Archers and Crouching Tiger Cannon are helpful; their long-range targeting capabilities can be used to increase coverage area and suppress enemy archers.
This combination of close-range and long-range attacks achieves maximum lethality.
The Qi Family Army was actually a collection of various military branches, designed to respond to all kinds of situations.
Among them, the musketeers are the icebreakers, relying on their own armor and the shield soldiers in front to open up the front line!
The iron pellets inside these muskets were also specially made and contained a certain degree of poison. Taking a hit from one of these pellets was no ordinary thing; most people simply couldn't withstand it.
Extremely lethal.
"I see!"
Zhang Fei's heart stirred, and he began to observe carefully, and he actually discovered the secret of the Qi Family Army.
Although Qi Family Army possessed muskets, in reality only the first few ranks of soldiers had them; the soldiers behind them still used bows and crossbows.
The first rank, under the cover of shields, opened fire and killed the enemy. After finishing their firing, they retreated to reload. During this gap, the second rank went out to fire, while the first rank continued to retreat to the third rank.
Then the third rank attacks, and this alternation not only solves the problem of slow gunpowder loading, but also prevents the enemy from getting close.
Behind these men, a large number of attackers were firing arrows wildly, maximizing the firepower of the Qi Family Army.
Such command and formation are simply an art.
Zhang Fei couldn't help but sigh, exclaiming, "No wonder His Majesty places such high hopes on you! Your troop deployment perfectly complements the enemy's strengths and weaknesses, maximizing offensive capabilities. You are truly a genius!"
If a typical attack wins through surprise, then Qi Jiguang won through a straightforward and honorable attack.
His offensive formation was straightforward and unpretentious; he simply pushed straight through.
The muskets in front were virtually invincible, while the Crouching Tiger Cannon and crossbows behind them suppressed the enemy. In addition, various defensive supports on the sides prevented enemy cavalry from cutting in. This formation was simply invincible.
No need for any schemes or tricks, just push through like this.
Even if the enemy knew these weaknesses, they still lacked the ability to counter the muskets, Crouching Tiger Cannon, and the most powerful crossbows of the Great Liang, which destined them to be defeated.
Unless someone can break through the shield bearers in front and kill the musketeers and archers behind them while the muskets are firing at full power, they can only passively take the hits.
As for the issue of archers shooting from a distance, that's even less of a problem.
The armor of the Great Liang is top-notch, enough to avoid most damage. Coupled with its terrifying firepower, enemies basically have no chance to fight back.
To be honest, this is completely bullying.
Qi Jiguang couldn't help but chuckle, shaking his head and saying with a wry smile, "It's just a weapon advantage; only in this way can we openly and fairly suppress them!"
If the other side had the same weapons and equipment, I wouldn't have made that choice.
Although this appears to be a suppression of one's own combat strength, it actually stems from a suppression of national power.
Only a strong nation can develop the latest technological weapons, thus suppressing its enemies far beyond its own capabilities and creating a situation where the father is beating the son.
In this situation, it is necessary to make perfect use of the cooperation of multiple military branches to achieve complete suppression, which is Qi Jiguang's way.
"That makes sense. To put it bluntly, it's all thanks to His Majesty!"
Zhang Fei's eyes lit up. This explanation was quite interesting. It really was thanks to the Emperor that Great Liang had such good weapons and equipment.
He sighed with relief, thinking how wonderful it was that he wasn't following such a terrible lord.
Huh!
Just then, he caught a glimpse of the enemy's situation out of the corner of his eye, and his pupils contracted. He exclaimed, "Good heavens, it looks like their rear guard is trying to escape!"
In the distance, the enemy was still putting up a desperate resistance in front, but behind them they had begun an orderly retreat; the enemy was losing and wanted to run away.
"Trying to run away?"
Qi Jiguang, who had been observing the entire battle, also noticed this problem and couldn't help but exclaim, "This Lu Donghongri is quite a character; he actually dares to make such a drastic sacrifice!"
His escape may have been a big deal, but none of the people ahead of him would survive.
The enemy was in an offensive posture, and there were nearly 50,000 to 60,000 men on the front lines. To abandon them now was definitely a decision made with gritted teeth.
This guy is a decisive person.
"Damn, they're trying to escape! Tell your musketeers to get out of the way so I can chase them down!" Zhang Fei's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but exclaim excitedly.
"No rush, no rush, there are still so many people here who need to be killed!"
Qi Jiguang calmly shook his head, not taking it to heart at all, and silently directed the army to advance, remaining indifferent to the enemy's retreat.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Forehead!
Zhang Fei's lips twitched. This guy was too composed; the enemy was about to run away.
If he were in command, he would send elite troops to cut in and destroy the enemy's retreat, thus encircling them completely.
Without saying much, he simply grabbed his weapon and charged forward.
He's here to help, not to cause trouble.
Qi Jiguang watched him charge out, a smile flashing in his eyes. He then instructed his adjutant beside him, "The musketeers should have almost finished their pills. Let them withdraw first!"
Archers and spearmen advance! I'm going to wipe out these 60,000 men first!
The reason he didn't rush to pursue and kill them was actually because he was confident in his plan.
He had calculated that these people wouldn't run away; they just wanted to preserve their strength and avoid being annihilated here. In short, they wanted to stall for time.
Chasing after them rashly, whether they can even succeed in killing them is another matter, it's completely unnecessary.
Besides, even if Lu Donghongri escapes, it won't affect the overall situation. It will only expose Flying Hero Pass to us, which is actually a good thing.
Instead of wasting energy, it's better to easily win over these people first.
And that was indeed the case. An army of 300,000 killed 60,000 people very quickly, without losing much strength, and easily annihilated these 60,000 people.
The bodies of the Zhennan soldiers lay scattered on the ground, piled up like mountains, with only a small number of men still resisting under the leadership of Lu Dongsong.
You will all die a horrible death!
"The king will avenge us; you will pay the price."
"I will never let you go, even if it means my death! I will become a vengeful ghost and drag you down to hell!"
Lu Dongsong's eyes were bloodshot. He did not complain about the general abandoning them, but when faced with Qi Jiguang, who had killed his brothers, they could not help but curse him madly.
Hearing their words, a hint of regret flashed in Qi Jiguang's eyes, and he said softly, "If curses were effective, what would be the point of having guns!"
He slowly drew his musket and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
A red dot appeared between Lu Dongsong's brows as he was clad in heavy armor. With a hint of relief, he slowly collapsed.
Pingyu Pass has fallen!