Chapter 205 Navy war
Translated by Gamer
(TN: The main camp stated in this chapter are all on water.)
(Note: Gan Ning’s nickname, Jin Fan Zei translate to ‘Brocade’ ‘Sail’ ‘Thief’. Sounds strange after translating so I opt to leave it untranslated.)
(There are two types of boats/ships. The towered ships 楼船 are giant ships that have less/no sails but have towers/bungalows on it. Warships 艨艟 were smaller, may have large sails and a lot of those super long oars.)
The Yangtze River originates from the ‘roof of the world’ — from the Geladaindong Peaks of the Tanggula Mountains at the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The water flows from multiple places and civilization was formed there. Now, something historical will happens near the edges of the Yangtze River.
Under the night sky, there were countless large boats being hidden under clothes at the Yangtze River. The ships went downstream without any lights. They were navies.
“We are ready!” Inside one of the large ships, a soldier reported to the commander.
He was wearing the outfit of a high-ranking officer but did not have the right appearance.
The commander said nothing and grinned. If it was any other person, he would have dragged out the disrespectful soldier and beat him up. However, this was common to the commander who also looked like a ruffian.
“How many times have I reminded you! How many times! Call me general! General! We are now in the army. I am now the military commander! We are no longer thieves!” The general of the navy looked at his soldier and grumbled. Every soldier had a bell attached to their bodies to use during an emergency. Looking closely, the commander was also wearing a colorful robe. They were going on an excursion.
Colorful robes and bells. His close associates gave him the nickname Thief Jin Fan.
Without doubt, this person is Gan Ning. He was Jin Fan Zei. He was Lu Bu’s navy commander, Gan Xing Ba. They have been floating at the river for a while. After they received a message from Wan Cheng, Gan Ning took Lu Bu’s navy and stopped near Wan Cheng. They wanted to avoid battle. Lu Bu’s Army’s navy was not completed. Even though they had generals like Gan Ning and Su Fei, they do not have enough soldiers and warships. Even though there was also Liu Mang’s secret weapon, they could not complete it in such a short time. Gan Ning was not a fool. If they were to attack now, it would be courting death.
This is why Gan Ning is currently hiding at the marshes near Wan Cheng. The river at this point splits from nine to eighteen streams. The current was also very fast and was full of reefs. Those there were slightly careless will end up being stranded. But this was not a problem to Gan Ning. After all, Gan Ning was the Jin Fan Zei! He was the leader of 800 thieves that robbed traders at the Yangtze River. They struck fear in the government officials and became a headache to the Jingzhou and Jiangdong navy. If they were to send a large number of soldiers, Gan Ning would hide. If they send a small number of soldiers, Gan Ning would swallow them all. As a result, the Jingzhou and Jiangdong navy could not do anything. In the end, Liu Biao managed to make Gan Ning surrender with a stratagem and restored peace to the Yangtze River. Although Liu Biao has recruited Gan Ning, he did not like Gan Ning’s background and never referred him to Huang Zu. Huang Zu and Liu Biao took pleasure in bullying him. It has made Gan Ning lost all hope until he ran into Liu Mang and Lu Bu.
Gan Ning was an arrogant person.
Although he has capital, he was not liked by many rulers. However, Lu Bu was not such a person. This is because there is no one who is more unrestrained than Lu Bu. He is not afraid that a person is wild. He is just afraid that the person does not have talent.
Without any objection, Lu Bu gave Gan Ning control of the navy without intervening at all. He let Gan Ning demand whatever resources and provisions he needs. Lu Bu wanted Gan Ning to be able to show off his full power.
How could Gan Ning not notice this? Although he did not say this, Gan Ning has already considered himself an important part of Lu Bu’s Army. The current situation of avoiding combat has made Gan Ning a bit sullen and unclear. They could only hide at the marshes. They were not allowed to appear or make any loud noises. They must eat, drink and sleep at the warship. How is this comfortable?
After a few days, they have finished loading their equipment. The boat went out of hiding and Gan Ning looked at Wan Cheng at a distance. He could see the navy of the Wan Cheng city. Gan Ning could not help but sneer.
“Jiangdong navy is invincible? Today, let me, Gan Ning Gan Xing Ba ask for advice!”
Inside the main camp of the Wan Cheng navy, Lu Su just received the message that Sun Ce has captured Wan Cheng. Now he needs to write a letter to Jiangdong and request for more soldiers to station at Wan Cheng City to ensure that nothing else goes wrong at Lujiang. Although there were a lot of casualties for the Sun Ce’s Army, at the end of the day, they have won and have captured Wan Cheng.
Lu Su remembered the time he was threatened and humiliated by Lu Bu. However, Lu Su was not worried because he would meet Lu Bu again. Sun Ce’s objective was to chase away Lu Bu and expand the borders of Lujiang.
Thinking like this, Lu Su continued to write his letter with the help of a lamp. By the time he is done writing the letter, the skies have turned bright.
“It’s morning already?” Lu Su did not sleep as he was too excited. The first time he was dispatched, he already helped Lord Sun Ceto to capture Wan Cheng. Not only that, but the whole of Lujiang would also be captured soon. This is why he wrote a few military orders and a letter to send to Zhou Yu.
“It’s morning!” Gan Ning also did not sleep. They have been hiding in the marshes under the cover of the night. Now that it is bright, they will be seen by the navies of the Sun Ce’s Army.
“A ship?!” One of the watches for the Wan Cheng navy looked at a distance. The sky changed and the brightness also constantly changed between bright and dark. As a result, people may have visual errors. The soldier laughed at shook his head. There would not be any traders this early in the morning.
The soldier wanted to go back and change shifts when an arrow flew towards his head.
*Haqian* The soldier sneezed and jerked his head and the arrow ended up piercing the pillar of the watchtower. The soldier looked helplessly at the arrow for a moment and suddenly stopped feeling sleepy.
“This, this, this!” The soldier continued to stare at the arrow that was right in front of his face. If the arrow had hit someone, it would blow out their brains and kill them.
The soldier looked carefully again and noticed a few vessels. Although the vessel was similar to those that belonged to Sun Ce, it had a black colored flag. Without a doubt, the arrow came from one of them.
“Enemy attack!” The soldier finally understood. He did not have blurry vision. An enemy was spotted at the Yangtze River.
The shout was clear and loud on that quiet morning. The second bow was already loaded and another arrow was shot. This time it pierced the throat of the soldier. He struggled to breathe before he fell into the water.
“What a waste!” The one who shot the arrow was Gan Ning. He wanted to kill the watch soldier first but the soldier was saved by a sneeze. As a result, the soldier’s death was not in vain as he managed to wake up the rest of the ship. The navy have sounded the drums. One by one, the soldiers crawled out of their tents and head towards their warship.
“General! What now!?” A soldier that was beside Gan Ning shouted out. He was one of Gan Ning’s original navy. He also surrendered together with Gan Ning and Su Fei. Originally, he was not optimistic about Lu Bu’s navy that only had a few thousand soldiers. They barely had any towered ships and only had 2 dozen ships. On the other hand, the Jiangdong navy has tens of thousands of soldiers and even a few hundred towered ships. Besides that, the Jingzhou navy has over 100,000 soldiers. Although the quality of their soldiers was lower, they could still easily defeat most armies.
The Lu Bu Army has only just started to be constructed. To challenge a giant sea monster is like asking to die. However, Gan Ning’s heart calmed down after he saw the mysterious instrument on the ship. With those devices, Lu Bu’s towered ships would have amazing combat capabilities. He believes that if he had enough arrows, he could defeat Jiangdong’s navy and perhaps Jingzhou’s navy with a few of Lu Bu’s Army’s boats.
“What else can be done! Start the offense!” Gan Ning’s faced showed a hint of displeasure. His original plan was to launch a surprise attack right in the middle of the Sun Ce’s navy’s main camp and give them disastrous casualties.
Now they were already spotted so that stratagem could not be used anymore. Fortunately, while Gan Ning’s navy were already prepared, the Sun Ce’s Army’s navy was still getting ready.
“As expected of Sun Ce’s Army’s elites!” Gan Ning said as he looked at the Wan Cheng navies. Although the scene was slightly chaotic, none of the soldiers panicked and everyone moved in an orderly manner. It was as if they were looking down on Gan Ning’s soldiers.
“What’s going on?” Lu Su was about to ask someone to send out the letters when he heard the war drums and yelling. The sounds of the war drums were seldom used but it would never be false. This is because if a false report was made, that soldier will be beheaded. In other words, their navy has encountered enemies.
“Advisor Lu!” Before Lu Su could understand what had happened, a warrior with a broken arm entered. He looked very burly and alongside his armor, also looked brave and fierce. Unfortunately, he has lost an arm and his arm was still wrapped in a cloth. He has lost his arm at Wan Cheng. Lu Su still remembers that man with a longbow and wearing a yellow battlegear. He was old and experienced. He could somehow fight back his Lord, Taishi Ci and the man in front of him, Jiang Qin. Jiang Qin was completely toyed with. If it were not for Sun Ce and Taishi Ci, Jiang Qin would have already entered eternal sleep.
“General Jiang Qin! What happened outside!” Lu Su quickly asked Jiang Qin. “Did the Jingzhou navy appear?!” Lu Su was uncertain. Did Gongjin get defeated? Impossible! If Gongjin was defeated, Lu Su would have definitely received news about it. If Gongjin was defeated, the Jingzhou navy could go straight towards Jiangdong. But Gongjin cannot be defeated! This is especially true if they focused on defense. Even if Sun Ce has taken away 30,000 soldiers, Zhou Yu would still be able to defend Jiangxia.
“This is not the place to talk. Military advisor. Come with me and we will talk over there!” Jiang Qin could not allow Lu Su’s current response and dragged him out of the tent. It was a military emergency and the situation changes at every second. This is why Lu Su did not blame Jiang Qin and only nodded his head. Jiang Qin has lost an arm and should have gone back to Jiangdong to rest. However, Jiang Qin insisted on staying to help Sun Ce. This is why Sun Ce left him at the navy’s main camp and allowed him to command the 5,000 navy under Sun Ce’s name.
“Advisor Lu! Numerous vessels have appeared on the surface of the river! They are not the Jingzhou navy. The banner has the words Lu and Gan written on it! They are quickly approaching the main camp. We need to prepare for battle now. Otherwise, our main camp will be overrun.” Jiang Qin quickly boarded the ship. If it was not because Sun Ce told Jiang Qin to listen to Lu Su for everything, Jiang Qin would have been on the ship a long time ago.
If the enemy has reached the main camp, it would really be a laughable matter. All the ships would only be useful as a decoration.
“Numerous ships? Lu and Gan banner? Are you sure you saw it correctly?” Lu Su was shocked and looked at Jiang Qin for confirmation. Lu banner? Lu Bu’s navy? Gan? Gan Ning? Wouldn’t Lu Bu’s navy get destroyed the moment they appeared? Why would they come out now?
“How could it be wrong? My deputy is the one that told me the news!” Jiang Qin shook his head. “There are 2 dozen ships. 3 ships were towered ships. There are also countless war kayaks.” Jiang Qin also doubted his vision. In the Yangtze river, if it is not the Jiangdong Army, it would be the Jingzhou Army. However, these were not the Jingzhou navy. The Jingzhou navy would not sail under Lu Bu’s name. After all, Liu Biao is a person that places importance in his reputation.
The two men climbed up onto the ship and saw that the banner indeed held the Lu and Gan character.
“Gan Ning Gan Xing Ba!” Jiang Qin narrowed his eyes. He and Gan Ning have fought each other multiple times when Gan Ning still belonged to the Jingzhou navy. The war minister Gan Ning and the commander Su Fei. These two men have stopped Jiangdong’s Army’s advance for a long time. Now that Su Fei has been slain by Jiang Qin, the one remaining was Gan Ning. Jiang Qin also did not know how he missed Gan Ning as these two were like a pair. If Su Fei has surrendered to Lu Bu, then Gan Ning would also surrender to Lu Bu! If Jiang Qin was more careful and properly forced out Gan Ning’s location out of Su Fei’s mouth, then this day may not have happened.
When Jiang Qin has boarded the ship, it was already too late. There were already 3 towers ships leaving the camp. The towered ships were dragged away by Gan Ning as a show of strength.
The other ships tried to go out but Gan Ning did not allow them to do so. If they tried to go out, Gan Ning destroyed their ship 1 by 1. If they did not go out, Gan Ning will block their waterway. Within a few moments, 1,000 soldier worth of ships were already destroyed.
“Damn!” Jiang Qin has already lost a shoulder and could only pick up his weapon with one hand. “Follow me to the top!” Jiang Qin’s ship was the flagship. It was the largest ship in their entire naval force. The top floor of the ship was higher than the main camp. Jiang Qin ascended to the top and shouted loudly. “Our enemy is Jin Fan Zei, Gan Ning Gan Xing Ba!”
“N?!” Gan Ning was also on the flagship but it was not as extravagant as Jiang Qin’s flagship. Their ships were all taken from Jiangxia but it did not stop Gan Ning from using it. Jin Fan Zei? It was the title that Gan Ning dislike to hear the most. As he plundered the government officials, he was despised by many. Liu Biao only pretended to be nice but also mistreated him in the end.
At Jiangxia, Gan Ning thought that Huang Zu would be different. This is because Jiangdong’s fierce tiger Sun Jian was killed by Huang Zu. In the end, Huang Zu and Liu Biao were both dogs that like to look down on others. Huang Zu has never called Gan Ning by name but calls him Minister Gan. Although that is not rude, it was also close. Anyone could see that Huang Zu did not accept Gan Ning and subconsciously distance themselves away from him. Huang Zu’s son Huang She also humiliated Gan Ning by calling him a thief. Only Su Fei accepted Gan Ning without minding his origins. Lu Bu even made him the commander of the navy. Jiang Qin calling him a thief made Gan Ning’s face turn cold. “I wondered who it was. Isn’t it Little Zhou? Where is your brother? Why did he let you go out by yourself?” Jiang Qin’s surname was Jiang and not Zhou. However, they were as close as Gan Ning and Su Fei. They were like soulmates. Gan Ning was still capable of working independently but it was different from Jiang Qin. All of their movements were Zhou Tai’s idea. This is why the Jiangxia Army laughed at Jiang Qin and called him Little Zhou, implying that he could not live without Zhou Tai.
(TN:Zhou’er di. Literally, Zhou’s second brother.)
“Little Zhou!” Hearing this nickname, Jiang Qin should have been furious. After all, men should not be insulted like this! However, this time Jiang Qin only kept quiet. This is because Zhou Tai is dead! The big brother that Jiang Qin is dependent on is dead! He died in the hands of the Lu Bu’s Army. His body was turned into meat pie. His head was thrown out of the walls of Wan Cheng and also turned into meat!
Now that this has been brought up by Gan Ning, Jiang Qin did not look good. He remembered Zhou Tai. “Jin Fan Zei! You don’t need to be so smug. My brother is dead! What about your elder brother Su Fei? He is dead too!”
“Su Fei is dead!?” Gan Ning was shocked. He was happy when he saw Jiang Qin’s face turn red but suddenly Jiang Qin broke the heavy news to him. However, Gan Ning laughed. “Little Zhou, why did you have to lie to me? Did you want to confuse me?” He has already discussed this with Su Fei. Su Fei would guard the Little Lord while he deals with the navy from the back. “My big brother is still in Wan Cheng!”
“Wan Cheng?! Hahaha!” Jiang Qin laughed. “Wan Cheng now belongs to my Lord Sun Ce! We destroyed the defenders with an army of 100,000!” Jiang Qin looked at Gan Ning and say.
“Army of 100,000!” Gan Ning was not sure that Wan Cheng could hold. Gan Ning tried to tell himself that his brother could still break out of encirclement even if Wan Cheng is lost.
“So you still do not know!” Jiang Qin sneered. “Let me tell you! Your brother did not die in Wan Cheng but in this main camp four days ago! I, Jiang Qin, personally captured your brother Su Fei!” Jiang Qin continued to stimulate Gan Ning’s anger.
“Four days ago!” Gan Ning’s heart was filled with anxiety. Four days ago, was the day Gan Ning and Su Fei separated. At that time, Su Fei told him to take the navy and avoid combat. It was something that Su Fei should be doing. However, Su Fei refused to do so. He wanted Gan Ning to be independent. Therefore, Su Fei stayed back at the main camp before he planned to withdraw to Wan Cheng.
“Impossible! My brother withdrew back to Wan Cheng on that day! How could you kill him?”
“Haha, Gan Ning! Open your eyes wide and see this black stain. Do you see the red stain on this seal?” Jiang Qin pointed at a red and black patch at the main camp for Gan Ning to see. This stain was the result of our battle when he attacked the Wan Cheng main camp! A mere 2,000 defenders dared to stop against 100,000! They truly don’t understand the meaning of death!” Jiang Qin continued to spout out proof of the death of Su Fei and his men.
“Even then! My brother must have retreated back to Wan Cheng!” Gan Ning sullenly said. His mind was started to feel uneasy but he still stood strong.
“You want solid evidence is it!?” Jiang Qin turned towards the deputy. “Give me that!”
“Yes!” The deputy went back under the ship and soon returned with a short sword.
“This!” Gan Ning could not believe his eyes.
“Now do you believe me?” Jiang Qin held the sword up for Gan Ning to see. He also pulled out the sword from the scabbard to show Gan Ning the two characters on the hilt of the sword. The characters written was ‘loyalty’. It was the first two characters Su Fei taught to Gan Ning.
“No mistake! No mistake! This is Brother Su Fei’s sword. Why is it in Jiang Qin’s hands!”
“Did you know? This Su Fei could not tell good from bad. Milord kindly asked him to surrender but he was stubborn and wouldn’t.” Jiang Qin held the sword as if he was enjoying the spoils of war. “Him not surrendering is good! I was afraid that he would surrender!” Jiang Qin continued to smile. “Gan Ning! Did you know? I used his sword to cut of his limbs one by one including his tongue and his ear. He looked at me with resentment and hatred!” Jiang Qin gestured. “His glare was very uncomfortable so I took a spoon and dug his eyeballs out!” Jiang Qin then made a chewing action. “By the way, his eyeballs were chewy and taste good!” (TN: Anyone ate ‘any’ eyeballs before? I don’t dare to.)
“Enough!” Gan Ning closed his eyes and roared loudly.
“Not enough! Not enough!” Jiang Qin looked at Gan Ning and laughed. “You still have to listen to me talk! You need to know that your brother did not die easily! I used the Millenium Ginseng to prolong his life and send him back to Wan Cheng! I believe your Little Lord would have a pleasant surprise!”
Lu Su knit his eyebrows and looked at Jiang Qin. He did not expect Jiang Qin to be able to do that. Torturing a person to death was not something a man would do. Even the siege tower is already too much for Lu Su.
“Come out!” Gan Ning looked ferociously at Jiang Qin. “All units withdraw! Come out! We will fight to the death!”
“Get ready!” Jiang Qin sneered. Now 10,000 elite navy will show you the meaning of cruelty!
