Three Kingdoms.

Chapter 3363: Strange changes, inexplicable courage

 Fei Qian’s formation consists of three traditional parts: left, center and right.

The left wing has gone up, and the right wing has also gone up now. The center array has not moved, making the entire array like a crab, waving its large pliers on the left and right, trying to tear off some food fragments from the big meat pie in Cao Jun's camp. Come.

 Cao Jun's army was dispatched from the camp, and the smoke and dust covered the sky and the sun.

 Smoke and dust are an absolutely unavoidable problem on the Loess Plateau in clear weather.

 So when the smoke and dust come together, everyone will focus their attention on it.

 It’s just that some of the smoke and dust are meant to confuse the public…

 The left and right wings have been deployed.

Xu Chu on the left attacked the camp of Cao's army that was beleaguered in Anyi, while Li Li on the right was also leading his troops to fight against the soldiers of Cao's army in the camp. Only Fei Qian's middle and rear formations did not move. As the soldiers from Cao's camp rushed out, the battle on the two wings could not be ended in a short time. Naturally, they could not provide much support to Fei Qian's center formation. From this perspective, Fei Qian's center and rear formations were indeed a bit weak. The troops are weak.

As a general, of course he hopes to have as many soldiers and horses as possible under his command, but in fact, in war, most of the time, if you want to achieve the preset battle goals, it does not depend on the number of soldiers and horses, but on the number of these troops. use.

Now the battle situation has just begun to evolve, and the formation is already very different from before.

 It is within this difference that a general's commanding ability is truly tested, and his ability to control the entire battle situation is demonstrated.

Fei Qian pointed at Anyi City and said: "Anyi City can be regarded as a shelter left by Cao Jun... Cao Jun is definitely not willing to abandon this shelter like this... Otherwise, it will be equivalent to losing the protection of the flanks..."

With Anyi City, Cao Jun can use it to pull Fei Qian away and increase Fei Qian's burden. On the other hand, Cao Jun can also use the cover of Anyi City to secretly transfer some soldiers to the flanks, and then launch a sudden attack.

 This is a very simple, yet very effective tactic.

The tactics are actually not that mysterious.

 Divide.

 Pull.

 Outflank.

  Encircle.

 Always changing without departing from the same principles, just like Fei Qian's current tactics, they also deliberately exposed the weakness of the central formation.

 But the tactics can also be very strange, especially when you see your opponent running wildly along the road you have laid out...

Feiqian's troops here seem a bit weak, and Cao Jun can certainly see that. It depends on whether he has the determination to change from pretending to be a full-scale counterattack to a real all-out attack.

"The artillery attack on Cao Jun's camp under Anyi City will probably give Cao Jun some confidence..." Fei Qian adjusted his armor, "Sooner or later they will find out that not many people died directly from the artillery bombardment... Therefore, we The more times the artillery was used, the more Cao Jun became accustomed to it. In the end, he would inevitably charge forward with the artillery. 』

Cao Jun attacked with artillery?

Xun Chen didn’t quite understand it at first, but he figured it out after a while.

 Most of human fears come from the unknown.

 The extreme unknown will bring extreme fear. Once they become aware of it, humans can always find ways to use and deal with it, no matter how terrifying it is.

 So the Ke system is really scary...

 So now artillery is such an item that makes Cao Jun "fearful".

 But the power of the smoothbore cannon has an upper limit.

Even in the era of hot firearms in later generations, if you use armor-piercing bullets to hit infantry, it is still ineffective.

At present, the artillery under Fei Qian can only use solid bullets, which are probably similar to armor-piercing bullets. They are very destructive against hard targets, but their lethality against soft targets is very average. Even if a line of blood is blasted out with one cannon, flesh and blood are flying everywhere, but the frequency of firing cannot keep up, and it is still difficult to have a strong ability to stop large-scale soft targets.

 But the explosive howitzer is different...

 Cao Hong has become more accustomed to artillery, and he is not as afraid as before. Because at Tongguan, he personally saw the scene of artillery shells passing by and taking away his guards. So now, artillery is no longer unknown to him. Although it is powerful, it is not much different from a ballista, catapult or something. As long as it is not hit directly, there will not be any big problem.

 If it is hit directly...

There is not much difference.

Therefore, Cao Hong ordered his soldiers to attack in order to confuse Fei Qian's sight and disrupt the entire situation, in an attempt to fish in troubled waters.

 This is also a traditional drama of the Lao Cao family.

The first generation Cao used it well, the second generation Cao was just average, and by the third and fourth generations Cao, he became...

Most of the Cao Army soldiers in the camp down the **** saw the power of artillery for the first time. After all, they were not the same group as the Cao Army soldiers on the Tongguan front line. However, with the transfer and investment of Cao Army troops in the land east of the river, some of them were behind Tongguan. The soldiers of Cao's army who have experienced the baptism of artillery will gather together and teach each other the experience of avoiding death.

In addition, the soldiers of Cao's army who were in the camp down the **** were defeated. When those soldiers of Cao's army who were defeated because of the collapse of the camp wall were punished, they would also serve as a warning to other soldiers of Cao's army.

So Fei Qian saw that when Xu Chu used artillery to blast through the Cao Jun camp under Anyi City, those Cao Jun soldiers who should be worse than the Cao Jun camp down the **** were not as good as those in the camp down the slope. The kind of uncontrollable collapse scene appears.

 This is a signal.

 Most people may ignore this signal.

 Cao Jun's adaptability to artillery is increasing, while Fei Qian's artillery deterrence is declining.

But Fei Qian caught it, and Fei Qian also felt that if Cao Cao was here, Cao Cao could also catch such a signal. Cao Cao may even be tempted to lure Fei Qian consciously, so that Fei Qian still thinks that artillery is omnipotent...

Then Fei Qian can go the other way and show that he thinks artillery is "omnipotent", making Cao Jun think that Fei Qian mistakenly put all his chips on artillery!

 What you think I think is what I think you think.

　　　『Cao Hong and Cao Zilian’s banner has moved! Xun Chen suddenly said, "He's coming up here!" 』

Fei Qian looked around and saw a flag representing Cao Hong moving in the direction of Xu Chu. Next to Cao Hong's flag, there is also the flag of Cao Jun, which represents the central leadership, and the flying tiger flag with two wings on its back.

Fei Qian immediately raised his telescope.

Smoke and dust filled the air.

 The flag is looming.

However, Fei Qian did see Cao Hong's general's flag and the flying tiger flag representing the leading cavalry in Cao's army, slowly moving forward.

Fei made a move in his mind.

　　　What about the left? 』

Fei Qian asked.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ded by hurling cavalry ! General Xu is evacuating Cao Jun's Anyi camp! Nothing unusual! 』

　　　　The situation on the right! 』

Fei Qian asked again.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ded by hurling cavalry ! Captain Li on the right wing is fighting the enemy! Everything is fine! 』

 There is nothing unusual, everything is normal.

Lao Cao, is he so good today?

 This is impossible!

While Fei Qian was thinking about it, someone suddenly reported: "Report the hussar!" General Cao's army moved the flag to the right, towards Captain Li! 』

　　　　　Is this an attempt to double-team Captain Li? ” Xun Chen said in surprise, “Is it because Cao Jun wants to consume our cavalry? 』

The right wing was led by Li Li, with cavalry as the main force, supplemented by a small number of artillery and infantry.

  Is Cao Jun planning to **** Fei Qian's leg first?

  Or is it part of Cao Jun's plan?

  …    …

Different from Xu Chu's direction, Li Li's troops on the right wing of the Hussars did not push the artillery closer to the front line. Instead, under the protection of the infantry, they stayed relatively behind. The cavalry troops arranged in front were .

This is of course related to the fact that Li Li is not very familiar with the combat capabilities of this artillery. On the other hand, Li Li received Fei Qian's instructions from the very beginning, and his journey was generally a feint attack...

Since it is a feint attack, it is natural to deploy cavalry that is faster and more flexible than the artillery unit.

Who would have thought that Li Li’s feint attack here would attract a large number of Cao’s troops!

 It was like poking a hornet's nest with a stick, and a large swarm of them immediately buzzed out!

The changes and evolutions on this battlefield are indeed confusing at times, just like how Cao's army retreated inside the camp before. In fact, they were all deceiving Fei Qian. When Fei Qian's troops dispersed, he immediately launched a massive attack!

If you are an ordinary general, perhaps when encountering such a situation, you will inevitably have a trace of doubt in your heart. Once this doubt shakes your original determination, it will turn into a disaster. If you don't dare to advance and don't want to retreat, your soldiers and generals will be at a loss and face overall failure.

It seems like you didn’t fight much, so why did you lose?

This may be the most confusing thing for third-rate generals who unknowingly follow the enemy's rhythm.

Although Li Li was a little surprised by the current situation, and his adaptability could not be compared with first-rate or second-rate generals, what made him better than those third-rate generals was precisely that he was not flexible enough, even if Cao's army was large-scale They were dispatched. When Li Li looked back at the center position of the Chinese army in Fei Qian, there were no new instructions or signals coming out, so he still carried out the plan according to the original plan!

 And this is exactly what Fei Qian wants...

If Li Li changed his position without authorization, or followed Cao Jun's changes, it would lead to changes in Fei Qian's original overall layout, which would be detrimental to Fei Qian's strategic needs.

Li Li's relatively "rigid" response in this aspect not only conformed to Fei Qian's strategy, but also happened to give Cao Jun more "confidence".

In the end, the battle situation between Feicao suddenly accelerated, just like a stone falling from the top of a mountain, hitting a small wooden stake, and then rolled down in a new direction...

Amid the sound of war drums and under the guidance of the Xiong Zhuan banner of the Central Guard Army, nearly five thousand Cao Jun troops rushed out of the camp in a mighty manner. Cao Jun's attack on Li Li's flank officially began. In front of the infantry of the Central Guards was a baggage cart with people hidden inside, followed by people on the sides and behind.

 Long tower shields hang on both sides of the baggage train.

 On both sides of the rear of the shield chariot are the infantry commanded by generals with mixed surnames such as Bao Zhong.

 Cao Sheng’s identification flag is located a little further back. Although he was surrounded by strong soldiers, it did not completely reassure him.

 Further back, there is Cao Hong’s flag…

 That's right, just the flag, no people.

His surname is Cao, but the blood relationship with Cao Cao, Cao Hong and others has almost faded to the point where only one surname remains!

 So the other Cao family and Xiahou family can become officers and generals after graduating from college, but he can only be a guard no matter how many classics and military books he has read.

 Cao Hong's guard.

If it weren't for the fact that many of Cao Hong's guards died this time, it would not have been his turn to take the lead.

 The problem is, not all opportunities to get ahead are good opportunities.

 He knew that this time besides him, there was another Cao family, who was also Cao Hong's bodyguard, and also got a chance...

 A chance to put your life on the line.

 If you can beat it, you will be promoted to one level. If you can't beat it...

Then there is no need to worry anymore.

  Comparatively, he is quite "relaxed" here!

 It is said to be "easy", but it is just that he does not need to rush directly to fight, but the opponent he faces not only has powerful horse archers, but also has the support of artillery!

Even these baggage trains cannot withstand artillery bombardment...

 But in such a war, he could only passively accept his fate and had no right to choose.

 The accuracy of artillery is not high, so it is difficult to say that it has a better hit rate against these moving targets. However, in order to avoid a chain reaction in case of being hit, Cao Jun dispersed the array slightly, a bit like a skirmish line, to deal with the long-range artillery strikes of the hussars.

 So in Cao Sheng's case, the baggage train is the core component of offense and defense.

 This is Cao Sheng's "innovative" idea, an absolutely "exquisite" tactic...

Once the hussars are close, the infantry will immediately huddle under the protection of the baggage trains, use thick tower shields to resist the arrows of the cavalry, use the raised spears to restrain the charge and impact of the lancers, and then The crossbow archers on the baggage train will provide a certain amount of long-range shooting lethality.

 It looks beautiful, and it feels good to think about it, but when it comes to actual implementation...

Who knows?

Anyway, if Cao Hong thinks it is reliable, then everyone will say it is reliable.

However, the men on the right side of the Hussars on the opposite side did not seem to retreat because Cao Jun launched a large number of baggage vehicles, nor did they push the artillery forward. This should be a good thing for Cao Sheng.

 After all, the roaring sounds coming from the direction of Anyi from time to time are really shuddering.

Cao Sheng looked around and saw the strong soldiers around him, as well as the soldiers and horses on the left and right sides, especially Bao Zhong's flag, which was also climbing up the slope, preparing to seize a commanding height...

 General Bao Zhong is still experienced!

Cao Sheng raised his eyes to look at the hussars on the opposite side again, and suddenly found some movement in the hussars and infantry array in the distance, as if they were making way for a passage...

 Cao Sheng suddenly became excited!

　　　『The car in front! Turn around quickly! 』

 Cao Sheng roared loudly.

Cao Sheng wanted to have the front line of baggage trains turn into the ravine of the plateau as soon as possible, but it was too late.

Two roars sounded one after another, and two puffs of blue-white smoke emerged from the cavalry infantry array. The black iron bullets crashed into the crowd of Cao Jun at a speed that was almost invisible to the naked eye, like an iron plow breaking through. Open the yellow earth, leaving a red defective wound.

"ha! 』

 Missed!

 Sure enough, he missed!

　　　　Aha! Ha ha ha ha! 』

 Sure enough, it really works!

 Cao Sheng is overjoyed!

 The artillery only hit Cao Jun’s queue, but not the core baggage train!

 This tactic is indeed effective!

 Cao Sheng became excited.

Yes, the display does seem to have some effect...

　　　With the baggage train as the core, push forward! Push forward! 』

 Cao Sheng shouted heartbreakingly.

Standing still means being passively beaten, but as long as it is mixed with the opponent's soldiers, the opponent's artillery will lose its effectiveness. Then with the protection of the baggage vehicles, the infantry can also compete with the opponent's cavalry.

Without consuming the cavalry of the Hussars, it would be very difficult for Cao’s infantry to escape!

Just the thought of being chased by hussars all over the mountains and plains during the retreat made Cao Sheng shudder.

Thinking of this, Cao Sheng felt some inexplicable hatred deep in his heart for some reason. But who exactly this hatred was caused by, and what caused it, even Cao Sheng himself couldn't say clearly.

 Cao's army continued to advance amid the hussars' artillery fire.

Basically what Fei Qian expected, after experiencing the initial fear, Cao Jun had a certain understanding of artillery. Especially after grouping together, he gained a little more inexplicable courage, just like a crowd gathering to make trouble. Those people, when there are many people, they feel that they can do anything.

The key point is that Cao Hong not only promised Cao Sheng a promotion, but also gave generous rewards to ordinary Cao soldiers. He listed them in detail and informed the whole army that in addition to the bright military achievements and future, there was also golden money and land. ,slave…

Oh, the big man should be called a tenant farmer, and later generations will be called a helper.

 As a helper, you may have the right to choose your employer, but you do not have the freedom to choose to change your class status.

 But if Cao Hong's promises can be fulfilled, it is really possible to rise to a higher level!

Under strong material stimulation, some people will always be blinded by money and go crazy.

The artillery is still roaring, taking away some lives, or just taking away some mud.

There were also several baggage trucks that were hit by artillery shells or grazed, just like smashed cans of Coke, splattering with various reddish-brown liquids and falling apart in the air!

  However, because hitting moving targets at long distances is indeed a relatively big test for the current smoothbore artillery, and the density of artillery is not enough, the losses of these Cao Jun's baggage vehicles are not too serious.

 This gave Cao Jun a wrong understanding, that is, their vehicle array could really resist the artillery!

 Getting rid of, or temporarily gaining the hope of fighting against the Hussars' artillery, naturally boosted the morale of some of Cao's soldiers!

With one ebb and flow, the war drums roared, and Cao Jun followed the baggage cart with the shield hanging outside, and pushed forward step by step!