Chapter 7: It¡¯s just a matter of time to pass the level
The Zhou army opened camp and marched out. The standard formations showed that they were well-trained. The flags of various colors were the symbols of the generals above the captain. Each square formation had a maximum of 3,000 people and a minimum of 500 people. Among them, veterans accounted for six About 40% of the troops are new soldiers, and 40% are new recruits. This configuration is due to the recruitment of new recruits after some veterans who have served for ten years retired. e^Look at winning phone bills,
The soldiers of the Zhou army have good welfare, good food, and a lot of meritorious service. Not only can they get land, but their military pay is also very high. Not counting the highest military pay during war, the normal military pay is enough for the most ordinary soldier. To support a large family, let alone soldiers who have won medals in various battles. Even if this soldier is just the lowest soldier, as long as he has the lowest battle medal, he does not need to salute even if he sees the county magistrate. []
Various incentive systems for joining the army attracted men from all walks of life who were determined to make a living with their bravery. Therefore, when Li Zuoguo ascended the throne, the first large-scale military retirement was carried out, but the replenishment of troops was unusually smooth, leaving a vacancy. It took almost ten people to fight.
The current standing army of the Great Zhou Dynasty exceeds one million, but this is a special phenomenon when dynasties change. There are about 600,000 soldiers in the reserve. Li Zuoguo's final plan is to set up a standing army of 600,000. The reserve will remain the same as the standing army. When encountering a battle that requires nationwide mobilization, it can immediately turn into an army of 1.2 million. Looking at the surrounding areas, there are few countries that are truly capable of launching an attack with 100,000 troops against the Great Zhou. But for a powerful empire, force is always a guarantee. The only way to be strong is that Li Zuoguo's emphasis on the army was matched by every emperor in history.
After signing up to join the Great Zhou Army and passing all physical, age and family qualifications, you will only enter the reserve force, that is, auxiliary soldiers at all levels. When there is no war, the auxiliary soldiers will undergo high-intensity training and then undergo various studies, including literacy. , when there is a war, the auxiliary soldiers with the longest training time are transferred to the combat troops. When the combat troops suffer losses, the best auxiliary soldiers are given priority to be selected to join the front-line troops to supplement them.
The role of the auxiliary troops on the battlefield is to complete the chores of the combat troops, such as setting up camp, cooking, maintaining weapons and armor, standing sentry, transporting baggage, etc. They are equivalent to the servants of the combat troops. The tasks of the combat troops are to fight, kill the enemy and maintain the highest level. In good condition, this combination does not rely on training and the quality of the soldiers, but on strong national strength, which, to put it bluntly, is money.
In Li Qi's dispatch, there were only 60,000 real regular soldiers, and the remaining 40,000 were all auxiliary troops, including the 20,000 baggage troops of the rear army. However, it is wrong to think that the second-line auxiliary troops are easy to deal with and can follow the main soldiers. The auxiliary soldiers who went into battle were all soldiers who had been trained for more than two years, and their equipment was the same as that of the regular soldiers.
Now the standard equipment of an infantryman in Dazhou is like this, a pair of double light shielding armor, which is made of two parts stamped and forged at one time, one is the front armor, one is the back, and the two pieces are combined. Together, use cowhide buttons under the ribs to form an upper body armor. The armor on the front xiong is the thickest, with the thickest point reaching one centimeter. That is the thickness of the armor on the left xiong. This two-level bright armor has a smooth surface and is made of plating. The zinc craftsmanship is not only gorgeous and beautiful in light, but also has a very good protective effect against long-range arrow strikes, and has a strong protective effect against short-range sharp weapon thrusts. It is the current stereotype of soldier armor.
There is a ch¨¡ armor waist protector around the waist. A whole piece of cowhide is made of a protection around the waist. There is a ch¨¡ bag on the cowhide. A whole piece of steel is inserted into the ch¨¡ bag to protect the waist and abdomen. This double protection can be effective. It protects the most vulnerable waist and abdomen. If the steel plate is damaged, it is very easy to replace. At the same time, although the two-level bright light armor and the ch¨¡ armor waist protector on the upper body are not an integral structure and lose part of the protective effect, they can make the rotation of the soldier's upper body more flexible. Near the lower third of the waist protector, there is a row of steel rings, which are where the lower body armor skirt is hung.
The length of the armor skirt is not long, and the longest one only reaches the knees. The front is a piece of whole cowhide. The structure above is the same as the armor waist guard. It can insert smaller steel pieces to form frontal protection. Under the feet is a pair of inner These boots are padded with soft cowhide, and the outer instep and sole are made of steel. The small tui is a protective tui made of two curved steel sheets to protect the small tui from harm.
The elite troops also have large protective armor, but that is the armor that Mo Dao soldiers only have. Mo Dao soldiers do not require a lot of marching speed. The weight of a complete set of ordinary Dazhou armor is less than thirty kilograms, which is quite a lot. At about 18 kilograms now, this weight is not a burden at all for a well-trained adult man.
Many key areas of the full set of armor have been reinforced, and the connections between the joints and waist and abdomen are reasonable, so that the soldiers can get maximum protection while ensuring flexibility. This set of armor has great protection capabilities thanks to Dazhou's advanced steel technology. There is no need for the heavy armor of the Tang Dynasty. This is also one of the guarantees for the invincibility of the Zhou army.
Weapons are divided into different typesAt the same time, the main weapon of the spearman is a rifle. Today's rifles are no longer the kind of rifles that require a long time to make the rifle rod. Instead, wooden rods are clad with copper to make rifle rods. Although there is no regular oil-immersed rifle rifle. It has both strength and softness, but the advantage is its low cost. The tip is made of steel with a long barrel and a long point. Once the triangular tip pierces the enemy's body, the bleeding from the wound will not be stopped at all. The long sleeve can To protect the pole from being cut by the enemy, this rifle has two types of equipment. One is the standard rifle of two and a half meters, which is the most used in the army. The other is the long rifle with a length of five meters. This kind of rifle is also called a horse-repelling gun. It is specially designed to deal with cavalry. After forming a spear formation with the standard rifle, it can be said that long and short spears are like a forest and a curtain, and it is difficult for the cavalry to attack.
The secondary weapon of the spearmen is the horizontal sword. The steel-clip forging method of the horizontal sword has been promoted, and the horizontal sword can be made longer and lighter. After extensive use of water-powered hammers, even the lowest infantry can use the horizontal sword. The armor-piercing function of the straight blade of the horizontal sword can be used to its fullest, and its ferociousness is no less than the bloodletting function of Bu Shu.
The jumping soldiers and the sword and shield soldiers have been combined into one. The ones who rush into the battle are the sword and shield soldiers. One side is covered with steel, lined with cowhide, and then covered with a steel shield. This kind of shield has excellent protection against heavy weapons. The blow can also be effectively cushioned. The smooth and curved shield is also very good at protecting bows and arrows. Paired with a straight knife with a thickened back, the sword and shield soldiers are killers in hand-to-hand combat, and the sword and shield soldiers are all skilled in skills. It is composed of familiar veterans. They are usually equipped with three straight knives, one for direct use and the other two for backup. They are usually carried on the back with a cross, because the two horizontal knives on the back look like two wings. The sword and shield soldiers are also greatly used. The soldiers of the Zhou army were jokingly called Feitian Yaksha soldiers.
The soldiers of the Tang army were required to carry crossbows, not only for close combat, but also for long-range attacks. But now the functions of each arm of the Zhou army have been divided into more details, and the long-range attack arms have completely become One type of arms is the crossbowmen. The crossbowmen carry a new military crossbow and three crossbow strings. The crossbow arrows are shorter than the bows and arrows and can carry more. Each crossbowman carries four quivers into battle, each with three arrows. Ten crossbow arrows, and the only self-defense weapon is a short knife. After an attack distance of 400 steps, all enemies who want to attack the crossbowmen will face more than three crossbow arrow strikes. The three-stage attack is now a big Zhou crossbowman. The standard attack method can continuously pour three-edged armor-piercing crossbow arrows onto the enemy's head.
This time, except for the 3,000 cavalry soldiers around Li Qi, all the infantry he led were 500 sword and shield soldiers in the front row, a total of 20,000, and 20,000 spearmen in the front row. Behind the sword and shield soldiers, every three thousand people formed a square formation, and a standard protective formation was set up to protect the formation of 20,000 crossbowmen in the center. More than one hundred stone carts were arranged in three rows behind the crossbowmen, and more than fifty A ballista cart surrounded the stone cart, forming an offensive and defensive formation.
Wang Zhonghan gasped on the city wall. The battle formation and quality shown by Zhou Jun were simply something Wang Zhonghan had never seen in his life. Wang Zhonghan's confidence in guarding Jianmen Pass was also shaken.
Standing under the flag gate, Li Qi wore a helmet. Li Qi, who is already twenty-five years old, is not very old, but he has a full beard. He looks like he is several years older. He is very powerful. This Li Zuoguo's general, who was a servant, has proven his ability in the battle. Maybe he is not a handsome man, but his loyalty to Li Zuoguo allows him to firmly grasp his destiny.
Li Qi called a military officer next to him and said, "Go and persuade us to surrender. Explain that if you don't surrender, thousands of people will kill the whole family above."
The military attache led the four cavalry and rushed out of the array quickly. The defenders who closed the sword gate also saw that this was a messenger who came to shout. They did not release arrows. When they approached about a hundred meters below the gate, someone shouted at the gate: "Stop." Move forward, or the arrow will be released.¡±
The military attache stopped his horse and shouted from the horse: "Listen, general guard. General Hanzhong is coming with a large army. The strong troops are like clouds. They will return to the Zhou Dynasty early. You can save your lives. If you don't surrender, the army will break the city." At that time, thousands of people killed the whole family above."
Wang Zhonghan's face turned gloomy, and he signaled to a general beside him. The general stood a few steps forward and replied loudly: "Lu¨¤n Chen'an dares to proclaim himself emperor. If you want to fight, come and try. I'll teach you to wait until the city is reduced to ashes."
As soon as these words came out, the military attache of the Zhou Army did not waste any time. He pulled out his saddle and thrust a javelin on the ground. He turned his horse and returned to the formation. This is the meaning of three bids. That is, the javelin was left behind after the first failure to persuade surrender. After that, there will be a second and third attempt to persuade them to surrender. If everyone in the city refuses, then the army will attack the city and kill the entire family of military attach¨¦s with more than a thousand soldiers. This is a practice that has been established in the Anxi Army for a long time. , has been realized countless times, and the faces of the generals in the city became unnatural. They all knew Zhou Jun's three bids to persuade them to surrender, and they all felt fear involuntarily. Some generals turned their heads to look at Wang Zhonghan, who had no expression on his face. With an expression on his face, he said: "Get ready, the Zhou army is about to attack."
Some generals turned their heads in disappointment, and Wang Zhonghan feltBut it was helpless. This move of the Zhou army actually had a great psychological impact on the generals. When some cities seemed unable to resist, mutinies often started.
In return for persuading the officers to surrender, Li Qi, who seemed to have the demeanor of a general, waved his hand and ordered: "Bang the drum, let's begin."
The red flag of the flag gate was immediately fluttered, and half of the messengers dispersed on flying horses, galloping towards each unit with more than a thousand people. In the cold weapon era, messengers were an unavoidable means of delivering orders. In fact, the real
At the beginning of the battle, the general's control over the fighting troops is equal to zero, and it depends entirely on the on-the-spot command of the frontline troops. This is the era of true combat in which the troops are put in and then ignored.
More than fifty large war drums began to beat, and the sound was deafening between the two valleys. Li Qi took a deep breath. This was the smell of war. He hadn't felt it for a long time. Li Qi was slightly excited, and his palms were filled with excitement. They were sweating, and their blood was slowly boiling. The sword and shield soldiers who had stood in line had a relatively lazy expression. Although they stood upright, they had a lazy expression. These elite soldiers who had fought a hundred battles were already fighting. Instinct is a life engraved in the bones, just like a resting lion that will show its fangs the next moment.
When the war drums sounded, the expressions of these sword and shield soldiers changed instantly. Their lazy expressions were swept away, and their murderous eyes were as cold as lightning. The shields placed at their feet suddenly returned to their hands, with a cold light. The flashing horizontal knives are unsheathed one by one, just like the flying yaksha coming to the world.
Boom, the huge boulders shot by the stone cart flew into the sky, a few white clouds floated leisurely in the blue sky, the spring breeze was pleasant, and the fresh green grass on the hilltops was refreshing. In this rare good weather, there was nothing under Jianmen Pass. A bloody battle began.
The stone cart started firing boulders the size of a human head. Once the stone bullets collided, they would break into pieces, and the stone flakes would burst out. The lethality to the soldiers was considerable. When the stone cart was loaded, the crossbowmen also started firing, five rounds of crossbow arrows. It will stop after that, and then the stone chariot will fire again, and then the crossbowmen will fire again.
The Zhou army, which was far ahead of the Tang army in its attack range, suppressed the garrison at Guan Guan from the beginning. When had Wang Zhonghan seen such a violent long-range attack? Although the city had taken some precautions, the real long-range attack by the Zhou army was It only makes people feel the coldness that penetrates the bone marrow.
Stone bullets and crossbow arrows were thrown down like rain. The Shu soldiers, whose equipment was worse than that of the Tang army in the Central Plains, suffered heavy casualties on the wall. The injured soldiers struggled in a pool of blood until they were killed by the next enemy.
Killed by crossbow arrows or stone chariots, countless Shu soldiers ran around the city. These soldiers, who had basically never seen a battle formation, were almost defeated by long-range attacks.
Wang Zhonghan carried a horizontal sword and beheaded four soldiers who were running and crying on the city. At the same time, he shouted: "Take shelter under the city wall and kill those who are running."
The soldiers who followed him took action one after another, killing nearly a hundred soldiers before stabilizing the situation on the city. Fortunately, the Zhou army only attacked from a distance and did not take the opportunity to attack the city. Otherwise, Wang Zhonghan knew that he would be on top of the city in the first attack. .
Wang Zhonghan felt sad and regretful. Although he heard that the Zhou army's crossbows and stone chariots were powerful, he still placed half of his soldiers at the top of the city. This short attack caused heavy casualties to the defenders, and it also severely damaged morale. , finally killing and cursing, most of the soldiers in the city evacuated at the stairs going down. Some panicked soldiers were squeezed out of the stairs and fell down the city wall with long screams. Fortunately, some generals also joined them. In order to maintain order, the city did not completely collapse due to Zhou Jun's attack.
Wang Zhonghan was holding a shield in his hand at this time. Several of the soldiers around him had fallen. Without a shield, he was completely useless in front of the three-edged armor-piercing arrows of the Zhou army's crossbowmen. Wang Zhonghan saw with his own eyes that a crossbow arrow shot through his side. A soldier's chest armor had a crossbow arrow sticking out of his back. The soldier's chest and back were bleeding profusely from two wounds. He fell to the ground and died in a short time. Wang Zhonghan picked up the shield and all The soldiers also held shields.
There were almost no soldiers running away on the city. The soldiers behind the battlements were well hidden and the crossbows could not be fired. Wang Zhonghan breathed a sigh of relief. If he was defeated like this, then why should he defend?
"General, be careful." A soldier next to him pushed Wang Zhonghan hard and raised the shield in his hand. Wang Zhonghan was also very skilled. He immediately stood firm and looked back, just in time to see a stone the size of a human head flying. Come on, the soldier who pushed Wang Zhonghan away used the shield in his hand to block it.
There was a "pop" sound, and the shield with an iron exterior and a wooden interior was suddenly opened with a semicircular gap at the edge. The stone bullet was basically unaffected and directly sliced ??off half of the soldier's head, and the helmet was flattened. Blood and brains flew everywhere, covering the face and body of the soldier behind him. The stone bullets continued to fly, collapsing the shoulder of a man standing behind the soldier, losing kinetic energy, falling to the ground and breaking into three pieces.
Wang Zhonghan has also been in battle and killed people, but the relatives who get along with him day and nightHe died in such a tragic way in front of him, and he was stunned for a moment. His soldiers reacted at this time, swarmed up, surrounded Wang Zhonghan, and turned into the nearest passage. Wang Zhonghan smelled the strong smell of blood. , feeling empty in his heart, could he really repel the Zhou army?
Wang Zhonghan suddenly remembered that there were no siege ladders or other tools in the military formation in front of the Zhou army. Wang Zhonghan was surprised. Did the Zhou army just want to use long-range shooting to make his soldiers collapse?
After the Zhou army formed, Yuan Xi rode his horse close to Li Qi and said, "General, did you use thunder to blast the sky?"
Li Qi was watching the crossbow arrows and stone bullets fall on the top of the city with great interest. He did not look back when he heard the words, and said: "Okay, try it. That guy Zhang Xiaodong slapped his chest in the letter and said that Hong Tianlei was used to attack the city. The best thing to use is that in the battle of Luoyang, the Holy Lord also used the thunder to open the city gate. I will also try the power of this thing. Use it more often. You don¡¯t have to worry about damaging Guancheng. Anyway, this will be the hinterland of Zhou Dynasty in the future. Beat it to pieces. It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±
Yuan Xi said hesitantly: "The Holy Emperor personally issued a decree that when using it, you must exit a safe area of ??at least three miles, and you cannot use more than three packs. General, can you really use them all?"
Li Qi choked for a moment, turned around and glared at Yuan Xi, and said: "Of course I will do it according to the Holy Sage's words. Just use three bags, all concentrated at the entrance of the door. The army will retreat one mile. Crossbowmen and stone chariots will not be needed." Stop, continue.¡±
Yuan Xi quickly accepted the order, turned around and went down. In a short time, five hundred sword and shield soldiers covered a hundred soldiers from the Huozi Battalion and rushed to the Jianmen Pass. He was immediately discovered by the defenders on the city, so he risked The Zhou army's stone bullet crossbows and Shu soldiers began to shoot arrows at Guanxia. The bows and arrows were mixed with crossbow arrows, but their lethality was pitiful against the shields of the sword and shield soldiers.
Only when they were approaching the city gate, rocks were thrown on the city and a lot of sword and shield soldiers were lost. After installing the thunder, the soldiers quickly withdrew and the syringes were lit.
On the way back to the main formation, the banging thunder exploded. The Huozi camp soldiers who knew the power of the banging thunder immediately fell to the ground. The loud noise shook the sky and the earth. Wang Zhonghan on the city wall shook his feet and sat down. On the ground, there was only a buzzing sound in both ears. More than fifty soldiers who happened to be sitting on the city gate slowly sat down. Half of them were stunned directly, and the other half fell to the ground and began to vomit.
Li Qi was also shocked by the loud noise from a distance. From a distance, he could see that a huge hole had been blown open underneath the thick sword gate, which could accommodate three horses side by side. A sandbag sealing the gate inside had also been torn open. The hole was so big that even the second iron fence inside could be seen. There was another cast iron fence about fifty meters away from the gate, but Li Qi knew that even if there were ten fences, they would all be scum in front of Hong Tianlei. Li Qi I was very happy. This thing is simply the best weapon for siege. I can capture the city wall without losing too many soldiers during the siege.
It¡¯s a pity that it¡¯s not easy to make the Sky Thunder. Zhang Xiaodong only sent twenty Thunder Thunder here, but this is enough. After breaking through the Jianmen Pass, there will basically be no strong city in Sichuan that can withstand the army.
Li Qi immediately ordered: "Soldiers with swords and shields came forward to seize the gate. A thousand people came forward and used three thunderbolts to blow open the iron fence. Stone carts and crossbowmen added fire to suppress the defenders at the gate." ."
Wang Zhonghan had already received a report from the soldiers. The gate was so thick that it was blown open with a huge hole. Wang Zhonghan's face was ashen even if you looked at it. Wang Zhonghan immediately organized the soldiers to transport stones in order to block the gate. He directly let him The reserve soldiers were preparing inside the pass. Wang Zhonghan knew in his heart that although the pass gate still had a defense, in the face of Zhou Jun's explosive weapons, even the pass wall could not withstand it. Now he could only do his best, except for this one There was another wall behind the wall. This was the second line of defense after the first wall was lost. Wang Zhonghan felt cold at this moment.
Soon there was a second explosion, which not only exploded the iron fence, but also killed and injured more than a hundred Shu soldiers carrying stones behind. A passage was opened in the city gate. Although it was not big, it was enough for two people to walk side by side. Already, the Zhou army's sword and shield soldiers on the opposite side had begun to press forward with their entire army. The defenders on the city wall already knew that the city gates under their feet had been destroyed, and their morale dropped immediately.
Wang Zhonghan was behind the first gate. After passing through the exploded gate, Wang Zhonghan saw countless Da Zhou sword and shield soldiers rushing towards them with their shields high. Wang Zhonghan closed his eyes in pain and said, "The soldiers on the city wall retreat immediately. For the second pass, 10,000 soldiers are left here to resist."
In just one day, for the first attack, the Jianmen Pass, one of the most powerful passes in the world, was breached. This was a result that neither Wang Zhonghan nor Li Qi had expected before the war. Wang Zhonghan felt deep despair, while Li Qi Although he was overjoyed to win the first pass, Li Qi did not immediately attack the next pass. Instead, he sent an envoy to persuade them to surrender for the second time.