Warhammer Fantasy: I Have Total War System

"Hmph, I remember your only achievement was repelling a squad of man-eating beasts." Li Lin sneered and arrogantly accepted the challenge.

"You dare compare yourself to me?"

The two exchanged sharp glances, their expressions tense, while He Xu and Jian Ping on the side looked utterly miserable.

孽 孽!

I should have known better than to bring this brainless childhood friend from the academy!

Once seated at the chessboard, Qiantang's demeanor instantly changed, becoming calm and magnanimous, giving off a sense of being in control of the world.

"Does Steward Li know the rules of Chinese Chess?" he asked.

Li Lin thought this guy was really good at putting on airs, and replied coldly, "I know, who hasn't been to the Martial Arts Hall?"

He didn't know that.

There was no other way; the atmosphere had already reached this point, and it wouldn't be good to suddenly show weakness, would it?

Looking down at the densely packed pieces on the chessboard—infantry, firearms, cavalry—Li Lin steeled himself, glanced at Qian Tang's skillful technique, and imitated him by arranging a long, single-line formation.

He Xu whispered to Jian Ping from behind, "Xiao Ping, what kind of formation are those two using?"

"Ah Qian has set up a 'triple formation,' which consists of three layers. The vanguard consists of firearms-wielding skirmishers, followed by shield-wielding halberd infantry two hundred paces behind, and the left and right flanks are guard cavalry."

"And what about Steward Li?"

"Uh..." Jian Ping hesitated for a while, "The steward's formation looks simple, but the great way is simple. It must be some kind of profound formation that I don't know about."

Li Lin's lips twitched.

Well, I'm just praising you even though I don't have anything to say!

The compliments were alright, though.

Knowing how to protect the leader is good; I'll definitely give you a big promotion when we get back.

The game of chess begins.

The Three-Tiered Formation of Qiantang is like an ingenious spring, pressing forward step by step, seizing every opportunity.

Instead of firing from their positions, the artillery units dispersed widely, disrupting Li Lin's long, serpentine infantry line from all angles.

This scattered formation was very difficult to deal with quickly, and Li Lin could not outgun them, so he had to advance his infantry lines.

He has other methods, but once the game begins, the pieces are firmly bound to the board and can only move according to certain predetermined rules; they cannot be manipulated at will.

For example, the front-line soldiers could only move forward and not backward, which prevented Li Lin from implementing many of his strategies.

His troops had barely moved when they were cut in half by the cavalry of Qiantang, and were eventually surrounded by the enemy's infantry.

The first game ended in a crushing defeat.

"Again!" Li Lin protested.

In the second round, he wanted to defend the corner, but the rules required that each unit be at least fifty paces apart. It wasn't that he couldn't defend the corner, but he would have to move and set up his formation after the battle had started.

Qiantang's cavalry seized a fleeting opportunity, slipping through a gap in the still-open formation and exchanging three cavalry units for Li Lin's crossbowmen and cannons.

Without ranged attacks, this loss was even worse than the last one.

Li Lin's head turned as red as a tomato, but he couldn't directly admit that he lost because he didn't understand the rules, so he became stuck in a dilemma.

Qian Tang put down the last chess piece and looked at Li Lin suspiciously. There was no pride after the victory, only doubt and confusion as he wondered whether the other party was the real Tang or just pretending.

Li Linhong's condition worsened.

"Steward Li is not good at theoretical discussions!" He Xu quickly stepped forward to set the stage for Li Lin.

"Everyone knows that Li Lang of Nanli is not good at military strategy, but these past few days have proven that Chief Steward Li is only bad at theoretical discussions; when it comes to actual combat ability, he is first-rate!"

"You'd better put away that lousy chess piece! What's the use of winning so many games? You still won't earn any military merits."

"You!" Qian Tang pointed at He Xu, her face turning as red as a tomato.

If you didn't know better, you'd think there was a pair of double cannons sitting at the chessboard.

Qiantang was hit where it hurt, but he couldn't refute it for a long time. In the end, he could only let out a heavy "humph" and put away the chessboard.

"Wait!" Li Lin suddenly shouted.

"Let's play one more round. If I lose this round, you will take over the position of commander-in-chief."

Qian Tang sneered and rearranged the chess pieces: "Is the position of chief steward something I can just take as I please? How about we change the stakes? If I win this game, you will give the three of us double the rations from the rear guard."

"Alright," Li Lin slapped his thigh, "but if you lose, all your chessboard and pieces will belong to me."

"Hmph, it's a deal, as long as you beat me."

Just as he was about to start the game, Li Lin suddenly raised his hand and said, "Wait, this time I'm going to play the cannibal."

"Aren't you three aware of why, despite your strong army, well-versed in military strategy, you still suffered such a humiliating defeat?"

"I'll tell you why now."

Qian Tang's cold smile never faded. He didn't say much, but did as he was told. He casually flicked the lightning on the chessboard, turning all of Li Lin's pieces into the shape of cannibals.

"Jian Lushun, may I borrow your wooden tablet?"

Li Lin took the wooden tablet from Jian Ping, wrote down the type of unit he wanted, and gave it to Qian Tang so that he could change the appearance of the chess pieces.

Qian Tang frowned: "Can't you change the pieces yourself?"

"I'm telling you to watch out. If you lose, don't blame me for using any tricks."

The tension between the two was palpable.

Qiantang showed no mercy, converting most of his pieces into halberdiers, iron hail musketeers, and giant cannons specifically designed to counter the ogres during the initial setup phase.

Li Lin's side consisted of a large number of weak cannon fodder and a small number of cannibalistic elites, forming a sea of ​​cannon fodder.

The game begins.

It seems to be to deliberately humiliate Li Lin.

Qiantang actually used a similar corner defense strategy, directly encircling the center of the battlefield.

However, the formation he set up was not a true box formation. The infantry were separated by gaps and interspersed with the gunpowder troops, forming a staggered depth, which was obviously some kind of advanced formation.

After playing two rounds, Li Lin had a basic understanding of the rules.

In this attack, he controlled the range of the giant cannon and manipulated the pieces to gradually encircle Qiantang's army.

Suddenly, Qian Tang's eyes sharpened as three teams of Jade Warrior cavalry, who had been lying in ambush, emerged from the woods and began to hunt down Li Lin's lone cavalry of the Mighty Fang Beasts.

Unexpectedly, the pieces collided, and before Qiantang could remove the defeated piece, Li Lin took the initiative and swept the three Jade Cavalry pieces out of the game.

"What are you doing?" He frowned, his tone becoming increasingly barbed. "If you can't handle losing, then don't play."

"Can't accept defeat?" Li Lin's tone suddenly became very serious.

He had personally witnessed the bloody and tragic scene when three teams of Jade Warrior lancers faced a lone Zombie Beast unit.

"I don't care about your rules. On the battlefield, your three Jade Warrior cavalry units are doomed to defeat."

Seeing his resolute attitude, Qian Tang hesitated. He turned to look at Jian Ping, who nodded heavily: "As far as I know, the rear guard's cavalry battalion was almost completely wiped out immediately after the battle began. I'm afraid no one here knows the comparison of the cavalry strength between the two sides better than Chief Steward Li."

Qian Tang gritted his teeth, his anger at having his faith and common sense about military strategy shattered, and squeezed out two words: "...Continue."