Chapter 131: Inspecting The Marshes
The autumn harvest has already ended, and the farmers are busy sowing winter wheat seeds again and fertilizing the land.
This morning, Gan Ning came to inspect the southern wetlands of Pengli Marsh. There is a wetland covering hundreds of thousands of mu with abundant water plants. In the middle of these hundreds of thousands of mu of wetland, there is a county town, Xiaoyang County.
Xiaoyang County Chief Guo Yuan, who was accompanying Gan Ning on the inspection, introduced: “Although this swamp land covers a vast area, if you understand it deeply, you will find that water and land each account for half. If you are familiar with the terrain, you can completely ride horses and gallop inside.”
Gan Ning nodded, casually picked a plant, and asked: “Is this kind of wild pea common in the swamp?”
“Very common, visible everywhere.”
Gan Ning turned back to Jiang Wan and smiled: “This is great pasture!”
Of course, Gan Ning would not inspect the wetland for no reason. After returning from Changsha Commandery, he realized that to capture Jingnan Three Commanderies and Jiaozhou areas in the future, sufficient animal power was necessary. He immediately sent people to Bashu to buy back several thousand Shu donkeys. Shu donkeys are hardy and durable, resistant to disease, and good at traveling mountain roads, very suitable for southern mountainous areas.
Animal power was found, but where to feed and breed them became a problem. Jiang Wan was the first to think of the swamp area in the southern part of Pengli Marsh. There are large areas of land inside with abundant water plants and sparse population, very suitable for raising livestock. Of course, not only donkeys, but also cattle could be raised.
Gan Ning took some time to inspect the site in person, and he was indeed very satisfied. He had always thought that swamp areas were endless waters where people would be swallowed by the swamp once trapped—that was his consistent cognition. Gan Ning had confused mud pits with waters.
In fact, it was not the case. The so-called water area is actually the shallow water zone of the lake, with large areas of land surrounded by shallow water about four or five chi deep, where one could completely swim inside.
In the hundreds of thousands of mu of water area, at least half is land, so there is also a county town, with many small villages scattered around the county town.
Gan Ning immediately said to Jiang Wan: “We can first raise a few thousand donkeys and cattle to test. If there are no problems, we can do large-scale free-range breeding next spring.”
It is now the Sixth Year of Jian’an, with a full seven years until the Thirteenth Year of Jian’an. Gan Ning is not in a hurry to take Jingnan Three Commanderies; he has enough time to prepare.
Jiang Wan nodded. “We can consider establishing a pasture office, specifically responsible for animal husbandry.”
“Yes, Chief Clerk, please draft a plan as soon as possible. I will approve it if there are no problems.”
After inspecting the water area of Xiaoyang County, Gan Ning returned to Nanchang County.
Cao Cao is busy in the North, and Gan Ning also has a pile of major matters to consider, with moving the capital being the top priority.
Nanchang County as the seat of Yuzhang Commandery is completely appropriate. When Gan Ning only had Yuzhang Commandery, setting the capital at Nanchang County was very suitable. After acquiring Luling Commandery, setting the capital at Nanchang County was still fine, but after having Wuchang Commandery, Nanchang as the capital was a bit strained.
After capturing Changsha Commandery this time, Nanchang County as the capital was obviously a bit too far to manage effectively, especially considering future development. Gan Ning and the high officials all realized that Nanchang as the capital had obvious defects, and moving the capital was imperative.
Just like Sun Wu political power moving the capital to Dantu, it was also an inevitable development of the situation. Later, Dantu was not enough, so they moved the capital again to Jianye.
For Gan Ning now, moving the capital back to Chaisang is already urgent and cannot be delayed.
Back at Nanchang County, it was just noon. Gan Ning first returned to the official residence. As soon as he sat down, Lu Su and Jiang Wan hurriedly walked in.
Lu Su bowed and said: “Lord, we just received news that Liu Bei has launched the Northern Expedition!”
Gan Ning nodded. History has advanced. Liu Bei’s Northern Expedition should have been next year, but it came this year. The reason is that Yuan Shao died early, but the deeper reason is Liu Bei’s anxiety. He originally thought he could develop in the South, but unexpectedly Liu Biao treated him as a chess piece nailed in Xinye County. In just one year, Liu Biao became uncontrollably anxious. He wanted to use the Northern Expedition to change his fate. History has changed, and it is unknown if Liu Bei can succeed.
Lu Su continued: “There is also a strange matter. Wen Pin actually led 20,000 troops to follow Liu Bei on the Northern Expedition.”
“What?”
Gan Ning was stunned. Wen Pin actually led troops to follow Liu Bei on the Northern Expedition? How is that possible? Historically, Liu Biao never launched a Northern Expedition, not even when Cao Cao went to Liaodong’s Liucheng, such a good opportunity.
How could Liu Biao let Wen Pin follow Liu Bei on the Northern Expedition? Was he not afraid that Liu Bei would swallow Wen Pin’s troops in one bite? Just like swallowing Che Zhou’s army.
Lu Su said again: “There is a rumor that Wen Pin has switched loyalty to Liu Bei, but it is unknown if the rumor is true.”
This news is very important! If the rumor is true, it means Liu Bei can take Nanyang Commandery, which completely changes history.
Gan Ning immediately said: “Immediately send intelligence scouts to Nanyang to gather news. I want to know Liu Bei’s movements clearly.”
Lu Su excused himself and left. Jiang Wan smiled: “Subordinate somewhat does not understand. Even if Wen Pin leads 20,000 troops north, plus Liu Bei’s 10,000, it’s only 30,000. Such a Northern Expedition cannot succeed. What is the point of him doing this?”
Gan Ning smiled faintly: “Liu Bei is very worried about being forgotten. He uses this Northern Expedition to show the world his determination to support the Han Dynasty, which is also a call for support from like-minded people. This shows that Liu Bei is somewhat unable to persist.”
“Subordinate understands. Liu Bei leading troops north is not really for the Northern Expedition, but a political statement.”
“Completely correct. But Wen Pin responding to the call and following Liu Bei on the Northern Expedition is very suspicious. There must be deeper reasons, so I need to closely monitor Liu Bei’s side. It is very likely that the entire Jingxiang will change.”
“I see!”
Jiang Wan smiled again: “Has Lord decided to move the capital to Chaisang before the end of the year?”
Gan Ning nodded. “It depends on whether the strategist can speed up the county expansion progress. Time is indeed tight. If it really cannot be done in time, moving the capital can be postponed to March next year.”
“Subordinate will try to assist the strategist with the capital move. Additionally, the ranch matter is already underway. Please be patient, Lord. Officials need to inspect the site before writing the ranch plan. We cannot build castles in the air.”
Gan Ning happily said: “That’s right. Do things well. I am not in a hurry.”
Jiang Wan gave a salute and withdrew.
Gan Ning stood with hands behind his back by the window, gazing at the North. Since he greatly defeated Liu Biao’s navy at Dongting Lake, Gan Ning’s mindset had begun to undergo subtle changes. He no longer feared Liu Biao, especially after his army reached 100,000. Gan Ning began to feel he had the strength to compete with Liu Biao.
Especially if Liu Bei might capture Nanyang Commandery, if true, it would greatly weaken Liu Biao’s power, which is of course not a bad thing.
At this time, Gan Ning’s interest in Jingnan Three Commanderies was not great, also because the resources obtainable from Jingnan Three Commanderies were too few. He did not want to consume his energy and troop strength in entanglements with those southern barbarian chiefs. Jingnan Three Commanderies basically yielded little tax revenue; on the contrary, they required subsidies.
Of course, Jingnan Three Commanderies were not to be abandoned, but their importance had decreased. Gan Ning ranked them after Huang Zu. He wanted to implement another plan ahead of time: annihilate Huang Zu.
Especially after Gan Ning defeated Liu Biao, the buffer zone of Huang Zu was no longer needed.
This was also an important reason for Gan Ning’s urgency to move the capital. Moving the capital to Chaisang would greatly promote his annihilation of Huang Zu.
