Chapter 165: First Volume, Chapter 165: Military Strategy

First Volume, Chapter 165: Military Strategy

Seeing Qin Feng, it was as if clouds had parted to reveal the sun—he jumped up in excitement. The Liang Emperor also leapt to his feet and demanded in a low voice: "Qin Feng, have you devised a response?!"

In an instant, every eye in the room fixed on Qin Feng.

If Qin Feng could resolve Liang's military predicament, his name would be etched in History Books!

Qin Feng beamed with joy, ecstatic: "Liang is desperately short of fine warhorses—if we could monopolize the Horse Breeding Monopoly, wouldn't that be pure profit?!"

At these words, the Liang Emperor's face turned black as ink. He barked: "Guards! Drag this fool out and give him Thirty Staff Strikes! No—Fifty Staff Strikes!"

Qin Tianhu startled, rushed forward, and knelt to plead: "Your Majesty, please calm down! Qin Feng is a Scholar's Body—he cannot possibly endure such punishment. Even Twenty Staff Strikes would kill him."

As he spoke, Qin Tianhu turned to Qin Feng and roared: "You brat! How dare you mock the Emperor? You're audacious beyond measure!"

The Liang Emperor's face was ashen, rarely so furious: "Scholar's Body? I see a Merchant's Heart! I'm agonizing over Liang's military predicament, yet all you care about is how to make money. Is that acceptable? Your Qin Family knows how to make money, doesn't it? Then I'll issue an edict: ban your Qin Family from commerce!"

Ban commerce?!

That would be worse than killing Qin Feng outright.

Qin Feng immediately wailed loudly: "Unjust! Liang will eventually need to train Cavalry—I'm merely trying to serve Your Majesty! Without Cavalry, Liang remains a Tiger Without Fangs; even if the Barbarian Tribes outwardly submit, they'll never truly yield."

"Isn't it just Three Thousand Infantry against Five Thousand Cavalry? Let me ask first: anyone lightly equipped, not wearing Heavy Armor—is that considered Light Infantry?"

Before the Liang Emperor could answer, the Piaoqi Grand General interrupted: "Are you suggesting we replace Light Infantry with the Bow Infantry we used at Po Zhen Guan?"

Qin Feng shook his head vigorously and declared bluntly: "Forget Bow Infantry—even if these three thousand were as fierce as Ning Hu, they'd stand no chance against five thousand Cavalry."

"Speed is paramount in Open Field Battle. If your speed can't match the Cavalry, everything else is meaningless. Bow Infantry can fight Cavalry only because the Cavalry's speed hasn't been fully unleashed."

Seeing Qin Feng's clarity, the Piaoqi Grand General fell silent, waiting for his strategy.

To preserve his "Merchant" status, Qin Feng dropped all pretense and spoke with rare seriousness: "Before absolute power, all tricks are powerless."

"Heavy Armor formations, Horse-Slaying Slash, Long Halberd Horse-Rejection Formation, Hook Sickle hamstringing—these tactics offer only temporary advantage. Against seasoned Cavalry, you're still just meat on the chopping block."

"This problem has no solution! Otherwise, if Infantry could defeat Cavalry, why would Liang be suffering for lack of Cavalry?"

In ancient times, Cavalry was equivalent to Tank—especially large-scale Cavalry, a disaster for any troop type.

The Liang Emperor had never held high hopes; hearing Qin Feng's conclusion, he sighed and sank back into his seat.

Just as the atmosphere in the room sank into gloom—

Qin Feng did not stop. He continued speaking without pause: "Only four factors can defeat Cavalry."

"First: Siege Warfare. Second: Terrain Advantage. Third: Group Battle. Fourth: Cavalry vs Cavalry."

"But for Liang today, none of these are viable. To solve the urgent crisis, we must play to our strengths and avoid our weaknesses."

Seeing Qin Feng finally offer constructive strategy, the Liang Emperor's expression eased slightly. He asked: "I understand avoiding weakness—minimize direct engagement with Cavalry. But what is the 'play to strength'?"

Qin Feng knew the Liang Emperor was now serious. He answered without hesitation: "Guerrilla Warfare!"

The Liang Emperor frowned slightly: "Continue."

Qin Feng took a deep breath, revealing a rare calm: "Liang's Army can currently rely on Border Towns to hold off the Northern Di, but beyond the walls lies endless open land—perfect for Cavalry. Thus, we must continue our established tactics: reinforce City Defense, hold the Border Towns firm, stabilize the Border Defense Line, and remain invincible. Once the line is secure, we deploy Scattered Soldiers and Wanderers for Offensive Action."

At the phrase "Scattered Soldiers and Wanderers," the Liang Emperor grew displeased: "Are you calling my Liang's fine men Scattered Soldiers and Wanderers?"

Qin Feng quickly explained: "Your Majesty, in my usage, 'Scattered Soldiers and Wanderers' is not derogatory."

"Liang's Infantry are renowned for their valor across Heaven. Infantry is Liang's weakness—but also its strength. To leverage this strength is the way to play to our advantage. This war is ultimately a Consumption War—to see who can outlast the other."

"The Northern Di's tactics are simple: they dominate the Open Field Battle. If we leave the cities to fight, we lose more than we win. Since we dare not sortie, the Northern Di use their Cavalry speed to raid the Beidi Frontier—burning, killing, plundering, committing every atrocity. Our line holds, but we cannot protect the surrounding People's Livelihood. Over time, civilian strength is drained. If national strength falters, how can we maintain tactical advantage?"

The Liang Emperor fell silent. Qin Feng's words struck true—this was Liang's current plight.

Group Battle offered no advantage; since we dared not sortie, the Northern Di would keep raiding the border and consuming national strength.

Qin Feng took another deep breath and continued: "Engaging the Northern Di head-on is not just unwise—it's the worst strategy. The ideal strategy for Liang is Defensive Counterattack! Divide the Army into three echelons: First Echelon holds the Cities, fortifying the line. Second Echelon consists of small units stationed in Border Villages, helping defenseless villages strengthen their Defense."

"Since the Northern Di send Cavalry to raid, they'll send only small detachments—not large forces deep into Liang territory. Thus, small garrisons, relying on the terrain, can repel Cavalry raids."

"The Third Echelon is the core—both strategic consumption and tactical application!"

"Train large numbers of Elite Soldiers: three to five per Squad, twenty to thirty per Platoon, one hundred to two hundred per Tuansystem. Lightly Equipped, yet Armed to the Teeth. Deploy them in small-scale operations—Ambush, Plunder, Cold Arrow—to gradually consume Northern Di military strength and Military Morale."

"The Northern Di live off the land. If we protect Bianchui's People's Livelihood and cut off their access to Grain and Forage, then use Guerrilla Warfare to slowly drain them—within their own borders, their Grain supply cannot last long."

Hearing Qin Feng's lengthy exposition, not only the Liang Emperor, but even the Grand Generals present were stunned.

In their fixed mindset, defeating the enemy meant only Group Battle—a single decisive blow.

The concept of this cold-shot, cold-arrow warfare was entirely foreign to them.

The Liang Emperor's eyes gleamed anew. Though he still didn't fully grasp Qin Feng's tactics and strategy, he understood the gist.