A small soldier of the frontier army in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 697

Cao Bianjiao tried his best to think about how to get rid of the immediate crisis.

In the current situation, the army is marching in formation, the speed is too slow, the action is too slow, the entire army formation is more rigid and inflexible, and it often causes confusion when encountering some difficult-to-pass areas.

However, if the army does not march forward in formation, it will be overwhelmed by the ruffian cavalry in a blink of an eye, and there will be no formation on the plain. No matter how brave the infantry is, it will not be the opponent of the cavalry, even if there are many ruffian cavalry in front of them.

Standing in place is waiting for death. If you do this, it will only be a matter of time before the army collapses under the tense spirit of the soldiers. If the main force of the intruders arrives, the situation will be even worse.

How to do?
At the critical juncture, Cao Bianjiao showed his highest level.

He thought about it carefully, and suddenly thought of the Jingbian Army's battle formation against Dongnu during the Battle of Jinzhou. At that time, Wang Dou formed a large formation called a concave-convex formation. , and they can call each other or pass orders to each other.

Then these small formations merged into a large formation, and the cooperation with each other was also very flexible.

At that time, Wang Dou defeated Jierhalang, Haoge, Azige and other tens of thousands of Qing cavalry with this formation. Afterwards, it was widely circulated in various armies, and was talked about by all the generals. Cao Bianjiao also thought about it in private, and remembered it .

Of course, the premise of this formation is the need for powerful firearms.

In the past, when the Ming army encountered cavalry in the wild, they usually formed a large square formation or a large circle formation. The airtight defense was as tight as a tortoise shell. The mouth is when the big formation is overwhelmed.

Although there were small and scattered three-talent formations in the Ming army, they had to form a dense square formation if they were heavily surrounded by enemy cavalry.

Without him, the firearms are not strong enough, and the power is not enough. The small three or mandarin duck formations with teams and generals as units cannot stop the attack of the tide of enemy cavalry, especially when the army needs to march and move.

But at this time, the conditions in the army are mature, not to mention the cavalry, they are all fierce soldiers who have fought old battles.

The new army of the second battalion is also well-trained and battle-hardened, especially the firearms of the sergeants are sharp. Even if the enemy cavalry rushes into the small formations, they can deal a devastating blow to them, instead of being eaten away by the small formations .

Cao Bianjiao made a decisive decision, ignoring the training or running-in of the concave-convex formation under his command, and ordered to stop the march. After a short rest, he discussed with the generals about the arrangement. Before the time (about [-] o'clock in the afternoon), the cavalry of Cao Ying, and the infantry battalion of the second town, quickly Formed a new array.

The entire army formation is like a large uneven sawtooth. There are nearly 5000 new troops in the Second Township, and they are organized into more than 20 small formations of approximately equal size. There are two firecrackers and two firecrackers each, and two hundred basic soldiers.

In the layout, one hundred firecrackers lined up on four sides, one hundred pikemen were in the rear for cover, and the officers were in the center to command. The small formations were separated by about 150 steps from each other, and the total distance between each group was about 2000 steps. In the middle of the formation, Cao Bianjiao personally led the remaining more than [-] cavalry soldiers to cover, and at the same time, they will provide support and support to all parties.

The new army array that has been arranged is much wider and more flexible. It will not be the parts that drive the whole, but each part has a certain degree of autonomy and flexibility. Hidden murderous intent, looking full of fierceness.

Although the new army formation has not experienced the test of actual combat, all the soldiers have a high level of trust in the coach Cao Bianjiao. They are also aware of the current predicament. The new army formation may be able to get rid of the immediate crisis. They quickly set up the formation , Silently but resolutely carried out the orders handed down by the coach.

After the formation was completed, Cao Bianjiao felt a lot more relaxed. Although the lineup of the large formation was not as good as that of the Jingbian Army at that time, it was a bit hasty and chaotic, but it was relatively flexible and possessed powerful firepower. The threat of a breach affecting the rout of the entire army formation is also greatly reduced.

Through the flag or the order of the Tangma, the overall layout can also be carried out calmly, with strong support from various parts.

Not to mention Cao Bianjiao, after the army was launched, the anxiety of the soldiers was quickly relieved. The new army formation is really flexible, especially when passing through some complicated areas.

Although it is all plain land here, it is not without rivers and ravines, field ridges and villages. When passing through these places in the early days, it was a time when the whole army was highly stressed and the physical strength of the troops was very high. On the four sides, they are dotted far away, waiting very patiently, and whenever there is an opportunity, they will rush forward.

Even if it is normal, there are twos and threes, threes and fives patrolling the circle, just not rushing up to fight, but the pressure on people is very high, because you don't know when they will really rush up.

Passing through these places in the early days is a good opportunity for the so-called half-crossing attack. Chuangqi never gives up taking the opportunity to harass or attack. Every moment, it creates tension for the advancing army and wears down the strength and fighting spirit of the soldiers of the second town.

After changing to a concave-convex formation, all the soldiers in the formation felt that the tension was greatly reduced. After passing through these areas, even if the enemy cavalry harassed them, they could respond with a certain small formation or several small formations instead of the entire army formation. Accompanied by the trouble, not to worry about the breach in this place, which will affect the overall war.

Moreover, even if there is a stagnation in this area, the cavalry of the Chinese army can quickly be dispatched to take them back.

Although they trust Cao Shuai, it is related to their own survival after all. Everyone is not in a relaxed mood. However, not long after the new army set off, the soldiers of the second town began to be full of confidence in their future. live cheer up.

……

"What tricks are the officers and soldiers playing?"

When Cao Bianjiao stopped and changed his formation, Liu Zongmin, Hao Yaoqi, Yuan Zongdi and others who rushed into the camp outside were puzzled and didn't understand what Cao Bianjiao was doing. However, their purpose was only to delay. It is best for officers and soldiers to stop, so they rushed to ride It didn't move, only some rangers came up to spy.

They watched the Ming army man called Masi, lined up their troops, and finally formed a strange army formation. Just like Jierhalang and others at that time, they looked at the small squares covered in the wilderness in front of them. Ge, Zuo Wuying and the others were puzzled.

"What array is this?"

"Is Uncle Cao confused?"

Seeing Cao Bianjiao's new formation, the bandits touched their ears, licked their cheeks, frowned, or thought deeply. Everyone didn't understand what Cao Bianjiao was up to.

In everyone's impression, infantry met cavalry in the wilderness, and they didn't line up in a tight formation for defense. Isn't it a gift?Such sparse formations, small formations are arranged one by one, and they are still far apart. What if the horsemen rush in directly and break through as soon as they charge?
The opportunity should not be missed, Hao Yaoqi insisted on gathering the horse army to attack immediately, without waiting for the whole army to arrive.

Liu Zongmin was also moved, while Yuan Zongdi firmly opposed it. Li Guo hesitated, but still supported Yuan Zongdi's opinion.

The skin of the human shadow tree, Cao Bianjiao is a famous general of the Ming Dynasty after all, it is not unreasonable to set up this formation, besides, the tactics of the army formation in front of him always give Li Guo a familiar feeling, although it is only the Dongshi version, but for that army, he Sometimes I wake up in a dream, which can be described as unforgettable.

To be on the safe side, let's wait until King Chuang and the main force arrive. A series of battles with the Jingbian army made Li Guo, a young Chuang army general, mature.

Not to mention the fifth battalion of Ge and Zuo, the bandit leaders who can survive and grow are all proficient in the art of watching Qi, and they can tell at a glance whether the officers and soldiers they encounter are strong or not. Officers and soldiers, they are unwilling to fight, either flee, or leave money to buy roads to survive.

In the history of the battles of the Ge and Zuo Fifth Battalions, they are famous for their cunning and avoiding battles. When encountering many officers and soldiers, they hide in ambush, and few talents meet the enemy. People, Xingbu marketers and the like are among them, and they often use spies to break through the city.

They are unwilling to gnaw hard bones. If it weren't for the fact that the rebel army is powerful and stronger than others, they would not be able to besiege Cao Bianjiao with such a powerful army. Yilong agreed, Ma Shouying, who was cautious, shook his head and remained silent, while He Jin, Liu Xiyao, and Lin Chengcheng also objected.

They are all masters of anticipation. Although everyone can't understand the new army formation that Cao Bianjiao has set up, the spirit of killing is stronger. They only attack when they seek death. If they lose their troops, how can they keep their status and strength?

Therefore, Hao Yaoqi's proposal did not succeed, and everyone felt that it would be better to wait and see the changes. Anyway, even if Cao Bianjiao changed his formation, he was still under siege by his own side.

What everyone was more concerned about was whether Cao Bianjiao would abandon the infantry and just run away with his own cavalry?Although their own cavalry were under heavy siege, due to reasons such as coordination, organization, and combat power, even if Cao Bianjiao ran away with the cavalry now, they might not be able to stop them.

Fortunately, Cao Bianjiao didn't seem to have this intention. Although the spirit of not abandoning the Ming army and the new army makes people feel different, it is good not to run.

On the plain, when the Ming army was short of food and grass, even if the encirclement was full of loopholes and tight, it would still be an impregnable wall for the marching infantry. After all, human legs could not be compared with horse legs.

With this in mind, the generals of Chuangying, Ge, and Zuowu Battalion let Cao Bianjiao set out in a new formation, and watched them continue to march across the vast wilderness.

But slowly, everyone's expressions became dignified, it was too fast, Cao Bianjiao's new formation was running too fast, several times as many as before, at this speed, I'm afraid they could reach Xiayi City today.

Liu Zongmin's face slowly turned blue, and he shouted: "We can't let them go on like this!"

……

Chuang Qi and others began to harass frequently again, and joined the Ge and Zuo Fifth Battalions. The horsemen they gathered here had reached as many as [-], and they had sufficient forces to drive.

If there is enough food and grass, Cao Bianjiao will definitely find a terrain to fight with them, at least it will be a stalemate. Although there are not as many horseback troops as there are bandits, Cao Bianjiao is confident that they will be defeated, but unfortunately there is not enough food and grass.

Moreover, if this is the case, the thief cavalry must be far away, and if they don't make contact with them, they will not be able to fight if they want to fight.

(End of this chapter)