"The fighting method of slaves and thieves is to put dead soldiers in front and sharp soldiers behind."
"The dead soldiers wear heavy armor and ride on two horses. They charge forward. Although the front is dead, the back is forward again. No one dares to retreat. If he retreats, sharp soldiers will kill him from behind."
"Wait for it to rush into our formation, and then the sharp soldiers will take advantage of it. Follow the example of Aguda and Wushu."
"It's different from the elite troops of the northern tribes in the front and the old and weak in the back. This is definitely not something I can defeat with my bows and arrows. Only firearms and chariots can defeat them."
Chen Wang immediately stood on the high slope, and he had a panoramic view of every move of the Qing army.
Cao Wenzhao once told him about the Qing army's tactics. He had also fought close to the Qing army on the battlefield. He was very familiar with the Qing army's tactics.
It's just that he used to be a soldier in the military formation, but now he is a general commanding the army.
The Qing army in front of them seemed to have changed their tactics according to the situation. Most of the people standing on the front line were followers and auxiliaries of the army. The dead soldiers wearing heavy armor lined up in the second echelon, holding bows and arrows, ready to go. The sharp soldiers are in the third echelon.
The Qing army's array was originally very long, but after four rounds of shelling, several Qing army shield vehicles were destroyed, so the length of the array also became smaller.
More than twenty huge shield vehicles were arranged together, almost forming a line. The shield vehicles of the Qing army were extremely wide, as huge as the siege tanks of later generations. Only one shield vehicle could cover more than thirty or forty people.
In the gap between the vehicles, there are a large number of Qing soldiers holding shields, followed by many dead soldiers holding swords and shields, and further behind, a group of sharp soldiers holding bows and arrows are all preparing for the attack. Ready to go.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!!"
The sound of war drums in the Qing army's array was reverberating violently.
The sense of superiority and self-confidence formed by years of victories allowed the Qing army to regain morale.
Amidst the fierce sound of war drums, a group of armored soldiers of the Qing army were moving forward quickly, overcoming the pressure and approaching within 90 steps.
At a distance of ninety steps, the flags and armors were clearly visible between the two sides.
Zhou Changshou stood in the front row, holding a cannon on his shoulder and looking ahead.
There was no obstruction in front of him, and he could clearly see the waves of Qing soldiers coming.
His heartbeat was very fast and urgent, so fast that he could hear his own heartbeat clearly.
The north wind was blowing fiercely, and the shouts and orders in the Qing army's formation were blown by the north wind. Zhou Changshou heard all this clearly.
The Qing army spoke Manchu. Zhou Changshou had never heard of Manchu. Naturally, he did not know the meaning of the Manchu that kept ringing in his ears.
But you don’t need to know the meaning. Some words can be known whether they are good or bad just by hearing the tone.
It would be a lie to say that I am not afraid. Even though I have been in countless battles, I still can't help but feel fear in my heart every time I go into battle.
If the jar is broken without leaving the well, the general will inevitably die before the battle. The situation on the battlefield changes rapidly, and no one dares to guarantee with a 100% guarantee that he will be able to walk off the battlefield alive.
As long as a normal person fights with cold weapons, even if he fights a hundred times, he will still be afraid on the 101st time.
Military training is not only about teaching people how to fight, but more importantly, it is about teaching people how to overcome the fears in human nature.
Zhou Changshou did not turn his head, but looked sideways slightly.
Beside him were countless comrades wearing the same military uniforms as him, wearing the same bright helmets on their heads, and carrying the same blazing guns on their shoulders.
"When we unite as one, the mountains can be shaken..."
For some reason, Zhou Changshou remembered the song that had been sung in the army.
The fear slowly receded, and his mind gradually became clearer.
"Thousands of people line up in a majestic formation. The brave will not be allowed to go first, and the timid will not be left behind."
“Though there are thousands of armies, they are only like one man.”
"In this way, you can be invincible in the world!"
It wasn't until this moment that Zhou Changshou understood what Chen Wang had said at the school.
"Although there are thousands of armies, they are only like one person..."
"boom!!"
The Chinese army's cannon fired, interrupting Zhou Changshou's thoughts.
Zhou Changshou's heart trembled, and he subconsciously tightened the sword in his hand.
The Qianzong flags of the Qianzong headquarters on both wings of the Hanzhong Army's front line were already moving in response.
"Prepare for salvo!!"
The captains of each firearms flag raised their Yanling knives high and roared loudly.
Huang Hu's familiar voice came from the right rear of Zhou Changshou, which also made Zhou Changshou's mood more stable.
"Tiger!"
Zhou Changshou responded to the order, half-crouched down, and at the same time laid down the sworn gun on his shoulder.
Along with roaring, there were also a group of soldiers standing with him, and countless sworn guns were put down almost at the same time.
The chorus of shouts dispelled the last remaining fear in Zhou Changshou's heart.
He knew that next to him was his robe. They were shoulder to shoulder, wearing the same military uniform as him, holding the same weapon, and wearing the same helmet, standing beside and behind him.
The sound of "tiger" seemed to have a magical power, and even his wildly beating heart slowly calmed down.
Everything told him that he was not alone!
In the code of conduct, the trumpet is sounded before the battle, and the word "tiger" is shouted three times.
The gun soldiers lined up in the first and second rows to shoot from a crouching position, and the third and fourth rows from a standing position to shoot.
When the command is given to prepare for a salvo, the gunners in the first and second rows need to squat in response to the command.
They had rehearsed this military order countless times. After the trumpet sounded and the flag commander of each team issued the military order, no one made a mistake.
The gunners in the first and second rows all squatted down together, and the entire front line of the Hanzhong Army was instantly shorter.
"Tiger!"
The trumpets of the Chinese army sounded again, and the soldiers in the front line of the Hanzhong army shouted in unison again.
More than a thousand gunmen from the two divisions and four divisions in the front line have completed their formation changes. On the front line, which is more than a hundred steps long, four rows of gunmen stand staggered.
The gun soldiers in the first and second rows shoot from a crouching position, and the gun soldiers in the third and fourth rows shoot from a standing position.
The musketeers in the back row stretched out their sea-sworn muskets from the small gap in the front row, and more than a thousand flintlock rifles were leveled, pointing at the swarming Qing troops on the opposite side.
Further back, a group of soldiers wearing bright helmets and armor and holding hard bows have completed their assembly, holding heavy bows and ready to go.
Chen Gong wears a red robe, fish scale silver armor, a red tasseled iron helmet, and stands beside the queue holding a clear bow.
Sun Chuanting dispatched troops to fill the gaps in the two wings. Naturally, Chen Gong did not need to lead the cavalry to continue to support him.
The Qing army attacked in a large scale, and with only more than 2,000 infantry on the front, it was naturally a bit weak.
Therefore, Chen Wang directly ordered Chen Gong to lead thousands of headquarters cavalry to dismount and fight on foot as backup.
During the counterinsurgency in the pass, Chen Wang had already begun to change his tactics.
The more than a thousand cavalrymen under his command have always been used as heavy infantry.
Wearing three layers of heavy armor, carrying a tiger spear, a steel knife, carrying a blunt weapon, firing a heavy bow and using heavy arrows, it was completely based on the standards of the white-armored soldiers in the Qing army.
The armors they wear are basically new ones produced by the Hanzhong Guard Ordnance Bureau, and some have been maintained and refurbished to ensure quality and have excellent protection.
Chen Wang has always held the highest requirements for the cavalry under his command, and the cavalry used on them is almost five times more than the same number of ordinary soldiers.
…
The heads of the Qing army were shaking, and the water-polished armor and helmets reflected a strange bloody light under the setting sun, making them look extremely terrifying.
Within ninety steps, Erhe had already taken out the arrow and was ready to go.
The fastest skirmishers in front were already approaching a distance of more than 60 steps. They either drew their bows and set arrows, or set off muskets, and fired continuously at the Ming army's formation, trying to induce the Ming army to release muskets in advance. .
At a distance of sixty or seventy steps, the Ming army's bird cannons and three-eyed cannons didn't have much ability to break armor, and they didn't have much to worry about their lives.
Many times their actions like this were successful. When the Ming army gunmen fired their guns early due to panic, the drums of the Chinese army would sound.
Then the large formation at the rear got close to a distance of seventy or eighty steps and began to launch.
Although the damage caused by the light arrows used at this distance is limited, they can disrupt the Ming army's array and shake the Ming army's formation.
When the Ming army's formation is in chaos, they can then take the opportunity to advance to a distance of thirty or forty steps, and use strong bows and heavy arrows to shoot quickly and levelly, which can destroy the fighting will of the remaining Ming army in an instant.
Usually by this time, most of the Ming army would have collapsed and started to flee.
Even if the elite of the Ming army did not collapse for a while, their morale must have fallen to the bottom.
At that time, they only need to rush forward to suppress the Ming army in momentum, and then defeat the Ming army's military formation. By then, those Ming army will become a share of military merit and property for them to take whatever they want.
But this time, the Ming army's front line was silent, and no gunmen were tempted to fire.
Erhe's heart trembled slightly, and he subconsciously recalled the bloody battle that took place on the bank of the Hun River more than ten years ago.
The same goes for those Zhejiang soldiers... they waited until they got close before starting to shoot.
Those Zhejiang soldiers relied on the car camp and fired at them without fear at a distance of thirty steps. Countless bullets flew at high speed, building a death zone that was dozens of steps long in front of their car camp, making it impossible for them to advance. .
Erhe tightened his grip on the bow in his hand, feeling even more chilled in his heart.
In the battle of Hunhe, the Zhejiang soldiers fought until they ran out of ammunition and food, and then they fought hand-to-hand with them until dark, before they finally completely defeated them.
The sound of the Ming army's trumpets came from ahead, and Erhe's heartstrings tightened for a moment.
Erhe's expression suddenly changed, and he couldn't help but freeze in mid-air while clasping the bowstring.
Because the trumpet sound that suddenly sounded was the same trumpet sound that he heard on the bank of the Hun River!
Erhe stared ahead, his eyes full of fear. The Ming army formation in front of him suddenly turned around. The soldiers in the front row seemed to squat down, and the entire formation suddenly dwarfed.
The Ming army's formation changed so quickly that it far exceeded Erhe's expectations.
When Erhe reacted again, what came into view were rows and rows of black gun muzzles.
And the place where those guns are pointing is exactly where they are!
(End of chapter)
