—one long and one short, plus a Remington, so everyone gets one!”
In Vietnam, nothing was as valuable as rifles. Even if they stole tens of thousands of taels of silver and divided it among over a hundred people, each would barely manage to survive, let alone live comfortably.
But rifles were truly valuable, so Ji Xinghui said, “Great! Let’s go for it! We’ll do this deal!”
“Open Haiyang City!” Everyone became happy. “Everyone will get a seventeen-shot carousel rifle, plus a six-shot pistol!”
It was then that Liu Yu regretted it—these were 200 rifles. Where was he going to get them?
Seventeen-shot carrousels were manageable—the Winchester magazine held 15 rounds, with one more in the barrel, making it seem like 17 shots. The six-shot pistol was a revolver, but where could they obtain so many breechloaders?

This number is roughly equivalent to all the breechloaders the Black Flag Army had during the Sino-French War; Deng Cunyu definitely doesn’t have such capability!