Liu Chengzong himself never thought that it would be so easy to enter Guanzhong.
When he was in Qinghai, he had already secretly thought about the situation of entering Guanzhong ten thousand times, but it turns out that people's imagination is still too lacking.
His army was divided into six groups and walked through the barren mountains with almost no obstructions. The garrisons encountered by each group thought that he was about to engage in a battle and defended themselves. As a result, the six groups of soldiers and horses came out of Qingshui County so easily. Panling Pass.
The dangerous Liupan Mountain can be passed in just a day.
This is a very bizarre thing, because with the state of the Marshal's army on the mountain, there is no need for the Ming army to do anything. As long as someone comes nearby, they can cause enough trouble to Liu Chengzong.
But not at all.
Because Liu Shizi found that he was leading the army this time. He obviously felt that it was not smooth enough when marching, dispatching, and commanding. He had only marched more than 600 miles and was in trouble.
He knew what the problem was. The problem was that the brigade commander was looking after the house and setting up the defense line. He led two brigades and ten battalions by himself, a total of fourteen battalions. Although old brothers and surrendered soldiers and generals, they were all direct descendants now. , it was not difficult for him to lead the troops.
But with the endless problems that cropped up during the march, even though he was very energetic and a high-ranking figure in the platoon, with two brigade commanders and ten generals reporting on their work twice a day, his head was filled with problems to consider and solve.
Mental fatigue is only secondary. The main reason is that the command hierarchy is too flat, which brings many unnecessary burdens and risks to the army. Not to mention that if you have too many things to worry about, you will inevitably miss them. The problems in the army when walking to Guanshan Grassland and crossing Liupan Mountain It was revealed.
The road from Qingshui County to Panling Pass is a mountainous road, and it is particularly difficult to walk with twists and turns. More than a dozen battalions were divided into six routes. When they arrived in Qingshui County and wanted to cross Liupan Mountain, they had to merge. Originally, some should arrive first, some should arrive last, and some should arrive later. After crossing the mountains, there was a mistake in the arrangement. Six battalions were crowded on the mountain road where soldiers and horses could not move, and the way was blocked by baggage. The army behind them could not pass, and the army in front could not go.
After half a day of congestion, more than 40,000 troops had gathered to the west of Panling Pass, leading horses and mules to transport supplies on the mountains. The scene was spectacular.
The trouble caused by the large number of people increases exponentially, because the number of wells, firewood, horse grass and other things that can be seen everywhere on the land is limited. Once the number of soldiers and horses passing through a place in a short period of time exceeds the limit of the land, the soldiers will have to work hard in their daily work. The time spent increases exponentially.
Firewood that can be collected nearby has to be found five or six miles away, and the water from the well is not enough to distribute, so the time to start a meal will be delayed. After everything is done, it is time to eat the next meal. It was getting dark, and we walked fifteen miles on the last day.
The stalls in the Marshal's Mansion are too big and too shabby, and only a few people can take the lead.
The eldest brother has gone to Tianshan, Cao Yao is now in Gansu and conquering Ningxia, Basang is stationed in Golmud, Xiaotuitang, Yang Yao is looking at his hometown in Hehuang, and Wang Wenxiu is stationed in Lanzhou to prepare for any eventuality.
Speaking of which, he had quite a few brigade commanders, and there were three of them beside him. One was Xie Erhu from the Mongolian Brigade, and the other was Shi Xiang from the Lintao Brigade. However, both of them were characters who could only command their own troops.
There is also Zhang Xianzhong, the Minister of Rites.
As soon as he said it, at Panling Pass in the northwest of Longzhou, Liu Chengzong was looking at the formation map, and Zhang Xianzhong entered the curtain and said: "Commander, there is a fight in the west. The Zuo Manzi sent a team of cavalry to pursue Zhang Yichuan. Mines It was buried too loosely and was pushed out for twenty miles. As a result, the horse soldiers stepped on a mine when they retreated, and rockets were fired on the mountain. I heard from the soldiers in the pond that the explosion was very lively."
Hearing that Zuo Liangyu was defeated, Zhang Xianzhong's yellow face was filled with uncontrollable joy: "This bastard has his day, but it's a pity that he was too coward and did not personally lead the army to blow him up!"
"There is no need to blow him up. As long as we can scare him for two days, let us climb over Liupan Mountain and attack Baoji to block him from the front and back. There will be nowhere to run."
"Commander, my humble suggestion is that if that doesn't work, we should call Brigadier Wang over. Anyway, the army is blocked on the mountain. I guess we haven't reached Baoji yet if he comes." Zhang Xianzhong said: "If this continues, there will be trouble."
Liu Chengzong glanced at Zhang Xianzhong and said to himself that it was because you, the Minister of Rites, did not do your job well enough and lacked prestige.
Originally, he wanted to take this opportunity to ask Zhang Xianzhong to help him command three small battalions in Gansu. Anyway, he had the official position of brigade commander of the Western Brigade, so he didn't need to use it in vain.
Unexpectedly, the Eighth Prince's prestige and qualifications in the Commander's Mansion were too low. It would be no problem for him to lead his Xiying brothers who still had about a thousand people. He would assign other generals to his command, and no one would be able to do so. willing.
The only one in the Gansu Third Battalion who had no objections to this decision was Ganzhou General Zhang Zhen...Zhang Zhen himself was a general without much ambition. If Zhao Fuqian hadn't been involved in assassinating the Imperial Preceptor Khan, he would have Thanks to my own hard work, I'm sure I haven't become a general yet.
He was afraid that if Liu Chengzong was directly under his command, he would be sent to take the leading role. After all, he was a subordinate among the many generals in the Marshal's Mansion. He did not seek merit but sought failure...but he wanted to make smaller mistakes when he did.
But his worries are completely unnecessary. He only knows himself and doesn't know the other side. Don't Mr. Liu know what role you are? Leave Zhang Tianlin and Gao Yingdeng alone and let you take the lead? over thinking!
The remaining two are different. Ding Guodong and Mi Laoyin, who always obey orders, are not happy.
That Mi Layin was a thief. After Liu Shizi surrendered, he followed him to Gaotai City. He was still carrying the Ming army helmet tassel in his arms.
But for such a person who could hide things in his heart, when Liu Chengzong asked him what he thought about being assigned to Zhang Xianzhong, the corners of his mouth drooped, and he became more than happy and angry.
He was extremely aggrieved and said: "Commander, our brothers from Gansu fought with their lives and sacrificed their lives, how come they fell into the trap of being a member of the Ministry of Rites and Foreign Affairs?"
When Liu Chengzong heard this, he thought, forget it, it seems that the only one who has the temptation of the Marshal's Mansion to these two old Ming army generals is himself.
They fight with their lives, just to follow him, not to mention being a follower of the dragon, at least to stand out and have a lot of room for advancement.
I was assigned to Zhang Xianzhong, but I was not convinced or convinced. Anyway, I probably felt that the commander was trying to marginalize me. Maybe I would have the idea of recruiting him anyway when I got to Baoji.
The problem is that both Mi Laoyin and Ding Guodong have this idea. As for Liu Chengzong's group of arrogant and powerful generals, Zhang Tianlin, Wei Qian'er, Gao Yingdeng, Luo Rucai, and Li Wanqing, all of them are Liu's boss, Tian's second, and grandfather in the world. Three characters, can they convince Zhang Xianzhong?
This group of demons and ghosts did not even regard Zhang Xianzhong, the Minister of Rites, as an important member of the Marshal's Office, but only regarded him as the mascot of the Duntavulus Khanate.
Each of them felt that they could defeat the Eight Kings.
However, Tianxing Zhang Tianlin even shyly came to Liu Chengzong at the beginning of the war, hoping to have the Minister of Rites come to his camp to have fun during the war.
How glorious it is to lead a war with the Minister of Rites!
"I have sent people there. If Hehuang can't defend it anymore, let Brigadier Yang guard the second line of defense - this is a natural hazard."
Liu Chengzong shook his head as he spoke. He really didn't expect that the soldiers and horses would collide. The road was really too narrow and too few, but it was unnecessary to separate the troops for marching through Pingliang. It was good for him to open the battlefield in Guanzhong.
Seeing that Liu Chengzong had made arrangements, Zhang Xianzhong said no more. Then he saw the formation map on Liu Chengzong's desk and asked, "Commander, what is this?"
"Changshan Snake Formation."
Liu Chengzong said: "Liupan Mountain is difficult to cross. We are blocked here. We are worried about encountering danger, so we have arranged the military camp like this."
As he said this, he glanced at Zhang Xianzhong in confusion, thinking that you don't even know someone who leads troops in war?
Then I couldn't help but feel relieved. The Changshan Snake Formation was not a long snake formation of columns, but a strategic arrangement that facilitated the rapid gathering of troops in all directions.
This name comes from the ancient legend of Changshan Snake. The snake's name is Sui Ran. It has two heads. If one head is touched, the other head will bite and help each other. Sun Wuzi used it as a metaphor for people who are good at using soldiers in the Art of War.
The so-called attack is from the beginning to the end, the attack from the end is from the beginning, and the attack is from the beginning to the end.
However, the number of troops led by Zhang Xianzhong has always ranged from seven to eight hundred to three to five thousand. At this scale, there is no need to consider the rapid assembly of troops. With just a few people in total, there is no need to divide the head and tail.
"Changshan Snake, I think I've heard of you recruiting scholars to read military books."
Zhang Xianzhong nodded in sudden realization, but then asked again: "Commander, what do these winds and clouds mean? The scholar didn't know before, so he could only follow the text. After he read it, I was confused and didn't understand anything."
"Ha ha!"
Liu Chengzong became happy after hearing this and said with a smile: "It's not the wind and cloud, it's the wind and cloud of heaven and earth. Dragons, tigers, birds and snakes come from the eight formations. It's normal for you not to know. Not knowing does not affect the leadership of the troops in the war."
"You can understand these things once you are taught them, but if you don't teach them, you may never know them; people who don't lead soldiers don't know what they are called, and people who don't study don't know what it means... I am a scholar leading soldiers, want to know? I will teach you .”
Zhang Xianzhong was very curious about knowledge. Liu Shizi just said it casually, but Zhang Xianzhong knelt down and kowtowed: "Please teach me, Commander!"
Liu Chengzong felt embarrassed all of a sudden, and hurriedly helped him up and said: "Please get up quickly, this is not a very important or difficult thing."
In fact, all leaders of the peasant army, as long as they consciously kidnap scholars in mobile operations and are willing and able to spare time to study, will definitely achieve great things if they do not die.
This is of course not because they are proficient in kidnapping, or that they can really learn knowledge of great significance, but it means that this person has extremely strong control over himself.
"The earliest formation was the Eight Formation. According to legend, it was set up by Feng Hou, a subordinate of the Yellow Emperor. It was at that time that the wind and clouds of heaven and earth, dragons, tigers, birds, and snakes appeared. In fact, it was a code name for the team name. You can change it to A, B, C, D, or one or two. Three or four, or the popular front, back, left, center, and right, are all fine.”
Zhang Xianzhong was stunned: "Ah?"
That's it?
It's that simple?
Then my knocking on the head is not in vain?
Seeing his astonishment, Liu Chengzong couldn't help but smile: "It was that simple at that time. The so-called eight formations were eight vertical and eight horizontal square formations. If it was small, it would only take nine people; if it was large, it would be sixty-four military formations."
As he spoke, Liu Shishi drew a nine-square grid on the table: "This is the eight formations, because eight formations are used, but there are actually nine. The ninth one is in the middle, which is zero. The general controls it in the center, so it is also called holding." Strange formation.”
"The eight formations are four upright and four odd. The four are green dragon on the left, white tiger on the right, red bird on the front, and Xuanwu on the back, which are dragons, tigers, birds, and snakes; the four dimensions and four corners are the wind and clouds of the heaven and earth, which are no different from one, two, three, and four. They are in all directions, no matter which side When enemies come, they always defeat them with the right combination and surprise."
"It turns out to be a team banner, so since it's just a title." Zhang Xianzhong was still a little dissatisfied with this. This answer made him bang his head too much. He still felt that Liu Shishi was hiding his clumsiness and asked: "Commander, I heard Besides the four beasts, there is Bagua, what is that?”
"Attached."
Liu Chengzong laughed: "I have already told you the origin of the name of the Eight Formations. It has nothing to do with the Eight Diagrams. Even in the Tang Dynasty, its name was the Nine Army Eight Formations, not the Nine Palaces and Eight Diagrams Formation. The so-called Eight Diagrams is just a far-fetched idea for future generations. That's all, otherwise what does the battlefield have to do with us? The most capable generals should be those who tell fortunes and read graves."
Hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong was also happy. It turned out that it was not that these military formations were too difficult, but because the terms attached were used as a cover-up, making people unable to understand them at all.
On the contrary, with Liu Shishi's explanation, Zhang Xianzhong could easily see the difference between the ancient Nine Army Eight Formation and the modern Five Formation.
The Eighth Formation of the Ninth Army consisted of three formations on each side, defending in all directions; the three-talent formation commonly used by the Ming Army today is for the rangers to cover in front, the vanguard to strike first, the jumping team to break in immediately, and the troops to support or outflank the formation.
The shape of the large array diagram has changed, but in the final analysis, the ideas are the same.
"The ancients are also human beings, and their words cannot be fully trusted, because not everyone in the ancients understood the art of war. Most of the formation diagrams handed down today were made by future generations under the pretense of the sages. Even if they are truly ancient formation diagrams, they must have undergone modifications."
"For example, up to now, I have seen not fifty but thirty formation diagrams. They all say that they are ancient formation diagrams, but most of them have cavalry. Where could there be cavalry in ancient times? What's even more outrageous is that the name is Huangdi Hold Strange picture, the paper looks quite old, but there are not only rangers but also artillery and musketry in it, is this reasonable?"
Liu Chengzong laughed again as he spoke, but it was a pity that Lao Zhang couldn't catch his laughter at all.
Because Zhang Xianzhong was not a scholar, he had neither read the Four Books or Five Classics, nor had he the opportunity to borrow the gentry’s collection of books or anthologies and notes. His understanding of history was very limited, and his knowledge mainly came from drama.
He started studying culture seriously, but he actually started after he raised the army. Even though he has been learning from others, the things in his mind are still very limited.
He didn’t think it was unreasonable for the Yellow Emperor’s army to have cavalry in front, an artillery array in the back, and a musketry unit in the middle. The Yellow Emperor’s soldiers pushed Fran cannons and bombarded Chiyou indiscriminately. To him, , very reasonable.
He still feels that the biggest reason for the demise of the Shu Kingdom in the Three Kingdoms was that Zhuge Liang was too obsessed with individual weapons and asked Pu Yuan to go to Xiegu to forge three thousand swords.
Ten Franco cannons were cast, and Qishan still used them six times?
Liu Chengzong saw that Zhang Xianzhong was confused by his words, and then he realized that although his Minister of Rites was not illiterate, he had limited knowledge of ancient things and could not talk to each other at all.
Fortunately, the two did not remain silent for too long, and someone soon broke the awkwardness.
After reporting the report, Ma Xiang, the leader of Tangqi, rushed to the tent and saluted: "Commander, the movement of our army has been known to the enemy. The enemy Tangjiuzhou Division in the north is moving south quickly. Calculating their distance, they can reach Longzhou City tonight. !”
Liu Chengzong was not surprised but overjoyed when he heard this. He took a look at the map, raised his hand and tapped twice on the table: "The person who fills Deng Qi's position is here. Let's eat him first, and then surround Zuo Liangyu!" (End of chapter)
