Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Fleet?

Setting sail?

These two phrases together instantly made Jiang Gan feel a bit nervous, and he couldn't help but think of Liu Bei blocking the Yellow River breach and Sun Ce leading a large army away.

Moreover, Jinmen Port in Youzhou had been maintained for so many years, and naturally some information had gradually leaked out.

Almost all the lords in the world knew that the Han army had the ability to navigate the sea. In order to prevent the Han army from launching a surprise attack from the sea, Cao Cao had to spend a lot of money, food, and energy to build watchtowers on many important coasts.

Suddenly hearing such crucial information, Jiang Gan, who was subconsciously guilty, didn't dare to continue asking, fearing that he would arouse Li Ji's suspicion.

The route from Shouchun to Wu County was mainly by water.

With prior arrangements, Sun Ce had already prepared large ships and led 3,000 sailors to escort them along the way.

With the continuous dredging of rivers and construction of ditches in Jing and Yang provinces, the water network of Jing and Yang provinces became more and more developed. On the way to Wu County, there were even many civilian boats traveling back and forth.

Some were transporting goods, some were fishing, and some were carrying passengers...

Even in winter, there was still a feeling of liveliness.

Standing on the deck wearing a cloak, Li Ji silently watched this scene, feeling a sense of satisfaction.

"What is the Prime Minister looking at?" Jiang Gan asked curiously.

"Ziyi, do you know Jiang Qin?" Li Ji asked in reply.

"General Dang Kou, Jiang Gongyi, is a naval general relied upon by the King. I have long heard of his great name, but I have never had the chance to meet him," Jiang Gan replied.

"The liveliness of the river surface at this moment reminds this Marquis of the events of ten years ago..."

Li Ji said with a bit of reminiscence, as if he was chatting with Jiang Gan as a confidant.

"Back then, Jiang Gongyi couldn't survive due to the bad times, so he had to lead many fellow villagers and young men to become river bandits in the winter, going down the river to Wu County to rob and plunder, in order to feed their families."

"At that time, Jiang Gongyi also set his sights on this Marquis, who was patrolling around Wu County, and launched a night attack. He was captured by this Marquis on the spot. In the end, the Lord thought he still had some courage, so he took him into his command..."

After a pause, Li Ji turned his head to look at Sun Ce, who was guarding beside him, and gestured with his palm, saying.

"Speaking of which, Bofu was only twelve years old at the time, and he also participated in that battle, charging forward and beheading several heads. He also often clamored that he would defeat Zilon sooner or later. In the blink of an eye, even Bofu has grown so big, and is even ranked alongside Zilon as one of the Five Tiger Generals."

Sun Ce, who now showed英武豪迈between his eyebrows and gestures, couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed when he heard these words, and said.

"In the past, I was unruly and often made ignorant remarks. Thanks to the teacher's acceptance and careful guidance, I have what I am today."

Li Ji raised his hand and gently stroked a few strands of long beard under his chin, saying.

"This Marquis is getting old, and the future of the Great Han will depend on Bofu..."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Gan subconsciously raised his head to look at Li Ji's face, and the words he originally wanted to say to comfort Li Ji were all paused.

Although Li Ji was nearly thirty years old, he did not show any signs of aging. On the contrary, he was a proper handsome man. Standing with Zhou Yu behind him, except that his temperament was slightly more mature than Zhou Yu, his beauty was no less than Zhou Yu's.

Even though Jiang Gan was usually well-groomed, he paled in comparison to Li Ji.

While admiring him in his heart, Jiang Gan flattered him.

"The Prime Minister is at the height of his strength, why speak of old age?"

Li Ji shook his head, took two steps forward to the edge, looked at the ships on the river from afar, and said slowly.

"People will eventually grow old, but this Marquis only wishes that the Great Han will not grow old, and the Han people will not grow old."

"And..."

Li Ji raised his hand and pointed to the river, saying.

"For ten years, witnessing the changes in this river, today there are no more people who have to become river bandits to rob and plunder because they cannot get enough to eat. This Marquis knows that these ten years have not been wasted."

At this moment, Jiang Gan looked at Li Ji's back and couldn't help but feel a strong palpitation. It was a complex feeling mixed with admiration, conviction, shame, respect, shock, and so on.

In the past, Jiang Gan only felt that Li Ji, who was not yet thirty, was not worthy of being the Prime Minister, and was just blessed by temporary luck, and that Liu Bei's actions were also full of false benevolence and righteousness.

But after hearing Li Ji's heartfelt words, Jiang Gan suddenly felt ashamed of himself.

Compared with Li Ji, he was really a sparrow compared to a swan, and a firefly compared to the bright moon.

Jiang Gan even had a moment of wavering, betraying such a person of integrity, should I really do this?

However, Jiang Gan almost instantly suppressed that moment of wavering, knowing that he had no way to retreat.

Not to mention that his family was still in Wei, even if Jiang Gan really sincerely defected to Liu Bei, Cao Cao would definitely take the initiative to expose Jiang Gan's identity. At that time, he would be stripped of his official position and imprisoned at best, and his head would not be guaranteed at worst.

The boat went down the river all the way, and arrived smoothly at the port of Wu County in less than two days.

When he really arrived at the port, Jiang Gan almost immediately saw the huge and frightening sea ship from afar.

"What kind of behemoth is that?"

Even though Jiang Gan was from Jiujiang and was no stranger to ships, he was still shocked and dizzy when he saw that giant ship.

Li Ji, who was also watching that ship from afar, replied.

"That ship is the newly built state-level sea ship, named Yangzhou, and it will also be the main ship of this fleet."

This big ship will also be the guarantee for Li Bao's long voyage, helping him ride the wind and waves.

Li Ji ignored Jiang Gan's reaction, and these were deliberately shown to Jiang Gan.

After getting off the boat, Li Bao had been waiting for a long time, and Li Bao's skin did not know how much darker it had become, and his body was obviously stronger, but he seemed to have a bit of a manly feeling.

Immediately, Li Bao welcomed Li Ji into the official office in the port, and reported to Li Ji in detail the series of preparations for the voyage.

Li Ji had already known this, but Jiang Gan, who was following Li Ji, felt a jump in his heart when he heard it.

This fleet, which was about to set sail to an unknown destination, had as many as two hundred ships of various sizes, with more than 20,000 people of all kinds. The food and grass carried alone was enough for a 100,000-strong army for a year.

These numbers were undoubtedly a luxury that Cao Cao could not imagine today, and Jiang Gan almost subconsciously felt that it was bragging.

However, when Jiang Gan followed Li Ji to inspect it and personally witnessed the grain filling the cabins of the grain transport ships, his face was numb.

Rich... too rich...

This made Jiang Gan even feel that he had seen the pride of the most prosperous time of the Great Han, and the food and grass needed by an army of 100,000 people for a year was thrown out at will.

Until this fleet completed the grand departure ceremony under Li Ji's leadership and slowly sailed to the south, Jiang Gan was still in a dream. (End of this chapter)