Chapter 40: Teaching (Part 2)

As soon as Liu Yongfu spoke, the atmosphere instantly turned grim, filled with an awkward tension. Wu Fengdian and Liu Chengliang exchanged glances, maintaining polite smiles, while Liu Yu remained silent. It was Jiang Ningxue who spoke: “My husband was only fourteen when the New Year passed. He may have achieved something now, but he might not continue to do so as he grows up.”

Liu Yongfu, however, was confident. He said, “No! I’m quite good at judging people. As your husband requested at the beginning, once Heyang is pacified, I’ll let the Left Camp return to Shanxi under your command. You’ll be responsible for all provisions and pay, ensuring that Fengdian isn’t treated unfairly…”

He paused for a moment before adding, “Of course, he will be put to great use.”

Liu Yu smiled bitterly inwardly. Liu Yongfu was putting him in a difficult position. Among the officers of the Black Flag Army, none were easy to deal with—these were seasoned generals who had fought through countless battles. Even if given another chance, they would find this task extremely challenging.

Even for Liu Yongfu himself, the only camps he could truly command freely were those led by Liu Chengliang and Wu Fengdian, plus his two personal guard units. Now, by sending Wu Fengdian to Shanxi, any mistake could provoke hostility among those officers.

He smiled calmly and said, “Good!”

With the sugar coating removed and the ammunition reused, he wasn’t afraid of these scheming and dark dealings. “Since the Left Camp is returning to defend Shanxi, I still stand by my words: if Xiliu Camp eats meat, the Left Camp will never be left with soup. We’ll share all provisions equally.”

Having an additional independent camp under command was certainly a good thing. Wu Fengdian’s previous camp also had three hundred strong soldiers and over a dozen Remington rifles. With his own efforts, there was no doubt he could integrate into Xiliu Camp’s larger structure.

Among those listening to the lecture, Luo Yanqiu was the least surprised. She gave a indifferent glance before resuming organizing her notes with a pencil. The elders of the Luo sect, standing beside her, were utterly impressed.

The Luo sect’s missionary work in Shanxi had faced significant obstacles, with only a few dozen followers so far. They also encountered resistance from foreign religions and local governments, leaving these elders filled with resentment.

With the New Year approaching, Luo Yanqiu neglected her religious duties to frequently attend Liu Yu’s lectures at Xiliu Camp, bringing these trusted elders along as well. This only increased their resentment. But after hearing Liu Yongfu’s words earlier, their grievances vanished, and they couldn’t help but admire Luo Yanqiu’s ability to recognize talent.

Liu Yu turned to Wu Fengdian and bowed. “In the future, we must support each other. I’m doing everything possible through old connections in Haiyang to obtain more rifles. By then, the Left Camp won’t be at a disadvantage.”

At Liu Yu’s words, Wu Fengdian’s tense demeanor finally relaxed. “If Commander Liu needs to make arrangements, just let me know. I’ll obey without hesitation.”

His words made it clear that it wasn’t the Left Camp that would obey Xiliu Camp’s commands, but only he himself. Xiliu Camp couldn’t bypass him to direct the Left Camp.

“Good!” Liu Yu was even more interested in the Left Camp behind Wu Fengdian. “We’ll follow Fengdian’s wishes.”

A faint smile appeared on Wu Fengdian’s face. “I wonder how many Western firearms we can acquire this time for purchasing arms. The Left Camp doesn’t need much—thirty backdoor guns, with 200 rounds of ammunition per gun will suffice. Price isn’t an issue.”

For this arms procurement, Liu Yu relied on his connections through Liu Da, Lian Jincheng, and Deng Cunyu. Whether it would succeed or not, especially given the customs blockade, even he wasn’t entirely sure. For this reason, he had specifically urged Jieken and Lian Jincheng to produce sulfuric acid as much as possible—sulfuric acid being the mother of all industries—he had already made preparations to handle things on his own.

But now he dared to be ambitious: “If we can get the goods this time, fifty backdoor guns will go to the Left Camp.”

His plans were quite straightforward. With fifty backdoor guns and other means, even if they couldn’t fully integrate the Left Camp into the Xiliu Camp system, they could still build a bond. Then, with the Xiliu Camp and the Left Camp combined, they could deploy 600 combat troops.

Wu Fengdian was truly overjoyed. “Then thank you very much.”

As for Yang Zhenen and Liu Chengliang, they could only drool with envy. After all, others had the advantage of being closer to the resources, and they could only try to find connections with Liu Yu to buy a few guns on their own.

However, Liu Yu’s plans later encountered some minor setbacks.

Liu Yongfu asked again, “I heard you can also teach military strategy?”

Liu Yu became proud. “I had people bring me many military books from Hong Kong, Japan, Saigon, and other places. After reading them, I found they were all invaluable. Westerners are indeed a hundred years ahead of us in military tactics. Even the Easterners of Fusang far surpass us in military skills. I’m planning to give lectures on these to the camp.”

He was very proud when talking about this. In his past life, although he was a conscript, he had served as a squad leader and later self-studied some staff work. After retiring, he studied military history and read many books, including many military textbooks from the Republic of China era, which were now useful.

Liu Yongfu asked curiously, “What can you teach?”

Liu Yu, under the guise of Western military books, said, “I can teach the infantry drill manual, orders for battlefield operations, combat guidelines, operational directives, field regulations…”

He listed many topics, but Liu Yongfu didn’t understand a single one. But thinking about the training methods of the Xiliu Camp, which must have come from these Western military books, he said, “Good! I’ll send people to your camp to listen to your lectures on military strategy.”

Liu Yu shook his head. “That won’t work. According to the rules, we start with military history first, and then move on to military strategy courses…”

Military history education was the foundation of Liu Yu’s teaching. Only after understanding himself better and awakening his hidden fighting spirit would he proceed with further instruction—first explaining why one needs to pull the trigger, and then how to do it.

“It’s a shame that Commander Liu has to teach the course again.”

Liu Yu smiled. “It doesn’t have to be entirely my responsibility. I’ve already had someone compile a set of lectures on military history. They can teach those, and I’ll handle the key lessons.”

Upon hearing this, Sima Tai felt immense pressure. He only knew a thousand characters, and Liu Yu asking him to teach military history was indeed a very difficult challenge. Yet he was not afraid of difficulties. He had one thought in mind: “Good! Starting from today, I will strive to learn fifteen more characters every day. If it’s something that can be accomplished, I, Sima Tai, will definitely do it even better.”
The meeting between Liu Yongfu and Liu Yu came to an end.