amaotonovel Chapter 634 A small test of one’s skills
Chapter 634 A small test of one’s skills
Wu Tiancheng's rank was already lower than Lin Ping's, and coupled with his status as the prospective son-in-law, he naturally had the authority to issue orders.
"Your humble servant obeys!" Wu Tiancheng said, clasping his hands in a fist salute, still unable to understand what Lin Ping was up to.
"Brother Pang, you will lead five thousand elite troops and follow me out of the pass to meet the enemy," Lin Ping continued.
Five thousand elite troops? To march out of the pass and meet the enemy?
Pang Xingji was completely dumbfounded. Wasn't this just courting death?
Not only did they abandon the laboriously constructed earthen ramparts, but they also only brought five thousand men.
Either Lin Ping is out of his mind, or Pang Xingji is out of his mind.
"Lord Prince Consort, are we really going to our deaths?" Pang Xingji asked with a self-deprecating tone.
“That’s right, we’re going to our deaths!” Lin Ping nodded and said earnestly, “But it’s not you going to your death, it’s me.”
"You can't die, the princess will kill me!" Pang Xingji hurriedly stood in front of Lin Ping.
Both for his own sake and for his personal reasons, he didn't want Lin Ping to die, and even wanted to die in Lin Ping's place.
"You're acting like a woman, all fussy and indecisive. Go and select a thousand elite soldiers to serve as my vanguard," Lin Ping continued, issuing his orders.
Knowing he couldn't dissuade Lin Ping, Pang Xingji hurriedly went to select assassins.
As Lin Ping instructed, soldiers should not be forced to act as suicide soldiers.
They thought no one would want to die, but to their surprise, almost all the soldiers volunteered in unison.
It was an honor for them to fight alongside Lin Ping.
It is their duty to rush to the front lines to protect their homeland.
There is no such thing as a peaceful and carefree life; it's just that someone is bearing the burden for you.
After noon, Lin Ping gave each person a shield, a spear, and a crossbow. Then, after a brief drill in formation, they awaited the great battle the next day.
The strength of the Macedonian phalanx lay in its effective coordination, rather than its unpredictability.
Lin Ping only explained the key points once, and the soldiers were able to remember them by heart.
It is essential to relax before the battle, and at the very least, to maintain good physical condition.
The next day, before the sun had even risen at dawn, Bai Tiantian had already ordered the attack.
Tens of thousands of troops advanced into Chu King Mountain in an orderly manner. They had surveyed the terrain in advance and knew that the narrowest place could only accommodate thirty people abreast, so they adjusted to a column of thirty people from the beginning.
"Those useless fools from the Wu Kingdom actually built fortifications at the end of Chu King Mountain. Little did they know that this narrowest valley is the best defensive line. Once the Wu Kingdom reaches this point, we will surely raze Xuzhou to the ground!"
Bai Tiantian laughed loudly and arrogantly.
In fact, even if the Wu Kingdom set up a defensive line in the narrowest place, it would not be able to stop him.
Bai Tiantian laughed because she was certain that the Wu Kingdom lacked capable generals and that this battle would be effortless.
However, at the height of his triumph, he discovered that a vast, dark army of the Wu Kingdom had completely sealed off the valley.
"Oh? Who is this person?" Bai Tiantian glanced at him, a hint of surprise in her eyes.
With just one glance, he could tell that the Wu Kingdom only had five thousand men, and it was impossible for them to stop his three hundred thousand-strong army.
The reason for the surprise was that no one in the Wu Kingdom knew to guard this valley.
"Reporting to the General, we have never seen this person before," a lieutenant whispered in Bai Tiantian's ear.
The Wu Kingdom only has a few generals they can boast of, and they thought Lu Zhan would be the one to go into battle, but they didn't expect this unfamiliar face.
Pang Xingji held his spear level, pointing it at the army of the Daye Dynasty, and said, "This is the border of my Wu Kingdom. If you dare to take another step forward, don't blame me for being impolite!"
If he didn't have a loud voice, Pang Xingji would be embarrassed to call himself a roughneck.
The loud voice had a significant deterrent effect.
"Hahaha, you think you can stop the army of my Great Ye Dynasty? You're just asking for death!" A commander in silver armor replied dismissively.
To deal with five thousand enemy troops, did Bai Tiantian really need to personally issue a warning?
He sat firmly on his horse, observing the situation ahead.
"Fire arrows!"
With Pang Xingji's command, a dense swarm of arrows blotted out the sky, eventually landing between the two sides and forming a boundary.
"This is the final warning from our Wu Kingdom. Anyone who dares to cross this line will be killed without exception!"
Pang Xingji said in a cold voice.
"Hahaha, is this all the bows and arrows the Wu Kingdom has to offer?" the leading commander laughed contemptuously.
This volley of arrows had a range of only a little over a hundred meters; describing it as weak and feeble would not be an exaggeration.
Using cavalry against archers can result in either a crushing defeat or an easy victory—two completely opposite outcomes.
Whether they win or lose depends on two things: the speed of the cavalry and the range of the arrows.
If cavalry is slow and archers have a long range, the cavalry will have to endure five or more volleys of arrows, inevitably resulting in heavy casualties.
Conversely, if cavalry is fast and arrows have a short range, cavalrymen only need to withstand three or even two volleys of arrows, greatly reducing casualties.
The cavalry of the Daye Dynasty were naturally not slow, while the range of the Wu Kingdom's garrison's arrows was pitifully short.
"General, this humble general requests permission to go into battle!" This commander volunteered.
Bai Tiantian nodded, signaling him to take a gamble.
"Swift Cavalry, heed my command! Charge with me!" With a wave of his arm, the commander ordered thousands of cavalrymen to form a square formation and launch a rapid attack.
The Swift Guards were considered the elite troops of the Daye Dynasty, renowned for their speed. These thousand men were the best among them, as evidenced by the high-frequency sound of their hooves.
"Such speed! Is this the strength of the Daye Dynasty's guards?" Lin Ping, hidden in the formation, thought to himself.
Now, he is dressed in black armor, holding a shield and spear, just like an ordinary soldier.
Not only was Lin Ping surprised, but Pang Xingji's expression also turned even uglier.
"Scared? Sorry, this isn't the true strength of the Swift Guards. Once they cross that line, the Swift Guards can go even faster." The commander at the front sneered, already envisioning victory.
This boundary line was equivalent to the range of Wu Kingdom's arrows; before crossing it, the Swift Guards preserved their strength.
Just when the Swift Guards were still more than a hundred meters from the border, the soldiers of the Wu Kingdom had already raised their crossbows.
"Fire arrows!"
Although he was hidden among ordinary soldiers, Lin Ping was still the commander-in-chief of the army, responsible for issuing orders.
shhhhhh!
Thousands of powerful crossbow bolts flew through the air, making a series of piercing sounds.
"Are you scared out of your wits? With your weak and feeble bows and arrows, you think you can shoot three hundred meters?" the commander said dismissively, and even increased the speed of his attack.
He couldn't contain his joy at victory.
"I'm sorry, we concealed our strength before," Lin Ping muttered to himself, revealing a wicked smile.
puff!
When the crossbow bolt easily pierced the first man's armor, the commander lost his composure.
These crossbow bolts have a range of more than 100 meters, even exceeding 300 meters.
"Oh no! We've fallen into their trap!" The commander's face changed drastically. Knowing he couldn't break through the formation, he even considered retreating, but Lin Ping didn't give him the chance.
After the first volley of arrows, more than half of the Swift Guard's thousand men were killed or wounded, and their formation became a mess.
Just as they were at a loss, the second volley of arrows began.