Chapter 209: Deployment of Troops

“The Black Flag bandits are truly ruthless, even worse than the Taiping rebels of old…”
With the bleak autumn wind, Tian Deming, the governor of Hengyang, felt the coldness of autumn even more acutely. He was utterly overwhelmed by the current situation: “In the past, the Taiping rebels would exaggerate their troop numbers before battle. Now, suddenly, so many defeated soldiers have poured in—how am I supposed to deal with this?”
During the Taiping Rebellion, the Taiping forces often pretended to have larger armies before fighting. With only twenty or thirty thousand troops, they claimed to have two or three hundred thousand. Many poorly trained Green Standard Army soldiers and local militia, upon hearing such huge numbers, would collapse on their own without the Taiping even having to attack.
But today’s Black Flag forces were even more cunning. Just the wounded and captured soldiers sent back numbered over a thousand. Even if they did nothing, just their existence could drain Hengyang’s resources.
Moreover, these people were utterly useless to the Qing Dynasty. Judging from their wounds and ages, it was clear they could barely hold a gun, let alone be of any use. Yet the Black Flag forces were so ruthless that Tian Deming had to draw heavily from already scarce funds to cover this endless expense.
He had no choice but to help them! After all, they had fought hard for the Qing Dynasty. Abandoning them to the elements would dishearten many loyal soldiers. Besides, the Black Flag forces sent them back precisely to spread chaos.
The Black Flag forces had sent over a thousand captives to Hunan and Guangdong. These captives spread rumors everywhere, causing unrest among the troops. Some experienced soldiers, upon hearing about the Black Flag forces’ strength, immediately led their units to flee. Once the veterans ran, the new recruits followed.
Near Hengyang, before a single shot was fired, five or six hundred soldiers had already deserted—nearly 20% of the garrison. The defeated soldiers’ accounts sounded convincing, so they had to believe them.
Troops along the entire border were continuously deserting. It was said that half of the units meant to engage the Black Flag forces had already scattered within days.
The Black Flag forces’ cruelty didn’t stop there. These spreading rumors soldiers also claimed the Black Flag forces treated captives well and left local areas untouched, making the local militia hesitate.
This was no longer the era of Zeng Wenzheng. Tian Deming sighed bitterly. After decades in government, why had he ended up with such a difficult task?
The provincial treasury was so depleted it could starve even rats. The soldiers outside demanded payment daily, putting him under immense pressure.
Yet there was truth to their claims. Normally, soldiers could engage in small business outside, and earning five or six months’ salary a year was tolerable—after all, military service was considered an additional job. But now it was a matter of life and death. Without extra rewards, why would they risk their lives for the emperor?
Armed forces were one issue, but raising funds was another. In Hunan, the local people were fierce, and there were many powerful figures in the countryside. Even trying to collect taxes resulted in losing the money on travel expenses. The local warlords clung tightly to their wealth, establishing their own independent kingdoms.

These people had high aspirations; Zeng Wenzheng was their role model, and they wanted to seize this opportunity to stand out or at least make a fortune. As a result, they left Hengyang Prefecture in disarray. Initially, Tian Deming had placed his hopes on the new governor of Hunan, Wu Dacheng, as this governor was well-known for his military expertise and should be able to see through the Black Flag Army’s tactics. But the governor neither provided money nor policies, merely ordering Tian to be more accommodating, with no further words—this only increased Tian Deming’s anxiety. “Gentlemen, the Black Flag rebels will sooner or later invade southern Hunan. You are all local heroes; please share your ideas with me…” Yet Tian Deming’s enthusiasm met only indifference from the local gentry. Finally, one of them spoke up: “Let’s wait and see!” Wait and see—this was the common sentiment among these powerful men. At first, they were enthusiastic; the rebellion of the Black Flag Army seemed like a golden opportunity. Perhaps Hengyang would produce more high-ranking officials, and they could work together to support the Qing Dynasty and achieve their own ambitions. But after hearing from the escaped soldiers, their enthusiasm cooled significantly. These rebels were different from the Taiping rebels—they had more guns, cannons, and soldiers, and their weapons were superior. Ordinary small towns couldn’t hold out even a day against them. In the past, even when the Taiping forces attacked cities, many cities managed to resist for months under their siege, unlike today when they seemed as fragile as paper. But upon further reflection, they found his reasoning compelling. It had only taken the Black Flag Army two months from leaving Zhenan Pass to conquering all of Vietnam. On average, they captured one and a half towns per day. Even a famous city like Guilin was defended for only seven days, while Nanning and Liuzhou fell in just two or three days. Thinking about the facts described by the escaped soldiers, their hearts grew colder, and the last solution they came up with was: “Let’s wait and see…” While many of the gentry were loyal and righteous, everyone was more aware of reality—every action mattered to the survival of their entire families. Tian Deming’s heart grew even colder, and he could only seek a way out: “It seems… let’s wait and see too.” Wu Dacheng was not only a renowned military strategist but also an expert in epigraphy. As he looked at the seal stone before him, his eyes narrowed. “General Pingnan… what good omens!” Wu Dacheng laughed repeatedly. “I never expected to find such a fine seal stone…” He was working in his study, which, as a scholar, was filled with ancient books. A set of a thousand-volume Taiping Yulan was essential, though it was from the Siku Quanshu edition. As for the other collections, they were hastily gathered, mostly from the Ming dynasty, with few from the Song dynasty. The study was also full of young talents—this was the first thing Wu Dacheng did after arriving in Hunan. Believing that dragons give birth to dragons, phoenixes to phoenixes, and rats to those who know how to dig holes, he recruited talented descendants from prominent families to serve as military commanders. Soon, a large group arrived from Zeng Wenzheng’s family, Zuo Jigao’s family, as well as Li Xubin, Wang Xin, and Li Yuandu’s families.

The fathers and brothers of these men had made great contributions during the war that lasted over twenty years, and now Wu Dacheng placed high hopes on them. Yet, the general sitting opposite him was the one whom Wu Dacheng trusted the most.
“General Wang has fought thousands of miles, repeatedly defeating the rebel forces, and retreated with composure—truly a role model for you all…” Wu Dacheng smiled. “I had some fears at first, but with General Wang entering Hunan, I now feel completely confident!”
Wang Debang, sitting opposite Wu Dacheng, looked resolute and upright. “Why should the governor mention such regrettable matters? It’s unfortunate that we have few soldiers and generals, so newcomers inevitably suffer losses… Sigh…”
As he sighed, Wu Dacheng tried to reassure him: “There’s no need for such sentimentality, Wang. You are a renowned general from Chu. In this expedition to the south, while all other armies were destroyed, you remained calm, fought thousands of miles with the demeanor of a great general, and safely retreated to Hunan. Not only did you retain all your weapons and soldiers, but you even gained more!”
Wang Debang still shook his head. “If I had five thousand soldiers from the Gonggui Army back then, how could Governor Xu fall into the hands of the rebels…”
He was referring to the fall of Guilin, when Xu Yanxu and Li Bingheng were captured by the Black Flag Army. Only he, nominally leading guerrilla forces outside the city, immediately retreated hundreds of miles upon sensing danger, all the way from Guilin to Changsha, before managing to stabilize his position.
According to Qing laws, someone in his situation should be executed. But now that the Qing army suffered repeated defeats and military discipline had collapsed, and although Wang Debang had suffered a relatively easy defeat, he still managed to gather strength along the way. With five thousand combatants at his disposal, Wu Dacheng could only regard him as a trusted ally.
Wu Dacheng continued to comfort him, “Don’t worry about short-term wins or losses. There are now over thirty thousand soldiers in Hunan, with six more battalions available each month. With your Chu army and my Gonggui troops, we are as solid as Mount Tai…”
At that moment, Wu Dacheng turned to the bookshelf and pulled out several volumes from the Taiping Yulan, belonging to the Ministry of War. “Now that Liu’s plans have been exposed, he’s determined to advance north toward Changsha—perfect timing. If we attack from two sides, we can achieve a complete victory!”
Ever since the Black Flag Army captured Zhenan Pass, Wu Dacheng was the first general to propose defeating them in open battle. “I have countless local militia units in Hunan. Once the rebels enter the province, they’ll get stuck here. There are also many fortified cities with brave and regular troops who can hold their ground. Once the enemy forces grow exhausted and achieve nothing, it will be the perfect time for us to claim glory!”
Wang Debang replied, “The governor is wise. With me here, there’s no need to worry about the rear…”
…
Even if the Black Flag Army’s first wave of attack wasn’t like a tide, it would still be like a huge wave, sweeping away various small and large outposts along Hunan’s border. For these scattered outposts, defeat was inevitable. The only question was how many minutes they could hold out—holding out for an hour was an impossible task for them.
The Qing troops stationed at these outposts surrendered or were annihilated almost immediately. The gunfire along the entire provincial border warned the troops behind them of the difficult choices they faced.
Liu Yu rode across the provincial border, took a deep breath, then asked, “We only have forty regiments, with twenty-two being infantry regiments. The enemy has two hundred infantry battalions in Hunan and Hubei. Do we still have any chance of winning?”

“Yes!” The answer to him was thunderous cheers.
After the initial wave of attacks, the Black Flag Army reorganized its combat formation. Countless communication units used telegraphs, telephones, human and animal labor to convey good news, allowing the headquarters to control the pace of the entire army’s offensive.
That afternoon, the Black Flag Army had captured the first county town, killing over a hundred enemies. However, the Green Standard Army soldiers and local militia in the town fled faster than rabbits, and the Black Flag Army could not catch up.
“Order the troops to prepare for annihilating the enemy. The artillery should follow immediately. And… do not use the Maxim machine guns for now!”
The Black Flag Army was mentally prepared for combat inside Hunan Province. They knew they would have to engage in three different types of battles simultaneously. First, they aimed to annihilate the enemy in open battles; second, they needed to be ready for siege battles, using combined infantry and artillery tactics to eliminate enemies trapped in fortified cities; third, they had to deal with various local warlord forces.
Regardless of the type of battle, the Black Flag Army had to carry out repeated annihilation campaigns.
That night, the local militia opened sporadic fire to harass the Black Flag Army but were quickly driven back and annihilated.
Starting the next day, fighting broke out along the entire front line. The Black Flag Army adopted a spearhead tactic, using vanguard units to advance rapidly in an attempt to locate the main Qing forces for a decisive battle.
However, the battle that day left both sides dissatisfied. The Black Flag Army failed to find the main Qing forces, only blocking the retreat of over 200 Green Standard Army soldiers and forcing them to surrender. The rest of the battles were small-scale, with fewer than one battalion of enemies killed in a day.
For the Black Flag Army, such battles were simply not worth the effort. Worse still, the harassment by the local militia never stopped. Though mild, it still slowed down their offensive progress to some extent.
Thus, on the third day, the Black Flag Army adopted a “shooting mosquitoes with cannons” tactic, targeting the local militia and village fighters. Using well-known tactics of simultaneous attacks and encirclement, they launched two operations, trapping over 300 of these fighters.
This time, the Black Flag Army showed no mercy, using mortars, rapid-fire rifles, explosive packs, and grenades. Two light mountain guns were brought in to provide suppression fire, and even a heavy machine gun was used for overwatch fire. By the morning of the fourth day, this group of local militia was completely eliminated.
There was also good news that day. Although the Black Flag Army did not annihilate any Qing forces as a whole unit, they dealt devastating blows to the enemy in several battlefields. According to Liu Suiyun of the staff, “It was the day with the greatest achievements since entering Hunan. In two instances, we captured about half a battalion of enemy troops and dealt them heavy blows…”
Despite this, the Black Flag Army still found the results unsatisfactory. But for them, the best news had already arrived: Wu Dacheng had mobilized the entire main force of the Qing army in Hunan, aiming to march south to engage the Black Flag Army in a decisive battle.

After all, such results were only barely satisfactory for the Black Flag Army, but they dealt a severe blow to the Qing forces. Just four days into the war, the Qing army had suffered nearly 3,000 direct casualties on the battlefield, not to mention the large number of veteran soldiers who, under the attack of the Black Flag Army, fled home with their new recruits and weapons. Moreover, in just four days, the Black Flag Army had captured three county towns, whose resources were now at their disposal. They handed over the rear areas to newly formed reserve units while concentrating their main forces in an attempt to seek another decisive battle. Meanwhile, Wu Dacheng also assembled the largest force he could muster—20,000 Qing soldiers—who marched south from Changsha, with Wang Debang’s highly combat-effective troops serving as the reserve force. He was determined to seek a decisive victory in southern Hunan.