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

Zhou Fu's boat continued to chase, and after a while it came to the side of the second big boat, and the two boats were running side by side. The guards on the big ship all held swords and shouted:"Who is so bold?"

"Please report to the brothers on the ship that Zhou Fuxing, the son of Zhou Fang, the prefect of Yuzhang, wants to see His Highness King Langya."A guard entered the cabin, and soon came out of the cabin and said to Zhou Fu:"His Royal Highness King Langya has invited General Zhou Fu to board the ship to meet you!"

"Stop the boat!"A general on the big ship shouted loudly. The big ship Sima Pei was on, the big ship in front, and the ships behind all stopped one after another. Zhou Fu's boat slowly approached Sima Pei's big ship. Two guards on the big ship pulled a Pull Zhou Fu onto the big ship. Zhou Fu stood outside the cabin and saluted with his hands raised:"Zhou Fu meets His Highness King Langya!"

The ship that sent Zhou Fu to Jiankang followed the fleet all the way. Following Zhou Fu's voice, Sima Pei had already walked out of the cabin. I saw Sima Pei dressed in military uniform and wearing a sword, smiling. He said to Zhou Fu:"General Zhou Fu, you have worked hard all the way!"

"Your Highness's expedition to the Central Plains is truly a role model for us!" Zhou Fu said. The two exchanged a few words, and Sima Pei said:"General Zhou, please come into the cabin and talk!"

"Please take your seat, General Zhou!"Coming to the cabin, Sima Pei said. Zhou Fu sat down, and Sima Pei also sat down. A guard came over to pour tea, and Zhou Fu asked:"This time, Your Highness conquered Shile, did you join forces with General Zu Ti, or did you do it alone?!"

Sima Pei took out something from his body and unfolded it for Zhou Fu to see. Zhou Fu took it over and saw that it was a message from King Sima Rui of Jin Dynasty to attack Shi Le: The traitor Shi Le has been plundering in the Heshuo area. After years of crusade, Already frightened, he fled far away. However, he sent his evil party Shi Jilong to lead a group of dogs and sheep to cross the Henan River and poison the people wantonly. General Zu Ti of Pingxi led a crusade, but they were immediately defeated. Now he sent General Chariot and Cavalry King Sima Sa of Langya. Waiting for the ninth army, 30,000 elite soldiers will march forward by land and water, attack the thieves' den, and be saved by ancestor Ti. Anyone who can kill Shi Jilong's head will be rewarded with 3,000 pieces of silk, 50 pounds of gold, the title of county lord, and food. There are two thousand households in the city. If the thieves can cut off Shi Jilong's head and send it, the reward will be the same as before.

"The King of Jin's concern for the country and the people is vividly reflected on the page, and we are ashamed of ourselves. Currently, those who can compete with Shi Le in the north are Liu Kun and Zu Ti. As for Jiangnan, neither Wang Dun, Tao Kan, nor other generals had the strength to go north to fight Shi Le and Shi Hu." Zhou Fu said after reading the message. Then he asked Sima Pei:"Your Highness, this time I am assisting General Zu Ti in his northern expedition. The journey is far away. Tens of thousands of people, traveling thousands of miles, can they achieve anything?"

"This trip to the hinterland of the Central Plains, I heard and witnessed the brutal acts of the barbarians. Ruins of ruins can be seen everywhere, fields are desolate everywhere, and an unknown fire arises in my heart. Sima Pei sighed:"General Zu Ti is so good at running the army that younger generations like us can't match him." As for the record, since I didn’t fight a few big battles, I didn’t achieve much."

"Let's go outside and take a look at this roaring river!"Sima Pei said, took Zhou Fu's hand, and walked outside the cabin together. The two stood on the deck, looking at the ships that occasionally passed by, filled with emotion. Zhou Fu asked:"How noble is your highness?"

"A wasted eighteen years."Sima Pei said. Zhou Fu smiled and said:"Then your Highness and I are the same age. It is truly a blessing in life to be able to travel with His Highness on the ship. If I could go with His Highness to assist General Zu Ti, I would also be able to see the world"

"Although this expedition is called the Nine Route Army, it has 30,000 elite horse, foot and water troops. But many soldiers did not actually fight against the Hu people, but just responded to the situation."Sima Pei said.

Zhou Fu heard something in his words, so he didn't ask any more questions. Sima Pei's fleet continued to go down the river, but because the southeast wind slowly picked up, the soldiers and guards on the ship began to take turns paddling..After a while, the wind died down and the fleet turned to the northeast.

"I was just busy exchanging pleasantries and didn't bother to ask General Zhou, where are you from? Sima Pei asked:"You are coming from Yuzhang. Do you want to go to Jiankang?"!"

"About ten days ago, my father and I, as well as generals Li Heng and Xu Chao, led eight thousand soldiers from Yuzhang County to conquer Du Zeng at Chaoyang in the Mianshui area. When he was approaching Chaoyang, he met General Zhao Yin, Zhao You's son, who was killed by Du Zeng. The soldiers of both sides joined forces and fought fiercely for a day with Du Zeng and Zheng Pan's Mabu navy in Chuanyang."Zhou Fu said

"What was the outcome of the war?"Sima Pei asked impatiently. Zhou Fu said:"Du Zeng is really a general who is capable of fighting, and he deserves his reputation. At the beginning, Li Heng and Xu Chao lost several battles in a row. Later, my father sent out eight hundred warriors whom he usually trained to turn defeat into victory."

"Then why didn't you return to Yuzhang County in triumph with General Zhou Fang? Are you going to Jiankang to report victory?"Sima Pei asked. Zhou Fu said:"Exactly, because my father has other affairs in Yuzhang County, he asked me to come to Jiankang on his behalf to report the victory to the King of Jin. In addition, I also brought a rare delicacy to the King of Jin and the Minister of Civil and Military Affairs."

"What delicious food?"Sima Pei asked with a smile. Zhou Fu said:"Cooked horse meat."

"It is indeed a delicious food that you can’t usually eat! Sima Pei smiled and said:"Although the south of the Yangtze River did not suffer any war, it was definitely affected by the war in the north." Jiangnan needed to provide food and salary for the soldiers in the north, so even the royal family had a very light diet. The 30,000 soldiers who follow me to the north will be good if they can eat pork once every seven days."

"War horses are very valuable, so why are they willing to kill them and eat their meat? Sima Pei asked with some confusion. Zhou Fu said:"Hundreds of Du Zeng's horses were shot to death. It would be a pity to throw them away." It is better to kill the horse and eat its meat. I came to Jiankang and brought some with me"

"What a great idea! Sima Pei praised:"Let all the ministers try it.""

"Are we getting close to Jiankang? The new pavilion on the east bank of the river should not be far away!"Zhou Fu said with some excitement:"Half a year ago, my father and His Highness the King of Jin, as well as Wang Dao, Wang Dun, Zhou Wei, Diao Xie, Yu Liang and other civil and military ministers gathered in Xinting. It became famous for a while!"

"yes! I was also there. Those exciting conversations and those tear-jerking words still make me feel angry when I think about them."Sima Pei said:"Although the Wuhu have been pressing harder and harder in recent years, they even invaded the Central Plains. But this does not mean that we Han people have no power at our disposal. It's just that our strength is divided and surrounded by barbarians, making it difficult for us to function"

"His Highness's analysis of the current situation in the world is very accurate." Zhou Fu praised.