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Due to unforeseen circumstances, the standard Wedge Formation of the Qin Army was altered by Wang Jian. At this moment, it was not only Fang Tianhua who sensed that something was amiss; even Luzi, who had been studying military strategies recently, noticed the change in the situation.
The so-called Pike Formation has its drawbacks, as its sharp thrust creates significant gaps behind it. This is akin to an arrow, where the sharpest part is at the tip, while the tail is made of soft feathers.
Faced with the overwhelming Zhao Army, the Qin Army's Wedge Formation began to show signs of fatigue. A sudden large gap appearing directly ahead would leave both flanks vulnerable to attack.
Fang Tianhua was unaware that Luzi was a general who had taken up arms later in life; he mistakenly believed that a general must be a top graduate from prestigious universities like Tsinghua or Peking University. He did not take minor skirmishes seriously and was indifferent to large formations. Now, seeing the Defensive Formation passively changing, he anxiously looked at Luzi, hoping to hear how to resolve the situation.
Luzi was not someone who could not handle pressure; sometimes, even under duress, one could achieve good results. Noticing Fang Tianhua's eager gaze, he hesitated to voice his thoughts on how to solve the issue. After a moment of contemplation, he commanded, "Change formation! Form Scale Formation!"
The Scale Formation mentioned here is merely a metaphorical representation, dividing the defensive army into several segments stacked upon each other. The drawback of this formation is its weak defense at the rear due to the dense arrangement of troops in front. The general is positioned behind the Defensive Formation.
Both Scale Formation and Crane Wing Formation belong to Civil Official formations, where the defensive troops are in front and the general is at the back. In battle, charges are typically led by martial generals themselves; thus, this formation is not suitable for martial generals like Wang Jian or Fang Tianhua.
This Civil Official formation does not imply that it can only adopt a defensive stance; its offensive capabilities are also quite effective. Since the troops at the forefront of the formation are densely packed, they are difficult for enemy forces to scatter when launching an attack. If the Pike Formation focuses on rapid maneuvering and penetration, then Scale Formation emphasizes a dense shield-based assault. The former is point-based and requires fierce generals; whereas the latter is area-based and works well without them.
Fortunately, only the front square of the Qin Army's Pincer Formation underwent changes while the two wings did not suffer significant combat losses. When both legions formed a unified Scale Formation facing outward, they complemented each other's weaknesses. In other words, the previously weak defense of Scale Formation no longer existed.
Fang Tianhua had already planned to change to Scale Formation; seeing that their thoughts aligned made him stop questioning anyone's capability. Any doubts he had about how Luzi became a general vanished with this clear solution.
The sound of drums echoed with rhythmic beats as commanders received orders for formation change. The two squares began to subtly shift while ensuring continuous Arrow Rain; both formations slowly moved toward the Central Army.
As the originally sparse squares moved and began folding inwards layer by layer, they became densely packed. When the tails of both Scale Formations drew close together, General Lu's Central Army was completely encompassed within the Defensive Formation.
The sound of the drums soon reached the Central Army, notifying the General that the Fish Scale Formation had been successfully assembled.
Receiving the news, Luzi felt secretly pleased, relieved that he hadn't embarrassed himself in front of the experts. Regularly reading books had its benefits; at least he could contribute something meaningful when discussing professional topics. Being an ignorant rich man was truly a shameful thing.
Faced with the Qin Army's change in formation, the Zhao Army Cavalry responsible for the flank assault had their own grievances. The continuous Arrow Rain had already made things difficult, and now, with the increased density of the Defensive Formation, it felt impenetrable. The Cavalry, which had once had a chance to break through, was now utterly despondent; the glimmer of victory that had just appeared was snuffed out once again.
Zhou Zhi, commanding the Zhao Army Cavalry, was unaware that his General had already been slain by the Qin Army. He was still sweating profusely as he ordered the Cavalry Unit to launch a suicidal charge. As the slow-moving Chariot Unit arrived for support, an effective assault method came to mind.
The Qin Army relied on the long-range sniping capabilities of the Qin State Crossbow. Practice had shown that Zhao's shields could not withstand the piercing strikes of Triangular Arrows. However, if they used the thick wooden boards of the Chariot for defense, it might be worth a try.
To ensure that the Chariot could withstand arrows from the Qin State, they bound shields and rafts to it, making it extremely bulky. In this situation, regardless of how well-equipped they were with warhorses, lethal arrows could still kill them.
Zhou Zhi ordered everyone to dismount from their horses and then arranged the chariots in a line, securing them together with ropes. The preparing Cavalry all got off their horses and advanced on foot with strong bows and crossbows. Once everything was ready, Zhao Army's new Chariot made its grand appearance.
The drummers beat the War Drum furiously to rally the charging troops, while Soldiers working overtime to modify the Chariot were also filled with fighting spirit. Zhao General Zhou Zhi divided the Chariots into three teams and pushed them out of formation with Soldier manpower. The Soldiers hiding behind the Chariots heard a dense clattering sound coming from directly ahead and looked at each other nervously, relieved to see they were all unharmed.
"Charge! Kill! Cut off the heads of those Qin Barbarians and kick them like a soccer ball!"
As shouts of battle rose and fell, what had seemed like a feeble Chariot Unit suddenly became vigorous. As they quickened their pace, Zhao Soldiers itched to rush forward and chop up the Qin Crossbowmen into pieces. The long-suppressed fire within them blazed fiercely as everyone put in their utmost effort to push the Chariot forward.
The sharp arrows from Qin State could ignore three layers of wooden shields at a distance but found themselves powerless against specially designed chariots. Although fired arrows hit their targets, they caused almost no effective damage.
If this momentum continued, it would only take time for Zhao Army Cavalry—converted from cavalry to infantry—to completely disregard the power of Qin State Crossbows. Once close combat ensued, the Qin Army's Defensive Formation would collapse like a house of cards. The arriving Zhao Army Cavalry could then completely ignore the presence of Qin Soldiers.
Scale Formation has formed a dense Arrow Rain that can only suppress the left flank of the Zhao Army, while the attack personally commanded by Zhou Zhi has begun to show signs of turning the tide. The formations on the battlefield are mutually supportive; any collapse on one side would lead to a total defeat.
Due to the composition of the Scale Formation, the position of the General is currently the safest. Fang Tianhua notices that the right flank Army is beginning to face a crisis and actively requests to support the right side of the Scale Formation.
Luzi, who is in the Central Army, also observes this scene. Seeing Fang Tianhua eager to act, he casually asks, "General, what method should you use to defend against the enemy?"
Upon hearing this, Fang Tianhua is momentarily taken aback. While he was thinking about commanding operations at the front, he hadn't truly considered how to completely resolve this dilemma. He then states that he can only think of ways to improve shooting accuracy; if that fails, he will have to lead troops into battle.
Luzi smiles slightly and asks, "Lead troops into battle!? Where is your Cavalry, General!?"
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