Chapter 6641 The Real Contradiction

Chapter 6641 The Real Contradiction

Gan Ning had a very good strategic perspective. This was the reason why, although he was the head of the navy and theoretically Zhou Yu's superior, he never had any conflicts with Zhou Yu even though he was actually led by Zhou Yu. He actually saw certain things very clearly.

Therefore, after Ye Diao sent the information confirming the news previously conveyed by Meng Kangbu, Gan Ning broke out in a cold sweat. Zhou Yu's death had a huge impact on the current situation, especially at this point in time when the Han navy had not yet recovered. Even with the seventh-generation ships, Gan Ning did not dare to guarantee that he could temporarily take over Zhou Yu's position.

"This is really terrible." Gan Ning only looked at the jagged distribution of forces on the map and the possible marching routes of the Kushan Navy. Considering that Zhou Yu was dead, Gan Ning felt a little scalp-tingling. If these things were to be handed over to him to handle, he really had no confidence.

"Go and notify Ziyi and Wenxiang to come to the tent." After looking at the map, Gan Ning rolled it up expressionlessly, then walked out of the tent and gave orders to his guards.

In the navy, even though Gan Ning delegated most of his power and let Zhou Yu be the supreme commander, Gan Ning also had his own team and his own team. Gan Ning's advice to Zhou Yu was that the two sides should completely merge, with himself as the nominal supervisor and Zhou Yu taking charge.

However, after much deliberation, Zhou Yu rejected this proposal and suggested that Gan Ning build his own team and framework so that if any problems occurred on his side, Gan Ning could take over quickly.

Gan Ning didn't quite understand it at that time, but now he really understands it. For example, if Gan Ning did not have such a small, self-operating naval team under his command this time, the Han Dynasty navy would probably be in turmoil for a long time, because without Zhou Yu's Jiangdong, there would really be serious internal disputes. In fact, just looking at the speed of intelligence transmission can show how serious the internal turmoil is.

Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng rushed over quickly. They were not surprised that Gan Ning told them to go to the main tent. Every time after meeting Meng Kangbu, Gan Ning would have a period of depression. At this time, letting the two of them come over was also a way to maintain his condition.

However, after coming here this time, Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng both realized that Gan Ning's situation was very different from before. Every time before, Gan Ning looked depressed at most, but this time, just by stepping into the tent, Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng could feel Gan Ning's solemnity.

"What happened? Did Meng Kang issue a challenge?" Taishi Ci looked at Gan Ning's expression and asked with a strange look on his face.

Taishi Ci could not think of any other possibility that could make Gan Ning so solemn. However, this should not be the case. The civil officials of Jiangdong and Gan Ning all explained Meng Kangbu's current behavior of building Ceylon Island and turning it into a fortress. Logically, the other party should not have the extra energy to cause trouble for the Kunwu Kingdom now. After all, the fortified Ceylon Island can be regarded as the strategic fulcrum of the Kushan Empire in the next stage.

"It's worse than this. The commander-in-chief was assassinated and died." Gan Ning first used special means to seal his tent to prevent the sound from leaking out, and then spoke with a serious face.

Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng were both stunned when they heard this, and then looked at Gan Ning with a look of surprise on their faces. They couldn't say such things casually. How could Zhou Yu be assassinated in the street and die?

However, no matter how shocked they were, facing Gan Ning's solemn expression, the two could only suppress their inner shock and wait quietly for Gan Ning's explanation.

"It is still unclear who did the assassination. Although Zhuge Ziyu said in the secret letter that he was investigating, I think we need someone from Chang'an to confirm the result." Gan Ning looked at Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng with a serious expression and said, "However, it is not important how to investigate this matter. The only important thing is that after the death of the governor, the strategic reversal between the Han Dynasty and the Kushan Navy will occur."

Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng's faces both turned very ugly. Indeed, compared to how those scum in Jiangdong would investigate this matter, the more troublesome thing in the future was how the Han Dynasty navy, which had lost its main backbone and without Zhou Yu, would face the Kushan problem.

"Look, this is Ceylon, and here is Malacca. With Moncombe's ability, if we use Ceylon as a springboard and break through this position directly, the Indian Ocean will basically not belong to us, and the situation will return to the time when Celian was still alive." Gan Ning opened the map and pointed at it so that Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng could understand the current situation more clearly.

"What should we do now?" Xu Sheng looked at the distribution of forces on the map and had roughly deduced the subsequent situation. He looked at Gan Ning with a heavy face and asked.

"I have received a notice from Chang'an ordering me to go to Donglai to take over the seventh-generation warship." Gan Ning said concisely, "But this alone is not enough, and after I leave Kunwu, the Kou family's foundation is likely to be hit by Meng Kangbu, so we must shrink to a certain extent. Fortunately, the Kou family has already made preparations in this regard."

As early as the eighth year of Yuanfeng, after the Han navy was attacked by Meng Kangbu, the Kou clan had planned to shrink. After Kou Jun was killed in battle and Meng Kangbu began to fortify Ceylon, the Kou clan in Kunwu began to shrink on a large scale, migrating from the coast to the interior.

However, due to the existence of Gan Ning and the fact that Meng Kangbu did not want to get entangled in the struggle for cities and places in Kunwu Kingdom, all his attention was put into fortifying Ceylon Island. As a result, up to now, Meng Kangbu has not launched an attack on the fiefdom of the Kou family, and of course he can forget about building ships.

The problem is that this is because Gan Ning was confronting Meng Kangbu in Kunwu Kingdom. Meng Kangbu thought that this city and this place were not too important and he should complete the strategic fulcrum first, so he did not touch Gan Ning and let the other party develop. However, if Gan Ning left, it would be a matter of course for Meng Kangbu to attack Kunwu Kingdom. After all, it would not take much effort and could just be a matter of a few blows.

"Then Wen Xiang and I will stay in Kunwu Kingdom, and you go back to Chang'an first. However, if Chang'an notifies you to pick up the seventh-generation ship, Jiangdong..." Taishi Ci showed a rare sensitivity and looked at Gan Ning with an expression of disbelief.

Chang'an's intelligence must have been received from Southeast Asia, and it needed to be confirmed after receiving it. And because it involved Zhou Yu's death, many things needed to be carefully confirmed. In addition, the use of the real seventh-generation ship that was being tested, all of these had to be brought to the meeting.

Under such circumstances, the Han Dynasty was able to send the intelligence before the people in Jiangdong. Even if it was just a matter of time, it was enough to explain many problems.

"The problems in Jiangdong are much bigger than we imagined." Gan Ning said with a gloomy face, "When the news of the governor's assassination was reported to Chang'an, it should have been copied to me directly. After all, theoretically speaking, I am the head of the navy."

Gan Ning's rank is higher than Zhou Yu's, there is no doubt about that. In theory, the navy is commanded by Gan Ning, but Zhou Yu is more capable and Gan Ning has never competed with him in this regard, so he let Zhou Yu command the navy and he also obeyed Zhou Yu's command.

Therefore, when any problems arise within the navy, in theory the first person to report to is Gan Ning. Of course, because Zhou Yu has a special identity, there is no problem in reporting to Chang'an first, then to Sun Ce, and finally to Gan Ning. However, after Chang'an received the news and told Gan Ning, Gan Ning received the news from Jiangdong. That would be a big problem.

"Forget it, let's not worry about this for now. This is an internal problem of Jiangdong. With such a big incident this time, there will definitely be great turmoil within Jiangdong. You know Sun Bofu's character very well. He is really capable of destroying the Jiangdong family." Gan Ning said with a heavy expression, "This will cause many, many conflicts."

It’s not that Gan Ning has a long-term vision, but Chen Xi’s position is very clear. Chen Xi enfeoffs the princes not to find a father for himself, but for his own ideals, to complete the construction of the Han cultural circle. Therefore, Chen Xi will provide certain resource support to the guys who go abroad, whether they are Han families or vassals of middle-level titles, etc., to ensure that they can gain a firm foothold and eventually grow stronger.

Based on this logic, Chen Xi does not care much about the internal operations of the major princes, but if any prince wants to destroy himself, Chen Xi will never allow it, because what is damaged is not the power of the prince, but the power of the Han Dynasty, which is Chen Xi's ideal.

This is also the reason why Chen Xi would hide it from Sun Ce. Of course, the most important thing is that Zhou Yu is not dead yet. He can only be said to have been assassinated, which can still be saved. If he is really dead, Chen Xi would probably have to notify Sun Ce to come to Chang'an, and then form an investigation team himself, led by the elders, to go to Southeast Asia to investigate, and finally get to the bottom of it and give Sun Ce a result.

As for letting Sun Ce investigate it himself, if Zhou Yu was dead, Chen Xi really didn't dare to do it, because Sun Ce would really cause a river of blood. In the past, Sun Ce didn't kill many aristocratic families in Jiangdong, because Zhou Yu wanted to give these people dignity. Now that Zhou Yu is gone, it is possible that Sun Ce let these people be buried with Zhou Yu to live up to the dignity of the past.

The problem is that this way of playing is really terrible. It is the same as the routine of more than one hundred Qin ministers being buried with Duke Mu of Qin after his death. It will really seriously deplete the national strength. So Chen Xi can accept Sun Ce's revenge for Zhou Yu, but Chen Xi cannot accept Sun Ce's extermination of three or nine clans of those involved.

The latter caused such great damage to Chen Xi's Han cultural circle that it was simply unbearable.

"I will return to Chang'an and then lead the Seventh Generation Fleet to Sumatra to guard Malacca. If Meng Kangbu comes again during this period, you can tell him that I am sharpening my knife. I guess he won't doubt it in the first few times. As for the later doubts, the manpower will have been transferred by then, so it doesn't matter what he thinks." Gan Ning said calmly, "From now on, I will rely on you. I am afraid that I will have to listen to the case of Governor Zhou. This matter is too big."

"Is it possible that it was done by the Kushans?" Xu Sheng asked in a tone that was unclear whether it was a test or a suggestion.

"It must have been the work of the Kushans. But even if it was the work of the Kushans, to assassinate the governor in the street in a place like Ye Diao, there must be internal personnel involved. Otherwise, the route alone would not be something that the Kushan soldiers heading from Kushan to Ye Diao could handle. And if too many Kushan high-ranking officials were involved, Jiangdong would have gotten wind of it anyway." Gan Ning said with a gloomy expression.

"Is that so?" Taishi Ci had a complicated expression upon hearing this, but he had to admit that Gan Ning was absolutely right. Regardless of whether it was the Kushans who did it, it was meaningless in the current situation. Whether it was the Kushans who did it, it was incredible in itself that they could kill Zhou Yu.

"I'll go north now and then return to Chang'an via the airspace. It's up to you from now on." Gan Ning stood up and saluted Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng. The work of the two will be very heavy from now on, and it is very likely that this place will become the front line of the war.

There was no way. Zhou Yu died at the hands of the Kushans, so the armistice agreement signed before could basically be assumed to be torn up. In this way, it would no longer be impossible for Meng Kangbu to launch a direct attack. Given the current situation, it was simply a matter of course for Meng Kangbu to attack the Kunwu Kingdom.

After all, if they really wanted to attack Malacca, they would first have to knock down Kunwu Kingdom and eliminate its defense capabilities. Then, when they attacked on their own, they would not be raided by others in their home town on Ceylon Island.

The existence of Rama Bridge can ensure that the seventh-generation ships cannot chase their navy around Ceylon, but it also provides conditions for the army to land. Although due to the poor terrain conditions of Ceylon and the initial fortification, it is difficult for the army to deploy on Ceylon, but with the combat effectiveness of the Han army, even a small-scale landing can cause considerable trouble to the Kushans.

Therefore, if Meng Kangbu really wants to launch an attack on Malacca, he will definitely send troops to curb the power of the Kou family's fiefdom first.

"Leave it to us. When the Super Xingba comes over, let us take a good look at it." Taishi Ci said with a smile. Yes, the first seventh-generation ship still continued the previous title and was still called Xingba, but in order to distinguish it from previous warships, it was generally called the Super Xingba.

"Don't worry. Although I am no match for Montcomb in naval battles, with the Xingba and the large-scale pseudo seventh-generation ships, I am confident that I can completely suppress Montcomb unless he sends out his main force." Gan Ning said confidently. He knew the power and parameters of the seventh-generation ship very well. It was a masterpiece that brother Lu Jun built while sending messages to him.

"Do you have any way to crack the submarine now?" Taishi Ci asked.

If you can't win, then dive. This is a special skill and tactic invented by Zhou Yu. Although Celian was so powerful back then, he couldn't kill Zhou Yu because Zhou Yu's diving skills were really outrageous. Now it's Moncomb's turn to face Zhou Yu, so Moncomb also started to dive.

"The seventh-generation ships have large equipment for searching for submerged ships." Gan Ning nodded. He told Lu Jun all the difficulties he encountered. Lu Jun led a group of craftsmen to overcome them one by one.

"Compared to Commander Zhou, many functions of the seventh-generation ships are actually prepared for me, because he can defeat Meng Kangbu without these functions." Gan Ning said with some emotion.

For Zhou Yu, the skills and tactics he mastered, as well as various special ship secrets, allow him to exert extremely terrifying strength without relying on large ship equipment. Therefore, Zhou Yu's requirements for the seventh-generation ship are more powerful output, stronger defense, and faster speed.

But Gan Ning is different. Gan Ning's qualifications are there. Some of the things that Zhou Yu can use easily require Gan Ning to study hard before he can master them. Therefore, in addition to the things Zhou Yu needs, Gan Ning's performance of the seventh-generation ship also has a higher reconnaissance range, more accurate information collection, etc. Gan Ning has also figured out a set of things that belong to him when it comes to naval warfare.

For example, you can detect the enemy from a farther distance, and then use ultra-long-range attacks to attack, killing the opponent without the opponent being able to detect you, etc.

However, in the past, these ideas would have been impossible to realize relying solely on Gan Ning. Now that the seventh-generation ship is to be delivered to Gan Ning, the things that were conceived before can finally be put into use.

After explaining everything to Taishi Ci and Xu Sheng, Gan Ning first went to Samata by land, and then flew all the way to Chang'an along the airspace. This was the airspace on the Ganges side specially reserved for the internal energy to leave the body, and it was actually the route reserved for the Southwest Corridor.

By flying, Gan Ning quickly arrived in Chang'an. At this time, Mi Zhu had already gathered his subordinates and was waiting for Xun Yue to return and take him to the Ganges to investigate.

"Xingba, you came back really quickly this time." Mi Zhu looked at Gan Ning who fell from the sky with a look of emotion on his face, "I originally thought you would delay for a few days before coming back."

"It's fine if you're lazy at other times, but how could you possibly delay something as important as this?" Gan Ning said with a smile as the bell rang, but then he stopped smiling and asked Mi Zhu, "Zi Zhong, what's the situation in Jiangdong? Do you have any confirmed information now?"

"One thing is certain, that is, Governor Zhou was indeed assassinated by the Kushans. I am now organizing people to go to the south to investigate." Mi Zhu sighed and said, "Don't spread this news for now. You will know more details when you meet the Grand Marshal and Zichuan later."

"Aren't there three sixth-level smelting guards of Commander Zhou?" Gan Ning said with a sullen face, "Theoretically, those three guards with detection, defense and parrying abilities should be able to support the Commander for a few seconds even if he were to attack from the realm of the enemy. How could he be assassinated?"

Gan Ning was thinking about this question when he was flying back, but the more he thought about it, the more strange it seemed to him. How was Zhou Yu assassinated? Not to mention Zhou Yu's own ability to exert internal energy outside his body, Gan Ning also knew that individual strength needed actual combat to be stimulated. For example, Zhou Yu could not exert the ability to exert internal energy outside his body at all. But in addition to his own strength, Zhou Yu also had personal guards to protect him.

"Actually there are four, three in the open and one undercover." Mi Zhu said helplessly, "But the governor only brought Zhou Ming with him in order to lure out the person who was trying to assassinate him."

Zhou Ming was also numb. He had confessed everything he needed to confess. He even wanted to commit suicide to apologize for Zhou Yu's death, but was persuaded by everyone. If Zhou Ming died at this time, he would have no way to explain when Sun Ce came back. No one knew whether he would commit suicide to apologize or kill someone to silence him.

So even though Zhou Ming was imprisoned, no one made things difficult for him. As the first person involved in the case, Zhou Ming could only wait for Chang'an to come and find out the truth. After verifying his identity, he would hand him over to Sun Ce for handling. As for other people, they are probably trying to avoid him now.

"So it turns out that someone from Jiangdong was involved, right?" Gan Ning said with a sullen look on his face, "It's clear that a family with this ability is involved, right?"

Mi Zhu was silent for a while, looked at Gan Ning again, and finally nodded.

"You really don't know how to live or die!" Gan Ning said angrily.

"This is not just a question of the involvement of Jiangdong's internal personnel, but also a game between the Seventh Generation Fleet and Governor Zhou." Mi Zhu sighed, and in the end did not explain it too clearly, but just looked at Gan Ning deeply.

To a certain extent, isn't it because some people judge that the current Gan Ning plus the seventh-generation ships can fight against Meng Kangbu head-on, and Zhou Yu is no longer irreplaceable, that some things have intensified? Although it was an accident, those people would not dare to do so without the seventh-generation ships.

After all, if you can't defeat Montcomb, everything you have now is just a sand sculpture in front of the waves.

The reason why Sun Ce and Zhou Yu can be treated as Jiangdong families is not because no matter how harsh the conditions are, there will be huge rewards in the future?

Even reduced to an extremely simple level, the Jiangdong noble families were willing to follow Sun Ce and Zhou Yu and sacrifice their own interests. Wasn't it because Zhou Yu could suppress Meng Kangbu and bring them greater benefits?

But when the seventh-generation ships appeared, Zhou Yu was no longer the only candidate.

Of course, this idea was just a passing thought in his mind and would not be revealed. However, after Zhou Yu did his utmost to suppress the major families, promote the Enfeoffment Order, and weaken the military power of the major families, it was impossible for the Jiangdong families to say that they did not have a rebellious mentality.

I tolerated you, Zhou Yu, before because you, Zhou Yu, are unique and irreplaceable. In addition, all the current losses can be made up in the future under your leadership, and we can get more. But now, what you, Zhou Yu, can do, Gan Ning can also do with the seventh-generation ships, and Gan Ning will not infringe on our existing interests, so why don’t we embrace Gan Ning.

It is true that the Han Empire estimated that the Jiangdong family probably never really thought of killing Zhou Yu in their subconscious. They probably just wanted to teach Zhou Yu a lesson, let Zhou Yu know that they were a group of people who were not easy to mess with, and then both sides would give each other a way out and end the matter, and then continue to survive by pulling each other down.

After all, no matter how bright the future is, it is a fact that they have to cut meat now. In the eyes of the Jiangdong family, they have already cut a lot of meat, and it is almost time to come to an end. They can't keep cutting meat, otherwise it will cost them their lives.

Therefore, indulging yourself in certain aspects is almost a natural thing to do.

As for really causing trouble and plotting against Zhou Yu, according to the analysis of Zhuge Liang and others, they probably wouldn't dare to do that. But not daring to plot against Zhou Yu does not mean that they wouldn't dare to allow existing people to do bad things. For the Jiangdong aristocratic family, the latter is not only daring, but also extremely courageous - anyway, it wasn't us who did it, I was just derelict in my duty at most, could the stupid Kushan assassin really kill Zhou Yu?
Even if I am found out by then, I will only be considered derelict in my duty. There is nothing to be afraid of. I don't believe that Zhou Yu can't feel the dissatisfaction of our Jiangdong family.

I felt it, but Zhou Yu’s body is now in the cold storage.

Mi Zhu didn't know what the Jiangdong noble families were thinking, but he knew that the Jiangdong noble families involved would definitely die, and the families that were behind the scenes directing these Jiangdong noble families not to engage in direct confrontation and just sit there doing nothing would probably also die. In short, this group of people really couldn't afford the consequence of Zhou Yu's defeat.

Maybe the Jiangdong noble families have already started cleaning up their mess, especially after confirming that Zhou Yu is indeed dead. All the families who realized what they had done and indulged in have already started cutting ties at the speed of light, and the situation is immediately apparent.

Mi Zhu's words reminded Gan Ning, after all, he only looked like an idiot and had the brain of an idiot, but that didn't mean Gan Ning was stupid. On the contrary, Gan Ning was a child of an orthodox noble family, and being a Jinfan thief was just his hobby. At the age of 18, he was the prefect of Shu County. The Gan family was not considered a top wealthy family in the Central Plains, but it was also a real big family, so as long as Gan Ning was willing to think about some conspiracies, he would understand them.

After all, through teaching and practice within the family, and through osmosis, even if you don't specifically learn, you will naturally understand some things.

"It's really disgusting." Gan Ning said with a look of disgust.

"Yes, it is obvious that Governor Zhou and the Seventh Generation Ships are the biggest advantage, and they can completely crush the Kushan Navy head-on, but they actually gave up because of this kind of thing." Mi Zhu nodded, and then told Gan Ning about the content of the meeting, "So your next task is very heavy. You have to bring out the Seventh Generation Ships and exert enough power to deter Meng Kangbu, otherwise, there will be a lot of trouble."

"The problem is that if we only have one seventh-generation ship, we can only carry out missions in one direction, and because of the current situation, we have to sail the seventh-generation ship to Malacca first." Gan Ning frowned and said, "The Kushans are not blind. They will also be prepared after seeing the seventh-generation ship. Originally, the first battle of the seventh-generation ship should catch the Kushans off guard, or even directly injure them, but now..."

We are guarding Malacca now and cannot run around. The Kushan spies are not blind and will definitely see the seventh-generation ships. Kushan will definitely be prepared by then. As I said before, if Gan Ning brings the seventh-generation ships and other fleets, Kushan and Gan Ning will fight head-on, Gan Ning will definitely not lose. But how sick must the other party's brain be to fight you head-on at this time?

The United States has to have several aircraft carrier fleets, right? Isn't it necessary to take on tasks in several areas? A seventh-generation ship is very powerful, but won't the Kushans divide their troops?

Slipped, slipped, failed to get up early, miserable