Chapter 92

-> Hot Recommendations:

Everyone, the group number is in the book review section, or you can search for the book title…

Upon hearing that this was acceptable, Gan Ning was overjoyed and bowed, saying, "Xingba will not fail the Prefect's trust!"

"Good, then remember to send Jicai back. After all, only his family has a seafaring ship. Notify me within a year when you have a navy that can be shown. I will then give you the second task. Otherwise, hmm, hmm, hmm!" Chen Xi said with a sinister smile, "Do you hear me?"

"Yes!" Gan Ning replied loudly.

"Prepare to set out. I will write a letter of authorization for you. If anything happens, I can back you up, but if you mess up, I won't take responsibility!" Chen Xi said as he began writing. After finishing, he stamped it with the Prefect's seal and then wrote a note for funds, which would allow him to get money from Su Shuang, Zhang Shiping, and Mi Zhu.

"I'm giving this to you too. You can use it three times. The first time, you can withdraw 20 million coins, the second time only half, and the third time only half of that. If you still haven't become self-sufficient by the third withdrawal, come back to me!" Chen Xi said, handing the note to Gan Ning and roaring.

"I will not fail the Prefect's trust!" Gan Ning said loudly.

"Take the note and go. I still have things to handle." Chen Xi waved his hand, signaling Gan Ning to leave. He had things to do, and Gan Ning, having received his orders, left with a delighted expression.

"Zichuan, is this really okay?" Lu Su said with a bitter smile. "Putting aside the issue of the Inspector of Yizhou, your method of handling this is problematic. Even if Gan Ning joins us now, we can't openly use him."

"Is it useful?" Chen Xi rolled his eyes and said, "Gan Ning is just changing from a Yangtze River pirate to a pirate at sea. How is this related to us? Anyone who tries to connect us is just spreading rumors. The ships are from the Lu family, the people are pirates, lake bandits, and river pirates. Are they our people? And have you ever seen anyone train troops outside their own territory? Besides, which commander has such authority? Chief, do you know what a chief is? It means you can do anything, right? Who can issue such authority?"

Chen Xi's words left Lu Su stunned, vaguely grasping Chen Xi's intentions. But being a smart person, he quickly recovered. "You mean you're bluffing Xingba. If Xingba, who is straightforward, finds out you're bluffing him, he won't even be your friend?"

"Hey, Zijing, don't talk nonsense. Be careful, I might sue you for defamation, and I'll appoint the judge myself. Didn't I give Xingba 20 million coins as startup capital? How can you bluff someone when you've already invested so much? Am I stupid?" Chen Xi rolled his eyes and said, "When have I ever bluffed Xingba? Really!"

Lu Su was a bit slow, as this was his first time dealing with such a situation. After some thought, he finally understood the whole situation and sighed, "This method can only last for a while. When Xingba trains his navy and the Inspector of Yizhou, Liu Gong, recruits him, we won't be able to let him go, especially since he will have a navy. It would be better to do it now."

"Why bother? Even if the Inspector of Yizhou wants to recruit Xingba, he has to find him first. And even if he finds him, will Xingba, who is used to being a sea king, go back? Besides, I don't have high hopes for the Inspector of Yizhou. His days are numbered." Chen Xi shrugged and said.

"Of course, I understand your point. You're worried that the authority given to Xingba is too great, right? Don't worry, that guy won't betray us. Even if we don't give him that position, no one can control him. After all, none of us understand this. It's better to give him full authority rather than have an amateur command an expert, which would make both sides unhappy!" Chen Xi said, seeing Lu Su's hesitant expression.

"Alright, I trust your wisdom. But I'm worried about the other commanders. Giving Xingba too much authority will make it difficult to arrange for others." Lu Su sighed, acknowledging Chen Xi's reasoning but pointing out other issues.

"Right, that is a problem. But such authority should be limited. However, there's a saying: 'A general far from the capital can sometimes ignore the emperor's orders.' Since that's the case, we should clearly state this potential issue. Commanders leading expeditions will be granted full authority, but it will be revoked upon their return!" Chen Xi looked up at Lu Su and said.

"That's a good method." Lu Su pondered for a long time, understanding the drawbacks but recognizing that the benefits of granting such authority outweighed the drawbacks compared to the alternative of creating a rift between the commander and the ruler.

"As for Xingba, it will probably take about a year to train a decent navy. If the other side still wants to recruit him at that time, I'll give him a second task. I'm very interested in the horses in the north, and I also want to weaken the Xianbei and Wuhuan." Chen Xi smiled, but his smile made Lu Su feel a chill.

"Zichuan, can you not smile so coldly? I can't take it." Lu Su reminded him.

"I forgot. By the way, I heard that Gong Sun Bo Gui is having a hard time and is short of food. Send three ships of grain and one ship of salt to the Inspector of Youzhou to exchange for money to give to General Gong Sun. After all, he helped Lord Xuande a lot, so we can't treat him poorly." Chen Xi reined in his smile and changed the subject to other matters.

"Right, I've already assigned the Mi family to handle this. It shouldn't take long to deliver." Lu Su nodded and said.

After that, the two chatted about some miscellaneous matters. Chen Xi's mind wandered again. He had already planned out what to do with Gan Ning. Gan Ning's abilities were undeniable, but there was a problem at the top. In about three years, Liu Yan would die, and after Liu Zhang took power, it would be a good time to bring Gan Ning in.

As for the next three years, Chen Xi had a plan. First, he would have Gan Ning train a navy. It would take at least two to three years to train the people of Qingzhou into a navy, but it would be much easier to train pirates, though their discipline would be poor. Chen Xi believed that Gan Ning would not辜负 this title of Chief.

As for attacking other commanderies, that was just a joke. Chen Xi knew that as long as Gan Ning wasn't foolish, he wouldn't do that. But attacking bandits and pirates wouldn't require any approval. He would likely fight and train at the same time, and the captives would likely become part of his navy.

After about a year, when Gan Ning had a usable navy, Chen Xi planned to send him to Yizhou to reorganize the natives, planting a stake there and giving Gan Ning some practice. Later, it could serve as a transit point to trade for spices from the surrounding islands. After all, it's only natural to make a profit from a risk-free business!

For the fastest updates, please read at…

PS: Fellow readers, I am Fentu Huangcao, and I recommend a free novel app that supports novel downloads, audiobooks, zero ads, and multiple reading modes. Please follow the WeChat official account: dazhuzaiyuedu (long press to copy). Fellow readers, please follow us!