nycdaug Chapter 727
Chapter 727
Wang Zhi said.
"What are you saying? Your father is gone, so it's natural for me to take care of your affairs. Don't say such formal things anymore."
Wang Zhen said with a hint of reproach.
......
Outside the capital, at the Royal Military Academy, Zhou Chu and all the students gathered in a training ground covering hundreds of acres, watching Yu Dayou practice the Changshan Snake Formation.
The Changshan Snake Formation comes from Sun Tzu's "The Art of War: The Nine Grounds": "Therefore, those skilled in warfare are like the Changshan Snake Formation. If you strike its head, its tail will come; if you strike its tail, its head will come; if you strike its middle, both head and tail will come."
The term "率然" refers to the flexibility of the Changshan Snake Formation, which is as agile and swift as a serpent. The strength of the Changshan Snake Formation lies in its winding and flexible nature, combining offense and defense. Once used skillfully, it can leave the enemy bewildered, unsure of where to begin.
In the training ground, Yu Dayou used command flags to direct five thousand soldiers, constantly changing formations and demonstrating the various variations of the Changshan Snake Formation.
At first, the five thousand soldiers were somewhat unfamiliar with Yu Dayou's command, and their movements were a little clumsy. However, as Yu Dayou continued to give instructions, the soldiers gradually became familiar with his various commands, their reaction speed became faster and faster, and the entire Changshan Snake Formation became more and more harmonious and integrated.
As Zhou Chu watched the Changshan Snake Formation constantly changing its formation in the training ground, he put himself in its shoes and realized that if he were to lead troops to break the formation, there really wasn't a good way. The only options were to use several times the number of troops to break it head-on, or to use an equal number of special forces with superior military skills to constantly pull the formation with high mobility, preventing it from being able to defend itself from both ends. Only then could the formation be broken.
However, Yu Dayou's application of the Changshan Snake Formation had reached its pinnacle. Even if Zhou Chu led two thousand elite troops, he would likely suffer heavy losses if he tried to break the formation.
What kind of army was the Tiger Legion? Two thousand Tiger Legion soldiers were comparable to an ordinary army of about fifty thousand.
Only then did Zhou Chu directly realize how formidable Yu Dayou's military strategy was.
"If I give you ten thousand soldiers, which one of you can break Yu Zhifu's formation?"
Zhou Chu looked at the students below and asked loudly.
In reality, the entire army stationed outside the academy numbered only about 10,000. Yu Dayou was now commanding 5,000 men, leaving only 5,000 men. However, this was not a problem for Zhou Chu.
Most importantly, Zhou Chu did not believe that any student had this ability. If someone did step forward, it would be someone who did not understand military strategy and could not even see how dangerous the Changshan Snake Formation was.
Clearly, the students who came here all knew something about military strategy. Even if they couldn't fully understand Yu Dayou's changes to the Changshan Snake Formation, they could still sense the danger involved.
No one dared to respond to Zhou Chu's words.
They never expected that one of the students who came with them to study would have such an unparalleled mastery of military strategy. However, considering that Yu Dayou was so much older than them, the students were relieved.
"Not bad, they all have a good sense of self-awareness."
Seeing that no one stepped forward, Zhou Chu nodded in satisfaction.
The fact that no one stepped forward indicated that these students generally understood some formations and could see the dangers of the long snake formation. Their overall military skills were quite good, which pleased Zhou Chu.
These words sounded like a mockery to the students, who lowered their heads in shame, feeling utterly humiliated.
Zhou Chu did not offer any explanation for these people's reactions. As the saying goes, shame is the mother of courage, and Yu Dayou's formation practice today was a great inspiration to these students.
Soon, Yu Dayou finished practicing all the variations of the Changshan Snake Formation and came before Zhou Chu.
"My lord, I have completed the practice of the Changshan Snake Formation."
Yu Dayou bowed respectfully.
"With your abilities, you shouldn't be studying here."
Zhou Chu looked at Yu Dayou and sighed.
Upon hearing this, Yu Dayou assumed that Zhou Chu looked down on him and immediately became anxious.
"My lord, I only wish to learn the art of war from you."
"What's the rush? In my opinion, with your abilities, you are perfectly capable of being an instructor at the academy. Even Lin Zhixin is not as good as you."
Zhou Chu glanced at Lin Lu beside him and said.
Upon hearing this, Lin Lu immediately lowered her head in embarrassment.
He was a connoisseur; he had seen the Changshan Snake Formation just now with divine insight. After putting himself in the formation, he realized that even with two or three times the number of troops, he would have a hard time breaking it, let alone with equal forces.
Although Lin Lu had been well-versed in military strategy since childhood and knew a little about the Changshan Snake Formation, there was a huge gap between different levels of understanding. After seeing Yu Dayou's demonstration of the Long Snake Formation, Lin Lu dared not say that he understood the Changshan Snake Formation.
Lin Lu had always felt that his ability to lead troops into battle was really just average, and that his current achievements and status were entirely due to His Majesty's appreciation and Lord Zhou's cultivation. Therefore, he had no objection to what Zhou Chu said.
“You are right, sir. In the art of war, I am far inferior to Yu Zhifu.”
Lin Lu said respectfully.
Upon hearing this, Yu Dayou was momentarily stunned. He never expected that Lord Zhou would have such a high opinion of him. Yu Dayou knew very well who General Lin Zhixin was: one of the only two great generals of the Ming Dynasty, who had pacified the Jurchens and expanded the Ming Dynasty's territory to Wuhai on the grasslands, without ever suffering a defeat.
Lord Zhou actually claimed that his military strategy was superior to General Lin's, and General Lin even admitted it?
"General Lin, you flatter me."
Yu Dayou was a rough man and not good with words, so he could only say this one sentence for a moment, and then he didn't know how to be polite.
Seeing Yu Dayou's flushed face and embarrassed appearance, Zhou Chu was not surprised. Yu Dayou was not good at interpersonal relationships, while Qi Jiguang was much better in this regard.
Even so, Yu Dayou was still able to be as famous as Qi Jiguang, and even slightly surpassed Qi Jiguang, which shows Yu Dayou's ability.
"It's settled then. From this day forward, you, Yu Zhifu, will serve as an instructor at the academy. You should no longer consider yourself a student; from now on, we are colleagues."
Zhou Chu patted Yu Dayou on the shoulder and said.