Chapter 113: Jia Xu Arrives Again
The army horse field is located east of Nanchang County. It is a grassland covering thousands of mu, with a total of only 1,500 warhorses. Yuzhang Commandery actually has 2,000 warhorses, of which 500 have been distributed to various armies. For example, Gan Ning’s personal guard unit has 100 warhorses, and each colonel’s retainer troops also have around dozens of warhorses. There are also warhorses in the scout camp and communications camp.
The 1,500 horses raised here are warhorses for the cavalry. The three cavalry camps of the Yuzhang Army are also stationed nearby. The feeding, training, and breeding of warhorses all take place here.
Of course, Yuzhang Commandery has many other horses, such as carriages on the main streets of various county towns, etc. Those are all ordinary horses. The entire Yuzhang Army has only 2,000 warhorses.
The cost of raising warhorses is very high. One warhorse needs to eat ten jin of hay and three jin of grain per day. The grain can be black beans or wheat.
One warhorse consumes over a thousand jin of grain per year. Two thousand warhorses would consume two million jin of grain in a year. This is still on the lower side. Jiangdong also has over 3,000 warhorses, and Cao Cao has over 10,000 warhorses. The breeding cost is extremely high.
Coincidentally, Taishi Ci was met at the horse field. That morning, Taishi Ci had already been officially appointed by Gan Ning as the commander of the southern line, so he immediately became concerned about the warhorses. The southern line is the land route, so the warhorse camp would definitely fall under his command. Taishi Ci could not wait and rushed over to inspect the horses.
“Why has General Ziy i suddenly become interested in warhorses?” Gan Ning knew full well but deliberately teased him.
Taishi Ci chuckled, “My lord must keep his word.”
Gan Ning laughed and said, “I did promise to let you take the southern line, but I didn’t promise to give you the cavalry camp. I might even send the cavalry camp along the northern line.”
Taishi Ci was stunned and immediately became anxious. “My lord, there are many places on the northern line with no official roads suitable for warhorses. How could…”
Halfway through, Taishi Ci noticed the lord’s strange smile and suddenly realized that he had just said there were no official roads for warhorses, so why was he anxious?
Taishi Ci awkwardly scratched his head, and the three laughed together.
At this time, the horse field supervisor came to pay respects to Gan Ning and led Gan Ning and the other two to inspect the stables. Taishi Ci said in a low voice to Zhao Yun, who was walking behind, “Brother Zi Long, how many warhorses did Gongsun Zan’s White Horse Righteous Followers have before?”
Zhao Yun said slowly, “At the beginning, there were only a few hundred. Later, they kept increasing, up to 3,000 at most. They were all elite cavalry skilled in archery.”
“Yes! Unfortunately, they were all destroyed in the Battle of Jieqiao at the hands of Ju Yi, that scoundrel. Such a pity!”
Taishi Ci was an extreme lover of horses. Just thinking of those 3,000 strong elite white horses dying under a hail of crossbow bolts made his heart bleed with hatred.
Zhao Yun did not want to dwell too much on the past. He smiled and said, “The white horse under me is one of the remaining dozens of white horses. It has followed me for many years.”
At this time, Gan Ning stood in front of the horse manure storage, very interested in the mountain of piled-up horse manure. One of the military households’ demands today was insufficient fertilizer. Wouldn’t this horse manure be perfect for use?
“How much horse manure is there?”
“Reporting to my lord, at least 500,000 to 600,000 jin.”
Gan Ning nodded. “Later, I’ll send a fleet to transport it all away, just right to use as fertilizer for the military fields.”
The supervisor sighed, “That’s great. This horse manure has troubled us for a long time.”
“In the future, I’ll have the military households come transport it themselves.”
Gan Ning went to the stables again. He grabbed a handful of feed from the manger and examined it closely, puzzled. “Why is there straw?”
“Reporting to my lord, straw cut into fine pieces can fully be used as rough feed, but it must be mixed with cooked black beans, in a ratio of about three to one. This way, the warhorses will grow stronger and be less prone to illness.”
“I see!” Gan Ning gained new knowledge. So straw could also be used to feed horses.
Gan Ning looked at the large stable and noticed a section that was empty. The supervisor quickly explained, “The 500 warhorses over there have been sent to the barracks for training. Five hundred are sent each day, rotating every three days.”
Gan Ning saw soldiers busily scrubbing the stables, so he did not examine further. He turned and left the stables. Just as he stepped out, a cavalryman came galloping up. Moments later, the cavalryman arrived, dismounted, knelt on one knee, and presented a note to Gan Ning. “Strategist Lu has an urgent matter and requests my lord return at once!”
Gan Ning took Strategist Lu’s note, glanced at it, and smiled at Zhao Yun and Taishi Ci. “I have to hurry back. Do you want to continue the tour or return with me?”
The two saluted and said, “Reporting to my lord, we still want to go see the cavalry camp.”
Gan Ning nodded. “You go ahead! I’ll head back first.”
Gan Ning took his personal guards and left the horse field, returning to Nanchang County.
The reason Gan Ning was in such a hurry to return was that Jia Xu had arrived, bringing a personal letter from Cao Cao to him.
Upon returning to Nanchang County, Gan Ning first met with Lu Su and Jiang Wan. Lu Su immediately sent someone to the guest house to invite Jia Xu.
“This is the letter from Cao Cao to my lord!” Lu Su handed a letter to Gan Ning.
Gan Ning opened the letter and read it carefully, but he was slightly stunned. The letter only contained a few sentences, all meaning the same thing: if he could capture Changsha Commandery, Cao Cao was willing to appoint him as Prefect of Changsha.
Gan Ning was secretly shocked in his heart. How did Cao Cao know he was going to attack Changsha Commandery? Before the public announcement this morning, only he, Lu Su, Jiang Wan, and Xu Shu knew. Even the great generals did not know.
Gan Ning handed Cao Cao’s letter to Lu Su. Lu Su and Jiang Wan were also startled. Did Cao Cao have the ability to foresee the future?
Lu Su pondered briefly and said, “It should be that Cao Cao has an expert by his side who inferred from our alliance with Jiangdong that we are preparing to expand westward. Changsha Commandery would undoubtedly be the first target.”
Gan Ning nodded. That was indeed possible. More likely than not, it was Guo Jia who figured it out. He was Cao Cao’s chief strategist.
“So, did Jia Xu say why he came this time?”
“He didn’t say. He wants to meet my lord before revealing his purpose.”
At this time, an attendant reported from outside the hall, “Minister of Works Cao’s envoy Jia Xu requests an audience!”
Gan Ning personally went out to greet him, cupping his fists with a smile. “Jia Gong, long time no see!”
Jia Xu smiled and said, “Not long ago, General Gan was still the magistrate of Chaisang County. In less than two years, General Gan has become Marquis of Wuchang and Prefect of Three Commanderies. Even ‘after three days of separation, one must look at others with new eyes’ is insufficient to describe it. General Gan is truly remarkable!”
Gan Ning smiled faintly. “It’s not me who’s remarkable; it’s this era that’s remarkable.”
“Well said, General Gan!”
Jia Xu waved his hand, and three of Gan Ning’s guards stepped forward, carrying a long wooden box over two zhang in length. They placed it on the ground. The long wooden box was tied with a red silk ribbon.
“This is a gift from Minister of Works Cao to General Gan. It is one of the three famous horse spears in his collection, named Qianlong.”
The guards opened the wooden box, revealing a horse spear sixteen chi long before Gan Ning. It was a size larger than the spear Gan Ning currently used, with even more exquisite craftsmanship and the finest materials. The spearhead was two chi and three cun long, with a thick blade ridge. The spear tip was exceptionally sharp, the side blades on both sides were also razor-sharp, gleaming with a cold metallic sheen.
Though the spearhead was larger, it was perfectly balanced with the shaft. It felt extremely comfortable in the hand. At the end of the spear shaft were four ancient seal characters engraved: ‘Qianlong in the Abyss’.
Gan Ning immediately could not put it down. After playing with it for a moment, he handed the spear to his subordinate and cupped his fists. “Please convey my thanks to Cao Gong for his kind intentions. I like it very much!”
Jia Xu stroked his beard with a smile. “As long as the general likes it!”
Gan Ning waved his hand. “Please, Strategist Jia!”
