This is a great migration that changed Chinese history. Among them were the common people, aristocratic families, and even royal relatives. They brought their families and migrated together with the entire family. In the late Western Jin Dynasty, there was a great chaos in the north, and the Western Jin regime was on the verge of collapse. These migrating armies from the north set off from Luoyang, Henan, Langya, Shandong, and other places, yearning for a destination in their hearts – Jiangnan. This migration lasted for more than 200 years. Among the migration team, there were two unique people, one was Sima Rui, the King of Langya, and the other was Wang Dao, the leader of a noble family in the north. It was their arrival that changed Chinese history. The political power they jointly established opened up a special political model in Chinese history – the Eastern Jin dynasty’s feudal politics.
Shortly after the establishment of the Western Jin dynasty, the Eight Kings Rebellion lasted for 16 years. At the same time, the northern tribes marched southward, which forced the ruler of the Western Jin dynasty, Donghai King Sima Yue, to consider a retreat, build cunning rabbits and three caves, and start focusing on managing Jiangnan. As a result, Langya King Sima Rui, who was close to the end of the country, became the best candidate. He was appointed as the General of Andong and collaborated with aristocratic families to go south to Jianye to establish a rear base for the Western Jin dynasty, far from the political center of Luoyang. Sima Rui did not know what the future path would be. Of course, at this time, he never dreamed that he would become the founding emperor of Eastern Jin in the future.
As a relative of the royal family, Sima Rui did not open up the situation in the early days of Jiangnan. After arriving in Jiankang for over a month, he surprisingly did not have any local celebrities visiting. Why is this so? From a blood relationship perspective, Sima Rui is not the orthodox royal family. From Emperor Xuan’s Sima Yi to Emperor Wen’s Sima Zhao, Emperor Wu’s Sima Yan, and Emperor Hui’s Sima Zhong, the four brothers of Emperor Huai’s Sima Chi have been inherited by father and son, forming the orthodoxy of the Western Jin Dynasty royal family. However, Prince Langya’s Sima Rui is only a minor branch of the Sima family. There are even more exaggerated claims about Sima Rui’s background in the folk, and it is said that Sima Rui has no blood relationship with the royal family. This is a special wine pot called Zhuanxin Pot. It can hold two types of wine at the same time, poisonous wine and fine wine. Users can control it through a mechanism to pour out any one of them. Sima Yi once used this wine pot to poison a subordinate general named Niu Jin. Sima Yi did this because of a book called “Xuanshi Tu”, in which there is a saying in the book that “Niu Ji Ma Hou Ji” means that people surnamed Niu must inherit the world of Sima Shi.
Professor Ye Zhi from Hubei University of Arts and Sciences: Sima Yibu had a relatively distant relationship with the Sima royal family. According to historical records, Sima Rui himself was born through an affair between his father’s consort Xiahou and a small official surnamed Niu. If that’s the case, Sima Rui and the Sima family have basically no blood relationship.
At that time, with the arrival of Sima Rui, this story had already spread throughout the streets and alleys of Jiankang City. Obviously, the aristocratic families in the south would never look down upon a character born out of an affair, which also implicated many northern aristocratic families who came with him. In the late spring of March, the grass grows in Jiangnan, flowers and trees grow, and a group of warblers fly wildly. Whenever the weather is sunny, the famous officials from the northern aristocratic families who came with Sima Rui will gather at the Xinting outside the Healthy City to drink and relieve their frustrations. However, this banquet is different. A seemingly ordinary drinking has influenced the fate of a dynasty for a hundred years. Shortly after their southward migration, wars in the Western Jin Dynasty continued to erupt, and the northern Hu people continued to invade, putting the Western Jin Dynasty in jeopardy. When the famous scholars thought of the fall of the Western Jin Dynasty, they couldn’t help but feel sad. In front of them, the rivers and mountains were vast, with a momentum of ten thousand miles. Only the green mountains were like Luoyang, and some people looked up to the sky and sighed long. The scenery was not different, but the mountains and rivers were also different. Upon hearing these words, the famous scholars all looked at each other with tears in their eyes. One of them changed their color and said that everyone should work together to be loyal to the royal family and recover the lost land in Shenzhou. The speaker was none other than the famous scholar Wang Dao who followed Sima Rui across the river. Wang Dao, who served as the military commander under Sima Rui, will now direct a major play.
Director Wang is well aware that an emergency requires a core force to unite various forces, otherwise the situation will become increasingly dangerous. Who can bear this heavy responsibility? Wang Dao realized that they had to raise the banner of the Sima royal family, which was the foundation of the Nandu clan. Therefore, the Wang family chose Sima Rui, the Prince of Langya, who had a close relationship with their own family.
Professor Hu Axiang from Nanjing University: Sima Rui’s father, Sima You, accepted the surrender of Sun Wu and Sun Hao. Therefore, in the eyes of the Wu people in Jiangnan, Sima Rui is the descendant of the enemy who destroyed our country. It is really unknown how Sima Rui was designed in later history. Sima Rui later went to the south, so how did he establish himself in Jiangnan.
Director Wang knew that it was impossible for Sima Rui to establish a foothold in Jiangdong without the support of southern aristocrats. Therefore, he discussed with his younger brother Wang Dun to help Sima Rui establish his reputation in Jiangnan. Every year, March 3rd is a special day for people living in Nanjing. Every year, people gather together and hold a nursing ceremony to eliminate disasters. For Director Wang, March 3rd is particularly important that year. His directed play has just begun. Under Director Wang’s arrangement, Sima Rui rides in a magnificent small sedan chair, carries a grand ceremonial guard, and watches Fu by the water’s edge. During the ceremony, prominent figures from northern aristocratic families such as Wang Dao and Wang Dun rode high headed horses, surrounded by stars and moons like Sima Rui, and swaggered around the market. The aristocratic families of Wu, such as Ji Zhan and Gu Rong, Seeing Sima Rui’s grand presence, they were all intimidated. As a result, representatives of aristocratic families in the south, such as Gu Rong, Lu Shiguang, and Gan Jisi, expressed their submission. From then on, the subjects of the old territory of Eastern Wu began to submit to Sima Rui. Through this high-level tour, Director Wang helped Sima Rui establish a high reputation and win over some southern aristocratic families. These measures temporarily resolved the surface conflicts between the aristocratic families in the north and south, but the deep-seated conflicts were not resolved. Faced with the pressure from the southern aristocratic families, the northern aristocratic families formed a political interest group through marriage alliances with warlords, forming a prosperous and damaging group. Captain Xi Jian sent his disciples to Director Wang’s house to seek a son-in-law. Director Wang summoned his family’s children to the east wing room, allowing them to pick the son-in-law. The doorstep went back to report that the Wang family’s children were all very good, and they heard that I was going to pick a son-in-law. Everyone was upright. Sitting precariously and with a reserved demeanor, there was only a young man lying on the eastern bed, eating as if he had not heard me pick a son-in-law. Tai Wei Jian said that this is exactly my good son-in-law. Upon investigation, it turned out to be Wang Xizhi. This is the story of the quick son-in-law of the Eastern Bed, indicating the prosperity of aristocratic marriages at that time, which formed a solid alliance of interests. However, it was difficult for the southern aristocratic families to enter this group at that time.
Mr. Wang, who lived in Nanjing, had a deep understanding of Chinese family genealogy. Nowadays, people’s attention to family genealogy is no longer as high as in the past. In the late Western Jin Dynasty, the nobles in the north who crossed the river highly valued family genealogy because it was a symbol of their identity. At that time, there was a “Hundred Family Genealogy” circulating in Jiangdong, which formed the foundation of the feudal politics of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. These more than 100 families were intertwined and formed the aristocratic family. For the northern aristocrats who had just arrived in Jiangdong, the most urgent need to solve their livelihood problems, and the key to their anger was the land. Although Jiangnan was fertile land for thousands of miles, since the Eastern Wu Dynasty, it has been occupied by the southern aristocrats.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liang Mancang: A large number of northern aristocrats have migrated southward, which inevitably leads to conflicts with the local indigenous and aristocratic families, including economic, land, and even political issues. Therefore, this contradiction is reflected in several local indigenous uprisings against the northern aristocrats who migrated southward.
Faced with the chaos of high-level refugees from the north, a large-scale armed coup is being carried out in secret. The leader of the southern clan in Jiangnan, Yi Xing Zhou Ju, who was once the Three Dings, conspired to launch an armed coup. Soon after, the situation was exposed, and Zhou Ju died of worry and anger. Later, Zhou Ju’s son, Zhou Xie, inherited his father’s will and gathered local armed forces in Jiangdong to prepare for a rebellion under the pretext of suppressing Wang Dao. However, the rebellion of Zhou Xie, who represented the interests of the southern gentry, ultimately ended in failure. Although the rebellion was eradicated, the northern aristocratic families who crossed the river felt unprecedented panic. In order to stabilize the river, Zhou Xie’s rebellion, representing the interests of the southern gentry, ultimately ended in failure. In the southern situation, the attitude of northern aristocratic families towards southern aristocratic families had to undergo certain changes.
Professor Hu Axiang from Nanjing University: Wang’s strategy is very profound. He put down his airs and actively approached the people from the south. He took out some positions in the court and let the people from the south do it.
In order to avoid direct economic conflicts with local clans, northern clans often crossed over Zhejiang to seek land and develop industries in the coastal area of Kuaiji. During the Yongjia Rebellion in the north, Sima Rui’s southern regime won a rare stability with the assistance of royal family leaders. One of the most important reasons for the formation of this situation was the Qiaozhou county system led by Wang, which was initially used to resettle refugees from the north to avoid offending the interests of southern aristocrats. The government has specially set up a prefecture with the same name as the old one, and set up a separate registered residence registration for them to give preferential tax. In order to distinguish from the old one, George’s prefecture with the same name is often titled with the southern word. For example, there is Langya Prefecture in the north, and there is a corresponding southern Langya Prefecture in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. In more than 100 years, nearly one million people migrated to the south. Ningbo and Shaoxing were among the regions that were early civilized and highly educated in the south at that time. Because of their fertile land and beautiful scenery, they attracted a large number of northern expatriates, many famous families in the north, and lived here for life. Famous scholars Wang Xizhi and Xie An loved the beauty of the mountains and rivers in the eastern region. They often climbed mountains and rivers, enjoyed fishing, and returned after several months. The famous Lanting Collection took place here, and the literati who wept at each other in the new pavilion have completely rooted themselves in Jiangnan.
Professor Hu Axiang from Nanjing University: Under this kind of comfort, people in the south feel that, just like those in the former Sun Wu homeland, I either accept the rule of other ethnic groups in the north, or I accept the rule of people who are also Han, but have some grudges with me before. Which one should I choose between ethnic conflicts and regional conflicts? Finally, of course, regional conflicts give way to ethnic conflicts.
As the southern regime intensified its consolidation of political order, the Western Jin regime was already on the verge of collapse. In 316 AD, Chang’an fell and Emperor Min of Jin had no choice but to surrender. The Western Jin dynasty’s mansion was in a state of decline, with internal courtiers led by Prince Xiyang Sima Hui and external courtiers led by Liu Kun urging them to move forward, hoping that Sima Rui would ascend to the throne. However, Wang Dun, who held a heavy army, did not have a positive attitude. At this time, Sima Rui was not in a hurry to proclaim himself emperor and was in a wait-and-see state. It only succeeded the Jin throne and changed its name to Jianwu, known as the Eastern Jin dynasty. Sima Rui knew very well that he must receive the support of all noble families and clans in order to ascend to the throne of God.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liu Chi: In this situation, how can these forces be unified and how can the existing territory in the south be preserved, so that the northern Hu ethnic group is not easily able to directly enter the south? The best way is to continue the rule of the Sima clan, which means that all parties must make compromises in their own interests.
In 318 AD, the obituary of Emperor Min of Jin, Sima Ye, who died in the state of Han, was passed on to Jiankang. Wang Dao knew that he was now homeless, so he convinced his cousin Wang Dun and worked with other ministers to persuade him. At the age of 43, Sima Rui finally officially ascended to the throne and changed his reign name to Taixing, becoming Emperor Yuan of Jin. From then on, the history of Eastern Jin began, and Emperor Yuan relied entirely on Wang Dao in politics and Wang Dun in military affairs, forming a political pattern of Wang and Ma sharing the world, forming a clique political model. Clan politics has also become a special political model in Chinese history.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liang Mancang: The imperial power is not very strong, and it needs the support of aristocratic families. This is one reason, and another is the power of aristocratic families. At that time, there was great development, and once it developed, it had the power to support the existence of this imperial power.
The special political model laid the groundwork for various political conflicts in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Sima Rui did not expect his luck to be so good, and he became the founding emperor of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, which greatly exceeded his expectations. The inherent concept of imperial power supremacy made his desire for power expand. In order to strengthen imperial power and divide the family power of Wang Dao, Sima Rui began to use his confidants to appoint Diao Xie as the Shangshu Ling, Liu Wei as the attendant, and Diao Xie was a person who fled to the south to avoid chaos. He was particularly dissatisfied with the political model of imperial power and aristocratic co governance of the world. Liu Wei also avoided chaos and crossed the river in the late Western Jin Dynasty, urging Emperor Yuan to distance himself from Wang Dao and take away Wang Dao. Dun Bingquan, at that time, a very strange thing happened to his health. The commander in charge of overseeing the transportation of grain and forage, Shi Chunyu, was sentenced to beheading for not being able to do so in a timely manner, It is said that after Chunyu Bo was beheaded, his blood flowed up the pillar by two zhang and three feet, and then down another 45 inches. There was a commotion among the people, and they all said that Chunyu Bo died unjustly. Liu Wei wrote a memorial criticizing Zhou Yi, a middle ranking official, and Liu Yin, a member of the Fa Cao army, for creating a wrongful case. This time, Liu Wei wrote a memorial directly targeting Wang Dao, who was then the prime minister. After Liu Huai wrote a memorial, Wang Dao immediately wrote a memorial to apologize and requested that he be dismissed from office.
Professor Chen Suzhen from Peking University: After the establishment of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Emperor Yuan of Jin, Sima Rui, was basically a puppet. The power of the court was controlled by the brothers of Wang Dao and Wang Dun, especially Wang Dun. He controlled the most powerful army of the entire Eastern Jin Dynasty upstream. What about Sima Rui? Later, he was unwilling to be a puppet and wanted to weaken the power of the Wang family. In order to deal with Wang Dun, he used these people such as Diao Xie and Liu (wei) as his confidants.
The measures taken by Sima Rui to suppress the Langya Wang family angered the aristocratic families. In 322 AD, Wang Dun, who was guarding Jingzhou, rose up in rebellion under the pretext of eliminating Diao Xie and Liu Wei. The army pointed directly at the capital Jiankang. Sima Rui ordered Diao Xie to lead the six armies to resist, but was defeated by Wang Dun’s army. Liu Huai fled to the north and sought refuge in Shile. Emperor Yuan Sima Rui had no choice but to send envoys to negotiate peace. This battle between the imperial power and the aristocratic family ended in the victory of the Langya Wang family.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liang Mancang: Because at this time the power of the Wang family may be suppressed, Sima Rui wanted to suppress the power of the Wang family, suppress the power of aristocratic families. It is possible that the imperial power gained its own dominance by suppressing the Wang family. Therefore, Wang Dun’s uprising not only received the support of Director Wang, but also the support of other aristocratic families.
The conflicts in the Eastern Jin Dynasty were always one wave after another. With the enhancement of military strength and the prominence of fame, Wang Dun’s desire for power also began to expand. After the death of Emperor Yuan Sima Rui, Emperor Ming Sima Shao succeeded to the throne, and Wang Dun acted recklessly. He walked to court with his sword and did not follow suit, thinking that he had enough strength to replace the Sima family. In 324 AD, in the second year of Emperor Ming Sima Shao Taining, Wang Dun conspired to rise again, intending to replace Sima Shao as the emperor. This was another attempt to break the balance between imperial power and aristocratic families, but the instigator was sharing the world with Sima. The Langya Wang family, however, this time Wang Dao chose to stand on the side of imperial power.
Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: At first, Wang Dun was certainly a person with much more ambition than Wang Dao. He was an ambitious person. At the beginning, he led the uprising under the guise of the Qing Jun side, but in reality, it was a rebellion against the Sima family’s suppression of their Wang family. Such a name led to the uprising. However, if you really want to overthrow Wang Dun, after clearing the Jun toilet, it will not be the Qing Jun side anymore. It will destroy the alliance relationship between the Sima family and the entire Guojiang and Jiangdong clans, because the Sima family had a great sense of righteousness at that time. Yes, your royal family wants to replace it. Do other scholars agree? Do the gentry in Jiangdong agree? Do other clans crossing the river agree? Wang Dao opposed Wang Dun’s further actions because he had a clear judgment on this.
Afterwards, the aristocratic families and clans continued to follow the rules of the early Eastern Jin dynasty’s aristocratic politics, but the balance of aristocratic politics was always relative. This was Jingzhou, which was strategically located and difficult to defend. The Eastern Jin dynasty was located in a corner of the left bank of the Yangtze River, with many important areas along the river. Jingzhou in the upper reaches and Yangzhou in the lower reaches were particularly important towns. The so-called Jiangzuo Town was no better than Jingyang. Throughout the hundred years of the Eastern Jin dynasty, the Sima Emperor remained weak, and both the internal and external affairs were controlled by the aristocratic families. After the Wang family, the political power was respectively controlled by the Yu family and the Huan family. Therefore, Jingzhou and Yangzhou were always under the control of the Yu Huan and Xie families. Controlled by the four major families. The usurpers of power in the Eastern Jin Dynasty all rose up in Jingzhou. It was precisely because of this special geographical situation that during the Yonghe period of Emperor Mu of Jin, there was another aristocratic figure named Huan Wen. Due to the rapid expansion of power, an attempt was made to break the balance between imperial power and the power of aristocratic families. In the first year of Yonghe reign of Emperor Mu of Jin, Yu Yi, the governor of Jingzhou, died of illness. Huan Wen took over Yu Yi’s position and became the governor of Jingzhou. After becoming the governor of Jingzhou, Huan Wen immediately demonstrated his military prowess. In the winter of the second year of Emperor Mu of Jin’s Yonghe reign, Wen Wen led his troops along the Yangtze River to suppress the Li family’s Chenghan regime established in Sichuan. Huan Wen’s army was unstoppable and quickly attacked Chengdu. Li Shi surrendered and Chenghan was destroyed. This victory quickly increased Huan Wen’s reputation.
Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Lou Jin: Weng Wen was first and foremost an outstanding scholar, but also an ambitious scholar. He wanted to change this phenomenon. Of course, in the late Eastern Jin Dynasty, the conditions for strengthening imperial power and establishing a more favorable political power were also beginning to form. Weng Wen emerged in this process. A family with a good foundation and exceptional talent, he gradually gained more and more power by attracting a large group of people. Like the most famous Xi Chao, the strategists around him were also outstanding. So, in the future, he could use this strategy to continuously expand his political power through the Northern Expedition. To continuously concentrate various political resources through influence.
In order to seize the position of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Wen Wen hoped to further enhance his popularity through the Northern Expedition. In the tenth year of Emperor Mu of Jin’s Yonghe reign, Huan Wen launched his first Northern Expedition and led a 40000 strong army, passing through Xiangyang and Qichuan to enter Guanzhong. He defeated the pre Qin army in Qiliu and continued to dominate the southeast of Chang’an. Later, due to insufficient military supplies, he withdrew his troops. In the twelfth year of Emperor Mu of Jin’s Yonghe reign, Wen Wen launched a second Northern Expedition, defeating the army of the Qiang chieftain Yao Rang north of the Yishui River and recapturing Luoyang, bringing Luoyang under the control of the Eastern Jin Dynasty for nearly ten years.
Researcher at the Institute of History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liang Mancang: As his achievements grew, his ambition also grew, his desire for power grew, and his ambition to covet the throne also grew.
In order to add the final weight to his ascension to the throne of God, Wen Wen decided to launch three northern expeditions to attack Former Yan. However, this time the result was unexpected. In the fourth year of the deposed Emperor Taihe, Wen Wen Wen led 50000 infantry and cavalry to launch a northern expedition and hit Fangtou, which was only 200 miles away from the former Yan capital city of Chengye. Due to the coordination of the flanks with the Jin chariot, the Wen Wen army encountered stubborn resistance from the former Yan army, becoming a lone and deepening force. Wen Wen had to order a retreat and was ambushed by the former Yan army in Xiangyi, resulting in a loss of more than 30000 people. The Northern Expedition failed and its prestige plummeted. In order to accelerate the pace of replacing the Sima clan, Wen Wen gave up his plan to first increase his prestige and then wait for the throne. In 371 AD, Wen Wen deposed Emperor Sima Yi and appointed Sima Yu as the new emperor. History records that he was a strategist and only knew how to negotiate. With the help of his power and his repeated achievements, Huan Wen temporarily shook the imperial court both inside and outside. Although Sima Yu had the title of emperor, he was always worried that one day, like Sima Yi, he would be deposed by Huan Wen. If the conspiracy of constant temperature usurpation of power succeeded, the Eastern Jin regime would collapse in internal friction. At a time when the imperial power was in jeopardy, another representative of a prominent family came forward. He was Xie An, who lived in seclusion in Dongshan, Kuaiji, Zhejiang before his birth. He was only appointed as the Grand General Sima at the request of Huan Wen after the age of 40. However, as Huan Wen’s image of replacing the Sima clan became more and more apparent, Xie An gradually became a political opponent of Wen Wen. Faced with the hot Huan Wen, Xie An showed superb political wisdom and fighting art. The story of Xie An’s adaptability was widely circulated.
Researcher at the Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liang Mancang: Once, Huan Wen was plotting to usurp the throne with his staff member Xi Chao. Suddenly, he heard that Xie An had arrived, and Xi Chao quickly hid behind the tent, wanting to hear what they were saying. After Xie An and Wang Tanzhi entered, they talked to Wen Wen about some national affairs. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew the curtain open, and Xi Chao was exposed. When it was exposed, Xie An knew what they were plotting. However, Xie An remained calm and said a few words, lightly. Xi Chao, you are really a guest behind the scenes.
Faced with a complex situation, if mishandled slightly, it will escalate conflicts and lead to conflicts. In 372 AD, Sima Yi died of illness after only one year of being crowned emperor. At this time, Wen Wen was already 60 years old and plagued by illness. Huan Wen accelerated the pace of usurping the Sima family and demanded that the newly enthroned Emperor Xiaowu, Sima Yao, perform the Nine Tin Ceremony for him. Adding Nine Tin was the last step before the powerful officials usurped the throne. However, Xie An used the unqualified writing of the Nine Tin Ceremony as an excuse to ask the writer to revise it again and again, until Huan Wen’s death, it was not fixed. Xie An was defeated in a unique way. Huan Wen’s attempt to break the balance between imperial power and aristocratic families. The passing of the constant temperature also brought great crisis to the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The failure of the Northern Expedition and the death of Huan Wen caused the Eastern Jin army to lose its leading figures, leading to a long march of threats from the north. Before 383 AD, the Former Qin dispatched more than one million troops, claiming to cut off the flow, and mobilized the army of Liangzhou. The army of Shu Han, the army of Youyi, and the people of the East and West traveled thousands of miles in a grand manner, killing the Eastern Jin. The capital of Eastern Jin heard that Hu Ma was watching the river, and the treacherous army had already arrived in the Huai Fei area, causing panic throughout.
The Eastern Jin Dynasty was in peril. Faced with a complex and tense situation, powerful clans once again stepped forward. In order to maintain the stable power of the Eastern Jin regime, Xie An, Xie Shi, Xie Xuan, and others in the Xie family became the leading figures in resisting the Former Qin.
This is the ancient city of Shouxian County, Anhui Province. The Battle of Feishui took place here, and the local people had to hurry up and reinforce the city walls. They had to complete the reinforcement work before the rainy season arrived. Every year, the people here would reinforce this section of the city wall during this season. During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, people were also reinforcing this section of the city wall. They knew that a war related to the life and death of the Eastern Jin Dynasty was about to break out. On the eve of the war, the two armies stood in formation across the Feishui River, and Xie Xuan was appointed as the frontline commander. At this time, Xie An, who was serving as the metropolitan commander, was far away in Jiankang and was playing chess with people, planning and strategizing. Xie Xuan sent people to persuade the General of the Former Qin to make some moves. Step back, wait for the Eastern Jin Dynasty to decide the winner by crossing the river. Fu Jian wanted to take advantage of the opportunity for the Eastern Jin army to cross the river and annihilate it. However, the Eastern Jin general took the opportunity to shout that the Qin army was defeated. The Qin army was defeated, and the Qin army retreated but could not be stopped, The Qin army, who suddenly retreated, was like a burst flood. The Jin army took the opportunity to cross the river and chase after Fu Jian, who was shot by a stray arrow and fled back to Huaibei alone. When the news of the great victory of the Fei River reached Jiankang, Xie An was playing chess with someone. After reading the letter, Xie An remained silent and slowly turned around to continue playing chess, his expression and demeanor were no different from usual.
Institute of History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – Liu Chi: However, after his victory in the Battle of Feishui, the Eastern Jin regime was able to continue to survive. However, the external enemy was gone, which means that after the external pressure subsided, the internal contradictions significantly intensified.
The Battle of Feishui was the final elegy of aristocratic politics, and no matter how beautiful the song was, it was not enough to save the decline of the Eastern Jin regime. The victory of the Battle of Feishui brought new problems, and the north once again fell into chaos. The threat of northern forces to the south was greatly reduced, and once the external threats were lifted, internal worries arose. The balance and restraint of the past were difficult to maintain, and the soil on which feudal politics relied for survival no longer existed. Shortly thereafter, Xie An stepped down and recruited Northern refugees to form the Beifu Army. Later, he also became a gravedigger of feudal politics, succeeding and defeating Xiao He. However, a person who maintained feudal politics sowed the seeds of breaking it. In 396 AD, Emperor Xiaowu passed away, and his eldest son Sima Dezong. Six years later, Jingzhou Governor Huan Xuan rose up in the name of the Qing monarch’s side and attacked the capital Jiankang. Huan Xuan was Huan Wen’s illegitimate son, and in breaking the balance between imperial power and the power of aristocratic families, it can be said that he inherited his father’s legacy. In 403 AD, Huan Xuan forced Sima Dezong to retreat. In 404 AD, Liu Yu, a general of Jianwu from the Beifu Army, rose up in rebellion against Huan Xuan and quickly attacked Jiankang, defeating Huan Xuan. He welcomed back Sima Dezong to the throne, but Liu Yu was not a noble family, His actions were not aimed at maintaining the balance of power between the aristocratic family and the imperial power, but rather to replace it and establish the Liu Song Dynasty, from which the Han people challenged the rule of the aristocratic family. This marks the official end of the feudal politics of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
Wild grass and flowers by the Vermilion Bird Bridge, the sunset at the entrance of Wuyi Alley, and the swallows in front of Wang Xie Hall in the old days flew into ordinary people’s homes. This is Wuyi Lane in Nanjing. Modern people can no longer see the past charm, and can only search for the traces of Wang and Xie in literature. The four major families, led by Wang and Jie, had Wang Dao and Xie An in the past. They established and maintained a feudal politics, ensuring the century long stability of the Eastern Jin Dynasty during the Central Plains Rebellion, promoting the development of the Yangtze River Basin in Jiangnan, and winning a stable living space for refugees in the north and people in the south. The coexistence of imperial power and nobility in governing the world is a reflection of the aristocratic politics of the pre Qin period. To some extent, they restricted the autocratic imperial power, achieved power balance, and thus stimulated the individuality of freedom for Wei and Jin people. With its ideology, it stirred up another wave of elegance in the Wei and Jin dynasties. At the same time, due to its high reputation and beautiful doorstep, it also promoted the high prosperity of literature and art. Although the Eastern Jin dynasty was not a period of political strength in Chinese history, However, it was an era of literature, art, and prosperity, but the aristocratic class could not open up new systems and only wanted to live a peaceful life and maintain the status quo. With the changes in the external situation, the lingering charm of the aristocratic class will eventually be blown away, and the swallows in front of the hall will eventually fly into the homes of ordinary people. The aristocratic politics will finally disappear and begin to return to the normal state of traditional imperial politics.
90 Seconds of History: Cutting Bamboo and Sinking Trees
In the spring of 499 AD, a group of soldiers appeared in the dense bamboo forest outside Xiangyang City. They were ordered to cut down bamboo together with the trees on the mountain, which were tied up and sunk into the deep lake. Only one person knew what these woods were used for. He was the Governor of Yongzhou, Xiao Yan. Soon after, Emperor Xiao Baojuan of Southern Qi believed the slander of the villains and sent people to raid Yongzhou City. The mystery of chopping bamboo and sinking wood was finally revealed. Xiao Yan immediately ordered the soldiers to retrieve Chen. These woods were equipped on warships, along with more than 10000 soldiers and horses. Under the leadership of Xiao Yan, a large army launched a campaign against Southern Qi and quickly captured the capital city of Jiankang. This was known as the famous campaign against bamboo and sunken wood, which also led the visionary Xiao Yan to eventually become Emperor Wu of Liang, who ruled over Xiao Liang.