Daqin Engineering Corps

"Exactly, does the captain have any objections?"

Wang Ben objected:

"General Mingjian."

"Subordinates think that although Enuke Cavalry seems to be feasible, it is impossible to do so."

"Because the Xiongnu's tactics are well versed in 'avoid their vigor and attack their lazy return', I am afraid that Nuke cavalry..."

Shen Bing couldn't help but secretly praised, this Wang Ben really has two brushes.

The tactics of the Huns cavalry is actually a sentence "avoid their vigor and attack their lazy return".

This is not because the Huns were familiar with Sun Tzu's Art of War. In fact, they didn't even have writing at this time... According to historical records, the Huns "do not use documents, but use words as constraints."

That is to say, there are no written books, but they have their own language.

In this case, of course they don't know what Sun Tzu's Art of War is.

However, their long-term battles in the grassland have led them to develop tactics like wolf pack hunting. When they find a single enemy or a weak point, they will swarm up.

This method of warfare evolved by natural selection actually coincides with Sun Tzu's art of war, and can even be described by the modern guerrilla tactics of "breaking parts into wholes and breaking wholes into parts".

Therefore, during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, almost every expedition to the Huns did the same thing: find the main force of the Huns.

The question raised by Wang Ben is:

If the Xiongnu fought in this way, would it be effective to use Nuke cavalry or even make a powerful bed crossbow?

Would the Huns be stupid enough to attack the Qin army's crossbow array or even bed crossbow with cavalry?

will not!

And if the troops rely too much on bows and crossbows but lack cavalry, a serious problem will arise: supply difficulties.

The reason is simple: these crossbows and even bed crossbows, any single salvo is thousands of crossbow arrows. These crossbow arrows look cool in combat, and the arrows fly towards the enemy like locusts.

But all the arrows shot out were transported in carts and carts.

What if the Huns relied on the high mobility of the cavalry to avoid the main force of the Qin army and attack the supply line everywhere?

If there are not enough crossbow arrows, what role can these crossbows and bed crossbows play?

Chapter 300 Enclosure

But Wang Ben can think of these, of course Shen Bing can think of them too.

Just kidding, he is a modern person, knowing that the Song Dynasty was defeated by Mongolia because of this, how could he still copy the equipment and tactics of the Song Dynasty?

Shen Bing spread out the map in front of the case and said:

"What the captain said is very true."

"However, as the captain said, it will happen more when our army goes deep into the grasslands to fight the Huns."

"Does the captain think so?"

Wang Ben looked at the map, then nodded.

After a pause, he asked again:

"Isn't the general making crossbows only after recovering Jiuyuan and Houtu?"

Shen Bing shook his head and replied:

"I make crossbows only for defense."

"There is no Great Wall in Yunzhong County to stop the Xiongnu from going south, and our army's crossbow array is the Great Wall."

Wang Ben couldn't help saying "Oh" when he heard the words, and then nodded to express his understanding.

If the strategic purpose is to attack, of course there is a problem, but if it is only for defense... Yunzhong County is backed by Yanmen County, and the left flank is the Yellow River and the desert, so the logistical pressure is not great.

Shen Bing went on to explain:

"Even so, we can't just guard the city and let the Xiongnu run amok outside the city."

"Otherwise, Yunzhong County will soon become an isolated city."

Wang Ben nodded in agreement.

Because if you don’t go out of the city to fight, you will just stick to it, and the land, resources, and even the main traffic routes outside the city will be gradually eaten away by the Xiongnu, especially the fields... Although there are fields in the city, it is far from enough to feed the people in the city.

Therefore, the population of a city is not determined by the height of the city wall, the number of troops, or the size of grain storage, but by the effective fields outside the city.

Even if there is land in Yunzhong County, if it was planted by the Qin people, and the harvest was robbed by the Huns, then what's the point?

As I said before, over time, Yunzhong County will wither due to the frequent harassment of the Huns.

In the future, Yunzhong County will really be an empty city with only soldiers and no people left.

and so……

Shen Bing said:

"My purpose is very simple, to protect the field."

Wang Ben couldn't help but wonder:

"But General, Yunzhong County is full of weeds and no land to protect."

What Wang Ben said was true.

If the timeline is pushed forward... Shen Bing and others did not start farming until they captured Handan, the capital of Zhao State.

And Zhao Wangjia fled to the north at that time, and then moved the people to the country of Dai and proclaimed himself the king of Dai.

That is to say, in Yunzhong County, including Jiuyuan and Houtao, the people were relocated before they even had time to farm.

As a result, the fields in Yunzhong County were barren and full of weeds, and Shen Bing and others basically had to transport their rations from the Central Plains.

This is also one of the reasons why Wang Ben opposed gathering the old and the weak in Yunzhong County... Food is under pressure.

If the Xiongnu successfully went south and entered the territory of Zhao State to burn and kill them, the pressure would be more obvious.

Shen Bing only replied with one sentence:

"If we just sit and watch inside the city, how can the fields outside the city not be abandoned?"

Wang Ben was taken aback for a moment, and then he understood the meaning of Shen Bing's words.

This sounds a bit awkward to say, but it is actually a chicken-and-egg problem.

Because the people feel that the fields outside the city are not safe, they don't leave the city to farm, because the people don't leave the city to farm, so there is no land to protect...

If there is no land to protect the Qin army, there is no need to go out of the city, so the fields outside the city will never be safe.

To break this cycle, we must protect even when there is no land outside the city to protect.

This protection is not actually the field, but to circle a safe area to restore the confidence of the people.

Only in this way can Yunzhong County enter a virtuous circle and become stronger and stronger.

After speaking, Shen Bing picked up a brush and clicked a few points on the map, saying:

"I plan to build five villages outside the city, each with a thousand people, what does the captain think?"

Wang Ben looked at the positions of the five points and asked:

"General, is this going to enclose land along the river?"

Wang Ben was right, Shen Bing was going to enclose land along the river.

On one side is the Yellow River, and on the other side are the five city villages established by Shen Bing along the traffic arteries and the flow of the river.

The five walled cities formed a line to enclose a safe area. If this area was garrisoned or planted with crops, it would be enough to feed the soldiers and civilians in the city.

The enclosure along the Yellow River is for the convenience of defense... The Xiongnu are a nation on horseback, and they are definitely landlubbers, so the side of the Yellow River must be safe.

In this way, as much land as possible can be enclosed with the least number of city walls.

Another consideration is river irrigation.

There is an old saying along the Yellow River that goes, "One hundred evils in the Yellow River lead to one set of riches".

This means that the Yellow River is often diverted and silted up because of its high sediment content, and the flood season means that floods are very frequent.

However, the Hetao area is basically not flooded due to the influence of the terrain, coupled with the fertile soil and several flat plains, so agriculture is very developed.

Of course, this is to describe the Hetao area in modern times.

During the Warring States Period, the Hetao area was often harassed by the Huns because of its remoteness outside the Great Wall, and its irrigation system was very backward and the crop yield was seriously insufficient.

Even when Li Mu was guarding the Northland, the Northland Army had to rely on transportation from the Central Plains for food.

This situation did not change until Meng Tian connected the Great Walls of Yan, Zhao, and Qin into one piece, that is, it was not until the Hetao area of ​​the Han Dynasty that it was truly utilized and developed.

But now, since Shen Bing came to manage this land, he certainly wouldn't wait another few hundred years.

Wang Ben thought for a while and asked:

"This method may be feasible."

"But general... we were originally short of troops, and we divided up the five villages. Wouldn't it be a big taboo to divide troops?"

Shen Bing replied with a smile:

"That's why we need to develop crossbows and bed crossbows."

"If the Xiongnu invade, our army will set up a crossbow array and go out to fight...it will be like a wall in front of the Xiongnu so that they cannot cross the thunder pool."

Wang Ben asked again:

"But one day if the number of people increases, the surrounding area will not be enough..."

Before Wang Ben finished speaking, Shen Bing continued:

"At that time, we will have more troops, so we can consider enclosing another field."

"In this way, we gradually go deeper in the direction of the Huns, and even the further we go to the front and the rear, the troops can move forward..."

"It won't take long, and the recovery of Jiuyuan and even Houtao will be just around the corner!"

Wang Ben couldn't help but admire:

"The general is right."

"This is to retreat first and advance later. At the beginning, the Huns may only know that a small piece of land is not important, but it took a long time to discover the key point."

"But by then I'm afraid it's too late."

This is actually not a tactic invented by Shen Bing.

Throughout the Song Dynasty, it was moaning under the iron heel of Mongolia, but there was only one exception, and that was Sichuan, which was governed by Yu Jie.

At that time, the Sichuan area was also harassed by the broken tactics of Mongolian cavalry, and it seemed that it was becoming more and more desolate and not far from the city.

As a result, Yu Jie adopted this tactic of using the terrain to expand outwards step by step, which prevented the Mongolian army from entering after a few years.

And after the fall of the Song Dynasty, Sichuan was still holding on, and even killed Mengge Khan.

Chapter 3 and One: Bed Crossbowmen

Recommend a friend's book "The Silent War": During the massacre, Luo Yao narrowly escaped death, and by chance, he entered the special training class in Linli. , Decipher the top secret code of the Japanese army, and perform a legendary life.

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Shen Bing's enclosure plan began to be implemented after the Qin army replaced the crossbow arrows and conducted the necessary training.

In fact, the Qin army did not need too much training to switch to the new crossbow.

Crossbowmen are still crossbowmen, but they have changed from sitting on the ground to standing up.

Archers are still archers, but the arrows have changed from bronze to iron with stronger penetration and lethality.

Others such as organization and tactics remain unchanged.

If there is any change, it is to add a three-bow bed crossbow for every hundred people.

The three-bow bed crossbow belongs to the strengthening equipment and does not occupy the troop establishment.