The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 192 The Foreigners Raised the White Flag
Teng Yuzao warned Hu Dianjia, "Xuanqing, the coalition forces might pull out their small-caliber rapid-fire cannons and fire at that section of the city wall to blow down that crooked section of the city wall."

"So, you need to have your artillery battalion keep an eye out. If the coalition forces pull out their small cannons, you can use the cannons in your hands to kill their artillerymen and blow up their cannons."

After finishing the explanation, seeing that Liu Shijiu was still a little unwilling, Teng Yuzao said with a smile.

"Brother, don't be unwilling. I can keep those coalition forces for you. You can destroy them as early as tonight."

When Liu Shijiu heard that this group of foreign devils would be left to him, and it might be tonight, his eyes widened immediately and asked excitedly.

"Xingfu, are you telling the truth?"

"Really!" Teng Yuzao nodded with a smile.

However, Liu Shijiu soon felt a little embarrassed and looked at Hu Dianjia and Li Xiange with an awkward smile.

After all, the remaining coalition forces were located in Hu Dianjia's defense zone, and Hu Dianjia's Third Regiment had been fighting for half a night, with more than 300 casualties in and outside the city. It was somewhat unreasonable for him to take all the credit.

In addition, a battalion of Li Xian Ce had also been waiting there for five or six hours. At this time, Liu Shijiu was really a little embarrassed to ask the two men to give up the credit to him. Although it was Teng Yuzao's order, the two men would not say anything, but doing so would
Hu Dianjia noticed Liu Jiujiu's embarrassment and said with a smile, "Captain Liu, I have been fighting for half a night and have killed 1,500 to 1,600 foreign devils near the city wall alone. The remaining 1,800 will be left to you."

Li Xianze also nodded and said, "You don't have to look at me. My battalion will not stay there for a few hours in vain. The adults will definitely give me some compensation."

After saying this, Li Xianze looked at Teng Yuzao on purpose.

Seeing that several people were talking enthusiastically, even Li Xianze had already started to plan the next battle. This made Pan Jinshan, who had been watching the Third Regiment fighting so fiercely and felt jealous for a while, a little anxious. He wanted to speak several times, but no words came out.

Pan Jinshan knew that he could not compare with Li Xianze and Liu Shijiu. One of them was Teng Yuzhao's trusted and beloved general, and the other was his ally. He could not compare with either of them in terms of personal feelings for Teng Yuzhao.

Teng Yuzao noticed everyone's expressions.

Teng Yuzao smiled and said to Pan Jinshan, "Mingguang, we are not outsiders. When Rong Zhongtang established the Wuwei Army, I could be considered your instructor. I also participated in the establishment of your army. From this point of view, I can barely be considered half of your teacher."

Unexpectedly, Teng Yuzhao's casual remark gave Pan Jinshan an idea.

He had long been jealous of the relationship between Teng Yuzao and several of his generals, including his ally Liu Shijiu and his student Wu Peifu.

He is different from Hu Dianjia. Hu Dianjia can at least be a classmate of Teng Yuzhao. He has no school or sect in the vanguard army, and has no roots or friends, which makes him feel very isolated. Now that he has the opportunity, how could he let it go? He immediately took advantage of the opportunity and stood up following Teng Yuzhao's words and bowed deeply to Teng Yuzhao.

"You are right, you are my instructor and commander, and you are also my lifesaver. Please teach me more in the future. I am willing to go through fire and water for you, and I will do anything for you!"

Pan Jinshan's words and subsequent actions made Teng Yuzhao slightly stunned, but he immediately understood Pan Jinshan's thoughts. He stood up, put on a smile, walked to Pan Jinshan, patted Pan Jinshan on the shoulder and said.

"Mingguang, you are not only half a student of mine, Teng Yuzao, but you are also the first one in the Wuwei Front Army to surrender to me. I will never forget this. Do your best!"

Everyone present was initially shocked by Pan Jinshan's abrupt behavior, but when they saw Teng Yuzao's friendly attitude, they couldn't help but cheer in their hearts, "This Pan Jinshan is a smart man!"

Cao Futian was a tall and strong man in his thirties. He was a very righteous man and loved to stand up for the weak. This was the reason why his Boxer Rebellion was able to gather thousands of people so quickly and become a large group second only to the number one group in the world.

Pan Jinshan's actions finally gave Cao Futian the courage to stand up and bow to Teng Yuzhao.

"General, Cao also wants to join the Vanguard Army. I wonder if you can accept me?"

Teng Yuzhao invited Cao Futian to attend the breakfast meeting of the Vanguard Army's top leaders today. He already had the intention of recruiting Cao Futian, and when Cao Futian finally proposed it in person, he naturally would not refuse.

Moreover, although the discipline of the members led by Cao Futian was not as strict as that of Liu Shijiu's Boxers, Cao Futian was very rational and did not kill people indiscriminately, so there was no problem in recruiting him.

Teng Yuzhao pushed Pan Jinshan to his seat and hurried to Cao Futian.

"Brother Cao, there is no need to do this. I have had this idea for a long time, but I am worried that your brothers are not familiar with the Vanguard Army, so I have not dared to invite you. If Brother Cao really wants to join the Vanguard Army, I will naturally welcome you with open arms."

Seeing that Teng Yuzao finally spoke up, Cao Futian could not help but be overjoyed and said hurriedly, "General, I have made up my mind. When I return, I will disband my Boxers. Those who are willing to join the Vanguard Army will no longer have anything to do with me."

Teng Yuzao was waiting for Cao Futian to say this.

"Okay! Since Brother Cao has made up his mind, let's be humble first and gentlemen later. Let's be frank. The Vanguard Army has extremely strict military discipline. If you violate it, there will be no mercy under military law."

Before Teng Yuzao could finish, Cao Futian rushed to say, "Please rest assured, General, I have asked my second brother for a copy of the military discipline and law of the Vanguard Army. I know it all."

Liu Nineteen stood up and said with a smile, "Xingfu, Brother Cao, Chengde and I have had similar personalities since the Boxer Rebellion. I became brothers with them not long after I came from Shandong. I am the second oldest and Chengde is the third oldest."

The Chengde that Liu Shijiu mentioned is Wang Decheng.

Wang Decheng was from Xiong County. He practiced martial arts since he was young and had acquired good martial arts skills. However, his original name was not Wang Decheng, but Wang Chengde. Later, he changed it to Wang Decheng and simply used Chengde as his name.

Liu Shijiu and the two of them became brothers, which could better bind Cao Futian and Wang Decheng. Teng Yuzhao did not object to this matter, and he was not worried that the three of them would form cliques, because he would be of great use to Cao Futian and others in other ways.

"Brother Cao, I will consult with Zhongtang Mingyu and the court to temporarily guarantee you the title of captain and serve as the captain of the vanguard army guerrilla brigade. You can be promoted after you make meritorious service in the future. What do you think?" Although a captain was only a fourth-rank official, he was still a high-ranking official in the court. How could Cao Futian say no and thanked him repeatedly.

Since Cao Futian agreed to join the vanguard army, Teng Yuzhao was not going to delay any longer and said to Wei Jinghai.

"Ningbo, after dinner, you will have to work hard to arrange the reorganization of Brother Cao's Boxers. For the time being, we will reorganize them according to our organization and give them to Yuxuan for training. After training, they will be assigned to different units, and each unit will disband itself and reorganize the troops."

After explaining to Wei Jinghai, Teng Yuzao returned to his seat and said to everyone, "The coalition forces outside the city will definitely launch another fierce attack on Tianjin City today, because I noticed that the remnants of the coalition forces who stayed in the city did not carry backpacks when they rushed in early this morning. They must not have brought rations and are still hungry."

"Kangnian."

"After the meal, you will arrange for your battalion to replace the Third Regiment in the street position facing the remnants of the coalition forces. Remember, do not attack them. You only need to organize officers and soldiers with good marksmanship to shoot them with cold guns so that they dare not show their heads. After they have been hungry for a day, I will let the assault brigade take over from you to eliminate this enemy depending on the situation."

"Xuan Qing, you must be prepared for defense."

Without waiting for Li Xiance to answer, Teng Yuzhao turned to Hu Dianjia.

"The coalition forces' siege today will definitely be more intense. It will no longer be a tentative attack. It is very likely that they will launch a real onslaught. If the gap in the south city continues to expand, the blocking positions on the upper and lower walls on both sides will have to be moved back in a timely manner as appropriate."

"If the coalition forces break into the city from other locations, the Third Regiment must retreat to the first position in the block as soon as possible to resist. Without orders, no retreat is allowed. For those who panic, cause confusion, or even desert the battlefield, military law must be strictly enforced. Our military law is not for show to scare people."

"Yes."

Seeing Teng Yuzhao's stern tone, Hu Dianjia hurriedly stood up and answered.

Teng Yuzao looked at Pan Jinshan again and said, "Mingguang, after dinner, your independent detachment will immediately take over the defense of the east and west walls. It's not enough to just train troops there. I'm worried that the coalition forces will attack in different directions in order to disperse our forces."

"Yes." Pan Jinshan also hurriedly stood up and answered.

"Big brother."

"After the assault brigade takes over the position of Kangnian's battalion, they must wait for orders when to attack."

Liu Nineteen nodded and said, "Xingfu, don't worry. Those 1,800 foreign devils are meat on our chopping board. I won't be anxious, and I won't act on my own."

Teng Yuzao nodded and warned, "Don't be hasty in street fighting, and don't rush in all at once. You must fight according to the training. The remaining troops of the assault brigade must be prepared to prevent the coalition forces from rushing in again."

"Yes." This time Liu Shijiu answered very formally and straightforwardly.

"Kangnian."

Teng Yuzao once again instructed Li Xiance, "Your Second Regiment will stay in the north of the city as the general reserve of our entire army. You must be ready to join the battle at any time."

Then, Teng Yuzao turned to Liu Changfa and asked, "How are the artillery positions inside and outside the city being built?"

"Your Excellency, three have been repaired in the city, and four have been built on the other side of the South Canal. They are enough for us to use."

"In addition, not only have we conducted test firings within one thousand meters in the south of the city and calibrated all the parameters, but we have also measured the firing parameters at various locations in the south city. Wherever artillery fire is needed, I guarantee that within three minutes, my shells will hit the designated area."

Teng Yuzao nodded, "Okay! Your second battalion will immediately move into the North City position and be prepared to respond to the coalition forces' attack from the South City. The first battalion will stay on the other side of the South Canal and be prepared to cooperate with the defense of the North Gate."

Teng Yuzao finally looked at Liu Yuzhi and said, "Yuxuan, you have the heaviest burden. Not only do you have to take on the task of emergency training of new soldiers, but you also have to guard the North Gate."

Teng Yuzao said solemnly word by word, "We must firmly defend the North Gate. If the North Gate is lost, we will be trapped in the city. Then the coalition forces will block the city gate, and our vanguard army will be in danger of being wiped out."

"This is our retreat. If we hold on to this place, we will have enough space to advance or retreat."

"Also, once street fighting breaks out, our troops will suffer serious casualties. Whether the troops can be replenished in time depends on how long you train them. So, I can only give you half a month. You must cooperate well with Captain Cao."

"Report."

Before Teng Yuzao could finish his explanation, "there was a report from outside the door."

Without Teng Yuzhao's instructions, Wu Peifu, who had been accompanying Lin Lianhui and his brothers, jumped up quickly and ran over to open the door.

Wu Peifu quickly came in with a young staff officer from the headquarters. Seeing the staff officer's strange expression, Wei Jinghai asked in surprise, "What happened? Are the foreign devils attacking?"

"Reporting to the deputy chief of staff, the foreign devils outside the city have raised the white flag."

Your support is the driving force of Zuima!



(End of this chapter)