Ba asserted that he would not take orders from Americans. He also argued that sending the 13 M113 armored personnel carriers through the Cong Ba Ky Canal would enable the VC to retreat because it might take too much time. An argument broke out between Vann and Ba. Finally, Vann radioed Ziegler at the command post at Tan Hiep and told him to ask the commander of the ARVN 7th Infantry Division to order Ba to move toward Ap Bac immediately. Shortly afterwards, Ziegler returned with Dam's permission, and Ba was ordered to move his M113 carriers in the direction of the white smoke that was rising from the burning hamlet. The American advisers were quietly confident that Ba's M113s could turn the tide of battle; on previous occasions, VC fighters often fled from the battlefield as soon as M113 armored personnel carriers turned up. However, in contrast to previous engagements, VC commander Hoang had ordered the soldiers of the 261st and 514th Battalions to throw everything they had at the South Vietnamese, as retreat through the muddy rice fields would result in certain death.