Moma Liangshan

Chapter 151 A Mighty Formation, A Messy Situation

As the bugle call sounded, soldiers scattered in all directions quickly converged on the center of the training ground, forming eight hundred-man square formations in a very short time. Wang Hao stood on the reviewing stand and asked, "What does the princess think of our army's imposing presence?" The Shu princess had never seen such a training method before and couldn't understand its intricacies. She deliberately said, "They look impressive, but their actual combat strength remains to be seen!" After thinking for a moment, Wang Hao said, "War is the only way to test an army; what the princess says is not without reason!" The Shu princess said, "Would you dare let me select the generals and soldiers to participate in the competition?" Wang Hao looked at the eight hundred soldiers below and the three generals, Lin Chong, Yang Zhi, and Lu Da, and said, "Why wouldn't I dare?" Then, he specifically introduced them to the Shu princess: "Yang Zhi accompanied me to Liaoyang; the princess has already met him. The general on the left is named Lin Chong, who was once the instructor of the 800,000 Imperial Guards; the general on the right is named Lu Da, who was once a commander in the Northwest Border Army." The Shu princess looked at the three men from afar, her heart... Thinking to herself, "Yang Zhi is Wang Hao's personal bodyguard, so he must be highly skilled in martial arts; Lin Chong was once the instructor of the 800,000 Imperial Guards, so he shouldn't be provoked; Lu Da, though burly, has an honest face and should be easy to deal with!" she said. "According to your Song army's organization, your Jiaozhou army can only be considered a local garrison. I, the princess, do not wish to take advantage of your weakness, so I will choose your strongest general to fight. What do you think, young master?" Wang Hao casually replied, "Alright!" The Shu princess was secretly delighted. Looking at the eight hundred soldiers below, she pondered, "The closer the soldiers are, the more familiar they should be with each other, and their cooperation will surely be more seamless. I must do the opposite!" She said, "I have twelve copper coins here. Young master, please toss them into the ranks for me. Whoever the coin lands at will fight. Is that fair?"

Wang Hao genuinely admired the Shu princess's wisdom and said, "I'll leave it all to the princess!" He then extended his right hand. The Shu princess, her scheme successful, smiled slightly and placed twelve copper coins in Wang Hao's palm. Those below the platform were unaware of the conversation between Wang Hao and the Shu princess; they only noticed the apparent intimacy between their young master and the young woman beside him, especially when the Shu princess gently placed the coins into Wang Hao's hand with a beaming smile. Just then, Wang Hao suddenly swung his arm, forcefully throwing the twelve copper coins, and then shouted, "Whoever the coins land at, step forward!" A moment later, twelve soldiers scattered throughout the formation ran to the reviewing stand and lined up in a straight row. Wang Hao then looked at the three commanders and shouted, "Lu Da, step forward!" Lu Da, hearing the command, loudly replied, "Here!" He then quickly stepped to the front of the formation and shouted again, "Please give your instructions, young master!" Wang Hao said, "Later, you will lead this troop of soldiers in a competition. Are you willing?" Lu Da shouted, "I am willing!" Wang Hao nodded and returned to the side of the Shu princess, saying, "How does the princess wish to conduct the competition?" The Shu princess said, "This is your territory; I should respect local customs!" Wang Hao thought for a moment and said, "That's fine!" Then he pointed to a row of siege ladders not far away and said, "Do you see those siege ladders?"

The princess of Shu nodded and said, "You want to have a competition to see who can siege the city?" Wang Hao shook his head and said, "No!" The princess of Shu asked, "Since it's not a competition to see who can siege the city, then what's the use of the siege ladder?" Wang Hao didn't answer in a hurry, but pointed into the distance and said, "Do you see that hillside?" The princess of Shu nodded. Wang Hao continued, "Each team will carry one siege ladder. Whoever puts the ladder up on that hillside first will win!" The princess of Shu hadn't expected Wang Hao to choose this kind of competition, but since things had come to this point, she couldn't object. She could only say, "Young Master Wang would be best to have someone put up a flag on the hillside to indicate the direction!" Wang Hao agreed wholeheartedly, casually pulled down a large flag from in front of the reviewing stand, and then pointed to the nearest soldier, saying, "You, come up here!" The soldier received the order and quickly ran up to the reviewing stand. Wang Hao handed the flag to the soldier and said, "Plant this flag on the hillside ahead as quickly as possible!" The soldier shouted, "Yes, sir!" and then carried the flag on his shoulder and ran towards the hillside. Wang Hao then turned around and formally announced, "Each team will carry a siege ladder and charge towards the hillside ahead. Whoever places their ladder in front of the banner first will win." Lu Da asked, "Can we attack the other team?" Wang Hao glanced at the Shu princess and said, "Yes!" Then he ordered again, "Everyone else, disperse and watch the competition freely!"

Lu Da and Li Cangbai walked side by side, Lu Da saying, "Brother, you've had a long journey. If our team is fortunate enough to win, please don't worry about it!" Li Cangbai replied, "Don't you think it's too early to discuss victory or defeat?" With that, the two grabbed a siege ladder each. However, at that moment, Li Cangbai suddenly ordered, "A, B, C, D, E, F, G, X, lift the ladders! The rest of you, follow me!" Before Lu Da and the others could react, eight men—A, B, C, D, E, F, G, X—had already lifted the ladders and started running, while Li Cangbai led the remaining four men to surround Lu Da. Wang Hao watched everything unfold, his brow furrowed slightly, but he remained silent. The Shu princess, having achieved a resounding victory, said, "It seems your men still lack practical combat experience!"

Li Cangbai suddenly launched an attack, enraging Lu Da. He punched Li Cangbai and shouted, "I'll deal with these men! You all hurry and bring the siege ladders!" The twelve soldiers received the order, picked up the ladders, and ran. However, they suddenly discovered that the twelve men were carrying two different ladders. At this moment, the Liao soldiers had already carried their ladders past the reviewing stand. The Shu princess beamed, but Wang Hao's brow furrowed even more. Seeing his own troops in chaos, Lu Da shouted, "Who told you to carry two ladders?" The Jiaozhou soldiers looked at each other, then simultaneously dropped both ladders to the ground. Lu Da, furious, punched Li Cangbai away again, then seized the opportunity to rush through the gap, grabbed one ladder with one hand, and hurled it forward with all his might. Li Cangbai, seeing the immense strength of Lu Da, could only temporarily avoid his attack. Then Lu Da shouted, "All of you, lift this ladder! Charge!" The soldiers, receiving the order, rushed forward. Li Cangbai immediately ordered, "Ren, climb their ladders; Zi and Chou, provide cover from both sides!" Then, looking at "Gui," he decisively said, "Retreat!" Lu Da couldn't care less about being angry at this moment and had to chase after them. However, Li Cangbai and his men were all scouts, and they were not inferior in speed at all.