Tiger Owl

Chapter 156 Appointment Turmoil
The following day, Gan Ning officially announced that Pang Tong would be appointed as Military Advisor and Right Deputy Military Advisor. This news caused a lot of controversy. Although Pang Tong was very famous in Jingzhou, many people believed that Pang Tong was just a scholar and had no practical experience. It was not appropriate to appoint him as deputy military advisor.

Even Lu Su was somewhat disapproving. In fact, Lu Su already had a candidate for deputy strategist, namely Zhuge Jin, whom Lu Su greatly admired.

"Wouldn't Pang Tong be a little lacking in qualifications to serve as deputy military advisor?" Lu Su asked tactfully in the office.

Gan Ning smiled slightly and said, "Xu Shu was just a scholar when he became the deputy military advisor! In fact, seniority is not a big problem. The key is ability. Using the right person for each position is the way to use people."

"But why does the general want Zhuge Jin to go to the prefectures and counties for training?"

Gan Ning understood Lu Su's intentions and explained, "I'm considering that Zhuge Jin will serve as Sima in the future, in charge of money and grain. I'm sending him to local prefectures and counties for two years to gain experience, let him understand the hardships of the people, and let him know that money and grain are hard-earned."

After a pause, Gan Ning continued, "I know the strategist wants Zhuge Jin to be the deputy strategist, but Zhuge Jin is not good at intelligence. According to my observation, he is better at financial management."

The reason I heavily relied on Pang Tong was precisely because he possessed strategic acumen that was unmatched by ordinary people, and he was exactly the kind of talent I urgently needed.

Gan Ning then told Lu Su in detail about Pang Tong's long-term plan from the previous night. Lu Su then fell silent. In fact, Lu Su was mainly worried that Gan Ning wanted to build a faction in Jingzhou, so he did not approve of it. After listening to Gan Ning's words, Lu Su realized that he was wrong. His lord was indeed only interested in talent and had no other intentions.

Lu Su said with some shame, "This humble servant's thinking is narrow-minded. I will have a good talk with Pang Tong. Since our lord values ​​him so much, we should make good use of him."

Gan Ning nodded. "Regarding the establishment of the intelligence network, have Pang Tong write a report for me first, then formulate a plan, and finally implement it."

"I understand the humble position!"

Lu Su bowed and withdrew.

Gan Ning pondered for a moment. In fact, he also realized that he had been a little unfair in his arrangement of Zhuge Jin. Xu Shu and Pang Tong were appointed to high positions from the start, but Zhuge Jin was sent to a prefecture or county to serve as an official, so everyone had objections.

Gan Ning thought for a moment and then ordered that Huang Zhong be appointed as the Defense Commissioner of Jiangxia, in charge of all military affairs in Jiangxia, and no longer serve as the Prefect. Zhuge Jin was transferred to serve as the Prefect of Jiangxia.

Just five days later, Lu Su handed a report drafted by Pang Tong to Gan Ning. Lu Su was Pang Tong's superior, so Pang Tong could not bypass his superior and go directly to Gan Ning.

Gan Ning took the report, which was titled "Brief Summary of Intelligence" on the cover. He slowly unfolded it and found the scroll covered with densely written small characters, totaling at least 20,000 to 30,000 words.

"You finished writing so quickly?" Gan Ning asked with a smile.

"I asked him the same question. Actually, this was an idea he had long ago. He has been traveling around since he was eighteen, observing and thinking, and gradually forming his own set of ideas. I have read it carefully and it is really good. Ordinary people cannot write such high-level insights. Even I am ashamed of myself. I apologize to the general!"

"Apologise for what?"

"General, you have a discerning eye for talent, but I am incompetent and foolish, and I have even tried to obstruct you. I know I was wrong!" Gan Ning said calmly, "It is understandable that the strategist thinks that way. I only discovered that he is indeed talented after talking with Pang Tong. If I had not talked to him beforehand, I would never have appointed him as deputy strategist. At most, I would have let him serve as county magistrate for a few years to gain experience."

Lu Su sighed inwardly, then took his leave.

Gan Ning then carefully read Pang Tong's brief intelligence report. The report first discussed the importance of intelligence, and then detailed the methods of obtaining important intelligence. For example, the sudden surge in grain prices in the market was very likely due to the army stockpiling grain. Another example was the sudden shortage of common medicinal herbs in the market, especially those for treating injuries, which could also be a sign that the army was stockpiling medicine and preparing to launch a war. The report also mentioned that soldiers were generally given leave, and that restaurants were opened near the military camps, and eavesdropping was arranged in the private rooms frequented by officers.

Gan Ning actually knew all of this, but this was the first time someone had written it down systematically and provided a detailed analysis, which was truly commendable.

At this moment, Ma Liang announced from the doorway, "Military Advisor Pang has arrived!"

"Invite him in!"

Before long, Pang Tong hurriedly entered the office, bowed, and said, "Greetings, General!"

Gan Ning smiled and said, "I have read your intelligence brief and it is very good. Military Advisor Lu also praised it highly. Next, you need to submit a detailed plan and funding requirements. I will ask Military Advisor Lu to arrange the personnel. You write the plan and finally, I need you to train new intelligence agents."

“I understand, but I have heard that the general already had quite a few intelligence spies.”

Gan Ning nodded. "There is an intelligence battalion, but it's small, less than two hundred people. I'll arrange for the leaders and strategists of the two intelligence spies to meet with you later. One is named Wei Kan, and the other is named Xi Ping. They are your subordinates. You two can have a good talk. I hope you can gain a deeper understanding of the current situation and find our current shortcomings."

"I understand!"

Time passed day by day. On this morning, more than 300 intelligence spies gathered in a government office. Most of them were not soldiers. Some were very old, some were middle-aged couples, and some were young men and women. Almost all of them were military households from all over the country. Their families were all serving in the Yuzhang Army, so they were all willing to become intelligence spies to collect intelligence for the Yuzhang Army.

Pang Tong smiled and asked everyone to sit down. He raised his voice and said, "I am Pang Tong, the deputy military advisor of the Yuzhang Army, in charge of intelligence. Starting today, I will be giving you a ten-day lecture. I hope you will listen attentively and ask questions. Now I will tell you a few principles that you should understand, as they concern your safety."

Pang Tong looked around at everyone and then slowly said, "First of all, you are intelligence spies, not scouts. Scouts risk their lives to gather intelligence on the enemy on the battlefield, but you are not. The intelligence spies I require do not need to take any risks. You do not need to bribe enemy officials or bribe their officers. You are just like ordinary people, gathering information that the locals know, but it must be based on real facts, not your own imagination. Of course, you cannot just collect random information about everyday life. It must be targeted. I will teach you what kind of intelligence to collect and how to transmit the information."

Everyone listened intently, afraid of missing a single word Pang Tong said.

In the blink of an eye, the two-month deadline given by Jiangdong had passed, and Gan Ning had neither corrected his mistakes nor apologized to Jiangdong, nor even offered an explanation.

Jiangdong had already spoken its mind, and there was no turning back. Sun Quan had no choice but to issue the third Wu Hou decree of the year, announcing the abrogation of the Gan-Sun alliance agreement signed with Gan Ning.

Of course, Sun Quan still retained a shred of rationality and did not declare Gan Ning an enemy of Jiangdong. The relationship between the two countries was not black and white, but rather a gray area. It was neither hostile nor an alliance.

(End of this chapter)