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

Shao Xu did not dare to neglect and ordered his men to set up an incense table. Shao Xu knelt down and kowtowed in front of the incense table. Seeing this, the others also fell to their knees. Cai Mo took out the edict and began to read it:

Shao Xu, the prefect of Leling, stationed troops to resist the Hu, gathered scattered people, implemented enlightened politics, and many people joined him. Faced with the siege of Jiehu, he resolutely surrendered to the court. Knowing that justice is the first priority, his son was killed. Build city fortresses to consolidate Fuping's defense. The northern territory was stabilized and governance was effective. I order Shao to continue to be the prefect of Le'an of Pingyuan, General of the Right, and governor of Jizhou. He will be promoted to General of Pingbei. He will be given the responsibility of conquering the barbarians. He will be granted the title of Zhu Azi.

"Thank you Lord for your grace! Long live! Long live! Long live! After Shao Xu thanked him, he stood up and took the order. Shao Xu said to Cai Mo very enthusiastically:"Master Cai, please come to the table and drink together!""

Cai Mo declined and sat down. Shao Xu, Duan Pixi and others also took their seats one after another. Shao Xu raised his wine bottle and said,"Thank you very much, Your Majesty, for not forgetting me, a lonely northerner. I want to work together with Mr. Duan, his brothers, and General Zhao to fight against the Jie people Shi Le and guard our northern home!"

"With Lord Shao Xu's ambition, it is entirely possible to regain the north and restore our homeland! Cai Mo stood up and said,"I am from Kaocheng County, Chenliu County in the north. I traveled south many years ago to follow King Langya, who is your Majesty." Master Shao Xu is from Anyang, Wei County. Our hometowns are not far apart. On behalf of the courtiers of Jiangzuo, I would like to offer a toast to Lord Shao Xu and all the Lords and generals present here. I hope everyone can overcome the difficulties and work together to fight against Jiehu! After Cai

Mo finished speaking, he picked up the wine bottle and drank it all in one gulp. Shao Xu and others also picked up the wine bottles, and Shao Xu said,"Okay!" Thank you Mr. Cai! Thank you, courtiers! We will definitely live up to His Majesty!"

After Shao Xu finished speaking, everyone also drank the wine in the wine bottle. The people here talked very casually, chatting while eating food and drinking. Cai Mo put down his chopsticks and asked:"Master Shao, these days Shi Le and Liu Yao surrounded Jin Zhun in Pingyang City, and a war with the Han Dynasty was imminent. Are there any wars going on here recently?"

"Mr. Cai, to tell you the truth, Shi Le’s general Shi Hu is eyeing Fuping City. Master Duan and I are preparing to join forces to attack Shihu to break the siege of Fuping. Master Duan's younger brother Duan Wenyang is brave and good at fighting. Together with my general Shao Cun, he is enough to fight against Shi Hu.

Ten days later, Cai Mo returned to Jiankang. When he arrived at the Taiji Hall, Sima Rui and the civil and military ministers were having a meeting. Cai Mo came to the foot of the steps and knelt down to Sima Rui and saluted:"See your majesty!""

"Mr. Cai, this trip to Fuping Mountain is a long and high road, thank you for your hard work! Sima Rui said:"This trip to the North to reward Shao Xu went smoothly. Is there anything going on?""

"Returning to Your Majesty, despite the constant war in the north, I arrived in Fuping smoothly. Four brothers, Duan Pixi, had defected to Shao Xu, and a general named Zhao Ling also rebelled against Shi Le and joined Shao Xu. Shao Xu was preparing to go to war with Shi Hu, but he didn't know the outcome yet."Cai Mo said.

Wang led the class and said:"Your Majesty, although it seems that Duan Pixi has defected to Shao Xu now. But Shao Xu faces more than one enemy. His old enemy Duan Mobo and his powerful rival Shi Hu are both bad friends. Shi Le had adopted Duan Mobo as his adopted son a few years ago. If Duan Mobo relied on Shi Hu's power, Shao Xu would be in danger. If Shao Xu sends troops to attack Shihu, it may be difficult to win"

"What Mr. Wang said is true."Zhou Wei came out of the squad and said:"If we add the swaying Qingzhou governor Cao Yi, Shao Xu will be even more dangerous. Cao Yi's title of governor of Qingzhou was granted by Liu Cong and not by our court. In these years, Cao Yi, with the assistance of Wang Mi's former generals Xu Miao and Gaoliang, marched westward with overwhelming force, and successively captured Wenyang Pass and Gongqiu. Not only did he occupy Qi County, but he also killed Xu Fu, the prefect of Qi County. , captured Jianwei General Liu Xuan alive. After that, Cao Yi conquered Zhu'a and Pingyin. Now Cao Yi occupies a total of more than forty cities, large and small, and he himself is in charge of Guanggu City. Cao Yi had hundreds of thousands of troops, making him the overlord of the country."

"As far as I know, in Cao Yi's heart, he still loves me. It was only because of Wuhu's rebellion in China that Cao Yi had to submit to the Han Dynasty. Since our court can reward Shao Xu, we should also give Cao Yi a title no less than that of Shao Xu."Diao Xie said. Dai Yuan came out and said:"Your Majesty, Master Diao Xie's words are conclusive and reasonable. If we don't grant rewards and win over Cao Yi as soon as possible, once he completely surrenders to Shi Le, he will become a great help to Shi Le. By then, not only will Shaoxu be in danger, but the recovery of his northern homeland will also be far away!"

"What the adults said is very reasonable. The imperial court should send envoys to Guanggu City in Qingzhou to impress Cao Yi with emotion and reason, and to confer a title on Cao Yi. Sima Rui said:"Then I'll ask Shang Shulang Kong Tan to go to Guanggu City with the imperial edict. I wonder what Kong Aiqing wants?""

"Your Majesty, my ancestors lived in the land of Qilu and moved to the south of the Yangtze River to live in Kuaiji for several generations. I am willing to go to Guanggu City to convey His Majesty's edict in order to gain Cao Yi's heart."Kong Tan said. Sima Rui said to Director Wang:"Please ask Mr. Mao Hong to draft an edict on my behalf and set off tomorrow."

"Mr. Kong, you can go home first and prepare for tomorrow."Sima Rui said to Kong Tan again. Kong Tan saluted and went home. After Kong Tan left, the civil and military ministers continued to discuss the matter. Yu Liang said:"Mr. Kong Tan's father, Kong Kan, was once a member of the previous dynasty. Da Si Nong. His grandfather was Kong Chong, the prefect of Danyang. In total, Kong Tan was the twenty-fifth grandson of Master Kong. Such a prominent Confucian family is beyond our reach!"

"In front of Kongtan, we are beyond reach! He Xun said:"When Kong Tan was young, he once went to visit a famous scholar named Yang from Liang State. But after arriving at the Yang family, the Yang family only had a nine-year-old son to receive him. The child was very smart and brought out bayberries for Kong Tan to eat. Kong Tan picked up a bayberry and asked the child, does this bayberry grow on your tree? The child immediately said,"I have never heard of it. The peacock is Mr. Kong's bird!""

After hearing the story told by He Xun, everyone in the court burst out laughing.

After Cai Mo left, Shao Xu sent Shao Cun and Duan Wenyang, each leading 5,000 men, out of Fuping City to prepare for a battle with Shi Hu in the west of the city. Shao Xu stood on the tower at the west gate of Fuping City, beating drums in person to see off the soldiers who were going on the expedition. Shao Cun's soldiers and horses were in front, and Duan Wenyang's soldiers and horses were behind. After leaving Fuping City, Duan Wenyang caught up with Shao Cun. The two people made a plan. Shao Cun said:"General Duan, you lead your brothers to the north, and I will lead my brothers to the south. Then we all go west to surround and attack Shihu. What do you think?"

"Okay, I think it’s okay, let’s do it!"Duan Wenyang said.