Volume 3: The Land of Jingchu Chapter 292: Division of Ports
"The Four Swords of Jian'an... Are there four types of these swords?" Gongsun Gong asked in a shrill voice.
Upon hearing this, Gongsun Kang looked at his second brother with dissatisfaction - he was so weak even when talking to the "enemy"!
"No, it was developed and equipped to the entire army in the fourth year of Jian'an, so it is called 'Jian'an IV'. When our Jian'an VI and Jian'an VII appear, Jian'an IV will also be sold." Gan Ning explained with a smile, not showing any abnormality at all because of Gongsun Gong's abnormality.
There was no way to tell that this was the person who had taken advantage of me before...
"Haha, let's take a look first." Gongsun Kang sneered.
In his opinion, Gan Ning was being a bit mysterious . After all, in Gongsun Kang's common sense, military weapons were at most the level of the Han sword that Gan Ning had demonstrated before.
More sophisticated weapons could no longer be mass-produced, and could only be made by hand, slowly, by blacksmiths or even master craftsmen, who would spend years and years of hard work...
By then, with an army of 10,000, wouldn’t we need hundreds of thousands of blacksmiths?
However, the performance really surprised Gongsun clan and the warriors of Liaodong!
Dangdangdang—the swords of the four Jian'an armies were very powerful and they cut off three or four Han swords!
Gan Ning remained calm as he accepted the surprised looks from others, but he silently kept in mind the performance of Jian'an Four in Liaodong.
really……
Because of the cold weather, the blade of the Jian'an Four is thinner, and the difference in texture between it and ordinary Han swords is reduced!
Normally, Jian'an Si should be able to cut off at least five, and as many as seven or eight Han swords.
The experimental mechanism of the Ministry of Works obviously did not take into account the weather in Liaodong. After all, the main activity area of the General's Mansion is still the warm Yangzhou.
But even so, the performance of Jian'an IV is already amazing enough.
"The Four Jian'an Soldier... is it equipped by the General's Mansion for the entire army?" Gongsun Du asked, trying not to show any surprise.
"That's right, but don't worry, Brother Gongsun. My personal soldiers all have two swords, and there is a spare one... Brother Gongsun has been so loyal to me, I can't be stingy, I will give you the spare sword of my personal soldiers!" Gan Ning said in a seemingly heroic manner.
Gan Ning had previously misinterpreted the concept in his words - he was "starting" to equip the entire army, not that he had already equipped all of them. His navy had limited rations, so they all had Jian'an IV!
But to Gongsun Du, it seemed as if all the hundreds of thousands of soldiers in the General's Mansion were equipped with this kind of swords...
"Haha, that's right... Of course I am righteous. I will do as Governor Gan said. The port of Dajin will be handed over to the General's Mansion. As for Liaokou... the General's Mansion doesn't need to worry about it. I will build a stronghold and a port in Liaodong. If the General's Mansion is willing to assist us and change boats in Dajin to transport the goods to Liaokou, we will naturally welcome it." Gongsun Du said calmly.
Gan Ning also understood what he meant - Dajin could be given to the General's Mansion, but Liaokou... The Gongsun clan would build their own water fort, and then welcome the small transport ships of the General's Mansion. As for the large ships and warships... Haha, get out!
Moreover, after knowing the strength of the ships of the General's Mansion, Gongsun could no longer be "lazy". Regardless of whether Liaokou was useful to them or not, it had to be repaired now and a cordon had to be built.
"Oh? You really don't need us to build a port? Brother Gongsun is still so polite... What about Andongjin? It should be easier for the Buyeo people and Goguryeo people to trade there, right?" Gan Ning acquiesced to the division of Dajin and Liaokou.
Anyway, Dajin is his most fundamental goal.
Dajin is located at the southernmost tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, almost isolated in the sea. It is not easy to go from Xiangping to Dajin or from Dajin to Xiangping.
From the perspective of the strategic thinking during the Eastern Han Dynasty, it was similar to the "Jia Shi Road" in Wancheng. It was very difficult whether going from south to north or from north to south, so both sides could generally ignore this place.
However, from the perspective of naval warfare, Dajin is the only port that does not freeze in winter and is surrounded by mountains on three sides. It is not only easy to defend and difficult to attack, but also can ensure the safety of large warships in stormy weather. It is definitely a must-fight place in naval battles.
Like now at the end of the year and when the wind is strong, Dajin is undoubtedly the most suitable place to dock.
In modern times, before encroaching on the Northeast, the island countries and Mao countries also first ensured that they stationed troops here, and they had to rely on it no matter how the international community condemned it...
As the admiral of the navy, Gan Ning, who had read several military books that were very different from the current ideas, naturally understood the importance of Dajin.
"Oh, of course the General's Mansion doesn't need Andongjin, but it's fine if the General's Mansion goes to trade." Gongsun Du said with a flash in his eyes.
Andongjin also had to be built to collect taxes, but there was no need to defend Andongjin as stubbornly as Liaokou. Gongsun Du did not care even if large ships occasionally docked at the General's Mansion .
If they land at Andongjin, not only will they be unable to threaten Liaodong, but they will also face a pincer attack from Liaodong and Buyeo!
"For this first batch of swords, armors, and food, I think we should use the wood and stones near Dajin to pay for it." Gongsun Du said calmly.
Gan Ning wants to build a port, so wood and stone are indispensable. However, to the northwest of Dajin, there are continuous mountains and forests, so there is no shortage of these.
Well... in the eyes of Gongsun family, the wood and stones in Liaodong also have the surname Gongsun!
Gongsun Du really didn't believe that Gan Ning would transport materials from Zhouhu.
"Oh? Then we need to talk about this collection area." Gan Ning said it was a collection area, but everyone knew that after the "collection", people would probably not leave!
However, Gongsun Du reacted indifferently to this. After all... the southern part of Liaodong, which stretched out into the sea, was sparsely populated and there were no big cities. Whether Gan Ning took one more step or one less step, it would not affect Gongsun Du's defense in the hilly area in the north.
Of course, if Gan Ning really dared to bring people over in batches, Gongsun Du would definitely drive them back into the sea!
In Gongsun Du's mind, the only landing point to reach Xiangping was Liaokou.
After some negotiations, both sides got what they wanted. Gan Ning also left two-thirds of the fleet to build a port in Dajin.
Among the generals who stayed behind, in addition to Gan Ning's old subordinates, there was another person who was relatively "unfamiliar" - it was Ling Tong who originally served under Sun Ce!
Gan Ning didn't know whether he had a quarrel with Sun Ce and actually asked to be transferred to the navy, but... since the Wind Catcher had no objection, it proved that there was nothing wrong with him.
Although he was "unfamiliar", he had been familiar with the sea for half a year, and Gan Ning had a good impression of him. Moreover, Ling Tong had told Gan Ning when he joined the navy that he was going to the most dangerous and sinister mission...
In fact, the navy’s mission as a whole is dangerous enough, even if there are no enemies... Is there any voyage that doesn’t involve a few ships sinking?
After all, we are still in the exploratory stage, and seafarers are also summarizing their experiences and integrating what they have learned.
Staying in Liaodong this time is even more dangerous.
Although it is logical that Gongsun clan would not betray the alliance, but...what if their brains are frozen?
Of course, when Gan Ning returns, he will also prepare a way out for these people. The weapons and armor that were previously "sold" to the Gongsun family are not all the goods.
Gan Ning plans to stay in Liaodong until it gets warmer. The sea is rough in winter, so Gan Ning will not sail far away during this period. He will just hang around nearby and wait until spring comes to see if there is a chance to go to Qingzhou or Xuzhou...
