Meton's armor was as bright as new. There was not a speck of dust on it. He walked step by step on the reading platform. He did not look like he had just gone through a martial arts drill. It was as if he had just walked around the battlefield in his armor.
However, he didn't know how shocked everyone was in their hearts. Everyone's eyes were focused on this young man. Even though the armor was a little too big for him, no one looked at him with contempt. Instead, their faces were solemn.
Killing five hundred enemies without losing a single person. No one would think that they could do it. However, such a shocking result had actually happened right before their eyes. The ones who had destroyed them were the most powerful elites of the Tang dynasty.
"Minister, fortunately, I did not disappoint you!"
Meton solemnly saluted Li Shimin and said.
Li Shimin covered the shock on his face and immediately changed it to a calm face. However, he could not help but show a trace of satisfaction. Although he did not like Meton, the marriage between Meton and Princess Changle had basically been finalized. The more capable Meton was, the more glory he would have.
"Get up! It's nothing to win by trickery. You still need to guard against arrogance and impatience. Learn from the generals, "Li Shimin said lightly.
"Yes!" Meton got up and said respectfully.
"Heroes really come from young! With the same number of troops, the infantry completely defeated the cavalry. Merton really did not lie! "Li Shimin was not in a position to praise. Li Jing naturally had no qualms about praising him. He was not stingy with his praise.
A group of generals also looked at Meton with shocked eyes. In the face of such an endless rain of arrows, everyone would fall into deep despair. Everyone frowned and thought that even if they used their lives, they would have to pay a heavy price to get close to him.
Cheng Yaojin was already smiling from ear to ear. When Meton proposed the plan, he expected it to be successful. However, he did not expect it to be such a great victory.
On the contrary, Zhangsun Shunde's face was ashen. He did not expect Meton to use such a strange plan to wipe out all his elite cavalry. Zhangsun Shunde had never encountered such a fiasco in his life.
Whether it was a mule or a horse, it was obvious that the Mo Family's son was this horse, and they were not Bo Le.
"Meton, what's the reason? How can a crossbow kill cavalry from a hundred steps away?" Qin Qiong asked incredulously.
The other generals could not help but listen. Meton's crossbowmen could shoot arrows continuously and kill the same number of troops without losing a single person. this achievement was probably overturning their previous understanding of crossbows............ of crossbow arrows...
Li Jing smiled wryly in his heart. This time, he would probably have to revise his military strategy book.
Meton explained, "This is a three-section strike tactic that I created. The inspiration came from the three-section strike of the pre-Qin period."
"Three-section strike!" Everyone could not help but frown. They were not unfamiliar with the three-section strike. The three-section strike was the archery ritual of the pre-Qin period. It was divided into the initial shot, the second shot, and the third shot. Later, it was used in actual combat. Usually, it would be used in a round of three-section strike to kill the enemy. After that, it would be used to kill the enemy.
However, Meton's three-section strike was a continuous shooting. No matter how strong one's martial arts were, even if they could block the first wave, they would not be able to block the second and third waves. Even if they could block a person, they could not stop a horse. It was simply a reaper.
"Your humble servant has made some improvements to the Triple Shot. The crossbowmen will be divided into three rows. The first row will be the first to fire. After firing, they will immediately reload their crossbows. At the same time, the second row will fire again. By the time the third row fires, the first row will have already reloaded their crossbows. The second row will do the same, and so on. In this way, we can form a continuous rain of arrows. Furthermore, every crossbowman will have sufficient time to reload."
"So that's how it is!"
Everyone was enlightened. They looked at Meton with amazement. The three-section strike was not a secret. Every crossbowman had heard of it before. However, they had never been able to create the three-section strike like Meton.
"Wonderful! In this way, the cavalry at the very front will definitely be the first to be killed, and the cavalry at the back will be met with the second wave of arrows. So on and so forth. It is like a shield formed by crossbow arrows, preventing the cavalry from advancing an inch. "Cheng Yaojin slapped his thigh and said. In the past, the cavalry would often take advantage of the moment when the crossbow arrows stopped to charge. Although the crossbow had great destructive power, its killing effect was not ideal. However, the three-section strike increased the power of the crossbow by several times.
"What a wonderful work of art!" Li Jing could not help but exclaim. The crossbow was an extremely common item in the army, but he did not expect it to be so powerful in Mo Jiazi's hands.
"Everyone in the world knows that Marquis Merton is a master of many schools. It seems this is not false." Duan Zhixuan sighed.
"This Emperor has noticed that these crossbowmen can always accurately hit the cavalry at the very front. How did you do it?" Li Shimin's eyes turned as he asked the key point of the three-section strike.
The group of generals nodded in agreement. It was precisely because the crossbowmen had killed the cavalry at the front that the rest of the cavalry needed some time to charge forward. This time difference was just enough for the second wave of crossbow bolts to arrive. This allowed the might of the Triple Strike to reach a frightening level.
Meton proudly said, "This is not the work of this little one. It is this little one's Imperial College classmate and good friend, Zu Mingjun, who painstakingly created a new calculus and ballistics that can accurately calculate the landing points of crossbows and catapults."
"Ballistics!" Li Shimin was taken aback. He had heard of Zu Mingjun before. When he had created the parabola, the Zu clan had specially submitted a memorial to the court. However, the parabola had not been very practical back then, so Li Shimin had not paid much attention to it.
Meton explained, "The parabola is the most ideal of ballistics, but in practice, an object has to be thrown with enough force and inertia. Brother Zu was the creator of the parabola, and after further research, he finally created ballistics. With the support of this knowledge, as long as it is within range, whether it is a crossbow or a catapult, it will hit wherever it is pointed! "
"Hit wherever it is pointed!" The officers' eyes lit up as they realized the value of ballistics.
"Where is Zu Mingjun right now?" Li Shimin asked in pleasant surprise.
"Brother Zu is in the valley to the west. He will naturally use a catapult to demonstrate the power of ballistics for Your Majesty." Merton said. Zu Mingjun had helped him so much, so he naturally would not treat him unfairly. It was a good opportunity to do him a favor.
"If ballistics really has such a miraculous effect, We will definitely reward you generously," Li Shimin said expectantly.
The officers could not help but nod. If ballistics could really increase the hit rate, then it would definitely be a great achievement.
"Mathematics!" Everyone muttered in their hearts. The path of studying a hundred schools of thought was indeed correct. No one had expected that mathematics would actually be related to the school of the military.
Li Shimin waved his hand, and the five hundred crossbowmen who had not yet entered the field began to practice the Triple Strike again. Looking at the dense rain of arrows below the observation platform, the officers were both excited and fearful. They were excited because they had mastered such an amazing battle technique, but fearful because they were lucky that this weapon was on the side of the Tang dynasty.
Li Shimin's eyes lit up when he saw the slight gap in the rain of arrows. "The Triple Strike is not the most powerful. We can even use the Five Strike or Nine Strike."
"Your Majesty is wise. This way, the Triple Strike will definitely be much more powerful!" Meton quickly flattered.
"But the risk is also great. If we are careless and let the cavalry get close, then all our previous efforts will be wasted," Zhangsun Shunde said stubbornly.
Cheng Yaojin laughed and said, "What is there to be afraid of? Equip all the crossbowmen with spears. Even if the cavalry gets close, we will have the ability to protect ourselves by forming a phalanx formation."
Everyone's eyes lit up and they immediately nodded. If all the soldiers were equipped with crossbows, then together with the Macedonian phalanx formation, wouldn't they be able to attack and retreat freely?
Besides, if they were really on the battlefield, there would be many different types of soldiers working together. How could they let the crossbowmen personally take the risk?
"In Old Man's opinion, the most important part of the Triple Strike tactic is the Divine Arm Crossbow. If it weren't for the fact that this new type of crossbow has a long range and can be reloaded quickly, the power of the Triple Strike would definitely be greatly reduced," Qin Qiong said thoughtfully as he looked at the crossbows in the hands of the soldiers.
Everyone nodded. The Divine Arm Crossbow was created by Meton, so it was reasonable that the Triple Strike was also created by Meton.
Li Jing's expression changed and he said, "Your Majesty, this old subject has a presumptuous request. For this Western Expedition, can you bring all the Divine Arm Crossbows of the sixteen guards?"
Although the Divine Arm Crossbows had been produced for three months, they were evenly distributed to the sixteen guards. Each guard only had five hundred crossbows. If all of them were brought and the Triple Strike tactic was used, it would definitely become a peerless killing machine for the Western Expedition.
Li Shimin was very happy and said, "This is not difficult. Minister Li, you have full authority to make the decision."
Meton had demonstrated the shocking power of the Divine Arm Crossbow and the Triple Strike. If the soldiers of the Western Expedition could use these weapons, their chances of victory would definitely increase greatly.
Even if Li Jing took all the Divine Arm Crossbows, the Minister of War and the Village of Mo were still producing them. They would be able to quickly fill the gap and there would not be an imbalance in military strength.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Li Jing said happily.
Only then did everyone restrain their thoughts and continue the drill. The next round was between Qin Qiong and Fan Xing. However, Qin Qiong had been severely injured in his early years and had even lost a lot of money. He was not very eager for the Western Expedition. In the end, Fan Xing seized the opportunity and won the first round.
Although Fan Xing won against Qin Qiong, he was defeated by Cheng Yaojin's Left Army Guard who was waiting for the exhausted Qin Qiong. In the end, Cheng Yaojin took the last spot for the western expedition.
Meton did not feel guilty at all about Fan Xing's defeat. This time, he had saved him by accident. In his previous life, although Fan Xing had followed Li Jing to the Western Expedition to Tuyuhun, he had not achieved much. Instead, he had been unlucky. In the subsequent battle with the rebel Qiang people, he had been removed from his position because of the delay in the military. Luckily, he had military merits and was spared. This time, it was a blessing in disguise that he did not go.
"Thank you, thank you!" Cheng Yaojin smiled from ear to ear.
"That old fellow got lucky." The generals looked at Cheng Yaojin's smug face and turned their heads.
"Who told you not to trust Nephew Mo? Do you know that the reason Su Dingfang was able to transport the rations so quickly was also because of Nephew Mo's idea? Once or twice is an accident, but what about the third or fourth time?" Cheng Yaojin inadvertently revealed another piece of shocking news.
With regards to the news of Su Dingfang transporting rations, the generals had naturally heard of it. With the three cities as a transit point, they would travel day and night. With this speed, the first batch of rations would be able to reach Lan Province in three days. More importantly, the conscripted commoners had traveled no more than three hundred li. The commoners had practically no complaints and were praised by the court officials.
Hearing Cheng Yaojin's explanation, the generals came to a realization. Perhaps only Mo Jiazi, who adhered to Love with Impartiality, could come up with such an idea.
Li Shimin knew even more than them. In Su Dingfang's memorial, he had even mentioned the eight-wheeled carriage and caterpillar carts. Naturally, he knew how much effort Meton had put in.
For a moment, Meton's reputation was not inferior to that of the generals. Although Meton had not truly led an army into battle, this western expedition could be said to be inextricably linked to Meton.
The generals were both gratified and envious, but on the surface, they looked at Meton as if the younger generation would surpass them in time.
At this point, the candidates for the western expedition had been officially decided. They were Qixin Heli's Zuo Weiwei Guard and Duan Zhixuan's Zuo Qianniu Guard.
Li Daliang's Zuo Guard, Gao Zhuosheng's Zuo Jian Gate Guard, and Cheng Yaojin's Zuo Army Guard.
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