My Sims of the Eastern Jin Dynasty

A fierce battle ensued.

Deng Jing was hit in the left shoulder by an arrow. Leaning on his knife, he staggered back towards the water's edge.

Of the personal guards who had followed him for many years, only two remained.

In the distance, the faint sound of horses' hooves could be heard, and Deng Jing knew that Murong Yan had returned!

He abandoned his last shred of hope; the matter was too suspicious and involved Murong Yan and Fu Fang.

Before he went to war, his father advised him to resign from his post in the Imperial Guard and told him that although the court seemed calm, there were actually undercurrents.

He encountered a stray arrow as soon as he arrived in Pengcheng, which nearly cost him his life.

In retrospect, these events seem too coincidental; some people are trying to kill him.

After glancing at his two guards, who were covered in blood, Deng Jing knew that if he didn't leave now, he would never be able to leave again.

He gritted his teeth, turned around abruptly, rushed towards the dock, and leaped onto it with all his might.

Seeing that he had boarded the ship, the two guards forced back the enemies in front of them and rushed into the ship. One of them cut the mooring rope with all his might, while the other picked up a wooden oar and rowed desperately.

The small boat wobbled away from the shore and headed towards the fog-shrouded sea.

"Fire! Don't let him escape!"

At this moment, Chigan Hun also arrived, his furious voice echoing across the dock.

A few arrows were shot, most of which fell into the water, while a few stuck to the ship's planks.

Shortly after the small boat disappeared into the sea fog, before Chiganhun on the dock even had time to catch his breath or think about his next move, the sound of horses' hooves arrived.

Murong Yan took the lead and reined in his horse at the edge of the dock.

His gaze first swept over the wrecked ground and the disappearing ship on the sea before finally settling on Chigan Hun, whose face was still contorted with rage.

There were no questions asked, and no explanations were heard.

"Snapped!"

The whip lashed hard across Chiganhun's face!

Chigan Hun screamed in pain as he covered his face and staggered backward, one of his eyes unable to open due to the blow.

"General Murong?! It was Deng Jing who came first..."

"Fool! Traitor!"

"Blinded by personal grudges, you recklessly resorted to violence; your crime deserves death!"

He completely ignored Chigan Hun's attempt to defend himself and instead shouted at those around him.

"Chigan Hun and his followers have instigated a rebellion, a crime tantamount to treason! Arrest them all, disarm them, detain them, and place them under strict guard! If they make any disturbance, kill them without exception!"

Give the order.

Murong Yan's personal guards quickly disarmed themselves and pinned everyone to the ground.

Chigan Hun himself tried to struggle and scream, but a guard struck him hard on the neck with a scabbard, and he groaned and passed out.

After quickly bringing the situation at the dock under control, Murong Yan's anger subsided slightly, and he immediately put on a sorrowful expression.

He dismounted and strode towards the several wounded Imperial Guards soldiers lying on the dock.

"Quick! Save them!"

"These are all loyal and brave men who followed General Deng in fighting to protect their leader! Spare no effort to save them!"

He personally bent down to examine the wounds of a wounded soldier, and even wiped the blood off the soldier's face with the corner of his sleeve.

This action quickly defined the nature of the bloody fire that had just taken place.

"Pass on my orders!"

Murong Yan stood up.

"The traitor Chigan Hun, who committed treason, has been captured and executed! General Deng Jing has unfortunately been attacked and his whereabouts are unknown, a great loss to our army! Martial law shall be immediately declared throughout the city, and the remaining rebels shall be wiped out! Furthermore, all fast horses and ships shall be dispatched immediately to search along the coast for General Deng's whereabouts! We must find him alive, or... his body!"

"..."

Meanwhile, ten miles outside the city, behind a sheltered hill.

More than two thousand soldiers from Tan County silently disappeared into the deepening twilight.

Xiao Heng stood on a high slope, looking southeast with a slight frown.

Since arriving here in the afternoon, he has sent out three groups of scouts, but there is still no news of Xu Xianzhi or Lu Da.

"Fu Jun."

With a soft call, Lu Ming came up from the bottom of the slope.

"how?"

Xiao Heng turned around and asked.

"It has been ascertained that the garrison is extremely sparse! There are no more than two hundred armored and armed men. There are signs of fighting in the city, especially in the east. Bloodstains have not been cleared, and only a few damaged boats have been found."

"Two hundred? Signs of a fight?"

It was far emptier than he had anticipated, but also more bizarre.

What about the Xianbei army? Yesterday there was news that everything was normal, but now...

Xiao Heng had already considered the worst-case scenario.

Regardless of the reason, this county town presents an opportunity that cannot be missed, as it will not come again.

Xiao Heng closed his eyes, his mind sinking into his thoughts.

The ancient books have fallen silent; he hasn't used deep simulation since he became governor last time.

Seeing that he still had over 300 points left, Xiao Heng decided to be on the safe side and use it only once.

[Start deep simulation!]

[All historical points invested: 100 points!]

[Objective: Capture the city!]

[Simulation begins...]

Option 1 (Dawn Assault on the West Gate): Successfully breach the gate, with sporadic resistance, and clear the entire city within an hour.

Option 2 (split troops for a feigned attack, while the main force launches a surprise attack on the east gate): The defending troops will collapse after a brief resistance, and the battle will end in half an hour.

Option 3 (Surrounding three sides and leaving one open, psychological pressure): Some of the defending troops escape by boat from the east gate, while others surrender. The situation can be resolved in two hours.

Option 4 (send assassins to infiltrate and create chaos): highly effective, the defending troops collapse on their own, with minimal casualties.

Option 5 (wait until noon and persuade them to surrender openly and honestly): ...and it actually succeeded.

……

Option 8 (send 200 men to make a feigned attack while the main force lies in ambush outside, preparing to "counter-ambush" Murong Yan): As a result, the Xianbei people did not appear at all, and the 200 men still managed to scare the city away.

Xiao Heng's consciousness was stunned by what he saw in the simulation.

This is hardly a siege.

This is clearly going to take over an empty city that has already collapsed on its own!

The worst-case scenario he anticipated never occurred during the simulation.

The huge information gap made all his previous anxiety and caution seem... somewhat superfluous.

[Simulation forcibly terminated!]

[Historical Points Consumed: 69]

[Excess points returned: 31]

[Assessment: Based on the current state of the garrison in Qu County, any direct military pressure could lead to their complete collapse. Minimum requirement: a regular army of no less than 500 men launching a serious attack during the day.]

[Final recommendation: No need for complicated tactics, just go straight for A.]

[Warning: The simulation did not detect Murong Yan's main force within a one-day travel time. However, this judgment is based on the assumption that "it did not appear within the simulated time period," and there is a very small probability of error.]

Xiao Heng opened his eyes, his expression quite interesting. First, he was stunned, then relieved, and finally, he turned into a helpless self-mockery.

"Am I... overestimating them?"

Xiao Heng muttered to himself, rubbing his throbbing temples.

With nearly seventy historical points, all I got was this one honest statement: the other side is utterly rotten, just push them down.

But the points were well spent, completely dispelling his last doubts. The sense of security he felt, with the overall situation under control, was something that no amount of scout intelligence could provide.

He no longer hesitated.

"Chen Da! Liu Dan!"

"exist!"

The two responded and came out.

"Order the entire army to eat their fill immediately, inspect their weapons and armor, and rest on the spot. Prepare food at the end of Chou hour (1-3 AM), and assemble to depart at the beginning of Yin hour (3-5 AM)!"

"Chen Da, you lead 500 men as the vanguard, target the west city wall! Liu Dan, you lead 800 men as the central army, closely following the vanguard, and control the other city gates after entering the city!"

"..."

The army prepared in silence.

Time passed slowly, and at 3 a.m., the team headed straight for Qu County, ten miles away.

The journey was exceptionally smooth; they didn't even encounter a single Xianbei cavalryman.

This anomaly only made Xiao Heng more certain that there were indeed not many people in the city.

The sky is just before dawn, which is the darkest and most relaxed time of day.

The low outline of the city wall of Qu County came into view, with a few lonely torches flickering in the morning breeze on the city wall. The figures of the sentries on duty were blurry, and they all seemed to be dozing off.

"Now!"

"Capture the city—!"

Chen Da led dozens of veterans, shields in hand, and charged towards the west gate first!

Behind them were auxiliary soldiers who had just been trained for half a month, with all sorts of weapons in their hands, but none of them carried a simple wooden shield made of bamboo strips.

Liu Dan's archers followed behind these men, their arrows already nocked, keeping a close watch on any movement on the city wall.

At the very back were several team leaders trained by Xiao Heng. These people carried only a bamboo spear as their weapon, with the better ones having various iron implements attached to it.

"Enemy attack—!"

The commotion was quickly noticed by the garrison, but it was too late!

The few scattered guards hurriedly fired arrows, but they were unable to stop them at all.

Chen Da took the lead and was the first to climb up the city wall using the grappling hooks. With a flash of his blade, he cut down a guard.

The battle, if it can even be called a battle, was almost a one-sided crushing defeat.

The defending troops were already few in number, and it was still before dawn, so their morale collapsed instantly.

The few who resisted were quickly quelled, while the majority abandoned their weapons and fled into the city.

In less than a quarter of an hour, Chen Da and his men opened the city gate.

"The door's open! Charge in!"

"Charge!"

Xiao Heng also rode into the city, issuing orders as he went.

"Order all units to proceed according to plan! Control the four gates and wipe out the remaining enemy forces. Anyone caught looting in the chaos should be executed on the spot!"

The command was executed swiftly.

The large army moved with perfect coordination, splitting into different directions.

The resistance was so weak as to be negligible.

Xiao Heng, surrounded by his personal guards, arrived at the former Wang family villa.

The courtyard gate was wide open, and the inside was a mess, but there was no one there.

"Report! The dock is under control, all the ships are in my hands, and not a single person has escaped!"

"Report! The treasury has been sealed off; it contains a quantity of grain, fodder, and military equipment!"

"Report! All four gates are under control; no organized enemy troops have been detected within the city!"

"Report! Sixty horses have been discovered in the north of the city, including twenty warhorses!"

One piece of good news after another came in, so smoothly that Xiao Heng was almost in a daze.

At this moment, the ancient book in Xiao Heng's mind began to flip through again.

[Achievement Completed: Showing Initial Potential]

[Historical Impact Assessment: Your surprise attack to seize the city has left a mark on the curtain of history, which is now being observed by more and more people.]

[Actually controls and firmly occupies the county-level administrative unit: Qu County]

[Reward: 100 History Points]

Before Xiao Heng could even feel happy, Chen Da hurriedly entered the courtyard.

"Fu-kun!"

"Something's fishy at the docks... In a dilapidated courtyard by the river, there are dozens of barbarian prisoners, bound tightly. Judging from their attire, they seem to be Xianbei soldiers!"

"Um?"

"Bring it over."

Soon, dozens of Xianbei prisoners with their hands tied behind their backs were brought into the courtyard.

The man in the lead was none other than Chigan Hun.

Xiao Heng walked up to him, examined the whip marks on his face and the ropes binding his body, and slowly spoke.

"Who are you? Why are you tied up here?"

Chiganhun looked up at the young Jin general before him, knowing that his life or death was in the other's hands.

"I...I am Chigan Hun, the chieftain under General Murong...no, Murong Yan! I've been framed! That scoundrel Murong Yan framed me! He wanted to kill General Deng Jing, and he even tried to kill me to silence me!"

Upon hearing this, the entire courtyard was shocked; Deng Jing had been killed.

Most of the people here have seen Deng Jing.

Xiao Heng was not surprised; Deng Jing had most likely offended someone, or rather, his father had offended someone.

"Explain in detail! If even half a word is false, you will be executed on the spot!"

Under Chen Da's knife-point pressure, Chi Ganhun spilled the beans, recounting how Deng Jing had secretly injured him the previous night, how he was forced to retaliate, and how Murong Yan had suddenly returned to the city and, without explanation, whipped and captured him and his men. Of course, in his version, he was completely innocent, and it was all Deng Jing's provocation and Murong Yan's framing.

After listening, Xiao Heng exchanged a glance with Lu Mingchen beside him.

Although Chigan Hun's words are bound to be biased, they make sense in light of the current situation.

"Place him in solitary confinement and keep him under strict guard; the other prisoners shall be taken into custody separately."

Xiao Heng neither killed nor released the man; he was still useful, and might even be able to recruit a descendant of a famous general.

......