Siheyuan: I decide the fate of the world with my medical skills

Once the flag falls, it means the general is alive and well, and the morale of the entire army will not collapse. Otherwise, it is time to retreat.

Under the carriage shed, dozens of drum carts were lined up to motivate the entire army. In an era when communication was mainly done by shouting, this drum became one of the most effective ways to pass on messages.

Not only were there drums in the military tents, but each level of troops was equipped with drums of corresponding specifications.

The big drum used by the generals produced the Shang tone, the drum used by the middle-level generals produced the Jiao tone, and the flags (or small drums) of the subordinate senior generals released the Yu tone. The sound of the drums drove the advance, the lowering of the flags indicated approaching the target, the sounding of the gongs and drums indicated commanding the left or right wing to march, and the simultaneous beating of the gongs and drums indicated taking a seat and waiting.

This is a set of training guidelines compiled by Wei Liao for the Qin team. Li Xin stayed here for quite a long time, mainly to hone this set of tactical formations.

Nearly 30,000 Qin soldiers prepared in an orderly formation according to the different drum sounds and flag commands. The sound of "dong, dong, dong" slowly gathered in front of the formation, indicating that when the general's horn and the lieutenant general's order sounded simultaneously, the battle was about to begin.

According to the Qin army's "fighting and defending" regulations, the actual manpower participating in the battle only accounted for about one-third of the total troops. The troops not participating in the battle sat still to maintain their physical strength and be ready to participate in the battle at any time.

In this tense situation, a black flag (probably a special command flag, which is not clearly explained in the text) was erected above the building where Li Xin was located as a signal to command the cavalry regiment to move out.

Han Xin looked from the top of the mountain and saw that the Qiang cavalry regiment in the distance had also raised similar flags. This action was called "echoing", which meant that they had received the command. He sat on the saddle, stretched his body as much as he could, and had a bird's eye view. He learned how to command the army like a wolf pouncing on a sheep - this was Li Xin's way.

The newly recruited Qiang knights were evenly distributed on the left and right sides of the army. It is particularly worth mentioning that on the right side of the formation on the Deshui side, Li Xin added more soldiers. These were not just ordinary infantry, but also warriors with complete armor and strong bows, and the remaining 1,000 chariots were arranged on the same side.

For Han Xin, although Li Xin's deployment was difficult to understand, especially the strengthening of the right side, the rest was a standard tactical configuration, without any bright spots or obvious weaknesses. This was normal, considering that the Qiang troops were more inclined to traditional military strategies.

Han Xin observed the Qiang people's formation and felt as if he had returned to the days when King Wu of Zhou attacked the Shang Dynasty. The Shang army in front of him was rushing in from Chaoge. Their team arrangement directly imitated the classic formation of the Shang army back then.

After many powerful attacks by the Qin State, the Qiang people not only lost their agricultural skills, but their combat skills were also solidified in the descriptions of poetry - this was a reproduction of the past.

As the flags fluttered and the sound of drums and music resounded everywhere, Li Xin's orders quickly echoed in Han Xin's mind.

At this moment, a war is going on. On this land of blood and iron, a fierce conflict is about to unfold. Facing the powerful hostile camp - tens of thousands of Qiang people, their offensive does not seem so insurmountable. However, in this upcoming showdown, the Qin army has many tactical advantages. Among them, one of the most critical factors is the sophistication of their armaments and their management system - this is not only reflected in the strength of the troops, but also in the effective integration and deployment of equipment and personnel resources. Under the Qin law, the hierarchy is strict, and there is a clear mechanism and reward system for military promotion.

In this context, Han Xin felt an unprecedented sense of tension and urgency. Judging from the current scale of the battle, he estimated that his noble status would be significantly improved - at least a promotion of two levels of nobility was a foregone conclusion.

Han Xin was pleased with this and had a little yearning: Qin's laws did give soldiers incentives to reward bravery. At the end of each battle, beheading 2,000 enemies would help the generals' promotion and give due honor to every soldier who participated in the battle. And in this process, the entire army would be upgraded in rank. The sudden attack of the Qiang people undoubtedly brought a strong impetus to the Qin army. Despite their large number - at least 40,000 to 50,000 people according to visual estimates, they only had one advantage.

From the weapons and equipment used by the Qiang people on the battlefield, it can be seen that there are many practical and traditional tools, such as clubs, forks, flails and horse clubs, as well as daily necessities on horseback. Some more advanced metal weapons, such as bronze daggers and inner arc knives, were selectively equipped on or around the chariots. However, these metal weapons were not widely used, but were held by some of the better soldiers. This reveals an important detail of the Qiang military structure: despite their large numbers, they did not actually reach a high level of professionalism in terms of technology. They relied on practicality and tradition, while the Qin army's weapons clearly reflected modern and efficient characteristics, which would provide the Qin army with a key advantage in suppressing these armed forces in the future.

Facing the upcoming fierce battle, Han Xin realized the importance of his position and responsibility - not only the pursuit of personal honor, but more importantly, strategic success. As a member of the army, he will actively participate in it in order to hone himself in actual combat. At the same time, he also deeply realized that the collection of post-war supplies is an indispensable part. Every weapon and the memory carried by each soldier will be sealed in the treasury to preserve the value of history as time passes. This may be the wise idea of ​​your majesty - the so-called "one Qin against five Hu", that is, the idea of ​​using the power of Qin to counter many external invaders. Han Xin felt an unprecedented determination and sense of responsibility in this battle, and was full of expectations for future challenges.

At the same time, on another battlefield, Li Qian was leading the cavalry on the left wing to launch a charge. With the improvement of equipment, especially the popularization of stirrups, the original Rongdi cavalry, who were good at riding and shooting, have completely transformed into an image similar to the famous cavalryman Fusu in history, and can quickly shoot and aim at the target in this chase-like conflict. According to the predetermined tactical plan, the cavalry on both wings adopts a scattered formation to encircle the Qiang army from the side, and use their advantages of longbows and short arrows to harass the enemy at a distance. This tactic is like a sheep pastor leading a flock of sheep, compressing and pushing the flock on both wings, and finally forcing the flock to respond.

In this tense confrontation, the two wings of the Qiang people suffered several rounds of arrow rain. Although the losses were not huge, due to the continuous pressure brought by this tactic for a long time, they gradually retreated into the formation under the leadership of their commander, the chieftain, using shields as a shield.

Ready to charge...

Han Xin held a trumpet, and the gong and drum artists around him adjusted the speed of the drums according to the rhythm of the waving flags.

The craftsman next to him quickly adjusted the number of stones in the wooden trough.

Two strong men stepped forward, manipulated the connecting rod, and cooperated with the craftsman to adjust the posture of the thrower.

One by one, huge stones were taken out of the carrying vehicles and placed in leather bags under the throwing machine.

After all preparations were in place, a thin soldier walked towards the base of the catapult holding a wooden hammer.

"Launch the attack!" The token in Li Xin's hand fell suddenly.

boom!

The wooden hammer hit the cross arm of the thrower, and this blow caused the iron chain hanging the box to suddenly relax. The wooden box dropped, pushing the leather bag to move, and the stone was out of the control of the machine.

Han Xin stared with his mouth wide open as the stone flew past in a perfect curve and smashed heavily into the opposing barbarian army.

Any catapult he had ever seen or heard of could only reach a maximum of a hundred meters, but now this gravity-type catapult could reach more than two hundred meters!

From the perspective of the craftsmen’s operation, the hanging wooden barrel is equivalent to replacing the strength of the human body. The more stones are loaded, the greater the thrust!

Han Xin observed clearly that the wooden box had not yet been filled with large stones, which meant that the current launching distance had not reached the maximum attack distance of these heavy catapults!

The key point is that Han Xin understood that in order to ensure its effectiveness, they did not build it too large, and they were in a hurry and had no time to prepare heavier flying stones.

What if the city is blocked for a long time?

Why did Wang Ben choose to flood Daliang in the past? It was because the city was well-defended, so he had to resort to full flooding and wait for the outer wall to collapse naturally.

If there had been several or even dozens of aircraft with more powerful throwing mechanisms than the ones currently available during the siege, all the fortified cities in the world would have become a laughing stock!

In an instant, a huge rock the size of a human head fell down with a whistling sound.

With the help of the active pressure from the enemy cavalry, the Qiang people tightened their ranks, which allowed the people operating the throwing machines to release accurately without having to aim at the target.

clap clap clap!

When a stone bullet hits a dense crowd, it is tantamount to killing or injuring people. The effect can be described as killing people as soon as it hits them, and injuring people as soon as it touches them!

After a moment, not only the Qiang people present showed expressions of shock, but even most of the Qin soldiers opened their eyes in fear. The warriors with strong striking power were stunned for a moment and then worked harder, continuing to smash the drums.

As the second wave of stones pierced through the atmosphere, it became clear to everyone that this battle was bound to be won!

Although the stone bullets did not directly kill many Qiang warriors, the impact on their morale was indelible.

Then there were all kinds of cries of grief from the Qiang people:

"Oh God, please let us go!"

"We must have offended the mountain god. This is the punishment he imposed on us!"

Many Qiang people who failed to see the true origin of the catapults immediately attributed the incident to ghosts and gods.

If the crowd had not been so densely packed, someone would have prostrated themselves and prayed for the gods’ mercy.

Even so, even if they saw the specific location of the catapult, with the Qiang people's level of knowledge, they simply could not understand what the so-called catapult was.

When the Qiang people's formation showed signs of chaos, a red and white battle flag was raised in the mansion behind the scenes.

After observing for a while, Han Xin realized that it was an order to mobilize the vanguard and the left camp to join the battle.

According to Li Xin's strategic arrangement, the infantry force with a total of 20,000 soldiers was divided into five units: front, center, rear, left and right, led by red, yellow, blue, white and black flags respectively, and arranged according to the Five Elements: the front troops corresponded to the "fire" element and held the red flag; the central army belonged to the earth and held a large yellow flag; the left wing army belonged to the wood attribute and held a blue flag; the right wing was a symbol of gold and held a white flag; and finally the troops in the rear, symbolizing water power, were led by black flags.