a court session where he asked if anyone could solve the crisis in Liang, but none of the ministers could answer. Just then, Ma Long, only a junior general at this point, stepped forward and volunteered. When Emperor Wu asked about his plans, Ma Long only requested to be allowed to recruit around 3,000 strong men, no matter their background. The emperor agreed and appointed Ma Long as Protector-General Who Campaigns Against The Caitiffs and Administrator of Wuwei, despite objections from his ministers due to Ma Long's status. Ma Long sought out men who were able to draw bows that were four juns (approx. 26 kilograms) and use 'waist-spun crossbows' (腰引弩) that were 36 juns (approx. 238 kilograms). He set up targets for the men to practice their accuracy, and in the end, he found around 3,500 recruits. Ma Long also wanted to have access to the military arsenal. However, the Prefect of the Arsenal disliked him, so he was only provided with worn-out equipments. The two argued with each other, and the Palace Assistant of the Imperial Secretaries sent a petition blaming the incident of Ma Long. Ma Long explained the actual situation to Emperor Wu, and the emperor ordered for Ma Long to be given a three-year supply of military equipments. In November 279, Ma Long set out west and crossed the Wen River (溫水; east of present-day Jingyuan County, Gansu). When Shujineng heard that Ma Long was attacking, he led tens of thousands of his soldiers to occupy the passes to block Ma Long's front while the others set up ambushes to block Ma Long's rear. During his battles with Shujineng, Ma Long employed a number of unorthodox and questionable tactics. In accordance to Zhuge Liang's 'Eightfold Battle Formations' (八陣圖), Ma Long decided to build ‘flat box carts’ (偏箱車; a cart with a board on one side which acts like a shield) for his soldiers. When fighting in the open, he would employ 'deer-antlered carts' (鹿角車; a cart with spears or halberds on the front shaped like antlers), and when passing through the narrow roads, he would build wooden roofs over the carts. Ma Long's soldiers were able to move while fighting, and the enemies' arrows were unable to hit them. Another tactic that Ma Long allegedly used was placing down large amounts of 'magnetic stones' on the ground to slow down the enemy advances, the reason