Chapter 6: The Three Armies of Qin
There are two pieces of good news: Firstly, the number of collections of this book broke through 8,000 yesterday, which is the best record for Jue Shi in a month. Hehe! Secondly, the click rate of Da Qin reached a new high yesterday, reaching 31,000 points, which is also the highest record for Jue Shi. Here, I would like to thank all book friends again for their full support.
As this book is about to be removed from the new book weekly list after a month, in order to avoid some book friends not being able to find it, I kindly remind those who like it to collect it.
Wang Bao led the order and left. In a short while, the war drums in the Hu Bao military camp sounded urgently, and countless soldiers rushed out of the barracks to the martial arts field, starting to form an emergency formation according to their usual strict drills. Within about an hour, more than 6,000 Tiger Guards had formed a complete army array, forming a well-trained iron-blooded army.
Killing aura, a chilling killing aura, the entire massive army formation has not yet moved but exudes an enormous momentum, like Mount Tai pressing down on them, rushing towards Fu Su and others, causing their breathing to become urgent, their blood to flow rapidly, and their eyes to gradually burn with heat. The aura of defeating the enemy without a fight, the troops that can subdue people without a battle, what kind of spirit and confidence is this! No wonder the Qin army can sweep across the land and be invincible, just this momentum alone can make the enemy tremble with fear!
In the face of this vast army and thousands of horses, Wang Jian's originally narrowed eyes suddenly widened, his eyes emitting a fierce glow, his body even more upright and majestic, exuding an aura of fearlessness, invincibility, and unparalleled dominance. He was indeed a legendary general born for war, living for war! With a serious and proud expression, Wang Jian began to explain to Fu Su:
In the center, the infantry phalanx lined up in front is the three rows of crossbowmen. They are the vanguard of the army formation. The reason for lining up in three rows is to maintain the continuity and density of the arrow rain. On the battlefield, continuous lethality is the most deadly.
Behind the three rows of crossbowmen were the long spear men, who used large and neat spears to kill the enemy army that had rushed through the rain of arrows from the crossbowmen.
Behind the long spear soldiers, there were halberdiers and jiemen in sequence, forming a gradually strengthened close combat formation, responsible for melee combat after the front long spear array was defeated by the enemy.
In the infantry formation, there were still three rows of crossbowmen at the end, who were the rearguard of the entire army. The last row faced backwards to prevent sudden attacks by enemy troops from behind!
The row of soldiers on the far left flank of the infantry phalanx and the overall direction of the infantry phalanx's advance were completely different, they all faced to the left, shouldering the heavy responsibility of protecting the left flank of the phalanx from enemy raids. Similarly, the last row of soldiers on the right flank of the infantry phalanx also faced to the right, protecting the right flank of the Qin army's infantry phalanx!
Such a Qin army phalanx, with vanguards, rearguards, two wings, and in the middle of them is the main body of a huge army array. This is a Tiger and Leaping Brigade with extremely clear division of labor and extremely strict coordination!
On the left flank of the entire infantry square was a cavalry unit, consisting of 108 men in nine rows of three groups of four riders each, forming a basic column for rapid and neat forward charging.
On the right flank of the entire infantry phalanx was a cavalry phalanx, with sixty-four vehicles, in pairs, lined up one after another. When charging on flat ground, they were also like wind and thunder, quite impressive.
Listening to Wang Jian's introduction, Fu Su couldn't help but gain some basic understanding of the Qin army's military formation. Suddenly, Fu Su's heart moved and he asked Wang Jian: "General, it seems like there is still one type of troop you haven't introduced?" Wang Jian was taken aback: "Young master, what do you mean?" Fu Su smiled slightly and slowly said word by word: "Ambush - Formation - Camp!"
Wang Jian nodded and said, "This type of soldier is extremely special. They rarely perform in front of people, and the missions they carry out during battles are always the most dangerous and bloody. That's why I didn't have them come out to form an array! Moreover, their temperaments might be a bit strange, and it may not please you!" Fu Su shook his head and said, "It doesn't matter, I want to see with my own eyes this group of people who are known as the greatest heroes of Qin, 'the bravest' and 'most fearless of death'!" Wang Jian saw that Fu Su was insistent, and he had no choice but to nod at Wang Bi. Wang Bi understood and went off to pass on the order!
What is 'Trapped Array Camp'? Fu Su remembered: In Shang Yang's works, the most generous rewards were established for a special team. They are known as 'Trapped Array Warriors', also known as 'Trapped Array Camp'! According to historical records: Whenever the Qin army encountered extremely dangerous tasks in battle, which were basically suicidal, under heavy rewards, the 'Trapped Array Camp' warriors who feared neither life nor death would stand up and defend the honor of the Qin army with their hot blood. This iron-blooded team may be the first officially recorded 'suicide squad' or 'special forces'. Therefore, Fu Su, who has always been very interested in this mysterious team that has been passed down for thousands of years, is absolutely not going to miss such a good opportunity.
In a short while, a team of two or three hundred infantrymen marched out of the barracks in neat steps. When they were still dozens of feet away from Fu Su, he instinctively felt a strong killing intent and his body hair suddenly stood up!
A group of people lined up in front of Fusu, and he couldn't help but size them up: they didn't have a single piece of armor on their bodies, but they all wore the same combat uniform and lightweight boots; their hair was tied back into a bun at the back of their heads, tightly secured; they had a greenish-blue bronze long sword at their waist, but no other weapons.
At first glance, this group of daredevils seemed more like a group of chivalrous heroes than soldiers. However, Fu Su discovered that they were actually the most ruthless soldiers: their faces were extremely calm, filled with boldness and determination; their eyes were extremely cold, filled with ruthlessness and indifference. A killing aura, an extremely chilly killing aura, it was a taste that seeped out of hell, a chill that struggled out of a pile of corpses! Fu Su couldn't help but shiver under the icy gaze of this group of daredevils, feeling as if he had suddenly been transported to the frozen tundra.
Fu Su didn't dare to make eye contact with them again, and somewhat nervously turned away his gaze. He forced a smile and said to Wang Jian and the others: "General, from their expressions and demeanor, Fu Su can tell that they are a group of brave warriors who possess exceptional skills, and they are also a group of fearless tiger-like soldiers! Indeed, they live up to their reputation as the 'Bravest' and 'Most Fearless'!" Fu Su glanced at the people behind him, and indeed everyone looked somewhat pale and frightened. Wang Jian, Wang Ben, and other officers of the Tiger Guards had some color in their faces, but were still a bit pale; while Huo Feng, Qing Luan, and the other women were all deathly pale, and were even trembling slightly. As for Xiao Wang Xia, she was even more exaggerated, having been scared to the point where she was hiding behind Fu Su, her eyes tightly shut, clinging to his hem, and not daring to look at these dead soldiers again!
Wang Jian obviously didn't think much of these fearless and emotionless warriors either. Seeing that everyone was somewhat frightened, he hastily waved his hand and said: "Return to camp and disperse!" Immediately, he had these true warriors hurry back to their camp!
Seeing the originally calm expressions of the crowd had turned somewhat ashen, and the atmosphere was also more oppressive, Fu Su hastily shifted the topic: "General Wang, what is the organizational structure and officer system of your Hu Biao Army? And how do you command advances and retreats and battles?"
The king's general, Wang Jian, also quickly shifted his attention and said: "This is relatively simple. I am the highest commander of the Hu Ben army, with a military rank of Dou Wei, but the title varies depending on individual characteristics. My deputy generals are Zuo Wei and You Wei, and their titles are also not fixed. Below Zuo Wei and You Wei are Zhong Wei, who are in charge of controlling all troops of an entire branch of the army. Their titles are generally fixed as Guan Da Fu. Below Zhong Wei are Shao Wei, who are generally in charge of commanding a column of troops. Due to differences in branches, the number of troops commanded by Shao Wei also varies. The most are infantry with hundreds or thousands of people, the middle is cavalry with 108 people, and the least is chariots with only 48 people. Their titles are generally Da Fu! Below Shao Wei are military marquises, who are equivalent to not more than a certain rank, already belonging to the status of Shi, belonging to the nobility. They generally command a part of a column of troops, and the number of troops also varies depending on the branch. The most infantry may have one or two dozen people to four or five dozen people, the middle cavalry has 12 people, and the chariots also have only 12 people! Further down are the most basic military officers, Zan Yu. Chariot Zan Yu controls only one vehicle, all cavalry are Zan Yu without subordinates, while infantry Zan Yu controls a few people to dozens of people. This is the most basic military system of our Great Qin! The main difference between each level of military officer is the color of their armor and the number of flower knots on their body! As for commanding advance and retreat, it's also simple: during attack and defense, war drums are used, with various rhythmic drumbeats to command advancement and changes in formation; when withdrawing or retreating, bronze bells are used, striking them means retreat! Normally, these war drums and bronze bells are placed on the commander's chariot, making it convenient for the general to quickly command during battle!"
"Oh, I see! Today, Fu Su has gained a lot of insight!" Fu Su looked at the military formation again, thought for a moment, and then turned to Wang Jian: "Thank you, General Wang, for your kindness in pointing out my mistakes today. Fu Su has benefited greatly from it! In the future, Fu Su will still need to rely on General Wang's help, I hope General Wang won't be stingy with his assistance!" The Wang family is now tied to Fu Su like a cicada on a string, so they quickly smiled and said: "As long as the young master has orders, I dare not disobey!" With Wang Jian's old and deep calculations and his ability to observe facial expressions, he had already sensed that Fu Su seemed to be planning something big!
Fu Su looked at the solemn and stern military formation again, and smiled reluctantly at Wang Qi: "If so, Fu Su will take his leave! General Wang, please thank the soldiers on my behalf for their silent dedication, and tell them that I represent Qin Guo to thank them!" Upon hearing this, the generals behind Wang Qi couldn't help but smile, and they said in unison: "See off the young master!"
Fu Su nodded and bid farewell to Wang Ji and others, then returned to the palace on his own. On the way, Fu Su began to think about how to establish a truly invincible iron cavalry.
Appendix 1: During the Warring States period, Qin's titles were relatively special. Shang Yang once divided them into twenty levels. The first level was Gong Shi, the second level was Shang Zao, the third level was Zan Zhi, and the fourth level was Bu Geng, which was equivalent to Shi. The fifth level was Da Fu, the sixth level was Guan Da Fu, the seventh level was Gong Da Fu, the eighth level was Gong Cheng, and the ninth level was Wu Da Fu, which was equivalent to Da Fu. The tenth level was Zuo Xiang Zhang, the eleventh level was You Xiang Zhang, the twelfth level was Zuo Geng, the thirteenth level was Zhong Geng, the fourteenth level was You Geng, and the fifteenth level was Shao Shang Zao. The sixteenth level was Da Shang Zao (also known as Da Liang Zao), the seventeenth level was Si Ju Xiang Zhang, the eighteenth level was Da Xiang Zhang, which was equivalent to Qing. The nineteenth level was Guan Nei Hou, and the twentieth level was Che Hou, which was equivalent to Zhu Hou. The higher the level, the more honorable the position. At the same time, Qin's officials and titles were generally not divided, roughly from the sixteenth level of Da Shang Zao (or Da Liang Zao) downwards, which were both title names and official position names. Qin also had so-called "guest Qing", where any foreigner who entered Qin and received a Qing title was commonly known as a guest Qing.
Appendix 2: In the pre-Qin period, due to the obvious limitations of cavalry warfare and the difficulty of controlling horses, the proportion of cavalry in various national armies was relatively small. Generally, ordinary people rarely rode horses, and even many nobles were unwilling to choose horseback riding when going out, generally opting for carriage rides instead! The Qin people were especially a nation that was extremely fond of chariots.
