chsdbacks Chapter 54 Commander, their formation is our weakness.
Chapter 54 Commander, their formation is our weakness.
Before dawn, the lights were already on in the barracks of Zuofeng Battalion.
Fang Dahai sat at his desk, with a densely drawn array diagram spread out on the table in front of him.
"Commander, the supply depot was in such a commotion until midnight last night." Lieutenant Ma Ping pushed open the door and came in. "Tao Guanzi stewed all the cured meat he'd been storing for half a month."
Fang Dahai didn't look up.
"Sun Dayong's drunk and bragging, saying he single-handedly killed three of our swordsmen and shieldmen," Ma Ping said, standing at the door. "Should we send someone to scout out their formation?"
"No need." Fang Dahai picked up a pen and drew three circles in the center of the formation diagram. "I've already figured out their tactics."
Ma Ping took a few steps closer.
"Three people per group, two groups per team, spread out and attack from the side."
Fang Dahai tapped the paper with the tip of his pen, "In the end, it's just taking advantage of their cumbersome formation. That idiot Hu Tai lined up sixty people in four rows, making it difficult for them to even turn around. It would be a miracle if they didn't get beaten up."
He put down his pen and stood up.
"Pass down the order. Today's battle will not be fought with four ranks deep; instead, it will be fought in five horizontal rows. Each row will have twelve men, with a three-step gap between them."
Ma Ping was stunned for a moment.
"A horizontal formation?" He hesitated. "Commander, a horizontal formation has too weak a flank. What if..."
"They come from the side, and the line goes straight up to them. They come from the front, and the two ends of the line squeeze into the middle." Fang Dahai interrupted him, "The three-person team is indeed flexible, but it has a fatal flaw."
He drew a heavy cross on the diagram.
"If we spread out, we'll be at a disadvantage in terms of numbers. Each group only has three people. If we line up in a row of twelve, as long as we don't scatter, even three or four groups attacking together won't be able to break through."
Ma Ping's eyes lit up as he looked at the formation diagram.
"besides."
Fang Dahai turned around, "The most powerful aspect of Lin Yan's Bagua Formation isn't its attack, but its switching. The attacking group finishes its attack and leaves, while the retreating group takes over and attacks again, making it impossible for you to grasp their rhythm. But conversely, if you can seize the opportunity when they switch groups..."
"That would be enough to wipe out an entire group in one bite," Ma Ping added.
Fang Dahai nodded.
"This guy is truly a genius. It's a pity..." He threw his pen on the table, "None of his old, weak, sick, or disabled gang can fight on their own. He wouldn't dare to go toe-to-toe with them in a real fight."
Before the drums for the second round of martial arts practice even sounded on the training ground, the stands were already packed with people.
Cao Yan sat in the main seat, while Gao Wenjing, standing beside him, held a booklet in his hand, his face even more grim than yesterday.
After winning the first round of the supply battalion's battle, Gao Wenjing reviewed the supply battalion's files overnight, hoping to find something. He discovered that all the people and files related to Lin Yan had complete documentation.
The other two examiners from the Martial Arts Selection Division stood behind Gao Wenjing, their expressions also uneasy.
When Lin Yan first came to the Martial Selection Division, Gao Wenjing made him wait outside for half an hour, and then used his travel permit to delay for a whole day. In the end, it was Ye Qingxue who finally got him to leave with her token.
The news had spread throughout the military headquarters, but no one thought it was a big deal. After all, who would give face to a candidate from a non-military background?
it's good now.
Yesterday, after the martial arts demonstration, Cao Yan said in front of everyone, "The supply battalion is not bad."
Gao Wenjing knew the weight of that "not bad".
Cao Yan was the deputy commander-in-chief, and in the Northern Border Military Government, his influence was only half a rank lower than that of the General of the North.
He said it was good, which means he accepted the person.
"Lord Gao," an examiner whispered, leaning closer, "why don't we go find Lin Yan..."
"Shut up," Gao Wenjing squeezed out through gritted teeth.
On the training ground, the Left Vanguard Battalion had already formed ranks.
Sixty men were arranged in five horizontal lines, twelve men in each line, with three steps between them. Swords and shields were in front, spears were behind, and three light cavalrymen were positioned on each side for support.
The formation looks loose, but the connection between the columns is very tight, with the front and back rows staggered, and they can be brought together to the middle at any time.
Fang Dahai stood at the front of the formation, now wearing a suit of iron armor with two short halberds hanging at his waist.
When the supply battalion entered, some people in the stands whispered among themselves.
"Can we still use that formation from yesterday?"
"It's hard to say. Fang Dahai is not Hu Tai. His horizontal formation clearly indicates that he is not vulnerable to flank harassment."
"It's still uncertain whether the veterans in the supply battalion can keep up physically. The first round went quickly, so it didn't show. But if it drags on, they'll definitely be exposed."
Lin Yan stood at the rear of the formation and glanced at the left vanguard battalion's horizontal formation.
"Fang Dahai is quite something," he said to Xiong Kuo.
"He's maximizing his numerical advantage this time—" Xiong Kuo squinted, examining the group. "Twelve men in a row, and we're charging in in groups of three or four. Even if we use the most cunning positioning, it's still three against twelve in a head-on confrontation."
Lin Yan remained silent.
The drums sounded.
The martial arts demonstration begins.
Fang Dahai didn't press forward like Hu Tai did.
He ordered the troop to remain stationary, waiting for the supply battalion to make the first move.
Lin Yan waved his right hand.
The Bagua formation dispersed, and twenty three-person teams approached the horizontal formation simultaneously from three directions: four teams on the left, four teams on the right, and six teams in front, with the remaining six teams reserved for maneuver.
Make the first move on the left.
Xiong Kuo led two veterans to cut in from the left flank of the horizontal formation, targeting the outermost column. The swordsmen and shieldmen on the outermost edge of the left vanguard battalion immediately raised their shields to meet them. At the same time, the two adjacent columns each moved half a step to the left flank.
Xiong Kuo attacked twice but failed to break through the defense, and was about to retreat.
Two rows of soldiers pressed in from both sides at the same time, trapping him and two veterans in the middle.
"Xiong Kuo is surrounded!"
Sun Dayong shouted from the right flank and led his men to charge in this direction. However, the right flank's horizontal formation did not move, while the central horizontal formation moved forward, dividing the battlefield into two parts.
Xiong Kuo gritted his teeth and endured it.
But outnumbered three to twenty-four, he couldn't hold on for even twenty breaths before two of them were taken down, leaving only him holding on.
"Third group, ninth group, go up and provide support." Lin Yan's voice came from the rear.
The two teams quickly moved up from their positions.
However, the Left Vanguard Battalion was clearly prepared, and the horizontal formation immediately contracted inward, blocking the supporting teams on the outside, making it impossible for them to break through.
Xiong Kuo had three white marks on his body. The referee raised his flag and shouted, "Xiong Kuo, dead."
He cursed, threw the wooden sword on the ground, and walked to the sidelines.
As he passed Lin Yan, he whispered, "Commander, they're having a tough time against us right now."
Lin Yan did not reply.
He stared at Fang Dahai's formation, but never waved the command flag in his right hand.
[Viewing the Mountain] spread out, and every footstep, every turn, and every angle of the sword strike on the training ground—all flooded into his senses.
Fang Dahai's horizontal formation has a weakness.
But not on the flank.
The flanks of the horizontal formation may look thin, but they are actually flexible.
The front and rear rows are staggered, so when attacked from the side, the two adjacent rows can immediately squeeze into the middle, forming an encirclement where one person attacks the other.
This pincer attack was decisive; from any point directly in front, they were taking hits, but the overall framework never broke down.
The real weakness lies in the column switching.
When the first column attacks, the second column will switch positions to cover the second column. During this switching interval, the side and rear are empty.