cite Han

Chapter 223 Xi Zhen

When the Han army fought in formation, the soldiers did not stand shoulder to shoulder with each other in one place, and each soldier occupied two steps of space, which is the so-called tolerance between soldiers.A "team" of 50 people in a row and [-] people in five rows in depth occupies an area of ​​[-] steps, and there is also a distance of [-] steps between the two teams.

The purpose of leaving intervals is to realize the "folding method". The so-called folding means alternation.The formation of the Han army, the front and rear teams, and the phalanx are arranged in a checkerboard pattern. During the war, the various echelons can alternately fight with each other to solve the problem of fatigue and injury of frontline soldiers. This is the so-called "pumping and stacking method".

In fact, the "drawing and stacking method" is not only suitable for battles, but also for retreats. However, this requires extremely high quality soldiers. They must maintain their formation and retreat slowly. Only elite troops can use it.Otherwise, once they are harassed and attacked by the enemy, causing panic among the soldiers, the formation will collapse instantly.

On the battlefield as long as two miles wide, Liu Jingjun deployed a total of 500 people on the front line, that is, fifteen villages, divided into three divisions: left, middle and right.

The 500 people are soldiers from the Liu Xiu and Cai Sheng battalions. It is said to be the second battalion, but in fact it is the former Sima Ying of Cai Sheng's other department. The battalion numbered as high as more than [-] people, and was later divided into two by him.

The reason why they were placed on the front line was that they were the earliest to form an army, had the longest training, and had also fought Yuzhang bandits. They were the elite of Liu Jing's army, and their combat effectiveness was guaranteed.In addition, Liu Xiu and Cai Sheng were extremely willing to fight, so Liu Jing had no reason to refuse them.

After Liu Xiu and Cai Sheng, there were Ma Zhou and Han Guangying, also 500 villages with [-] people, divided into three divisions: left, middle and right.

And Liu Jing and Liu Liang, leading ten villages and thousands of people, ranked last.

This is the arrangement of Liu Jingjun. The five battalions of the whole army, 4000 people, are arranged in three rows of front, middle and back, and each row is divided into three left, middle and right parts to form eight formations to meet the enemy.

Liu Jingce mounted a hill on his horse and looked down at the battlefield from a high position. He was surrounded by armored soldiers, protecting him in the center.

Yu Zheng and Liu Liang were two steps behind Liu Jing. Compared to Yu Zheng, who was calm and restrained, Liu Liang looked much more frivolous. It was because Liu Jing left him behind and felt a little unhappy.

Even if Liu Jing didn't look back, he still knew what Liu Liang looked like at this moment.

Liu Liang is a genius, there is no doubt about it, but he is talented after all, and it is the first time he has fought as a general. Liu Jing kept him in the rear army for the sake of caution.Moreover, this decision was also approved by Liu Xiu, and both of them felt that it was the safest way to do so.

Liu Xiu is the commander of this battle appointed by Liu Jing. It is also the first time for him to personally command thousands of people. While he is excited, he also feels that he has a heavy responsibility on his shoulders. , with awe-inspiring eyes.

At this time, although the Jingzhou army had not yet landed, the bows and crossbows of the two sides had already begun to clash.

Liu Jingjun's spearmen in the front row all knelt on one knee, that is, "squat", so as not to hinder the rear crossbow phalanx from firing.

The crossbow soldiers in the phalanx of Liu Jing's army mostly held heavy crossbows with more than five stones, which could easily shoot 150 steps away. Even a light crossbow with three stones could shoot 120 steps away.

In other words, Liu Jingjun's crossbowmen lined up on the south bank, and the range of the heavy crossbow was almost enough to cover half of the Xiangjiang River.

And the Jingman on the mountains on the north bank never stopped attacking. Because of their condescending terrain, their shooting range was still higher than that of Liu Jingjun on the opposite bank.

In this way, there are almost no dead spots on the river, and the Jingzhou Army launched a landing operation under such a harsh situation.

Liu Jing had thought of the opponent's landing problem when he was inspecting the terrain before, so the battlefield he chose was not suitable for large ships to dock.

According to Cai Mao's order, the Jingzhou army connected large ships to form a pontoon bridge, but it was difficult to reach the shore, and the soldiers had to change to small boats.

During this period, Liu Jingjun's arrows came in wave after wave, and the Jingzhou army paid a very heavy price before reaching the shore.

In addition to the crossbow arrows like flying locusts, there are also rockets that make Jingzhou soldiers very afraid.

In front of Liu Jingjun's position, there was a bow and arrow phalanx represented by Liangzhou people. The soldiers mounted long arrows wrapped in grease cloth, and a soldier held a torch, and lit them one by one from left to right.

"put……"

Qianghu Apu was more than eight feet tall and as strong as a mountain. Following his command, the rocket left the string in an instant and flew towards the Xiangjiang River like a rain of meteors and fire.Because the shafts of the arrows were covered with tarpaulins and ignited, it was usually difficult for the rockets to shoot far. However, at this time, the Jingzhou army's ships were quite close to the south bank, so there was no need to worry about the range.

"put……"

In just a few moments, the second round of rockets rushed into the sky, followed by the third and fourth rounds...

From this, it can be seen that bows and arrows are terrible. This is because the rocket has an additional ignition process. If it is replaced by ordinary bows and arrows, the speed can be more than doubled.

Since the Jingzhou warships were linked together, one ship caught fire, and both front and rear suffered disasters, which added a bit of danger to the already difficult landing.

Cai Mao's face was ashen. His so-called "connecting boats to form a bridge" method of landing was a complete failure. Not only did it fail to achieve its goal, but it also created convenience for the opponent's fire attack.

This Liu Jing seems to be his nemesis. Since the start of the war, he has felt defeated everywhere, and he has not been able to succeed in any place.

Looking at Liu Jingjun's heavily guarded formation on the shore, Cai Mao couldn't help feeling a little pessimistic about the outcome of the battle.Unless Cai Zhong of the front army can defeat the opponent as soon as possible, so as to return to the reinforcements, and cooperate with him to pinch Liu Jingjun from the two wings of the rear army, otherwise this battle will be difficult to win.

Standing on the prow of a large ship, Xi Zhen, the captain of the broken bandit school, saw his subordinates stepping forward one after another, but one after another fell on the way to landing. His mood at the moment was exactly the same as that of Cai Mao. His young and handsome face was full of concern. war worries.

Xi Zhen is a descendant of the Xi family, a rich family in Xiangyang. His ancestor was Xiyu, the Marquis of Xiangyang in the early days of the dynasty. He followed Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu, circling around, and made many meritorious deeds. After recording his previous achievements, he was granted the title of Marquis of Xiangyang.

The Xi family still lives in Xiangyang Houyi City, fourteen miles south of Xiangyang City.

The Xi clan is serious and serious, and the gentry who passed on the Confucian classics to the family. As a direct descendant, Xi Zhen, who chose to join the army instead of an official career, is undoubtedly an anomaly in the Xi clan.

If it was placed a few decades ago, Xi Zhen would have been underestimated by the younger generation in the clan, thinking that he joined the army to despise himself.

However, it is now a chaotic world, and the big clan has gradually changed its attitude. Of course, accepting is accepted, but Bingzi has no right to speak in the clan.

(End of this chapter)