My Sims of the Eastern Jin Dynasty

The next morning.

Just as Xiao Heng was about to continue his post, a military officer approached him with a document in hand.

"Effective immediately, you are being transferred to Commander Sun's office, temporarily taking charge of the accounting department, assisting with paperwork, and advising on military affairs. Report for duty immediately without delay!"

The military officer handed over the transfer order, glancing at the suddenly promoted halberd bearer with a hint of curiosity.

Xiao Heng accepted the document with both hands and hurriedly bowed.

"Yes, sir!"

As soon as I finished speaking, a line of information appeared in my mind.

[Significant changes detected in identity and historical node location]

[Current Event: Battle of Pengcheng]

[Historical line offset: Continuously rising]

Xiao Heng was slightly taken aback when he saw this message.

I've really gotten involved, but seeing the deviation rate keep rising makes me a little uneasy.

The document in my hand felt like a sword being slowly drawn from its sheath.

A simulation was quickly conducted.

[Start Historical Simulation]

[Simulation attempts consumed: 1]

[Current number of attempts remaining: 15]

The text unfolds as usual.

You've started your new job with your clerical skills...

[Simulation Ended]

[Historical Participation Rate: 5%]

[Historical Points Gained: 5]

[Evaluation: You stepped through the door of history, but left very few footprints.]

Seeing the simulation, Xiao Heng was speechless. It was too easy, just like when he first entered the camp.

It seems there's a significant lack of intelligence, but the points given are substantial, increasing from 1 to 5.

After putting away the transfer order, Xiao Heng packed his bags and headed to Sun Wuzhong's camp to report for duty.

The news spread quickly, and many sons of prominent families in the same camp cast complicated glances at them.

There was surprise, jealousy, and undisguised sarcasm.

A person who was just standing guard with a halberd was directly promoted to the position of chief clerk, which is already a promotion of several levels.

Xiao Heng ignored the whispers and gossip behind his back.

However, as soon as Xiao Heng stepped into the right camp area under Sun Wuzhong's jurisdiction, he noticed something was amiss.

The atmosphere in the camp was completely different from when he had visited before.

It was no longer just drills and shouts, but rather a flurry of activity before battle.

Soldiers rushed in and out, quickly assembling and reporting to several designated camps.

Xiao Heng roughly understood that this was no longer the auxiliary battalion that was mainly responsible for guarding and reconnaissance.

Sun Wuzhong, the military advisor, has probably been entrusted with an important task. Judging from his current situation, he has probably formed his own battalion. Currently, only Liu Laozhi in the army has this kind of treatment.

He didn't linger and went straight to the central command tent.

The curtains were rolled up high, and the sounds of people inside were somewhat noisy.

What's even more striking is that a short queue had formed outside the tent, with several clerk-like officers directing soldiers to carry stacks of heavy documents, maps, and other documents into the tent, almost filling one side of the entrance.

"Sanlang! We've been waiting for you!"

A loud greeting came from inside the tent.

Sun Wuzhong parted the crowd and came out to greet them.

Her face was filled with excitement, a stark contrast to her previous indifference towards him.

Congratulations, Brother Sun!

Xiao Heng hurriedly clasped his hands in congratulations.

Sun Wuzhong laughed after hearing this, and pulled Xiao Heng into the tent.

"It seems this matter cannot be kept from Sanlang; Commander Xie has decided to launch a surprise attack on Liucheng! I have been designated as the main vanguard, and the army must be assembled and set off in ten days!"

Xiao Heng was somewhat impressed by Xie Xuan when he heard that the attack on Liucheng was led by Sun Wuzhong.

This person is indeed as recorded in history, unconventional and his main task this time was to relieve the siege. Liu Laozhi probably went to Pengcheng.

Sun Wuzhong didn't notice Xiao Heng's momentary daze and sped up his speech.

"Time is of the essence! I am now in command of a battalion, and the myriad military documents, the accounting of provisions and equipment, the marching routes, the intelligence gathering, and the liaison and coordination with the central army and other units... all these are urgent matters! The previous assistants were incompetent and I do not trust them!"

"Sanlang, you're quick-witted. I managed to get you this position in the planning department. I'll entrust you with all the paperwork, documents, and advisory work! Old Xu will help you familiarize yourself with it, but you'll be in charge! You'll temporarily serve as the military commander-in-chief. Military matters are urgent, and there's no room for error or delay! Can you handle this?"

Xiao Heng's gaze swept over the mountain of documents, then looked at the old Xu in the tent, whose hair was almost all gone, and cursed inwardly.

Damn it! What kind of planning office is this?! That old fox, Sun Wuzhong.

That guy with thick eyebrows and big eyes, he's really shrewd with his calculations! And he's really ruthless with his methods!

Did you have to beg for this position? And now you've been promoted again, becoming the Viceroy's Assistant.

In his view, this was like turning him into a personal butler.

Seeing that Xiao Heng didn't react for a long time, Sun Wuzhong was about to speak when he was interrupted.

Xiao Heng also saw the opportunity in it. Although it was a tough job, it was also a key position that led directly to the core military secrets!

All movements, intelligence, and resource allocation of the vanguard will pass through his hands.

He suppressed the complex emotions churning within him, met Sun Wuzhong's gaze, straightened his back, clasped his hands in a deep voice, and made no excuses or hesitations.

"Sanlang will do his utmost to live up to Sima's trust!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Wuzhong's face showed satisfaction.

"Good! I didn't misjudge you! Elder Xu, you assist Xiao's office in compiling the most urgent military supplies and provisions registers first! I'll go muster the troops!"

After saying that, he turned and left, not wanting to stay there for even a moment longer.

Xiao Heng did not slack off and immediately started working, checking, calculating, classifying, and recording.

On the first day, with Xu Tou's initial passive response turning into slightly admiring cooperation, Xiao Heng stayed up late into the night and finally compiled the roster and basic organization of the troops going to war. Although it was rough, at least he had a clear understanding of the situation.

I was woken up less than two hours after my eyelids had closed.

Old Xu rushed into Xiao Heng's tent and began urging him on.

"The grain transport officer from the rear camp came to verify the quantity of the first batch of rations shipped, and there was a discrepancy with the accounts!"

Xiao Heng mustered his strength and personally went to the grain storage area, leading his men to re-record the grain by the bushel.

......

The next day, before dawn, they received a message from the clerk of the rear army's armory, saying that the number of arrows and spare armor plates allocated to Sun Wuzhong's troops was insufficient and of inconsistent quality.

Xiao Heng had no choice but to drag his tired body to the destination. Facing those corrupt and old officials, he argued with them, even bringing up Sun Wuzhong and the military order that was about to be dispatched. He argued until his face turned red, and he barely managed to get enough equipment of relatively good quality.

For five whole days, Xiao Heng was as busy as a spinning top.

Coordination, arguing, checking, calculating, appeasing, urging...

It's not just about processing paperwork, but also about learning all the explicit and implicit rules of military logistics operations in this era.

Xiao Heng felt that he was still destined to be a working-class person, and he felt strangely excited when he was busy.

But Xiao Heng never dared to forget the shift in history.

On the eve of departure, just when Xiao Heng thought the most complicated preparations were finally over.

A transfer order from Yin Zhongkan, the chief clerk of the central army, was handed directly to him.

Old Xu, who was standing to the side, shook his head after seeing this.

"Why is the Chief Clerk doing this? Why am I being sent to supervise the rear camp?"

Xiao Heng looked at the transfer order in his hand with great confusion.

At that moment, the tent flap was suddenly flung open.

Sun Wuzhong stepped inside, his usual hearty smile gone.

He pulled a sealed roll of thick paper from his pocket, and without even glancing at the transfer order in Xiao Heng's hand, he walked straight to the simple wooden table piled with documents and swept most of the clutter off the table.

"Old Xu, guard the tent entrance. No one is allowed to approach within ten paces."

Sun Wuzhong gave the order without turning his head.

Old Xu, who had been pretending to doze off in the corner, suddenly woke up with a jolt. He silently hunched over and quickly moved outside the tent.

When Sun Wuzhong unrolled that thick roll of paper, Xiao Heng knew that this was no ordinary document.

Instead, it was a finely drawn map, the ink still fresh.

But seeing the logo in the picture surprised me instantly.

The first marker, sharp as a chisel, points diagonally northward from Sikou Daying, directly towards Liucheng.

He could understand this; it must be Sun Wuzhong's task.

The second marker is drawn from the southeast of Pengcheng, at the top of the outer perimeter of Pengcheng, facing the black line representing the Qin army's encirclement.

The main one is the third sign...

It meanders out from the darker east of Pengcheng, lurking insidiously behind the mountain passes between Liucheng and Pengcheng.

He suddenly looked up at Sun Wuzhong.

"Do you understand?"

Before he could reply, Sun Wuzhong sighed.

"These three thousand men originally served as the rear guard under Military Advisor He, but now..."

"Xie Shuai believes he can do it."

Sun Wuzhong twitched the corners of his mouth, revealing an almost bleak smile.

"The military order has been given. My mission is to lure Peng Chao's main force out of Pengcheng. As for whether He Qian's blade will fall on time..."

He paused, not continuing, but the danger lurked in his unspoken words.

"This is... a lone wolf venturing deep into enemy territory, using himself as bait."

This was not just a risky undertaking; it was a gamble with the lives of himself and his three thousand men, on the absolute precision of friendly forces and the anticipation that the enemy would inevitably comply.

There may have been similar tactics in history, but in actual execution, any delay or change in any link is enough to bring Sun Wuzhong's troops to their doom.

The mission itself wasn't particularly difficult; the challenge lay in the fact that half of Sun Wuzhong's retreat route had become a battlefield.

At this moment, Xiao Heng stopped complaining and carefully searched the map for a reliable retreat route. Soon, his gaze swept to Lanling County in the east.

[Deep Simulation Startup]

[Core condition set: Sun Wuzhong's troops withdraw from Lanling]

[Historical points invested in this simulation: 8]

[Simulation Start]

What appeared before me was no longer words, but a series of bloody battlefields.

Then a city appeared, and all the images disappeared.

[Simulation ended (insufficient points to simulate to the final ending)]

[The main prediction is that Sun Wuzhong's troops will retreat to Lanling as originally planned, but will face extreme danger with obstacles in front, pursuers behind, and exposed flanks.]

[WARNING: Due to deep involvement and alterations to the perceptions of key figures and the course of events, the certainty of this historical period has been significantly reduced.]

Seeing the simulation results, Xiao Heng gave up. Sun Wuzhong was completely surrounded, and whether he could survive depended entirely on his own fate.

Now that he has to go to the battlefield, the position of the rear guard is crucial.

Where is the rear guard stationed?

Sun Wuzhong rubbed his temples and shook his head.

"Brother Sun, this journey to Liucheng is fraught with peril, with nine out of ten chances of survival. The military order has been given, and I will not hesitate to die for it. I, Heng, will also obey the orders of the Chief Clerk!"

Sun Wuzhong's brows furrowed sharply.

"However, in order to adapt to the changing battlefield situation, and to ensure the success of the vanguard's strategy while also protecting the safety of the rear supply lines, I, Heng, humbly request the following!"

"speak!"

"All soldiers, laborers, carts, horses, provisions, and weapons of the rear army, from the time they leave the Sikou camp until they meet with the vanguard commander Sima or receive new orders, shall be under my sole command in all matters concerning marching, encampment, guard duty, and relocation."

The air seemed to freeze.

This is a blatant demand for independent command, a request to carve out an autonomous enclave under Sun Wuzhong's vanguard system, one that he absolutely controls.

Sun Wuzhong narrowed his eyes and stared at Xiao Heng.

"Well done, Xiao Sanlang! He approved the delivery of provisions and supplies to all of these places!"

"The lives of these three thousand men, and this immense achievement, now hang in your hands. You'd better watch yourself!"

"..."