The victory of war always comes from the struggle of every ordinary person, and there is no heroic group without an individual hero. Therefore, Zhu Yongxing strives to give ordinary soldiers dignity and benefits, and in addition to the reform of military etiquette, he has many policies to implement.

The food and drinks are not hearty, but no one cares about that. As the clan on behalf of the imperial court, Zhu Yongxing personally took the cloth dishes, which in itself is a kind of honor and promotion. And Zhu Yongxing's mood looks quite good, and his smile is hearty, which makes people feel like a spring breeze. Of course, no one knew that Zhu Yongxing's good mood also came from the success of a new weapon that he had just achieved.

"The generals seem to be a little restrained!" Zhu Yongxing smiled, glanced around, and said: "It's because the wine and food are not abundant, the conditions are limited, and the time is in a hurry, so it's really a little slow." ”

"Your Highness is serious." Ma Bao was obviously in a smoother mood than the others when he got the edict and the seal, and replied with a smile: "I am indeed a little flattered to be at the same table with His Highness." ”

"It doesn't have to be that way." Zhu Yongxing raised his glass, took a sip, and said with emotion: "Since I left Burma and entered Yunnan, all the generals have rushed to meet without fear of the evil of the situation. Especially the King of Ruyang, the Duke of Weiguo, the Prince of Hanyang, and the Uncle of Yichuan, who have traveled thousands of miles, and they are even more loyal! It's just that although I want you to rest for a few more days, the Qing army has not yet retreated, and I have to work hard for you. ”

Ma Weixing's eyes flashed, and he arched his hand and said: "We have been waiting for a long time, and I deeply regret that I have no opportunity to make contributions. ”

"Exactly, exactly." Ma Zide was also anxious to express his loyalty, "Your Highness has defeated the Qing army, and they still don't know whether they are alive or dead. ”

Gao Qilong smiled slightly and said: "Your Highness is confident, and I am willing to help Your Highness achieve the first full merit in Yunnan." ”

Zhu Yongxing seemed very pleased, nodded again and again, and said: "Okay, good, I am worthy of being a loyal general who has come thousands of miles to vote, and I am very relieved." Tomorrow, you will go out with me to defeat the Qing army and build a joint effort to build Zhongxing. ”

Everyone toasted to each other, and after a round of drinking, Ma Bao asked tentatively: "I heard Huai Renhou say, His Royal Highness is determined to go east to Annan to take root and establish a foundation, and then enter Guangxi, I don't know where we can be effective?" ”

Zhu Yongxing pondered for a while, and said ambiguously: "This matter still has to be discussed with King Zhao, although I belong to you, but if the elite soldiers and good generals all go to Annan with me, I am afraid that Yunnan will not have the strength to contain the Qing army." Moreover, His Majesty is still in Burma, and troops are also needed to garrison the border as a deterrent. ”

"His Royal Highness Zhao and His Royal Highness Jin have many good generals, and there should be no shortage of mediocre generals like us." After Ma Zide finished saying this, seeing Ma Bao and others looking at him, he immediately felt that he had said the wrong thing again, he smiled, and remedied: "What the last general means is that I can better make contributions and make contributions to Zhongxing Daming by waiting for me to be under the command and point of His Highness." ”

It's nonsense, the utilitarianism is too strong, and it still needs to be honed! Zhu Yongxing still had a smile on his face, and said: "Thank you for your willingness to help me, this matter will be discussed in the future, and everyone will be satisfied." ”

Ma Bao and the others relaxed a little, and they also knew that whether Lu Dao would get their wish or not would depend on the performance of Zhu Yongxing's troops in battle, which gave them an opportunity to make meritorious contributions, but it was not an exercise for Zhu Yongxing to observe and test them.

After the banquet, Zhu Yongxing, Ma Bao and others sat down in the living room, drank tea, and talked about some things about going out to fight tomorrow. Then Zhu Yongxing sent a letter and asked Yang Guoxiang, the captain of his own army, to send Ma Bao, Ma Weixing, and Gao Qilong to their respective military camps, so that they could get familiar with the soldiers and generals they led as soon as possible and prepare for departure. As for Ma Zide, Zhu Yongxing made other arrangements, Wen Yan comforted him, and sent someone to send him to rest elsewhere.

Zhu Yongxing felt a little hasty when he went out to fight in advance, but the new weapon gave him confidence, and the other was an elephant soldier who had never been used.

When Bai Wenxuan's department came to rendezvous, there were twelve war elephants in the army, and there were also elephant soldiers in the Tuguan sword Bailong, adding up to more than twenty war elephants at their disposal. It's just that the tactics adopted by Zhu Yongxing before were not suitable for the war elephants, so they have been abandoned and unused.

War elephants are said to be able to reach speeds of up to 30 kilometers per hour when charging, and that the charge cannot be easily defused by a phalanx of infantry armed with spears, unlike cavalry. The power of the war elephant charge lies in the sheer strength of their power. They overwhelm enemy formations, trample enemy soldiers, and wreak their tusks to wreak havoc.

Even if the enemy has an army that is not crushed, it will at least be driven aside by the charge of the war elephants, or will retreat under their pressure. In addition, war elephants usually do not need to make contact with the enemy to cause panic, and the enemy is often overwhelmed by fear when it comes to their charge. The cavalry was not spared in the presence of war elephants, because war horses without special training were not familiar with the smell of elephants and could easily be frightened in front of elephants.

Due to the thick skin of the elephant and the armor it wears, it is extremely difficult to kill or defeat the elephant on the battlefield. The great advantage in height and weight of the war elephants provided considerable protection for their riders.

However, the war elephant is also a double-edged sword, and if it is not used well, it will also cause great damage to its own side, and in the case of several wounds or the death of its driver, the war elephant will go berserk. They run wildly, causing casualties on both sides of the battle without discrimination.

Most of the historical failures of war elephants have been related to fireworks, and it is also recorded that pigs were an effective weapon against war elephants, with Pliny the Elder recalling: "War elephants are terrified by the screams of the smallest pigs." "It is said that the people of Megala once poured boiling oil on a herd of pigs, which set them on fire and drove them to the enemy's war elephants. Faced with the screaming pigs with flames on their bodies, the war elephants scattered and fled in fear.

According to his memory, Zhu Yongxing felt that if the elephant was used only on the battlefield, or the other party had already prepared, the power of the elephant would not be fully utilized, and it might even suffer from it. In the battle of Shuanghekou, Li Dingguo had arranged an elephant array to deal with the attacking Qing army, but was defeated by the line of national security who dared to play desperately in order to avenge the death of Kong Youde.

In other words, there are many people in the National Security Department who have seen elephants and have experience in combat. As a result, Zhu Yongxing had no choice but to use war elephants cautiously, and the first thing was to hide them first, so that the enemy would not be psychologically and operationally prepared, and then he would use them suddenly at the right time. Secondly, Zhu Yongxing also made people strengthen the protection of war elephants and drivers, and equipped war elephants with eye patches and earplugs, and equipped drivers and soldiers with triangular pyramids and hammers, which can quickly break the vertebrae of war elephants when they go crazy, so as to avoid harm to their own side.