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

Wang Dun came to the East Hall and looked at the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty. Arriving at the bottom of the steps, Wang Dun knelt down and saluted Sima Rui:"I, Wang Dun, bow to Your Majesty, long live my emperor! Long live! Long live!""

"The general is free of ceremony!"Sima Rui said. Wang Dun stood up and stood aside. Sima Rui asked:"The general has not come to court for many days, are you free today?"

"Returning to Your Majesty, I was extremely sad to hear that Mr. Zhou Fang had died of illness. I have rushed to Liangzhou to express my condolences to Mr. Zhou Fang, and I hope that Mr. Zhou Fang’s family members will express their condolences."Wang Dun said

"The general respected his late father very much and had tears in his eyes when he expressed his condolences."Zhou Fu said. Wang Dun said:"To mourn the deceased, the deceased is respected. It is human nature and is not worth mentioning."

"The general came to Jiankang. Is there anything else?"Sima Rui asked. Wang Dun said:"I have appointed Zhou Guang, the second son of Master Zhou Fang, as General Ningyuan and Grand Administrator of Xunyang."

"The general is interested."Sima Rui said. Wang Dun continued:"I have one more thing to do. Mr. Zhou Fang has passed away. His Majesty has appointed Gan Zhuo, the governor of Xiangzhou, as the governor of Liangzhou. There is no vacancy in the governor of Xiangzhou. I hope that Shen Chong, the internal historian of Xuancheng, will take over as the governor of Xiangzhou. I hope that your majesty will report it accurately."

"General, I have appointed Sima Cheng of the clan as the governor of Xiangzhou to supervise the military affairs of Xiangzhou and General Nan Zhonglang. He will take office in two days."Sima Rui said lukewarmly. Sima Cheng looked at Wang Dun with a look of disdain. Wang Dun added:"I have been guarding Jingzhou for several years. I dare not say that I have worked hard, but I am also conscientious. We are usually very busy with state affairs and military affairs, and I rarely come to court. I hope your majesty will forgive me. However, please do not believe in the one-sided words of a few villains, and do not let treacherous villains alienate the good relationship between our monarch and his ministers."

"What the general said is absolutely true, and I feel the same way. Jingzhou is related to the security of the country and the country, and there is no room for carelessness. In the future, if the general deems it necessary, he can add more subordinate officers on his own. In addition, I will reward you with Yu Baogong as a guard of honor when you travel."Sima Rui said. Wang Dun knelt down and said:"I am scared, I thank you for your concern! Long live! Long live! Long live!"

Sima Rui continued:"Over the years, the Xiongnu and Jie people have taken turns to harm the Central Plains and the north, causing people to live in dire straits and lose their lives. Shao Xu of Fuping has been escorted to Xiangguo, and Yanci and Fuping City are in danger. Cao Yi thought he was stronger than Shao Xu, but was afraid of Shi Le, so he ostensibly accepted Shi Le's gift. Xu Gong, who is swaying from side to side, will definitely meet the same fate as Shao Xu. In fact, these three places did not contribute taxes to the imperial court at all. Once Shi Le invades and occupies these places, it will be difficult for our country to think about peace. After listening to Sima

Rui's words, Diao Xie came out and said:"Your Majesty, Zhou Fang was a famous general in our dynasty, but he has passed away." Sima Cheng, the king of Qiao, went out to control Xiangzhou and was somewhat alone. I suggest that your Majesty send some capable ministers to stop Shi Le from coveting Jiangnan."

"I am deeply comforted by Diao Aiqing's farsightedness and concern for the country and the people. I will issue an edict after I have matured my thinking and decide which ministers to send abroad."Sima Rui said.

Wang Dun didn't take it seriously at first. He didn't dare to confront Sima Rui in person, but retorted to Diao Xieye:"Master Diao, how do you know that Shi Le covets Jiangnan? Shi Le is now the King of Zhao, not the emperor yet, but he only owns the territory north of the Yellow River and centered on the State of Xiang! When Diao

Xie saw Wang Dunchong coming, he was not in a hurry and still said slowly:"No one can predict the ambitions of the Xiongnu, Jie people and other Hu tribes." About eight or nine years ago, Shi Le was still a general under Liu Cong, and he almost crossed the Yangtze River to attack Jiankang. At that time, Jiankang was still called Jianye. If God hadn't rained heavily for more than three months, what's more important is that when His Majesty was still the general of Zhendong, he gathered all the armies in Shouyang to prepare for a decisive battle with Shi Le. It happened that Shile's army was short of food and grass, hunger and plague were prevalent, and more than half of the soldiers died. Shi Hu led two thousand cavalry and robbed dozens of our large ships transporting grain, rice and cloth. Only when our ambush was exhausted did we defeat Shi Hu and Jiankang escaped."

"Master Diao is right, I can't wait until Shi Le points his troops at Jiankang again. It will be too late to regret it by then. All I can do now is prepare for a rainy day."Sima Rui said. Wang Dao, who had been speechless, said:"Your Majesty, there is some truth in sending ministers of the DPRK to outsiders. But it will definitely weaken the power of the imperial court. I hope your Majesty will think twice before taking action. Sima

Rui was embarrassed to argue with Director Wang, so he said,"What Master Mao Hong said is reasonable. Both Master Diao Xie and Master Mao Hong are thinking about the country and the country.""

At this moment, a maid from the harem came in and reported:"Your Majesty, Mrs. Zheng has given birth!"

"Ah, Mrs. Zheng gave birth?"After hearing what the palace maid said, Sima Rui was extremely surprised. He stood up and asked,"Madam, is it a boy or a girl? Come with me and have a look!"

"Return to Your Majesty, Madam has given birth to a little prince!"The palace maid said excitedly. Sima Rui smiled happily and said:"Great! I'll go take a look quickly!"

Sima Rui and Fei Ren hurried to Zheng Achun's palace in the harem. The courtiers did not hear Fei Ren say that the court was dismissed, so they had to chat in twos and threes in the court hall.

After about half an hour, Sima Rui and Fei Ren had expressions on their faces. The joy returned. Sima Rui sat down on the dragon chair, his joy beyond words. Sima Rui said:"Just two hours ago, my Mrs. Zheng gave me another big fat boy. I am very happy. I thought about it and named my sixth son Yu, with the courtesy name Daowan.

After hearing the news, the civil and military ministers all knelt down and congratulated:"Congratulations, Your Majesty!" Congratulations, Your Majesty! I wish your Majesty great blessings! I wish the little prince healthy growth! Sima

Rui said happily:"I am forty-five years old this year and have a son. I am very happy." Not only do I want to grant amnesty to the world, but I also want to reward all the ministers!"

"Fei Ren, read out the gift list that Tao Liao brought back."Sima Rui said. Fei Ren, who was standing by the steps, held the gift list and began to read out:

One hundred cow skins, five hundred sheep skins, one hundred deer skins, one hundred fox skins, five hundred hare skins, and mink skins. One hundred sheets, ten roots of century-old ginseng, and twenty kilograms of deer antlers.

Sima Rui continued:"Fei Ren, if you have time, make a list of the ministers in the court, and give these things to everyone. This is my reward.""

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty!"The civil and military ministers said in unison

"Where did your Majesty get so many skins? Ji Zhan felt a little curious and asked. Sima Rui smiled and said,"This is a gift that Tao Liao, who visited me a few days ago, brought back to the court from Murong Xin of Liaodong." Because everything is so complicated, I didn’t bother to tell you all."