The Sixteen Kingdoms of the Eastern Jin Dynasty: The Competition in the Central Plains

"Mr. Zhou, please calm down. Maybe the general has his own difficulties, maybe there are other reasons. This is a letter from the general to your lord."Le Daorong said, and handed Wang Dun's letter to Zhou Fang. Zhou Fang took the letter in the bamboo tube, without reading it, threw it away and stepped on the ground. Zhou Fang said:"In order to eliminate Du Zeng , I prepared hundreds of days and nights. Now I have wiped out the rebels and restored peace to everyone. But the general didn't keep his word. Am I a businessman or a child who brought me these things?"

Le Daorong said with a smile:"Mr. Zhou, let me give you an explanation. It's not that the general is stingy, it's the general's lieutenant, Guo Shu, who convinced the general not to give up the position of governor of Jingzhou to others, considering that Jingzhou is a battleground for military strategists!"

Zhou Fang smiled bitterly and was too embarrassed to say anything else. Le Daorong was also too embarrassed to stay for a long time, so he raised his hands and saluted and said,"Mr. Zhou, you are busy with official duties. I'm going back to resume my duties!"

Zhou Fu, Zhou Guang and several of Zhou Fang's subordinates saw Wang Dun's envoys leaving and returned to the government office from outside. Zhou Fang said:"I have already noticed Wang Dun's disobedience. He was reluctant to give up the position of governor of Jingzhou, and his ambition to seek power and usurp the throne became even more obvious. In order to prevent Wang Dun, help the court when the time comes. In Liangzhou, we must let the people cultivate good land and harvest more food to prepare for unexpected needs. In addition to training every day, soldiers also have to spend a certain amount of time farming. Those who can establish farming should do so with great fanfare!"

The day after Fei Ren returned to Jiankang from Xiangyang, Murong Xin's envoy Pei Yi also arrived in Jiankang. Pei Yi and two followers came to the east hall, knelt down and saluted Sima Rui:"See your majesty!"

"Pei Aiqing stands flat and sits down!"Sima Rui said. Pei Yi bowed his hands and saluted, then sat down aside. Sima Rui asked with a smile:"Why did Pei Aiqing come here this time?"

"Half a month ago, Duanbu, Yuwenbu and Goguryeo besieged Daji City. Duanbu and Goguryeo withdrew their troops early. Yuwenbu was defeated by Murong Dashanyu, and Yuwenxi was defeated and fled. Tens of thousands of Uwenbu soldiers were killed, as well as thousands of Uwenbu prisoners of war. The Great Chanyu wanted to dedicate some of the prisoners of war to His Majesty so that they could work for His Majesty in recovering the Central Plains."Pei Yi said.

Sima Rui looked at the civil and military ministers below and asked,"What do you think, my beloved?"

"Your Majesty, it is thousands of miles from Liaodong to Jiankang. It is really inconvenient to escort these prisoners of war to the south of the Yangtze River. Your Majesty should let Murong Shanyu handle it on his own!" Director Wang said

"Your Majesty, there is one more thing. After my lord defeated the independent official Yu Wenxi, he found three royal seals from his tent. I came here specifically for this matter."Pei Yi said and waved, and an attendant behind him handed three jade seals to Pei Yi. Sima Rui winked at Fei Ren, who came down and took the three jade seals from Pei Yi. Fei Ren gave them to Pei Yi. Yi saluted, then went up and placed the three jade seals in front of Sima Rui. Fei Ren opened the box and took out the three jade seals. Sima Rui looked at them one by one and said to Fei Ren,"Put them away! Fei

Ren went out from the side door. Sima Rui asked,"Pei Aiqing, your ancestors have served the imperial court for generations." Your father, Pei Chang, was once the Sili Colonel of the previous dynasty. You also served as the Minister of Zhongshu, Huang Menlang and Rongyang Prefect of the previous dynasty. As an important minister of the former dynasty, you should stay in Jiangzuo to serve the court. Have you not considered serving in Jiangzuo? If Mr. Pei is willing, I will immediately issue an edict and ask General Long Xiang Murong Xin to send your family and belongings over! Pei

Yi was startled for a moment, and then said:"Your Majesty, we are in troubled times, and the Central Plains and the north are in danger of war. A few years ago, my brother Pei Wu, the governor of Xuantu, passed away. I originally planned to send my brother's coffin to the south for burial with my nephew Pei Kai. Unexpectedly, due to the wars between tribes in Liaodong and western Liaoning, the road back to the south was blocked. He had no choice but to defect to Murong Xin, the leader of the Murong tribe. The Great Chanyu valued me very much and made me serve as his long history, entrusting me with military and state affairs. Besides, I still have a mission to return to the north to revive the Great Chanyu, so I beg your Majesty's forgiveness. Sima

Rui still wanted to retain Pei Yi, so he continued:"Liaodong is a bit far away after all. It is thousands of miles away from home, country and hometown." The roots are in my hometown, and my roots are in my country!"

Pei Yi said:"I have been favored by the Jin Dynasty for generations, and I have been fortunate enough to serve as an official in China for several generations. Because of the war, he was far away from his homeland, so he settled in a remote place. Now, in the year of the founding of the Tai Dynasty, I can pay homage to the imperial court, and be given a favor edict to stay in the capital. This is really a great blessing for me. The minister considered that because the imperial court moved to the south of the Yangtze River, the capital fell. Although Murong Xin was far away in the frontier, he still cared about the imperial court. Murong Xin's heart belonged to our court. After defeating the Yuwen tribe, he sent his ministers to the south of the Yangtze River to express his loyalty to His Majesty. The spirit of generosity and righteousness touches heaven and earth. If the minister came but did not return, Murong Xin would think that the court had abandoned him because of his remoteness and backwardness. If his loyal heart is alone, he will slack off and care about the court. Therefore, although Wei Chen was concerned about his homeland, he still requested to return to Liaodong in return for his trip."

"I understand your difficulties, so I won’t force you. So what happened when the Three Kingdoms besieged Murong's tribe? What is Dongyi Colonel Cui Ao doing? Sima Rui asked. Pei Yi said:"Back to Your Majesty, in fact, this conflict has something to do with Lord Cui Ao.""

"how do I say this?"Sima Rui asked. Pei Yi said:"After the Five Husties revolted in China, many scholars and celebrities from the Central Plains and the north, and of course more ordinary people, came to Liaodong and western Liaoning to make a living. Cui Ao thought he was from a prominent family in Zhongzhou, and hoped to recruit some capable Han officials and Confucian scholars to separate one side. But many people defected to Murong Shanyu, and only a few defected to Cui Ao. Cui Ao believed that it was Murong Shan Yuqiang who kept these celebrities and common people, so he ignored the dissuasion of his adviser Gao Zhan and persuaded Duan Bu, Yu Wen Bu and Goguryeo to jointly send troops to attack Murong's capital Dajicheng."

"Where is Cui Ao now? Sima Rui asked. Pei Yi said:"The Great Chanyu used a strange trick to break the tripartite alliance. Duan Bu and Goguryeo withdrew their troops before the war started." The most powerful Yuwen tribe, Yuwen Xi, who had more than 200,000 soldiers, was defeated by Murong Xin and fled. Cui Ao was afraid and sent his nephew to Murong's tribe to congratulate him on victory. Murong Xuan told Cui Ao's nephew that surrender was the best policy and running away was the worst policy. Cui Ao heard about it and led thousands of his family and subordinates to flee to Goguryeo. His tribe and territory were all taken over by the Great Chanyu"

"well! The Han people have lost a large chunk of their northern territory! Cui Ao became the last Han governor of Pingzhou and captain of Dongyi!"Sima Rui sighed and said. When Pei Yi heard what Sima Rui said, he also shook his head and sighed. After a while, Sima Rui said to Pei Yi:"Pei Aiqing, you have been traveling all the way and it has been very hard. You first go to the post house to stay and rest. Two days later, Tao Liao, the visitor, will return to Liaodong with you and read out my edict to Murong Dashanyu."