Tiger Owl

Chapter 131 Patrolling the Swamp
The autumn harvest is over, and farmers are now busy sowing winter wheat seeds and fertilizing the land.

That morning, Gan Ning inspected the southern wetland of Pengli Lake, which covers an area of ​​hundreds of thousands of acres and is rich in aquatic plants. In the middle of this wetland is a county town, Xiaoyang County.

Guo Yuan, the county head of Xiaoyang County who accompanied Gan Ning on his inspection, said: "Although this swamp covers a vast area, if you look into it more closely, you will find that water and land each occupy half of it. If you are familiar with the terrain, you can ride a horse here."

Gan Ning nodded, casually picked a plant, and asked, "Are there many of these wild peas in the swamp?"

"There are many, they can be seen everywhere."

Gan Ning turned to Jiang Wan and smiled, "This is excellent pasture!"

Gan Ning certainly wouldn't inspect the wetlands without a reason. After returning from Changsha County, he realized that in order to seize the three counties of Jingnan and later Jiaozhou, he needed sufficient animal power. He immediately sent people to Bashu to buy back several thousand Shu donkeys. Shu donkeys are hardworking, not prone to illness, and good at walking mountain roads, making them very suitable for the southern mountainous areas.

The source of the livestock was found, but where to raise and breed them became a problem. It was Jiang Wan who first thought of the marshland area in the south of Pengli Lake. There were large areas of land there, with abundant water and grass, and a sparse population, which was 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, and he was indeed very satisfied with it. He had always thought that the swamp area was an endless marshland, and that once a person was trapped in it, they would be swallowed up by the swamp. That was his consistent understanding. Gan Ning had confused the mud pit with the marshland.

That's not actually the case. The so-called wetlands are actually shallow areas of a lake, with large tracts of land surrounded by shallow water, about four or five feet deep, which is perfectly suitable for swimming.

Of the hundreds of thousands of acres of water, at least half is land, so there is a county town, and many small villages are scattered around the county town.

Gan Ning immediately said to Jiang Wan, "We can start by raising a few thousand donkeys and cattle to test it out. If there are no problems, we can start large-scale free-range raising next spring."

It is now the sixth year of Jian'an, and there are still seven years until the thirteenth year of Jian'an. Gan Ning is not in a hurry to take over the three counties of Jingnan. He has enough time to prepare.

Jiang Wan nodded. "We can consider establishing a Bureau of Animal Husbandry, specifically responsible for animal husbandry."

"Yes, Chief Secretary, draft a plan as soon as possible. If there are no problems, I will approve it."

After inspecting the marshy areas of Xiaoyang County, Gan Ning returned to Nanchang County.

While Cao Cao was busy in the north, Gan Ning also had a host of important matters to consider, the most pressing of which was moving the capital.

Nanchang County was perfectly suitable as the capital of Yuzhang Commandery. When Gan Ning only had Yuzhang Commandery, it was very appropriate to make Nanchang County the capital. After acquiring Luling Commandery, it was also not inappropriate to make Nanchang County the capital. However, after acquiring Wuchang Commandery, Nanchang became a little less suitable as the capital.

After capturing Changsha County, Nanchang County, as the capital, was clearly no longer a viable option. Especially considering future development, Gan Ning and other high-ranking officials realized that Nanchang had obvious shortcomings as the capital, and relocating the capital was imperative.

Just like the Sun Wu regime moving its capital to Dantu, it was an inevitable development of the situation. Later, Dantu was no longer sufficient, so the capital was moved to Jianye.

For Gan Ning, moving the capital back to Chaisang is now an urgent matter.

Upon returning to Nanchang County, just as noon was breaking, Gan Ning went back to his official residence. As soon as he sat down, Lu Su and Jiang Wan hurriedly walked in.

Lu Su bowed and said, "My lord, I have just received news that Liu Bei has launched a northern expedition!"

Gan Ning nodded. History had moved forward. Liu Bei's Northern Expedition was supposed to be next year, but it was brought forward to this year. The reason was that Yuan Shao died prematurely, but the deeper reason was Liu Bei's anxiety. He originally thought he could develop in the south, but unexpectedly, he was used as a pawn by Liu Biao and pinned down in Xinye County. Only a year had passed, and Liu Biao was already extremely anxious. He wanted to use the Northern Expedition to change fate. History had changed, and it was unknown whether Liu Bei could do it.

Lu Su added, "There's another strange thing: Wen Ping actually led 20,000 troops to join Liu Bei's northern expedition." "What?"

Gan Ning was stunned. Wen Ping actually led his troops to follow Liu Bei on the Northern Expedition. How could this be? Historically, Liu Biao never launched a Northern Expedition. Even when Cao Cao went to Liucheng in Liaodong, Liu Biao did not launch a Northern Expedition despite such a good opportunity.

How could Liu Biao possibly allow Wen Ping to follow Liu Bei on his northern expedition? Wasn't he afraid that Liu Bei would swallow Wen Ping whole, just like he swallowed Che Zhou's army?

Lu Su added, "There's a rumor that Wen Ping has switched allegiance to Liu Bei. I wonder if the rumor is true."

This news is very important! If the rumors are true, it means that Liu Bei will be able to take Nanyang Commandery, which will completely change history.

Gan Ning immediately said, "Immediately send intelligence scouts to Nanyang to gather information. I need to know exactly where Liu Bei is moving."

Lu Su took his leave, and Jiang Wan smiled and said, "This humble servant doesn't quite understand. Even if Wen Ping leads 20,000 troops north, together with Liu Bei's 10,000, there will only be 30,000 men. Such a northern expedition is unlikely to succeed. What's the point of him doing this?"

Gan Ning smiled faintly and said, "Liu Bei is very worried about being forgotten. He used this Northern Expedition to show the world his determination to restore the Han Dynasty. It was also a kind of appeal, hoping to gain the support of those who share the same ideals. This shows that Liu Bei is a little unable to persevere."

"I understand. Liu Bei's northward march was not for the purpose of a northern expedition, but rather a political statement."

“That’s absolutely right, but I think it’s very strange that Wen Ping responded to the call to follow Liu Bei on the Northern Expedition. There must be a deeper reason. So I need to keep a close eye on Liu Bei’s side. It’s very likely that the whole of Jingzhou is about to change.”

"I see!"

Jiang Wan then smiled and asked, "Has the lord already 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 expansion of the county. Time is indeed a bit tight. If there is really no time, the relocation of the capital can be postponed to March next year."

"This humble servant will do his best to assist the strategist in relocating the capital. In addition, the matter of the ranch has already been started. Please wait a few days, my lord. The officials need to go to the site to inspect before they can write the ranch plan. We can't just build a car out of thin air."

Gan Ning readily agreed, "That's right. Focus on getting things done. I'm not in a rush."

Jiang Wan bowed and withdrew.

Gan Ning walked to the window with his hands behind his back, gazing northward. Ever since he had defeated Liu Biao's navy at Dongting Lake, Gan Ning's mentality had begun to undergo some subtle changes. He was no longer afraid of Liu Biao, especially after his army reached 100,000 men. Gan Ning began to feel that he had the strength to fight Liu Biao.

In particular, if Liu Bei were to seize Nanyang Commandery, it would greatly weaken Liu Biao's power, which would certainly not be a bad thing.

At this point, Gan Ning was no longer very interested in the three prefectures of Jingnan, partly because the resources available there were too few. He didn't want to waste his energy and military strength on the entanglements of those southern barbarian chieftains. The three prefectures of Jingnan didn't collect much tax revenue at all; on the contrary, he had to pay them extra.

Of course, the three counties of Jingnan are not unwanted, but their importance has decreased. Gan Ning has placed them after Huang Zu, as he wants to implement another plan ahead of time: to eliminate Huang Zu.

Especially after Gan Ning defeated Liu Biao, Huang Zu, as a buffer zone, was no longer needed.

This was also a major reason why Gan Ning was eager to move the capital. Moving the capital to Chaisang greatly facilitated his defeat of Huang Zujiang.

(End of this chapter)