(a)

After the Battle of Qianzhou, you went to the Northern Front again.

When you passed through Yunzhou again and walked around the city, I was worshipping the Buddha in the Buddhist hall.

"Never see each other, never see each other." I prayed, "As long as he's safe." As long as he lives. As long as he gets his wish to eliminate the war. ”

This is the sixth time in your life that you have entered the Begi steppe.

(b)

By the time you arrive at the Northern Route, the tunnel construction under the Twelve Ice Cities, after a harsh winter of arduous and secret construction, is almost complete.

In order to dig these tunnels, many soldiers had their hands peeled open and drenched in blood. But they wrapped their frozen and cracked hands with strips of cloth and continued the construction unremittingly.

Under the guidance of Yang Biao, you carried a torch to inspect this huge project.

You look at the frozen palms of the soldiers, the cracked tiger's mouths. Your heart is very touched.

You say, "King Han will remember your scarred hands." All the creatures who were saved from murder because the war stopped will remember your hands! ”

You and Yang Biao exchanged information about the battle on the north and south fronts.

You show Yang Biao the weapon spectrum offered by the merchants of the Western Regions. Yang Biao's reaction after seeing it was the same as yours, and he was also very excited.

You discussed the special infantry and new equipment for the annihilation of the Ming Department of Zhuang Province.

Yang Biao strongly agreed that the Han army needed long-range weapons with more lethal power. In the Niken ambush, Yang Biao was also deeply impressed by the scene where the soldiers of the Khan's army could still charge bravely after several arrows.

You all believe that although the long-range crossbows of the existing Han army have been researched and improved during the garrison at Yantang Pass, and their range is longer than that of the enemy troops on the north and south lines, in order to ensure the longest range, they have to control the weight of the arrows themselves, resulting in insufficient lethality to instantly destroy the enemy's combat capability.

After looking at the giant shield and flying javelin patterns you used in the Battle of Qianzhou, Yang Biao had a look on his face that wanted to speak and stopped.

You say, "But it doesn't hurt to say." ”

Yang Biao said: "I think that the equipment of these two Western armies still has obvious defects, and it seems that it needs to be improved in order to be better used." ”

You nodded. You say, "I feel the same way." Please go on. ”

Yang Biao said that the main reason why Qianzhou used the new weapons at the beginning of the battle was that these special weapons made the Southern Han people feel strange and surprised. Once the number of battles is increased and the enemy is familiar with its characteristics, its lethality will inevitably be inferior to before. It's not a long-term solution.

You agree: "That's right. I've always felt that this was a short-term trick and not a long-term way to build an army. ”

You asked Yang Biao, "So, in your opinion, how can we improve it?" ”

(c)

Yang Biao said: "I think that I can make the flying mark a little smaller, and then use a giant crossbow to launch instead of throwing." ”

Yang Biao said, looking around with his eyes, he folded a straw stick and drew it on the ground.

As he painted, he said, "This is a giant crossbow that can be mounted on some fixed fortification or bracket and fired by mechanical force. In this way, anyone who can manipulate the machine can use the flying target to kill enemies. By adjusting the mechanics and firing different models of javelins, the range and lethality can also be precisely controlled. The machine does not get tired either, and can be used again and again as long as the supply is sufficient. ”

You lowered your head and carefully studied the giant crossbow pattern drawn by Yang Biao. Your eyes sparkle with excitement. You say, "Great idea! ”

Yang Biao said: "However, due to the huge size of the bow and crossbow launcher itself, the infantry cannot carry it, and it seems that it can only be used in fixed fortifications or fortresses, and I can't think of how to make it suitable for field and cavalry combat." ”

You reach out to Yang Biao for a straw stick, and Yang Biao hands you the straw stick.

You wrote a word on the ground: "Car." ”

Yang Biao saw this word, and immediately opened his mouth!

He said: "It turns out that the general has also thought of this solution!" ”

You look at each other, and you all have a sense of affection for each other that heroes see.

You point to the word "car" with a straw stick and say, "I've been thinking about this thing a lot lately." Although the chariot was gradually abandoned after the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, it was replaced by cavalry. But there is something unique about it. If we use it to improve the athleticism of our equipment, it may be a new way. ”

You said: "Launching a giant crossbow on a combat vehicle not only solves the problem of moving the giant crossbow on the battlefield, but also solves the problem of transporting a large number of flying targets, and also solves the problems of carrying melee weapons, supplies and ambulating wounded soldiers of heavy infantry on the battlefield, and its functions are very diverse." ”

(iv)

Yang Biao pointed out that in actual combat, the giant ballista will inevitably become the target of the enemy's arrow rain attack, and the soldiers who fire the giant crossbow will suffer huge casualties.

You say, "I think that giant shield also has a lot to offer." First of all, it requires a lot of arm strength to use, and it is not available to everyone. And it was too heavy to hold and run, which seriously affected the mobility of the infantry, and the position of the infantry was limited by it. The enemy retreats or is too strong to pursue or flee quickly, so they can only be discarded. And once abandoned, the infantry loses its effective protection. ”

You say, "I think we can combine these two problems and solve them together with the on-board method." ”

You used that stick to draw a pattern of a chariot with thick armor on the ground.

You say, "If you can make a car like this, you don't need to carry a giant shield." ”

You say: "When attacked, the infantry can be surrounded by armored fighting vehicles, which can also provide better protection than a giant shield." ”

Yang Biao looked at the pattern you drawn, and his eyes began to glow.

He said excitedly: "What the great general said is extremely true! ”

Say, "Also, the vehicle needs to be able to be disassembled and assembled." When not in use, it can be broken into parts, carried with the army, adapted to the speed of the cavalry, and can be assembled on the spot. With the craftsmanship of Western countries, this idea is difficult to realize. But with our existing casting technology and manufacturing process, it should be possible. ”

(5)

In the midst of your discussions, a new class of troops with great characteristics of the Northern Han New Army began to be born.

You said to Yang Biao: "This matter will be handed over to you, and you will specially select some people to do it." I will write to the king of Han and ask for the full cooperation of the country in terms of supply. Let Sun Zhanming assist you in training your soldiers to adapt to the new equipment. ”

You say, "We don't have much time, so we need to hurry." I hope to use this new unit of troops in operations on the Northern Front this spring. Give Ulinden Mukhan a dismount. ”

(f)

In the spring of that year, the New Army of the Northern Han Dynasty had indeed established a hoplite chariot unit between the cavalry and the infantry. After this unit was engaged in fighting on both the northern and southern fronts, it achieved astonishing results. Later, after gunpowder was added to the launch of the giant crossbow, it was even more invincible.

The traditional infantry of the Han army began to be completely transformed, and this ancient branch of the army began to get rid of the crowd route and move in the right direction of relying on equipment and technology to improve combat effectiveness.

It is a pity that this bold attempt of yours, after the death of you and Yang Biao, was not inherited by the newly appointed commander of the Han army. The new commander-in-chief insisted that the tank was obsolete equipment that had been abandoned and obsolete two thousand years ago. Under his command, the Han army's weapons development and tactical improvement in this area stagnated.

By the time my eldest son died, the force had been reduced by neglect. Later, with the complete demise of the Northern Han Dynasty, it disappeared from the long river of history.

There are only a few paragraphs in the history books about your attempt.

I don't know if this is the earliest prototype of a tank unit in the history of Han warfare?

In this matter, you and Yang Biao also encountered the common fate of geniuses: because you are too far beyond your contemporaries, you will not succeed in the end.

Your thoughts eventually fall into the loneliness and loneliness that you don't respond to.