"Today's lesson is about attack and defense. As usual, you can ask questions first." Master Duan stood in front of the lesson, leaning on his stick, and said in a loud voice.
In the past ten days, Zhizhi Hall has held four classes every day, with each class lasting an hour. The four classes every day are: military, martial arts, political education, and moral education. This is the second quarter of the morning, when Confucius is teaching. Xue Ning grew up in a family of civil servants and had never been involved in martial arts. These days, Xue Ning was always the first to ask a question. It was like this again. He stood up and asked, "Master, how many troops are there to attack? How to defend it?" How much more geometry?”
Duanfuzi seemed to have expected it. He took a look at him and said, "Dahua has armaments. The attacking soldiers include spears, halberds, knives, axes, bows, crossbows, trebuchets, kerosene canisters, crash carts, ram carts, and ladders." , the six weapons of the siege tower, all 12. The defenders include six weapons: iron caltrops, thorns, hooks, wolf fangs, curtains, shields, antler wood, carbine guns, fishing bridges, gate blocks, door jambs and carts, There are six bladed chariots, six things including a horse pit, a moat, a moat, a sheep and horse wall, a crossbow platform, and a white dew house."
"Master, in time of war, how should we attack?" Xue Ning asked again.
"In attacking the former, the primary purpose is to strengthen the army and boost morale. This is to try to injure the enemy without damaging yourself. You should use trebuchets, spears, and crossbows to attack from a long distance and fire quickly. When the enemy and our armies are close to each other, then attack again. Use bows and arrows to shoot in front of the enemy in order to kill as many as possible. When the enemy and we are engaged, the opportunity to fight is fleeting, so kill the enemy quickly. You can first use spears and halberds to poke, pick, stab, and tease in front, and then use knives and axes to chop and chop. , cut, cut at the back.”
"Master, why is the spear and halberd in front and the sword and ax in the back?" Mei Yuanchen asked in doubt.
"The wounds of spears and halberds lie in the depth. If they are injured by them, they will bleed continuously and lose the strength to fight again. In severe cases, their organs will be shattered and they will die on the spot. The wounds of swords and axes will be horizontal and long. It will be difficult to kill the enemy with one blow. If they are injured by them, Those who are injured often still have the strength to fight again. Since the purpose is to kill the enemy, naturally the spear and halberd are in front and the sword and ax are behind." Duanfuzi explained.
"Since spears and halberds are more lethal than swords and axes, why should they be used with swords and axes?" Liu Shiru was confused after hearing this and asked in confusion.
"There are no absolutes in the use of weapons. Spears and halberds are powerful in killing, but they also have their shortcomings: the sharp point is at the tip of the spear, which makes it easy to defend; when attacking again at close range, the return of the spear is slower and it is easier for the enemy to attack. Although swords and axes are slightly less lethal, The blade is long, so it can chop at will when the enemy is in large numbers, and it is very fast. And once the enemy's armored soldiers build up a shield wall, it is difficult for spears and halberds to break through the defense, but heavy ax blows can break through their defenses." Duanfuzi glanced at the crowd and replied.
"Master, if the defense line is broken in this way, the back city will not be in danger?" Hu Huiming asked curiously.
"The complexity of defense is far from that simple. The purpose of defense lies not in victory, but in invincibility." Duanfuzi said, "When the enemy attacks, it will be fierce. The first thing is to block its offensive. Therefore, we should respond to the enemy with short troops. In the past, iron caltrops were often set up along the enemy's path to injure the soles of horses' feet and the feet of soldiers. This would slow down the enemy's attack. However, the iron caltrops should be set up in an irregular manner so that the enemy cannot be completely eliminated. There are concerns; after the iron caltrops, you can place antler wood. There are hooks on the antler wood and its body is soaked in oil. The enemy will stop at this point and try to remove obstacles. At this time, troops often gather together, and it is the defender's crossbows. It's a good time to shoot an arrow with your hand. The antler wood has been soaked in tung oil. Light the arrow and shoot it. The antler wood will become a fire, and the fire will become a sea of fire. How can the enemy's offensive be sustained? Behind the antler wood, you can set up iron Caltrops, the enemy has just passed through the sea of fire, and most of their thoughts are not on their feet. How can they avoid it while marching? If there are many enemy cavalry, they can set up horse traps behind antler trees and iron caltrops. The purpose of cavalry is to fight quickly. You must be quick and set up a horse pit at this time. If the horse is too fast and falls into the pit, it will be killed by a hidden knife. If you block the enemy's offensive four or five times in this way, the enemy's men and horses will be injured when they come, and they will be tired when they come. The third is that the marching formation will be dispersed, and the fourth is that the soldiers must have fear in their hearts. For the injured, tired, and fearful enemy, the forward troops should be used to respond to the enemy. Crossbows can be fired within fifty feet, and crossbows can be fired after twenty feet. Bow, and then kill and injure the enemy. If the enemy is too far away to attack, the armored soldiers on the front line should quickly set up a shield wall. When the enemy comes, stab the enemy with spears and halberds in the slit. If the enemy breaks through the defense of the armored soldiers again, the two armies will In a close-quarters battle, the brave and the strong will win, and the cowardly and weak will lose." After Duanfuzi said this, he went to see everyone's reaction and saw everyone's expressions of surprise.
"Master, since there are so many ways to resist the enemy, it is really unsustainable to advance!" Xia Chengxuan murmured, "I am afraid that the enemy will not be several times larger than the enemy, so we dare not attack the city!"
Master Duan said slowly, "Since ancient times, attacking a city has always been a difficult task in military affairs. There are 10,000 troops defending the city, but there are no 100,000 troops attacking the city. It is extremely difficult to break through the city. Therefore, good defense has been done since ancient times. There are always generals, but it is difficult for them to leave their names for future generations. Often those who leave their names are generals who have already established themselves in attacking cities, which is why it is ten times more difficult to attack a city than to defend it."
"Students have learned a lesson!" Xia Chengxuan stood up and thanked him.
Just listen to the Master say again, "What are the ways to resist the enemy? The most intense time in the battle is the time to attack the city. This is because this is the decisive battle between the offensive and defensive sides. There is no way to retreat, and the attack must be If you are fierce, your rules must be strong." While everyone was still thinking about it, they heard the most exciting part of what the master was going to say. At that moment, everyone stood up and looked at the case with ardent eyes.
"There are three ways to get down to the city: climb the wall, attack the gate, and dig tunnels to enter. Before attacking the city, you should use trebuchets to throw huge rocks and pour kerosene on the city to disrupt the enemy's defense and kill the defenders. Then use ladders and attack the city. The tower leads the troops up. The siege tower consists of a tower body and a sloping ladder. The tower body is made of nanmu heated over a fire and then wrapped in rhinoceros skin. It is about five feet high and one foot wide. It is divided into three floors and is carried by four axles and eight wheels. , manpower pushes behind. Once the tower is close to the city wall, the siege soldiers go straight to the top from the inclined ladder behind the tower, put down the bridge, and enter the city wall through the bridge. The lower middle layer is used for cover. It is hollow and can store dozens of soldiers. , there is a gap. When the soldiers on the top layer attack the city, the defenders must block it. The soldiers on the middle layer of the siege tower attack them in the gap to cover the upper troops climbing the wall. There are heavy objects built into the lower layer to prevent the tower from falling. Its overall structure This is the picture." After saying that, he took a scroll from the case and threw it to Xia Chenghuan.
Everyone left their seats and gathered towards Xia Chenghuan. Xia Chenghuan carefully opened the scroll and saw that there was something complicated and mighty in the scroll. There were hundreds of explanations on the left and right sides, and there was a stamp of the Ministry of Industry on the lower right. In the middle of the scroll, there are five characters in a big book: Duanshi Siege Tower.
Everyone looked at the illustrations carefully and compared them with the pictures. They gradually realized how extraordinary this was, and a huge thing slowly took shape in their minds. After Huangfu Tianzong read it for a long time, he said, "With this magical weapon, why worry about the generals not being able to conquer the city?"
