Ming Dynasty: I, Yan Maoqing, am truly radiating auspicious energy!

Chapter 195 It is indeed I! [Seeking monthly votes]

"So, according to you, how can we form a fighting force?"

Yan Maoqing was not an arrogant person. If professionals offered better ideas, he was naturally willing to humbly learn from them and even willing to be a hands-off manager who delegated authority.

"As far as I know, although firearms are quite lethal, their loading speed, accuracy, and stability are still unsatisfactory."

Shen Kun pondered for a moment, then said seriously,

"Therefore, it should never be used as the main force, especially not as the sole force. Its proportion in an army should ideally not exceed 30%, and should be kept at around 20%, just enough to make up for insufficient lethality."

"The real main force should still be the infantry, who should account for at least 50% of an army."

"Furthermore, infantry should also take into account the coordination between spears and shields, and between long and short weapons; shield bearers, spearmen, and swordsmen are all indispensable."

"As for the remaining two or three tenths, they should all be equipped with cavalry to protect the flanks of the central army, and to be responsible for reconnaissance, harassment and pursuit."

"This is the optimal proportion for an army in my opinion."

"Minister Yan, this military composition has long been tested in actual combat. The original composition of the three major battalions was similar, which is why they were invincible..."

At this point, Yan Maoqing suddenly interjected with a laugh:

"So they were completely wiped out in the Tumu Crisis?"

"!"

Shen Kun was so taken aback that he couldn't catch his breath. After taking a breath, he regrouped and explained:
"Minister Yan, you are wise enough to know that the Tumu Crisis was not a matter of troop allocation, but rather a result of the emperor's... the presence of treacherous officials, incompetent generals, and chaotic command. How can you deny the proper allocation of the three major military units because of this?"

Shen Kun came up with several objective reasons, but he just couldn't bring himself to say the four words "the emperor is muddleheaded" in their entirety.

After all, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices is different from other departments; its office is located inside the palace. Speaking carelessly can easily cause unnecessary trouble, so it is only natural to be cautious in one's words and actions.

"Alright, alright, I was just joking with you."

Yan Maoqing smiled, then looked at Gao Gong.

"Brother Suqing, what are your thoughts? Do you agree with Brother Bozai's statement?"

“What Shen Yude said makes sense, and I completely agree with it.”

Gao Gong also bowed and nodded meticulously.

Both men were from military backgrounds and had studied many military strategies and tactics, as well as inherited the methods of training and marching troops from their ancestors.

However, none of them had ever personally led troops before, and like Yan Maoqing, they had no practical combat experience.

Therefore, what their predecessors left behind was the only thing they could learn from, and they were naturally deeply influenced by it, even regarding it as a treasure in their hearts.

As for the evolution of some tactics and strategies, as well as the understanding of troop composition and new weapons.

We must wait until we continuously summarize and improve upon these methods in actual combat.

Even Qi Jiguang, a famous general who fought against Japanese pirates, first participated in the war against them, and then, through repeated battles, summarized and improved the famous "Mandarin Duck Formation" and trained the "Qi Family Army" that made the Japanese pirates tremble with fear.

However, unlike them...

Yan Maoqing, this cheating time traveler, was able to draw upon some advanced knowledge left by later generations, which they had summarized through repeated practical battles.

This is equivalent to having the answer before attempting the problem; no matter how you do it, even if you encounter some obstacles along the way, the final result will definitely be correct.

Yan Maoqing knew better than anyone else.

At this time, the Ming Dynasty was actually standing at a crossroads of its era.

The Age of Exploration had begun in the West.

The era of open trade with powerful ships and cannons had begun.

Although the development of firearms is not about to enter a period of explosive growth, it has already begun to enter an era of large-scale deployment, even for the matchlock guns and breech-loading cannons that seem incredibly backward to later generations.

Moreover, if history remains unchanged, flintlock muskets, which will dominate the world market, will appear in a few decades at most.

Furthermore, with the large-scale deployment of firearms, in this era of smoothbore guns, an army that once dominated the world for a century and was jokingly called the "Lobster Soldiers" because of their exaggerated costumes will emerge.

For all feudal dynasty armies.

This army, possessing the obedience and discipline of a modern army, demonstrated an almost overwhelming advantage!

This is exactly the kind of army that Yan Maoqing wants to build.

He naturally knew that when the "Lobster Soldiers" roamed the world, they were already using more advanced flintlock muskets, while matchlock muskets had many disadvantages compared to them.

Therefore, this tactic is probably not yet able to unleash its true potential and still has some fatal flaws.

But this trip to Shanxi.

He wasn't facing a formidable opponent with exceptional combat power.

At best, they were just servants used by powerful families and merchants to prey on ordinary people.

A mob that has been brainwashed, deceived, and incited by the White Lotus sect;

Perhaps we could also add some guards from the Prince of Dai's residence;

Even if a rebellion occurs, they will face a garrison army that was able to be rampaged by 58 Japanese pirates for more than 80 days, killing and wounding four or five thousand officers and soldiers, with a desertion rate as high as 70 or 80%, and whose generals run away faster than dogs.
True patriotic generals, such as Zhou Shangwen and his army, would never rebel, much less become his enemies.

Because this time he was acting under orders.

This single rule is enough to exclude all disciplined and still combat-capable armies.

For a loyal minister like Zhou Shangwen, nothing is more important than loyalty, and he would never oppose the emperor's envoy.

and so……

This time, he wanted to use this matter to let Zhu Houcong glimpse a corner of the future and help the Ming Dynasty turn a new page.

compare to.

The matter of profit sharing, the matter of Datong... are all just a sentence on this page.

Of course, a "surprise" has also been prepared.

I don't know what happened after he went to Shanxi.

What would Zhu Houcong's expression be when he suddenly learned that "the entire northwestern Shanxi was in complete chaos"?
What would Zhu Houcong's mindset have been when he learned that the Prince of Dai, a member of the imperial family, had "raised an army in rebellion"?
What would Zhu Houcong feel when he learned that the 10% that Yan Maoqing had taken would be a huge sum of money?
Will he receive twelve imperial edicts in succession, urging him to immediately return to the capital?

These are the thoughts in my mind.

Yan Maoqing also took some of Shen Kun and Gao Gong's opinions into account and nodded, saying:
“We do need some cavalrymen who can perform reconnaissance, harass the enemy, and pursue. As you have suggested, we will train two hundred of the two thousand men to become cavalry.”

"Equip the rest with muskets and recruit able-bodied men from the shacks outside the city. There are plenty of people there who are starving and unable to enter the city."

"Tell them that our Imperial Household Department will never default on pay, and any deaths in battle will be compensated with double the amount, with no credit to be extended."

"In addition, the initial recruitment will target 6,000 people, and a last-place elimination system will be implemented during the two-month training period until only 2,000 people remain."

"As for the training programs..."

"I don't understand cavalry, you decide for yourselves."

"The training programs for the firearms battalion will mainly focus on loading and firing muskets, marching drills, and bayonet fighting. The other programs that cultivate obedience and discipline will be decided by you."

"I have only one request:"

"Beating the drums before battle, and continuing to advance through fire and water, will be treated as deserters on the spot, with no compensation whatsoever."

"As for tactics, we will only train one tactic."

"This tactic is called the Three-Stage Strike." "Eighteen hundred men are divided into six square formations, each with three hundred men."

"Ensure that each formation is a whole, and that the six formations can be combined into one at any time, or divided into six at any time."

"The three hundred people were then divided into twelve rows, with twenty-five people in each row."

"When facing the enemy, the first line is to kneel and shoot, the second line is to crouch and shoot, and the third line is to stand and shoot."

"After the volley is completed, except for the first, second, and third rows which quickly retreat to the rear to reload their muskets, the fourth to twelfth rows advance forward, while the fourth, fifth, and sixth rows continue to kneel, crouch, and stand while firing..."

"And so on, with repeated rotations and successive waves of people going forward."

"That's about it..."

In fact, this is what later generations described more vividly and directly as the "line-up shooting" tactic.

However, due to the limited reloading time of the matchlock gun, Yan Maoqing slightly increased the number of rows to ensure that the sergeants had enough time to reload and fire, and to ensure that there would be no gaps in the firing.

But even so.

When the six formations are combined into one, and it is a three-stage firing tactic, a single volley can fire 450 bullets.

Such a dense barrage of bullets is enough to deal a devastating blow to the enemy's morale in a small-scale conflict, not to mention the continuous barrage that follows.

"This... Minister Yan, is it really that simple?"

Shen Kun was even more puzzled after hearing this, and he and Gao Gong looked at each other in bewilderment.

This is much simpler than they thought; it can be summarized in just a few words, completely different from what they imagined.

After all, China has a long history, and has produced a large number of famous generals since ancient times. There are also countless military books and strategies passed down from ancient times, and even the various ingenious formations are overwhelming.

In comparison, the so-called "three-stage attack" tactic that Yan Maoqing just mentioned seems clumsy, foolish, and low-level.

This does not demonstrate a general's ability to command in battle at all...

"Is it easy?"

Yan Maoqing, however, felt that it was not simple at all.

This tactic demands an extremely high level of obedience and discipline from the soldiers; they cannot retreat even when facing the enemy in a face-to-face "line-up for execution".

He specifically ordered the two men to recruit 6,000 men first, and then gradually eliminate the bottom 2,000 men through a last-place elimination system. This was to test the obedience of these soldiers.

As for whether this tactic is clumsy, foolish, and low-level, and whether it can demonstrate a general's ability to command in battle.

Yan Maoqing only wants to say:

My friend, times have changed. Get ready for the era of widespread firearms.

As a time traveler, he knew in his heart that this was one of the reasons why China's firearms had been leading the world since the early Ming Dynasty, but now it needed to imitate Western firearms, and later a generational gap appeared between China and the West.

Many generals in the military who are conservative in their thinking and adhere to tradition are confined to empiricism and find it difficult to view problems from a developmental perspective.

Also.

It was precisely because of the widespread use of firearms that the cost of training soldiers was greatly reduced, making it possible for a greenhorn who had only been using firearms for two months to easily shoot and kill a fierce general who had been using bows and swords for decades.

To some extent, this also affected the core interests of many traditional military generals and households, and it was inevitable that some people would oppose it.

"Minister Yan, I have another important question. If an army whose main force is fully equipped with firearms were to engage the enemy in close combat, wouldn't it be completely powerless to fight back?"

Gao Gong couldn't help but express his concerns as well.

"So assassination is one of the main training programs?"

Yan Maoqing smiled and asked in return,

"The crossbowmen of the Qin and Han dynasties could shoot down enemies from afar or draw their swords to defend themselves at close range. They were elite in both long-range and close combat. Aren't we the same?"

"But...what will we use to stab him, a musket?"

Gao Gong remained puzzled.

"Why not? I'll arrange the weapons myself. You just need to recruit and train soldiers as I say. Time is short and the task is heavy, so get to work."

Yan Maoqing confidently uttered this statement before stepping outside.

"..."

Watching Yan Maoqing's retreating figure, Shen Kun and Gao Gong exchanged a bitter smile.

“Brother Suqing, you are even more familiar with Minister Yan, what do you think of this…”

Shen Kun still couldn't understand the essence of Yan Maoqing's "three-stage attack" tactic. He felt that Yan Maoqing was just talking theory on paper and that he should get Gao Gong involved to persuade him properly, so as not to end up harming himself and others.

Gao Gong pondered for a moment, then suddenly looked up and asked Shen Kun a question:
"Brother Bozai, in your heart, is Minister Yan a fool who doesn't know what he's doing?"

"That's not it!"

Shen Kun was taken aback, then immediately shook his head in denial.

"In my opinion, Minister Yan is not a fool at all; on the contrary, he is a man of extraordinary talent whom I greatly admire. Although he may sometimes seem to act perversely, he actually possesses a profound and insightful mind, so..."

At this point, Shen Kun seemed to understand the meaning behind Gao Gong's question.

Gao Gong nodded slightly:

"If you had ever been to the desert with Yan Butang, you would be like me, willing to follow him even if you have many doubts in your heart."

"Because no matter how unbelievable it may seem, Yan Butang has never disappointed me."

"And... let me tell you a secret, Yan Butang is not a very magnanimous person, so never try to go against him!"

"Let's go, let's recruit soldiers first."

"..."

At this moment, Shen Kun suddenly felt a little dazed. He couldn't help but recall the scene from that day when Yan Maoqing was perched on the wall of the Imperial Household Department with a megaphone...

……

Bureau of Arms and Weapons.

As one of the eight bureaus among the twenty-four departments of the inner court, it was responsible for manufacturing military equipment such as knives, spears, bows and arrows, and armor.

Of course, the Armory Bureau was also responsible for manufacturing firearms, and there was a separate Gunpowder Division under its jurisdiction.

Over the years, the Armory has successively copied foreign arquebuses, breech-loading cannons, and the General Cannon independently developed by the craftsmen of the Armory.

The most common type of weapon was naturally the light, individual firearm such as the musket.

However, due to various reasons, firearms have never received enough attention, and their development has always been hindered from all sides, resulting in a severe shortage of relevant craftsmen. This meant that even the "Hongyi Cannon," which almost turned the tide of the war between the Ming and Qing dynasties, had to be outsourced to the Frankish people who were based in Xiangshan'ao.

As a great nation, we cannot even independently develop and manufacture our own powerful weapons.

What happened?

Isn't it comparable to another mysterious Eastern great nation that is often jokingly referred to as "It is I" by Chinese netizens in later generations?

With these thoughts in mind, Yan Maoqing arrived at the gate of the Armory.

Before the gatekeeper could ask any questions, he shoved the ivory token into his face:

"I have an imperial edict, summoning your chief eunuch to come out immediately to receive the decree!"

(End of this chapter)