Overlord!

Chapter 189 History's Fork in the Road

Gan Ning's proposal inspired Sun Ce a lot. If he wanted to promote the popularization of Chengjin as quickly as possible, the official camp might be the most reliable means.

Concentrate on big things, and the government-run workshops also have their own unique features.Scale advantages and cost advantages can help Chengjin quickly prototyping.

As for the subsequent innovation and improvement issues, it can be gradually handed over to private private workshops.

It is enough for government-run workshops to do a good job of corruption.

So Sun Ce said to Gan Ning: "The Guhui also set up the Jinguan Office in Jiankang, and ordered the weaving captain to command the Jinguan to expand production. The rebellious men and women in the two counties of Yuzhang and Danyang can be transported to Jiankang by water after you."

These tens of thousands of households were the first group of people Sun Ce enriched Jiankang.

Gan Ning immediately handed over his hands: "Ning must devote all his energy to this matter."

In fact, Gan Ning was a bit surprised, he had never been taken seriously in Jingzhou, so he didn't want to die for Liu Biao and Huang Zu, and led his troops to surrender on the battlefield.

But he didn't want to be a surrendered general, but he was highly valued in Jiangdong, so Marquis Wu directly appointed himself as the commander of the navy.

At first when he was appointed, Gan Ning thought that the post of governor might just be a casual post, used to accommodate surrendered generals, and he was lucky to be able to recruit hundreds of people.

But I never thought that I, the governor, had been in charge of rectifying the soldiers of the Jingzhou navy until I had rectified more than [-] sailors, and Wu Hou did not send another general to supervise the navy.

He used to have [-] soldiers, but now he has [-] soldiers. This surrender can be said to be greatly appreciated, and he was promoted to a higher rank.Although he didn't know exactly what Wu Hou saw in him.

While he was thinking, he heard Marquis Wu continue to say: "Let's put aside the government affairs for now. Why are you asking to see Gu?"

Gan Ning's face was serious, and he replied solemnly: "It's about the war in Jingzhou. I exchanged letters with my old friends in Jingzhou, and I heard that Jingzhou was defeated again! This is a good opportunity for us to enter Jingzhou!"

Sun Ce was extremely surprised when he heard this, Liu Biao was defeated again?Has Liu Biao had so many defeats in his history?
Sun Ce immediately asked with concern: "Who did Liu Biao lose to?"

"A great defeat at the hands of Cao Cao. According to reports, at the beginning of the year, Cao Cao supervised [-] people, sent troops from Yingchuan, and personally attacked Nanyang, Baye County, Bowang, Nanyang, Wuyin and other six counties. Zhang Ji led the army to meet them. Cao Cao smashed it in the water of Lishui, cut more than [-] levels. Then Cao Cao led his army to encircle Zhangxiu in Rangcheng."

"Zhang Xiu defended the city to the death and asked Liu Biao for help. Liu Biao hurriedly dispatched General Deng Ji to lead an army of five thousand to rescue him, but Cao Cao's General Dian Wei defeated him in Xinye. The water will not flow!"

"Wait a minute!" Sun Ce immediately raised his hand and asked in surprise, "Dian Wei didn't die in battle?"

Gan Ning was stunned: "It seems that he did not die in battle. He is the general of Cao Cao, who bravely won the three armies and made outstanding contributions. I heard that he defeated Lu Bu in Puyang before, and now he defeated Liu Biao in Xinye. Cao Ying, the general of bears and tigers, is the enemy of ten thousand people."

Sun Ce frowned slightly, that's not right!
Something is very wrong!
Zhang Xiu fought this battle too stupidly, unlike Jia Xu's style of strategizing, winning first and then fighting!

On the premise that he was not sure of victory, he led the Xiliang army to fight Cao Cao in the wild, and was beheaded by more than [-] ranks.This result basically meant that Zhang Xiu's main force was defeated and could only defend the city.

Will Jia Xu let her side fall into such a passive situation?

Sun Ce immediately asked, "Who is the commander in Zhang Xiu's army?"

Gan Ning thought for a long time, shook his head, and replied: "I have never heard of any military advisers or generals in Zhang Xiu's army. I only heard that Hu Che'er, the vanguard of Zhang Xiu's army, had surrendered to Cao Cao when he was defeated. Thousands."

Even Hu Che'er's reputation has spread, but Jia Xu's reputation has not!
Sun Ce suddenly thought of a possibility, the old fox hadn't left Duan Yao, right?
Duan Yan was included in the imperial army by the emperor, and Jia Xu probably followed this opportunity to enter the court again.After all, when he resigned from Li Jue, Jia Xu's official position was already General Xuanyi.It is equivalent to Sun Ce's rank and salary of the rebellious general.

If he voted for the imperial court again, whether he was a minister, Yilang, or a general or general, he could serve the emperor.

He is from Wuwei, and he is also a serious frontier warrior, who was born in the command of the army.

If Jia Xu wasn't in Zhangxiu's camp, everything would be explained.

Why didn't Zhang Xiu surrender, why his tactics were so reckless, and his diplomatic strategy so dull.

And more importantly, why did General Dian Wei not die in battle!
This made Sun Ce couldn't help but sigh with emotion. It was hard for him to poach a famous general Xu Huang from Boss Cao.

As soon as the situation turned, Boss Cao had two more powerful men, Dian Wei and Hu Che'er.

Don't equate Dian Wei with Xu Chu.

Although both of them are very brave, Dian Wei has great ambition and integrity, and is also loyal and good at fighting. In the Battle of Puyang, he showed a strong ability to command troops and assault. The army opened the gap and repelled Lu Bu's army.

It is also because he is a strong man, and all his generals are strong and brave. He often climbs to capture Chen first in every battle, and he was promoted to captain in just one or two years under Cao Cao's account.

Captain!When he was promoted to lieutenant, Le Jin was still a captain, only Yu Jin, Cao Hong and other lieutenants could stand shoulder to shoulder with him.

According to his commanding ability and bravery, this is at least an enhanced version of Le Jin, perhaps comparable to Zhang Liao, Gao Shun, Gan Ning and others.

It's completely different from Xu Chu's pure old guard general.

Sun Ce said with emotion: "Cao Mengde is indeed good at fighting. In just one or two months, he defeated Zhang Xiu and brought tens of thousands of Xiliang troops under his command. His prosperity may be further improved."

Cao Cao is different from Sun Ce in that he doesn't talk about the ratio of conscription.

Sun Ce also considered the livelihood of the people in Jiangdong, and tried to control the size of the army as much as possible, so as to avoid heavy taxes and hardship for the people.

Cao Cao, or most of the princes in the world today, are strong only by how many soldiers they can support.

As long as food and grass can be supplied, the size of his army can be expanded as much as possible.As for the people who died because of this, that is not considered by the princes.

As the saying goes, once a general is successful, there is only one sign of whether a prince is strong or not, that is, the size of the army.People's livelihood, common people, economy?None of this matters.

As long as you can win, expand your territory, and rule the world, even if hundreds of thousands or millions of people die halfway, it is worthwhile for the princes.Small people are like leeks, cut and resurrected.After the turbulent times are pacified, the population will continue to grow in less than ten years.

Of course, this kind of behavior of the princes in troubled times is not without disadvantages.

The most notable point is that most of the soldiers under the vassals have low morale.

Even the three towns of Heshuo in the Tang Dynasty, which were ruled by feudal towns, did their best to develop the economy under their own rule, so that the army was willing to fight to the death.

If the people's livelihood and economy are not restored, the army will have no permanent property and no family business, and the soldiers will receive less than their own expenses. rout.

The same [-] army, Yuan Shu's [-] army and Jiangdong's [-] army, the combat power is very different.

If they confront each other in a majestic formation, it may only take one or two hours, and the [-] troops in Jiangdong can smash Yuan Shu's [-] troops.

Gan Ning said: "The general has a crowd of tigers and wolves, and his power shook the Jianghuai River. Now that Liu Biao has lost his reputation and lost his reputation, even the places in the south of Jing such as Changsha and Guiyang are also provocative and ambitious, wanting to seize the power of Jingzhou. At that time, Jingzhou was in turmoil, and it was really a good opportunity to seize Jingzhou, why don't the general take advantage of the great victory, continue to attack Jiangxia and Jiangling, and wipe out the group of captives?"

Sun Ce showed a slight smile, got up and walked out of the camp, looking at the magnificent city rising from the ground in the distance, the prosperous city of Jiankang was rising like a rising sun.

Sun Ce said, "Did you see this city?"

Gan Ning didn't know what Sun Ce meant, so he could only follow along and said, "I've heard talk about Jiankang in the past few months. Together with this place, Jiangdong's foundation will be completely stable and worry-free."

Sun Ce pointed to the bank of the river, and said, "Have you seen those mansions and warehouses? Hundreds of thousands of grain and grass in the east of the river will be stored here. The other bank of the river is Huainan where Yuan Shu is located. Send troops from Jiankang, cross the Yangtze River, and directly step into the river. In Jiujiang, the front of the soldiers is pointing directly at Shouchun. The iron cavalry can go straight to Shouchun in less than three days!"

Gan Ning somewhat guessed what Sun Ce meant, and asked, "Does the general mean Huainan?"

But Gan Ning still didn't understand why he didn't go to Jingzhou, which was easier to fight.

Jingzhou was in a state of chaos at this time. Liu Biao was defeated twice, losing nearly [-] soldiers, and Huang Zu also lost more than [-] military officials.

This is a total of more than [-] troops!

Nanyang Zhangxiu was besieged by Cao Cao again, and the tens of thousands of Xiliang troops feared that there would be no remains.

Counting Jingzhou up and down, more than half of the soldiers will be lost in one day!
Jingzhou Nanjun, Jiangling, and Jiangxia all defended the emptiness.

Gan Ning has stayed in both places, and he is very sure that Jiangxia's defenders have at most [-] people left.

At this time Jiangdong Ruoxing soldiers came, Huang Zu had no choice but to defend Jiangxia.

The army stormed Jiangxia, at least able to expand the land for hundreds of miles and return to several counties.

Isn't this easier than attacking Yuan Shu who has a crowd of [-]?

With Yuan Shu's [-] people, even if Jiangdong Xing's army is all over the country, he may not be able to defeat Shouchun!

Even if he is indeed closer to Jiankang, the battle will probably be more difficult.

Sun Ce turned his head and glanced at Gan Ning, and said, "Qing only focused on Jingzhou, and I'm afraid you don't know anything about the changes in the Huaihe River."

"The change of the Huaihe River?" Gan Ning has been in the west of Jiangdong, and indeed he has never heard of the news here.

Sun Ce said, "Lu Bu has formed an alliance with Yuan Shu. Along the Huaihe River, Yuan and Lu have become my confidants."

Gan Ning was greatly shocked. One of these two men is a mighty general and the other is a famous prince. The alliance between the two is indeed enough to shake the world.With Yuan Shu's money and food soldiers, coupled with Lu Bu's bravery and skill in fighting, it is simply unstoppable.

Gan Ning couldn't imagine how invincible Lu Bu would be if he had [-] elite soldiers under his command and enough food and supplies.

"Why did the two suddenly form an alliance?" Gan Ning asked in confusion.

Sun Ce sighed, "It's all because of the Chen family in Xiapi, so it's imperative that these two form an alliance."

"Liu Xuande sent his army to the north with great momentum, and besieged Lu Bu in Xiapi. The Chen family in Xiapi turned against him and helped Liu Bei recapture Xuzhou. Chen Deng's army went out of Huaipu, and Chen Yu's army went out to Haixi. They gathered thousands of people to help Liu Bei."

"Lü Bu was defeated by his forces. He broke through from Xiapi and retreated to Pengcheng and Peiguo, connecting with Yuan Shu's territory."

Gan Ning asked in shock: "If so, has Liu Shijun regained Xuzhou?"

Sun Ce nodded and said, "The governor of Xuzhou has taken back Xiapi and Donghai counties."

Xuzhou is the smallest of the thirteen prefectures in the world. Basically, if you take down Xiapi and Donghai, you can recapture Xuzhou.

After the massacre of Cao Cao, the population of Pengcheng occupied by Lv Bu was already very withered, and it was difficult to support his ambitions.

Lu Bu wanted to regroup, but he had only one choice, which was to attach himself to Yuan Shu.

With Yuan Shu providing him with food and supplies, Lu Bu may still recruit thousands of troops to resist Liu Bei.

But the battle will also be extremely difficult, because Lu Bu's general Gao Shun has died on the battlefield, and Lu Chancellor Zhang Liao was besieged in Ling County.Only Chen Gong, Wei Xu and other generals remained under Lu Bu's command.

Even if Lu Bu is good at fighting, he may not be able to defeat Liu Bei and Guan Yu, two frontier generals.

More importantly, the war horses under Lu Bu's command have almost been lost.

Lu Bu without cavalry is like a tiger without its claws.

But it was also because of this that Lu Buhui was particularly attached to Yuan Shu, and the alliance between the two became stronger.

This is all the trouble that Xiapi Chen brought to Sun Ce!

Sun Ce really wanted to kill all the repeaters of the Chen family.

They suddenly turned against each other and helped Liu Bei, which made the whole history completely different.

They did not work under Lu Bu's command, and no one separated Lu Bu from Yuan Shu's relationship. If they wanted to attack Yuan Shu, they would lose a great help and gain a formidable enemy!
So Sun Ce said to Gan Ning: "With the navy, you will transfer and arrange the men and women you have obtained as soon as possible. Then you will rectify the elite soldiers and enter Liyang. In the battle of Huainan, you need to gather the best generals and fight with all your strength."

After tempering Gan Ning's temperament, Sun Ce planned to turn him into a fighting general. It is impossible for him to be the commander of the navy all the time.

Sun Ce's favorite naval commander is actually Huang Gai, a veteran who is capable of leading an army alone regardless of prestige and qualifications.

It's just that they have been training troops in Liyang and recruiting refugees.

In the past, Liyang was the rear, so Huang Gai was in charge.

Now Liyang is about to become the front line, so Sun Ce plans to swap positions between Huang Gai and Gan Ning.

Huang Gai commanded five thousand naval divisions, and then Gan Ning commanded three thousand elite soldiers, starting from Liyang as the vanguard of the crusade against Huainan.

Gan Ning was overjoyed when he heard the words, his temperament is still suitable for charging and fighting, and now he can enter Liyang, he is naturally very excited.

"I would rather go all out and send personnel, food, equipment, etc. to Jiankang as soon as possible."

Sun Ce waved his hand and said, "Go! Gu Qi Hou Qing has long been a miraculous achievement in isolation!"

Looking at the rivers and mountains thousands of miles north of the Yangtze River, Sun Ce has great ambitions. Even if it is the alliance of Lu Bu and Yuan Shu, he has the confidence to fight against it!
Jiangdong's famous generals are like clouds, besides Sun Ce himself, there are also famous generals such as Tai Shici, Zhao Yun, Zhang Fei, Gan Ning, Lu Su, Lu Meng, Cheng Pu, Xu Kun, He Qi, Jiang Qin, Chen Wu, Xu Sheng, etc. Afraid of Yuan and Lu?

(End of this chapter)