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

"Father, who among the ministers in the current court can you rely on? Sima Shao asked. Sima Rui did not answer directly, but turned to Sima Pei and asked:"Daocheng, do you know why your father asked you to go to the north to join Zu Ti in the Northern Expedition in the name of the commander-in-chief of the three armies?""

"Isn't it to resist the Jie people Shi Le and regain their homeland in the north? Sima Pei thought for a while and then said:"Did the father suspect that Zu Ti had the same idea as Wang Dun?""

"For Liu Kun and Zu Ti, the sky is high and the emperor is far away, and the emperor's orders are difficult to deliver. Sima Rui sighed and said,"Alas!" Some Han people are even less loyal than the Xianbei people. The two brothers Duan Pixi and Duan Wenyang of the Duan tribe in Xianbei had been loyal to the Jin Dynasty for many years, and they also supported and cooperated with Liu Kun's crusade against Shi Le in the north. This has been the case for several generations in the Xianbei Duan tribe, but like Murong Xin from Liaodong, they are all from the Hu ethnic group, so their intentions are unpredictable!"

"At present, those in the DPRK who can be loyal, Tao Kan and Zhou Fang abide by their duties, there is no problem. The thing that worries me the most as a father is Wang Dun. Maybe after several years of preparation, it would be possible for Wang Dun to commit rebellion."Sima Rui said. Sima Shao said:"Wang Dun is fifty-one years old this year and has no son. I wonder what his purpose is when he wants to rebel and become independent?"

"It is true that Wang Dun had no sons, but he adopted his brother Wang Han's son Wang Ying and regarded him as his own. Sima Rui analyzed:"The Langya Wang family is entangled in the court. Wen has left Wang Dao, and Wu has left Wang Dun. It is difficult for him to move forward as a father!" If Wang Dun succeeds in usurping the throne, it will actually give Wang Han's son Wang Ying the opportunity to conquer the world, so Wang Han must be completely determined."

"The father should take precautions and adopt some methods to prevent Wang Dun from rebelling easily. Sima Shao said:"My father can transfer some ministers out and increase their positions and power." In this way, the father's strength will be able to compete with the Langya Wang family."

"What Dao Ji said was absolutely true. His father had exactly what he meant. Sima Rui said:"Among the court officials, Dai Yuan, Diao Xie, and Liu Wei are all candidates who can be assigned important tasks. But having said that, whether it is Dai Yuan, Diao Xie or Liu Wei, they are outsiders after all. My father’s true support, or the Sima royal family’s true hope, still rests on you two!"

"Please rest assured, father, that we brothers will definitely unite and work together to restore the past glory of the Sima family."Sima Shao and Sima Pei stood up and said in unison

"Okay, Daoji, Daocheng, you two go back and rest!"Sima Rui said. Looking at the leaving figures of his two adult sons, Sima Rui nodded with satisfaction.

"Daocheng, in the three months since you led the troops, during the Northern Expedition with Zu Ti, to when you came back, has anything unusual happened?"As soon as the brothers arrived at the door, Sima Rui asked another question. Sima Pei felt a little strange and came back and said:"Father, I didn't find anything particularly unusual. The soldiers are very confident in the Northern Expedition. Oh, by the way, father, on my way out, there were many young people who wanted to join the army. There were five of them in their thirties. Because they were good at cooking, I asked them to cook for me."

"Didn't we provide you with several cooks when you set out? Sima Rui asked with some confusion. Sima Pei said:"These five cooks are different. Not only can they cook delicious meals, they are also very diligent." Wherever there is a river, they will fish for me to eat. The fried fish they cook is fragrant but not hard, and the sweet and sour carp is tender but not sour."

"Where are these five people from? Sima Rui asked. Sima Pei said:"The accent should be from the Jingzhou area, but they insist that they are from Yuzhang County." Sima

Rui muttered in his heart, but didn't say anything. After thinking about it, he hesitated and said,"Okay, you two go back." Remember to practice literature and martial arts regularly"

"I know, Father!"The two brothers agreed and left the imperial study one after another. As the two of them walked, Sima Pei said to Sima Shao:"Brother, didn't my father just say that we should practice literature and martial arts regularly? How about we go to Hualin Garden, north of the palace, to compete in horseback riding and archery in a few days? When I was a teenager, my father would always put me on a horse and let me watch him shoot archery on horseback. Later, my father taught me how to ride horses and archery. Until this time when I was ordered by my father to assist General Zu Ti, whenever we had time, we brothers would always be together, either riding horses or shooting arrows. It was so fun!"

"Then we agreed that, in addition to the time for going to court, we would go to Hualin Garden to ride horses and shoot archery when we have free time in the morning. Or they can practice swordsmanship and swordsmanship, and study in the house in the afternoon."Sima Shao said

"Okay brother, then we have an agreement! Sima Pei said:"On September 29th, after breakfast, we rushed to Hualin Garden and saw each other.""

On September 29th, a day when the sun was shining brightly. Sima Shao, with a yew bow slung across his body and a dozen arrows in the quiver behind him, led a dozen guards and rode to Huahua. Lin Garden. As soon as they entered Hualin Garden, they saw Sima Pei and a dozen guards coming on horseback. Sima Pei was carrying a hemlock bow and the quiver was filled with arrows. When he saw Sima Shao coming first, When he got there, Sima Pe got off his horse and saluted:"Brother Wang, good morning!"

"Brother Wang, you are here too!"Sima Shao also dismounted and greeted Sima Pe.

"See His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"Sima Rao's guards knelt down and saluted Sima Shao.

"See His Royal Highness King Langya!"Sima Shao's guards also knelt down and saluted Sima Ra.

"Brother Wang, how should we compete today? Should we compete first on horseback or archery, or on horseback and archery?"Sima Pei asked. Sima Shao said:"First we compete in shooting while standing a hundred steps away, then we compete in riding horses to pick up arrows on the ground, and finally we compete in archery on horses, shooting three arrows each time."

"good!"The two people said, and came to the place where they were shooting arrows a hundred steps away from the target. Their respective guards stood behind them, all watching the game between the two princes with concentration.

Sima Shao drew an arrow from the quiver behind him, very skillfully. The ground is placed on the bow string. Next, the force and aiming are done in one go. The arrow leaving the string"swooshes" and shoots to the target.

"Hit the bullseye!"Several of Sima Shao's guards ran over to take a look, and they hit the target. Sima Pei then took an arrow in his hand, and then also shot an arrow at the target on his side. Two of Sima Pei's guards ran over to take a look and shouted Said:"Your Highness also hit the target!"

Then Sima Pei and Sima Shao exchanged positions, and each took another arrow in their hands. Sima Shao's arrow shot out, and then Sima Pei's arrow also shot out. The guards from both sides ran to the two arrow targets. After looking at it, they all laughed. It turned out that the arrowhead of the second arrow had hit the tail of the first arrow! Sima Pei said:"Look at the third arrow!"