Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 394 Chapter 483 The Adventures of the Black Flag Army
The year 1873 was a year of peace and prosperity. Between May and August, the two main ironclad ships of the Chu Royal Navy, the Zhenxi and the Zhenbei, were launched and put into service soon after.

At this point, four main ironclad ships were built one after another, called the "Four Great King Kongs", and belonged to the Chu Royal Navy.

At the end of the year, another major incident broke out in Indochina, shocking the countries in Southeast Asia. The news spread like wildfire for a while.

In November 1873, the French Governor-General An Ye sent troops to capture Hanoi. The King of Vietnam urgently requested Liu Yongfu of the Black Flag Army to send troops to help.

Liu Yongfu rushed from his base in Baosheng (note: Lao Cai) at night, crossed the Xuanguang Ridge, and suddenly appeared outside Hanoi, catching An Ye, who led the French army, off guard. He was defeated and Hanoi was recovered.

In December, in the Battle of Zhiqiao, the Black Flag Army fought bravely, and Liu Yongfu even killed the French commander An Ye in battle, which made big news.

Liu Yongfu and his Black Flag Army quickly became the dominant force in northern Vietnam. The King of Vietnam appointed him as the acting deputy governor of Sanxuan, and he quickly expanded his power in northern Vietnam.

This man was originally a peasant from Qinzhou, Guangxi. He joined the Tiandihui in 1857 and was determined to fight against the Qing Dynasty. He almost lost his life in the internal strife among the rebels.

In 1866, Liu Yongfu formed a team of more than 200 people in Jingxi, using the black seven-star flag as its flag. This was the beginning of the Black Flag Army.

Afterwards, facing the collapse of various uprising forces on the mainland, Liu Yongfu was forced to lead his troops south and enter the territory of the Kingdom of Vietnam to seek development, and he has occupied the land and become king ever since.

In this battle at the end of 1873, Colonel An Ye of the French colonial army was killed in battle and hundreds of enemies were killed, which demonstrated the prestige of the Black Flag Army in one fell swoop, just as it had happened in the original history.

"General, if the Black Flag Army wants to achieve long-term development in the future, it must have a coastal area with abundant resources. We must carefully manage it, settle and cultivate it, and then build a solid foundation to achieve success."

"What do you mean, Brother Qingxi?"

"Only by occupying Haifang can we attack when advancing and defend when retreating. We can also mine the mineral resources to raise money and strengthen the foundation of the Black Flag Army."

"This... I'm afraid it's not appropriate. The King of Yue granted me the position of Deputy Admiral of Sanxuan, which does not include the coastal defense area. If I occupy it without permission, I might anger the Yue court, which would be disastrous."

"Hahaha... In that case, we have different ideals and cannot work together. I will take my leave now."

"Brother Qingxi, please go slowly. What are you teaching me?" Liu Yongfu hurriedly grabbed the sleeve of the middle-aged businessman with a sincere look on his face.

This middle-aged businessman was named Huang Qifan, also known by his courtesy name Qingxi. His ancestral home was Qinzhou, Guangxi. He had been running a cotton cloth business in various parts of Southeast Asia for many years. This time, he smuggled 620 muskets for the Black Flag Army, which played a big role in the battle with the French army.

He is knowledgeable and strategic.

Moreover, he was wealthy and had the friendship of a fellow townsman, so he was highly valued by Liu Yongfu.

After all

Liu Yongfu is now just a big bandit who occupies the mountains and acts as a king. Although he has been granted a title by the King of Yue, he is still separated from the foreign aid of bandits from the north.

The Black Flag Army did not live a comfortable life. Thousands of brothers and tens of thousands of their families relied on a few small plots of land to make a living. They finally accumulated some money, but they used it all to buy muskets and other weapons, and their lives were stretched to the limit.

How could I let go easily when I ran into this wealthy man who was willing to help me?

Huang Qifan stood still, struggled to get his sleeves free but failed, and said with a somewhat helpless expression:

"General, Qingxi originally thought that you were a person with ambitions, so he came to help you.

But I never thought
It is just a guard dog and cannot handle such a big responsibility.

What else can we say? It is up to you, my Lord, to do as you please. We shall not meet again."

Although Liu Yongfu was born into a peasant family, he had traveled extensively and had considerable experience. Naturally, he did not want to miss out on this extremely capable and wealthy businessman, so he clasped his fists and said sincerely:
"Brother Qingxi, we are just ordinary people who grew up in adversity. We have worked hard for more than ten years and we are only the thousands of brothers in the Black Flag Army.

We will live and die together, and never be separated.

Now that he has been appointed Deputy Governor of Sanxuan by the King of Yue, he has finally settled down. If he suddenly moves eastward to seize important coastal defense areas, he may lose the superficial friendship with the court of Yue.

If we get into a fight, won't everyone feel bad? "

Huang Qifan stood where he was, carefully observing Liu Yongfu's face as he looked for advice. After a moment's thought, he sighed and said, "Since General Junmen is so sincere in asking for advice, I will tell you something."

"I would like to ask for your advice, sir. Please give me some guidance." Liu Yongfu replied solemnly.

Huang Qifan sat back down, scooped up some tea with his fingers, and sketched a pattern on the table, saying as he did so:
"My Lord, please take a look at this. The so-called Three Xuans are located in the heart of the country. Apart from tens of thousands of acres of thin land, there are no minerals or resources. How can they develop and grow?"

There is the Zhennan Pass blocking the way to the north, and Hanoi’s numerous villages and towns to the southeast, with no future for development.

The Vietnamese royal court only gave Sanxuan the position of deputy governor, with neither food nor military pay. It had to be on guard both inside and outside, and was bound to prevent the Black Flag Army from growing stronger and becoming too powerful to be eliminated.

We are not of the same clan, how can we trust each other with our lives?

If the French army invades the north again, the Black Flag Army will inevitably be pushed to the front to ward off disaster. Why bother making wedding clothes for others?

If you can't see this, you are just a guard dog, maybe you can win a few points of fame.

The Black Flag Army is ultimately a failure. Needless to say, their ultimate fate will likely be complete annihilation. It won't be a good ending."

Liu Yongfu listened with a serious expression and remained silent for a long while.

Looking at his constantly changing expression, it was obvious that he was in a fierce struggle inside. It was not easy to make such a choice.

A moment later
Liu Yongfu raised his head, a ruthless look in his eyes, and said decisively: "If our army takes coastal defense in the east as its foundation, what should we do in the future?"

Huang Qifan smiled confidently, continued to draw on the table with his hands, and said: "General, please look, the coal resources of Quang Ninh Province in the north of Haiphong are rich and unique in the Indochina Peninsula. Whether the coal here is sent to Singapore, Guangzhou Prefecture or Saigon, it is worth a lot of money.

With silver, we can develop industry, order iron ships to travel between Southeast Asia, buy low and sell high, and make money.

Own this place
We can let the folks in Guangxi move south in large numbers, imitate the migration of the King of Chu, build up their power, expand their party, and build this place into the base camp of the Black Flag Army.

If there were 200,000 or 300,000 fellow villagers in Guangxi, they could easily mobilize an army of 20,000 or 30,000. With money, food, and soldiers, why would they not be able to accomplish great things?
Now that you have the strength, why worry about the Vietnamese royal court's disapproval?

If you piss me off, I'll just charge into Hanoi and overthrow his court. The King of Vietnam might even take over.

If I didn't have these grand ambitions, I would just go home and breastfeed my child."

"Okay, let's do it." Liu Yongfu was a man who dared to rebel. He never lacked courage, but what he lacked was vision and strategy. He was deeply excited by these words and made the decision with a clap of his hands.

Then he turned his gaze to Huang Qifan, clasped his hands together solemnly, and said, "Since that is the case, may I ask you to serve as the Advisor and General of the Black Flag Army and assist us in planning and achieving our great cause together?"

"If the general is willing, Huang will naturally be willing to serve and it will be my duty." Huang Qifan also stood up, clasped his fists and said in return with a solemn expression.

Liu Yongfu laughed heartily, shook Huang Qifan's hands tightly, and said, "With your joining us, the Black Flag Army will achieve its great goal."

"I am willing to work with the general on great matters and will do my utmost to help him."

The original history miraculously took a small turn here and went on a different trajectory from the original history.

In early February 1874, the Black Flag Army suddenly sent troops to Haiphong and occupied the area on a large scale. This action shocked the Vietnamese royal court and caused great panic among the people.

The King of Yue sent an envoy to hold the Black Flag Army accountable for their crimes, but the Black Flag Army did not say much, but simply displayed a strict military formation, the meaning of which was self-evident.

If you're not convinced, let's have a fight.

Such a tough attitude made the envoy of the King of Yue return to Hanoi in disgrace, and then... nothing happened.

At this time, the Vietnamese royal court was facing many internal and external troubles. The current King of Vietnam took the throne by deposing the puppet of the Hue royal court supported by the French.

At that time, half of the territory of the Kingdom of Vietnam was lost, and the dynasty could only issue orders from the northern city of Hanoi, and its authority was greatly lost.

In addition, the capital Hanoi had just been captured by the French, and it was rescued from the French colonial army by the brave fighting of the Black Flag Army.

After all this turmoil inside and outside, the Vietnamese royal court, which originally had 7% of its vitality left, only had % or % of its vitality left at most.

As for the Black Flag Army, a fierce dragon crossing the river, we really don't dare to offend them. There are also the French outside who are eyeing us covetously, and they are deadly.

After repeated consideration, I held my nose and endured it.

On March 1874, 3, the Vietnamese royal court issued an edict appointing Liu Yongfu as the Governor-General of Coastal Defense and Commander-in-Chief of Border Affairs, in charge of the military and political power of Quang Ninh, Coastal Defense and Bac Giang provinces.

In this way, the dignity of the Vietnamese royal court was preserved.

It was impossible to keep these three provinces from leaving because the Black Flag Army had already occupied them and had begun to migrate to the south from the neighboring Qinzhou in a big way.

Tens of thousands of people gathered to open coal mines and began to export coal in a vigorous manner. For a time, the docks were repaired and coal was transported, and it became very prosperous.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu, who was far away in Manila, received the above report, smiled slightly, and felt very proud.

This was just a casually placed piece, but it actually caused some trouble.

That's fine.
It would be a good thing if we could support a small Chinese dynasty with Hanoi as its core.

The State of Chu did not pay much, just a few officers from the Fifth Department and the purchase of some coal.

Anyway, there is a huge demand from coal and steel mills, a huge demand from copper smelters, and also a considerable demand from rolling mills and foundries.

Importing some coal from Haiphong will serve as a way to cultivate the market.

Cargo ships that transport coal to Batangas always take some industrial products with them on their return journey, including farm tools, cloth, kerosene, copper coins, etc. These are hard currencies in Vietnam and can be used as money.

What can the rest develop into?

Then we have to rely on Liu Yongfu and his people, no one else can do anything.

All King Zheng Guohui of Chu could do was give some pointers, nothing else.

After all, the French are keeping a close eye on him, and he has been acting suspiciously in recent diplomatic occasions. He cannot be caught in any evidence, otherwise it would be bad.

Fortunately, this Qinzhou businessman Huang Qifan is not from the Fifth Office. The cloth business run by the Huang family has little connection with the Chu State, but has close contacts with British businessmen.

The officers of the Fifth Department did intentionally approach the cloth merchant Huang Qifan, and promoted the great achievements of the King of Chu and commented on the situation in Vietnam.

If the Black Flag Army can do this, it will be able to accomplish something as great as the King of Chu. Otherwise, it will be just a gatekeeper dog and will surely die a miserable death in the future.

The speaker may not have intended it, but the listener may have taken it to heart. The trajectory of history took a strange turn here...

(End of this chapter)