Chapter 29

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"Brother Niu, this battle was so exhilarating! We killed over five thousand of those natives and captured more than four thousand! This should solve the manpower shortage at the mines, right?" Military officer Niu Meng laughed heartily. After the battle ended, the high-ranking officials of the Flying Fish Company held a brief meeting, each with a smile on their face. The victory of the Flying Fish Army greatly satisfied everyone!

"Brother Niu, don't think that these four thousand slaves are enough! Not only do the mines need natives, but the construction of Flying Fish City also requires them. As more Chinese join the Flying Fish Company, we will need to cultivate more land. After the army and factories take up most of the labor force, these tasks will have to rely on slaves! So, although these four thousand slaves seem like a lot, they are just the beginning of our goal!" Long Yufei said with a smile.

"What's the problem? Deputy Commander, if we run out of slaves, we can just attack the natives again! There are hundreds of thousands of natives on Mindanao Island, plus the two sultanates, at least half a million people! We can capture at least a hundred thousand able-bodied men. That will be enough to solve our labor shortage. Besides, if the natives on Mindanao Island are not enough, we can expand to other places! The northern Luzon Island has plenty of natives!" Civil Affairs Officer Li Decheng also said with a smile. This victory gave the high-ranking officials of the Flying Fish Company great confidence.

"Exactly! If we run out of slaves, we'll go and capture more!" Military officer Zhao Yi echoed!

It was clear that this great victory had given them a sense of reassurance. The Flying Fish Army, with only eight hundred people, was already so powerful. When the Flying Fish Army expands to two thousand, three thousand, or even more, wouldn't they be able to unify the entire Mindanao Island? Therefore, the powerful forces on Mindanao Island were no longer in their eyes.

"Yes, it's good that everyone is confident! However, we must also see our current weaknesses. The Chinese in Flying Fish City, at most, number only three thousand. The Flying Fish Army is also too small. In the coming long period, we need to attract more Chinese to join us, further develop our military, until we have the ability to defeat the Western powers and dominate the South China Sea! Although, from the current situation, the Western powers are much stronger than us. But I believe that we will ultimately win! I hope everyone regards this as our long-term goal!" Long Yufei said. It was already the end of 1835. In a few years, the entire South China Sea would be completely under the colonial rule of the Western powers. To gain a larger market and plunder more wealth, they would launch an attack on the Qing Dynasty. At that time, they would find that the powerful Qing Dynasty was merely a paper tiger. At that time, the entire East might fall under the attack of the West. What Long Yufei wanted to do was to have the ability to protect himself before the large-scale invasion of the West, so that he could change the tragic fate of the nation.

Hearing Long Yufei say this, everyone's expression turned serious. In their impression, the Western powers were incredibly strong, especially the pirates of Flying Fish Island, who had a deep understanding of this. They had previously been chased around by the warships of the Western powers. If Long Yufei had proposed this goal earlier, they would have thought he was being overly unrealistic. However, after today's battle, they realized that the Flying Fish Army was powerful, and the Chinese could also build a strong army. Although there was still a huge gap compared to the Western powers, they believed that this gap could be bridged.

"Yufei, go ahead and do it! We will support you with all our might!" Luo Sanguni said first. She was still the ruler of the Flying Fish Company, and her attitude largely represented the company's stance!

"Exactly, Deputy Commander, go ahead and do it! We will definitely succeed! We are no worse than those foreigners!" Military officer Zhao Yi also said!

"Haha, Deputy Commander! Those foreigners are just people with one head on their shoulders. They die when hit by bullets too! Our army will not be inferior to them!" Military officer Niu Meng also said.

Subsequently, Civil Affairs Officer Li Decheng and Deputy Civil Affairs Officer Wu Yongxing also expressed their support for Long Yufei's plan. Of course, Wu Yongxing was greatly shocked when he first learned of Long Yufei's grand ambition. His greatest wish had once been to lead the villagers of Wu Family Village to a better life and to survive the threat of the natives. However, after joining the Flying Fish Company, his horizons had broadened. Although he still thought Long Yufei's goal was somewhat unrealistic, he also believed that they might really succeed one day.

"Commander, Deputy Commander. The village chief of Balan Village, Liu Mingde, has already approached me. He hopes to retract his previous words and have Balan Village join the Flying Fish Company, becoming one of us. I haven't replied to him yet. Should we agree to their request?" Wu Yongxing asked. To be honest, Wu Yongxing was very dissatisfied with Liu Mingde's flip-flopping. However, considering their long-standing friendship, he didn't say much. After all, they were all Chinese and should unite!

"Hmph! They didn't want to join the Flying Fish Company before, but now they've changed their minds?" Civil Affairs Officer Li Decheng said disdainfully. He was very dissatisfied with Liu Mingde's previous behavior!

"Probably the performance of our Flying Fish Army today has deeply impressed them! However, this is human nature. They didn't know our strength before, but now that they see how powerful we are, they naturally want to join us! After all, only under our protection can they survive better!" Logistics Officer Zhao Yi saw it more clearly!

Everyone looked at Long Yufei, waiting for his decision. After all, such a major decision had to be made by him!

In essence, Long Yufei was still a tech geek and didn't understand human relations very well. He was very dissatisfied with Liu Mingde's cunning behavior. However, he wasn't stupid. The two thousand people of Balan Village and their many able-bodied men were exactly what the Flying Fish Company needed. Absorbing Balan Village into the Flying Fish Company would greatly help to expand the company's strength.

"Grandpa Wu, we are new here and don't know much about the Chinese forces on Mindanao Island. What is your opinion on this matter?" Long Yufei asked.

"Deputy Commander, Liu Mingde's actions today were indeed inappropriate. However, I believe we should agree to Balan Village joining the Flying Fish Company. Balan Village is one of the largest Chinese villages in northern Mindanao and has a significant influence among the Chinese. If Balan Village joins us, it will have a great示范作用. At that time, it will be easier for us to integrate the Chinese forces on Mindanao Island!" Wu Yongxing said.

Long Yufei nodded, agreeing with Wu Yongxing's view.

"However, how should we arrange for Liu Mingde? Balan Village is a large Chinese village, and given his influence among the Chinese, we can't leave him without any position!" Civil Affairs Officer Li Decheng said.

"Let's do this! I can give my position as Deputy Civil Affairs Officer to Liu Mingde. He should be satisfied with this position!" Wu Yongxing offered voluntarily.

Wu Yongxing's willingness to give up his position greatly pleased Long Yufei, and he looked at him with even more respect.

Long Yufei thought for a moment and then said, "Let's do this! Liu Mingde will serve as Deputy Civil Affairs Officer. As for Grandpa Wu, he will serve as the mayor of Flying Fish City! After Flying Fish City is established, it will become the center of the Chinese on Mindanao Island, forming a city of our own. Having Grandpa Wu as the mayor will help manage the city better!"

"Deputy Commander, please rest assured. I will do my utmost to serve!" Wu Yongxing immediately said. Originally, he was a bit disappointed when Long Yufei agreed to have Liu Mingde serve as Deputy Civil Affairs Officer, but he never expected to become the mayor of Flying Fish City. Although Flying Fish City had not yet been established, he believed that with more Chinese gathering here, Flying Fish City would surely develop. At that time, he would become a significant figure in the Flying Fish Company. Although the Flying Fish Company had the name of a company, in Wu Yongxing's view, it was just a facade. In reality, the company's actions and development plans were no different from those of a small country. Once the Flying Fish Company developed, they, the founding members, would all be meritorious officials!

That evening, Long Yufei met with Liu Mingde and his grandson, indicating that the Flying Fish Company was willing to absorb Balan Village and appointing Liu Mingde as Deputy Civil Affairs Officer. This position greatly satisfied Liu Mingde, as his previous attitude had made the Flying Fish Company very unhappy. Now, being able to勉强跻身飞鱼公司的高层, was already very不错了. His grandson Liu Wu would also serve as the captain of an infantry company in the Flying Fish Army, showing the company's high regard for them.

The battle between the Flying Fish Army and the Mangabang tribe had a profound impact on the entire Mindanao Island. Countless Chinese forces, hearing of the rise of such a powerful force, sent envoys to seek cooperation, hoping to join the Flying Fish Company. The native tribes of Mindanao were also greatly shocked. The Mangabang tribe was one of the three most powerful tribes on Mindanao Island, which made them fear the strength of the Flying Fish Company!

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Note: The last part of the text contains some repeated and incomplete sentences. I have translated the coherent parts and omitted the redundant or unclear sections.