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

After Sima Rui finished speaking, he invited Diao Xie and He Xun to drink tea. Diao Xie and He Xun took a few sips and put them down. Diao Xie said,"Master He and I will complete it as soon as possible. Please rest assured, Chitose.""

"Don’t worry, Your Highness, Lord Diao and I will work hard to improve the rules and regulations." He Xun said.

He came out of Sima Rui's study, walked out of the palace city, and came to a street in Jiankang. Diao Xie said to He Xun:"Everyone has been very busy in the past few months. The court has been established and the affairs are complicated. No time for drinking. Today, we find a wine shop and have a few drinks."

He Xun nodded, and the two of them came to the restaurant closest to the palace. It was a two-story restaurant. There was a flag in front of the restaurant that said"Langya Winery". The plaque above the door of the restaurant also said"Langya Winery""Four big characters. Diao Xie said with a smile:"Langya Winery? Isn't it the wine shop opened by our King Langya here?!"

"How could it be possible? King Langya is busy with everything and is now His Highness the King of Jin. Sima Xiang had just succeeded to the throne as King Langya, and he was studying literature and martial arts every day, so how could he have time to open a wine shop! It is estimated that it was opened by northerners who fled from Langya Kingdom and came to Jiankang in recent years to make a living."He Xun and Diao Xie laughed and came to the restaurant. There were not many guests in the restaurant, and a few waiters were serving food and wine. When they saw the guests coming in, the waiter closest to the door greeted them:"Two guests, sir. Here you go, please find a seat. If you have time, please come upstairs!"

Diao Xie and He Xun followed the waiter upstairs and found a free wine table to sit down. The waiter asked:"Two guests, what kind of food do you like? What kind of wine do you want to drink?!"

"One plate of boiled peanuts and one plate of fried tofu. Diao Xie said:"Pork is extremely expensive, so just let it go." Mr. He, do you think these two dishes are good? What kind of wine do you want to drink?"

"Two dishes is a lot, just one dish for each person. He Xun thought for a while and said to the waiter:"Bring a jar of Jiankang's best wine and three wine bottles.""

It didn't take long, and the waiter brought the wine, vegetables, and wine bottles. He put down two plates of food, three wine bottles, three pairs of chopsticks, and a jar of good wine. The waiter looked at it and saw that there were still two of them, so he asked He said:"Two guests, is it possible that there are still friends who haven't come?"

"there is none left. He Xun smiled and replied:"The waiter is fine. You can go down." Diao

Xie was also surprised and asked He Xun:"Master He, what's going on?""

He Xun calmly opened the wine jar and filled the wine bottle on the empty seat first.

"Master Diao, let’s have a drink first and then talk!"He Xun said, first filling up the wine for Diao Xie, and then filling it up for himself. He Xun and Diao Xie picked up the wine bottles and drank them all in one gulp.

"This starts with getting to know King Langya and now King Jin."Putting down the wine bottle, He Xun said:"I think back when King Langya just crossed south to the south of the Yangtze River, many people from the south of the Yangtze River, especially the people from Jiankang, were unwilling to deal with the northerners who crossed over from the south. I was one of them."

"Why? Diao Xie felt a little incredible. He Xun said:"Think about it, Master Diao. A few decades ago, whose world was Jiangnan and whose capital was Jiankang?"!"

"I see! Diao Xie woke up from his dream, but he still didn't understand, and then asked:"What happened to the three wine bottles today?" Is there another story?"

"Master Diao is really good at predicting events. There is a real story in this. He Xun continued:"This story is also related to Langya King Sima Rui, who is now the King of Jin." Diao

Xie poured wine for the two of them, and He Xun said,"After I first met Langya King Sima Rui, I once drank in his mansion." It was just the two of us. When I was half drunk, King Langya asked me that Sun Hao, the last emperor of Sun Wu, once used a red-hot saw to cut off the head of a man named He. I wonder if this man named He was the same as you He? Is it related to family?"

At this point, He Xun's tears flowed down involuntarily. He Xun continued:"I didn't answer at that time, and King Langya suddenly woke up. It was known that the victim was none other than my father, He Shao. I quickly blamed myself again and again, feeling very guilty. Later, King Langya didn't go out for three days in a row!"

"My late father died tragically at the hands of Sun Hao, a cruel king, which left a deep trauma in my heart since I was a child. It would be strange for such a tyrant not to subjugate his country! He Xun said with tears:"The wine on that empty seat is my toast to King Langya, who is now King Jin!""

As soon as He Xun wiped away his tears, two guards from Prince Jin's Mansion hurriedly came upstairs. The two guards stepped forward and saluted and said,"My lords, please return to Prince Jin's Mansion immediately to discuss matters!" Diao

Xie and He Xun did not dare to neglect, and quickly followed the two guards back to the Jin Palace. When they arrived at the main hall, they saw that most of the courtiers had arrived. The two of them saluted Sima Rui:"See you, Your Highness!""

After paying homage to Sima Rui, He Xun and Diao Xie stood on their thrones. They saw two people standing in front of the Minister of Civil and Military Affairs. Sima Rui was holding a large piece of yellow silk in his hand, which could be seen through the silk. There were many red words on the silk. Sima Rui held up the yellow silk tremblingly and said in a somewhat excited voice:"My dear friends, this is the letter of persuasion written with the blood of the civil and military ministers in the north who are still guarding the territory! These people include Sikong, the governor of Bingzhou, and the Marquis of Guangwu Liu Kun; the governor of Youzhou, King Zuoxian, and the Duke of Bohai Duan Pixi; General Fenwei, the governor of Yuzhou Zuti; General Youzhou, the governor of Jizhou Shaoxu; Chanyu, Duke of Guangning Duan Chen; Liu Yan, the governor of Yanzhou and Marquis of Dingxiang; Cui Ao, the captain of Dongyi; Duan Ji, the Duke of Liaoxi; Liu Han, the captain of Wuhuan and the general of Zhenbei; Cao Yi, the governor of Qingzhou and the Marquis of Guangrao; and one more An unexpected figure for me, Murong Xin, the Commander-in-Chief of the Murong Division of Xianbei, signed by a total of 180 people! They are alone in the north but care about our country. How commendable!"

Sima Rui put down the letter of persuasion, thinking that there were so many people with lofty ideals in the north who supported him, and couldn't help but shed tears. He didn't care that he was in the court, and let the tears continue to flow. Except for the sound of breathing, there was no sound. The man spoke. After a moment of silence, Sima Rui picked up the letter of persuasion on the desk with both hands and said:"Fei Ren, read out this letter of persuasion!"

Fei Ren accepted the letter of persuasion, with tears in his eyes. He just heard Fei Ren read:

I heard that people are born to be prosperous, and to cultivate them is to be a king, so across the world, minister Mu Li Yuan. The Holy Emperor and King Ming will supervise him like this He knows that heaven and earth cannot lack food, so he bends his body to serve it; he knows that steaming rice can not be left without an owner, so he has to come to it as a last resort. When the country is in trouble, Qi Huan will determine its tilt; if the suburban temple is replaced, Zongzhe compiles its sacrifices......Every time I read the historical records and look at the previous records, I find that the misfortune is so extreme that it has never been seen in ancient times or modern times. If a dog eats hair from the earth, containing blood, he will feel exhausted and cry in the alley. Kuang Chen and others have been favored by Lotus for the third time, and he has been in the toilet for three generations. Ding Si, when he heard about it, was shocked and frightened. He was so excited that he flew over. He was frightened and sad. His five emotions had no owner. He looked up in mourning and drooped, weeping blood up and down.