The 58th Expedition

  It was March again, a steam cargo ship slowly sailed away from the Golden Island dock. Leng Yifei stood on the deck waving goodbye to Deng Zixuan: "Master! Goodbye!" "Bon voyage!" Deng Zixuan shouted loudly from the dock. Next to him, He Meng and 200 students knelt on the deck, their eyes filled with tears. Leng Yifei suddenly turned his head, holding back his own sadness, "All rise!" The students stood up with a rustling sound.

  "From today on, we'll be known as the Wolf Team, with me as the captain and He Meng as the vice-captain. We're heading to a mysterious place for our new mission. Our lord has high hopes for us, do you all have confidence?" "Loyalty to our lord, if not successful then die trying." All the team members responded in unison. Leng Yifei instructed everyone to disperse and as they turned back, Jinshan Island was already blurry. Suddenly, Leng Yifei's ears rang with Deng Zixuan's words once again.

  "Leng brother, you lead the team to Guangxi border Dingming County, the county magistrate is our man. Currently Wang Xiaoer is serving as the head of the guard and merchant team there. Your mission is to form a reconnaissance unit after arriving in Dingming County and infiltrate the northern part of Annan, closely monitoring the movements of Annan. The French are currently making aggressive moves in Annan, with a strong intention to annex Annan. Once the French launch a large-scale attack on northern Annan, our first opponent will be the French."

  "If we encounter the French, can we launch an attack?" "No, before I go, you are not allowed to act rashly. The situation in northern Annan is complex, your task is to investigate the local situation. There is a local armed force on the Sino-Vietnamese border, called the Black Flag Army, and the leader of the Black Flag Army is Liu Yongfu. You should find a way to establish a relationship with them. In addition, you need to investigate the terrain of northern Annan and draw detailed maps..."

  "Captain! I'm disturbing you!" Leng Yifei woke up from his contemplation, turned around and saw it was He Meng. "Do you have something to ask me?" "I dare to ask, where are we headed?" "The Sino-Vietnamese border!" "What are we going to do at the Sino-Vietnamese border?" "In two days, we will make a big move there!" "I understand!" He Meng's face showed joy. The cargo ship sailed forward, breaking through the waves, and the weather was overcast with a light drizzle, making the sea surface hazy.

  A few days later, the steamship docked at Guangzhou Dongguan Baishatan Wharf. All team members disembarked in an orderly manner. "Brother Bai!" "Leng younger brother!" The two sides hugged each other tightly. "I heard someone was coming, but I didn't expect you to come, this kid is great, I'm not lonely anymore!" Bai Sheng exclaimed with surprise and delight. "Brother Bai, don't be disappointed, we're just passing through Guangzhou, our destination is Guangxi." "What a pity! We'll be apart again, it's hard to meet again in the future!"

  "Where's Brother Pei?" Leng Yifei looked around. "Brother Pei went to Hainan Island." "What about Qin Zhanggui?" "Qin Zhanggui went to Nanning, he's a busy man now!" That night, Leng Yifei and Bai Sheng sat on the beach eating barbecue and drinking liquor. A bright moon hung high in the sky, the sea sparkled with crystal waves gently rising and falling, everything seemed so quiet and peaceful. "Is your wife doing well?" Leng Yifei broke the silence.

  "It's all right, I just miss my mistress often. Why didn't you bring your wife and children?" "I left them in Shanghai, Guangxi is a harsh and cold place, it would be suffering to go there, besides, Danxia didn't want to leave the mistress, so I let her have her way." "Next year I will lead the first batch of Huangpu students to Hainan Island, Master ordered that from next year on, Kuang Jiazhi will take office as the governor of Hainan, at that time we need to establish a civilian team on Hainan Island." "Is Hainan Island going to be our base?" asked Leng Yifei with delight.

  "This goes without saying, Master had sent Kuang Jia-zhi to Shanghai Nan Island for this very purpose. Master's plan is truly admirable!" "Indeed! Every move Master makes is a stunning one, we followers of Master have no regrets in this life." The two men, under the stimulation of wine, sighed and chatted endlessly, chatting for a long time, even deep into the night they refused to disperse. The next day, Leng Yi-fei visited the Huangpu Academy, Bai Sheng informed him that at present, the Huangpu Academy had already taken shape, next year he would lead the first batch of students from Huangpu to Hainan Island, after which the academy would officially start recruiting students."

  Farewell to Bai Sheng, Leng Yifei led the team members onto the cargo ship. "Haha! Chen Gensheng, it's you!" "Leng brother, how is it you?" "It's been over a year since I last saw you, and here you are." "Leng brother, I'm now in charge of the North Sea route, where are you headed?" "We're going to Dingming County in Guangxi. Our master has built many estates there, and we're going to guard them." "Our master's business is getting bigger and bigger, he's almost as rich as a country! Do you know that every time we transport goods back, they're all grains and local specialties? Now Qin Zhuangzhu's business covers the whole of Guangxi. Nowadays, when people mention Qin Zhuangzhu in the two Guangs, everyone knows him."

  "At first, Master thought you were just a clever guy, didn't think that Qin would really become a big shot. This cargo ship of yours is a steamship, it's like replacing a bird gun with a cannon!" "That's right, my Beihai Transportation Fleet now has two steamships and 8 sailing ships. Currently, our entire fleet already has 12 steamships and over 50 sailing ships. Master said that from now on we will continue to increase the number of steamships, and their tonnage will be even larger."

  All the way, the two of them drank and chatted happily. Two days later, the cargo ship arrived at Chengfang Port. Leng Yifei bid farewell to Chen Gensheng and led his team to follow a merchant group to Dingming County. Along the way, they traveled day and night, and after several days, they saw the city of Dingyuan County. The group entered the city gate and stopped in front of the county government office. "Leng big brother!" "Wang Xia'er!" The brothers who had been separated for 7 years hugged each other excitedly. "Haha, brother! You've gotten fatter, I almost didn't dare recognize you!" "You're still the same, how's your family?" Wang Xia'er excitedly asked about everyone before remembering to introduce Li Tong.

  "Cold brother, it's been a hard journey. Please!" "Lord Li, I pay my respects." Leng Yifei knelt down on one leg and kowtowed. "We're all our own people, no need to be formal, please come in, brothers, and let me treat you to some refreshments." At the banquet, Leng Yifei asked: "Lord Li, I'd like to know more about Feng Zicai's situation?" Through Deng Zixuan's explanation, Leng Yifei had a general idea of Feng Zicai's situation, but he didn't know the details.

  "I have visited General Feng several times, he has a strong patriotic heart, is humble and gentle in person, and is good at leading troops, deeply loved by all parties. In the past few years, he assisted the Annan army to annihilate many rebel bandits. This year, his former deputy general Yang Guangcai rebelled, gathered more than 10,000 people and fled to the northern part of Annan. Currently, the Annan army is joining forces with the Black Flag Army to fight against Yang Guangcai's troops, and the Annan side has requested assistance from the government army. General Feng estimates that he will lead his troops into battle this year!" Later, Leng Yifei asked about many more situations and had made up his mind.

  At night, Wang Xiao'er had a small drink with Leng Xie, "Leng Xie, in order to facilitate your entry into Annan territory, the Mingyue Mountain Villa on the border will be your base. This is what Master has entrusted me to tell you." Wang Xiao'er continued, "I really envy you guys, I really want to join you and do something exciting." "You little kid just honestly do your job as captain of the guard team, if there's even a slight mistake in the big family business, your responsibility will be just as great!"

  "How could I not know, it's just an itch in my hand!" Wang Xiaoer shook his head helplessly. "Tell me about Liu Yongfu's situation in detail, before coming here the master told me to get close to him, and now he is fighting against the rebels, this is a great opportunity." "According to my understanding, Liu Yongfu is forty years old this year, in his early years he participated in the anti-Qing righteous army, after the failure of the righteous army, he led the remnants to flee to Laos."

  Wang Xia'er took a sip of wine and continued: "This guy knows how to comfort the people, in Old Street, military discipline is strict, deeply loved by the local people. In the twelfth year of Tongzhi, the French attacked Hanoi, at the request of the King of Annan, Liu Yongfu led the Black Flag Army to join forces with the Annan army and defeated the French army in Hanoi, and took the opportunity to recover Hanoi. The next year, the King of Annan granted him the title of Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Three Provinces, letting him manage the three provinces of Xuanhua, Xingshan, and Shanxi in northern Annan."

  "Great! Master let me and Liu Yongfu pull up the relationship, this is the right time. Borrowing from the rebellion, we can exercise our combat skills and take advantage of the opportunity to open up a new territory. Master told us to avoid fighting with the French, but annihilating the rebels is perfectly feasible. Without delay, I will go to Mingyue Mountain Villa tomorrow, prepare for a while, and then lead the troops to Laojie." Cold Yifei was extremely excited.

  Next, Leng Yifei led the team members to Mingyue Mountain Villa, nominally as the villa's security team. After a day of trekking, Leng Yifei and his men arrived at Mingyue Mountain Villa in the evening. Mingyue Mountain Villa was located in a mountain valley, with a river flowing through it, and the villa was built on both sides of the river. The two sides of the river had already been cultivated into large tracts of land. However, the villa was very simple, with only dozens of wooden houses.

  Contact was made with the estate's guards, who numbered 20 men, with 10 carrying rear-loading rifles and the rest armed with a motley assortment of old-fashioned firearms. There were also about 30 recruited vagrants inside the estate, and the estate manager warmly welcomed them through the guide. That night there was no conversation, and after dinner everyone rested early due to travel fatigue.

  The next day, the villagers heard that a powerful escort team had arrived and couldn't help but run to take a look. The team members performed their first morning exercise on the open ground in front of the gate since they set out, leaving all the villagers including the manor's guards almost stunned, especially by the fierce aura of these burly men, everyone was whispering and guessing where this group of people came from.

  "Don't let everyone gather around, do what you need to do, don't let them gossip, and don't interfere with our business either, got it?" Leng Yifei said bluntly to the estate manager. "Yes, sir, I understand. Manager Wang has already instructed me, please rest assured." The estate manager then dispersed the onlookers.

  After finishing breakfast, Leng Yifei shouted: "He Meng!" "Here!" "Order each squad to assemble!" Accompanied by the whistle, each squad quickly assembled. Leng Yifei walked to the front of the team with a stern expression and said: "Brothers, you must have been puzzled all along why we came to this desolate land. Now I can tell everyone that we came here to experience the test of war."

  Seeing the eager gaze in everyone's eyes, he continued: "After several years of rigorous military training, you all possess the basic qualities of a brave warrior. However, this alone is not enough; we must undergo the trial by fire and death to truly test a warrior's qualifications. Given the situation in Annan, our vassal state is in dire straits, with the French having already annexed southern Vietnam. In the future, our powerful enemy will be the French."

  "Now a group of rebels are occupying the northern part of Annan, next we will work together with the local famous armed forces Hei Qi Jun to strangle the rebel thieves and bring peace to the world. Remember that we are Wolf Team, the characteristic of wolves is that no matter where or when, wolves always eat meat in the sky, I want you to keep the team spirit like wolves, face the enemy like wolves ferociously, can you do it?" "We can do it!" The team members shouted loudly.

  Leng Yifei waved his hand, and He Meng ordered the team members to bring up several boxes. Leng Yifei first opened two small boxes and said: "Each squad leader will receive a pocket watch and a monocular telescope." Then he opened another half-large box and said: "Each squad leader will wear a left-handed revolver, please come forward." The 10 squad leaders came forward, and Leng Yifei distributed the pocket watches, monocular telescopes, and revolvers as promised.

  "Next, all team members are issued rifles and bayonets!" Several long boxes were opened, and He Meng led the squad leaders to issue rifles to the team members. The brand-new rifles gleamed brightly, giving the Wolf Team a terrifying atmosphere. Finally, Leng Yifei announced that they would rest in the manor for a few days before entering Annan.