My Sims of the Eastern Jin Dynasty

Donghai Commandery, Huaipu County.

During the Xia, Shang, and Western Zhou dynasties, the Huaiyi (a tribal group active in the Huai River basin in ancient China, belonging to the Dongyi group) lived and hunted in this area. During the Eastern Zhou dynasty, this area was a major region of contention between Wu and Yue.

When the Qin Dynasty established the Donghai Commandery, this area had a clear boundary.

When Emperor Wu of Han expanded the borders, Huaipu County was established, belonging to Linhuai Commandery, and later it was transferred to Donghai and Guangling.

When Yongjia fled south, the Jin dynasty was in a panic. This place, along with its name, was relocated to the misty waters of Jiangnan. The homeland left in the north gradually faded from the sight of the high-ranking officials.

At this moment, Xiao Heng stood on the dilapidated city wall of Huaipu County, gazing into the southwest.

The probing attack on Sikou a few days ago immediately provoked a fierce reaction. The Huaiyin garrison commander reacted quickly, sending elite cavalry to attack Xiao Heng, while the infantry behind them were on high alert, ready to defend Sikou to the death. If their mere few thousand men were to be engaged deep behind enemy lines, and Peng Chao's reinforcements or even the main force of Huaiyin were to surround them, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Xiao Heng decisively ordered a retreat without hesitation. He needed more soldiers, more food supplies, and a stable, repositionable stronghold.

Huaipu, a county town that has endured many hardships and is now almost forgotten, became the temporary base he chose.

The messenger, carrying his orders, rushed north to Qu County, instructing Chen Daqian to gather as many combat-ready troops as possible in various locations, escort grain and supplies, and head south to Huaipu to rendezvous.

Xiao Heng's idea was simple: he wanted to fight a protracted war here with Shao Bao and the Pengcheng reinforcements that might be heading south.

The county town was now eerily silent. Murong Yan's troops had taken or destroyed almost everything they could, leaving behind only ruins and stray dogs. The air was still thick with desolation and a faint smell of blood, devoid of any human presence.

They saw that there were troops stationed there, and the people from nearby villages followed the troops into the city.

Xiao Heng was patrolling the city with his personal guards when, unknowingly, he arrived at a relatively well-preserved mansion in the west of the city.

The plaque above the door is gone, and only one vermilion gate remains, but the stone beasts in front of the door, the tall courtyard wall, and the vaguely visible courtyard layout still show the former prominence of this family.

"Whose house is this?"

Xiao Heng asked casually.

An old official who had been recruited not long ago stepped forward, squinted at him, thought for a moment, and then respectfully replied.

"Your Excellency, this is the former residence of the Chen family. I heard that they were a prominent clan from the previous dynasty, who had lived here for generations. Unfortunately, when the barbarian cavalry came, they resisted fiercely, and the entire clan perished. I fear they are likely to die a horrible death, and the house was severely damaged."

"The Chen family?"

Xiao Heng's heart stirred slightly, and he stepped inside.

The house was indeed dilapidated, but the foundation was still intact.

The beams and pillars in the front hall are thick, and the rockery in the courtyard, though dilapidated, still retains its elegance. Although the study in the back house was ransacked and the bookshelves collapsed, the building itself is quite sturdy.

"Pack up quickly; this will serve as our temporary camp!"

Xiao Heng instructed that this place was more secluded and fortified than the county government office, making it a good command post.

The soldiers immediately began to clean up. While cleaning a side room in the back of the house that seemed to be used as a clan school or library, several soldiers found a few relatively intact old books under the collapsed bookshelves and carefully presented them to Xiao Heng.

Xiao Heng took it, brushed the dust off the cover. The book was a handwritten copy, the pages were yellowed, the edges were damaged, and the ink was somewhat blurred.

Judging from the content, it seems to be a primer for children, interspersed with local customs, the origins of surnames, and basic historical and geographical knowledge. It should have been compiled by the family for their children's early education.

He casually flipped through the pages, his gaze sweeping over the brief accounts of the evolution of Huaipu and the old stories of the East China Sea.

Suddenly, a few lines of writing on a fragment of a page recounting local notables caught his attention.

"Among the outstanding talents of our hometown, the foremost is Chen Yuanlong, a man from the late Han Dynasty. His given name was Deng, and his courtesy name was Yuanlong. He was a native of Huaipu in Xiapi. From a young age, he possessed great ambition and was generous and forthright. He was recommended as a filial and incorruptible official and served as the magistrate of Dongyang and the governor of Guangling. He assisted Cao Cao in defeating Lü Bu and was appointed General Fubo. He was very popular in the Jianghuai region and had the ambition to conquer the south. In Guangling, he was clear in his rewards and punishments and his prestige was widely known. He died at the age of thirty-nine..."

General Fubo, Chen Deng, Chen Yuanlong.

Xiao Heng's fingers, which were holding the book pages, paused slightly. So it was Chen Deng. But he only remembered that this man had tricked Lü Bu badly. Now, reading this brief record, a strange ripple couldn't help but rise in his heart.

According to this record, Chen Deng once guarded the Jianghuai region and was renowned for his prestige. He had the ambition to conquer Wu, but he died young. Such a figure is only mentioned briefly in history.

Xiao Heng closed the tattered book and looked around at the dusty and scarred beams and walls. It was as if he could see through time the scene of the Chen family members reciting the deeds of their ancestors and inspiring their ambitions here in the past.

"Chen Yuanlong!"

Xiao Heng murmured a sentence, a complex and unfathomable look flashing in his eyes, and then shook his head.

"We still need to keep working hard!"

Leaving the study, Xiao Heng looked at the busy soldiers and gave them a deep order.

"Clean carefully and check for any other documents or books, especially maps and local chronicles, and preserve them carefully."

"..."

at night.

The candlelight flickered in the study, which had been tidied up a bit. In front of him were books he had collected from various places during the day, mostly fragments of elementary education and miscellaneous notes on local customs. They were of some help in understanding the geography and hydrology of Huaipu and even the old stories of the Chen family, but they were of no help to him in the Huai-Si region map that he urgently needed.

"In the end, these are just things for enlightenment. When war breaks out, the truly important books are either taken away or destroyed in the chaos of war."

Xiao Heng rubbed his temples, tossed aside a thin booklet describing the seasonal sacrifices in Huaipu, and couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.

The last time we were able to win was thanks to that detailed nautical chart that could even calculate the tide times. Now, in this Huai-Si region, which is crisscrossed by waterways and has a complex terrain that even the locals find troublesome, a heavy rain can change the course of the rivers. Moreover, there are no landmark hills around, and everywhere is covered with reeds, so it feels the same no matter where you go.

His mind sank into his sea of ​​consciousness, where ancient, book-like phantoms floated silently. The cooldown period for the exploration function had ended a few days ago, but Xiao Heng hadn't used it. The last sea chart belonged to the navigation experience accumulated by the ancient people in the vicinity. Xu Xianzhi must have explored the potential of the character that time.

This was his original plan to try his luck in Huaiyin City, after all, it was the place where a military genius came from...

"We have no choice but to take a gamble. If it doesn't work, we still have one more designated exploration opportunity!"

[Start the exploration]

The book shimmered with golden light, but contained no words; instead, a blurry image emerged.

It was a silhouette, a young man, dressed simply in a blue robe, intently flipping through a book in a humble room. On the table were other papers covered with densely written symbols and diagrams.

"A person? A civil official?"

Before Xiao Heng could get a good look, the scene shifted slightly, and the young man was no longer at the desk, but in a place filled with various pieces of wood, tools, and some oddly shaped wooden components. He was holding a piece of wood and a few simple tools, fiddling with them, sometimes frowning in thought, sometimes showing a look of sudden realization, his fingers nimble and steady.

"Carpentry?"

However, the scene didn't end there. The camera slowly zoomed out, revealing more details of the young man's environment. It was a seemingly ordinary courtyard, but on the ground at the edge of the frame, simple lines drawn with stones or charcoal vaguely formed a strange outline...

Just as Xiao Heng was trying to see the details clearly, the whole scene trembled slightly, and the character "祖" at the edge lit up with a faint light. Although it was not dazzling, it had a peculiar penetrating power, as if emphasizing its existence.

Immediately afterwards, all the images vanished like ripples on water.

The ancient book closed, and a line of information appeared.

[Successful Exploration]

You have glimpsed key figures connected to the historical potential of this era.

[Exploration feature enters cooldown period: 30 days]

"Character clues? 'Ancestor'?"

Xiao Heng withdrew from his sea of ​​consciousness and suddenly opened his eyes, the candlelight flickering in them.

Zu Chongzhi?!

Pi?

Xiao Heng's heart began to race.

He immediately got up and walked to the map of the Huaipu area that he had roughly prepared during the day.

With their eyes fixed on Huaipu County, they quickly found a location based on the clues in the book.

"It won't be too far!"

"It's over thirty li, and you can make a round trip in a day."

"Someone come here!"

Xiao Heng shouted in a deep voice.

The guards entered immediately.

"Summon Commandant Han!"

A moment later, Han Yong rushed over and was shocked to hear that Xiao Heng was going to personally lead a small number of cavalry away from the city to a village whose whereabouts were unknown.

"My lord! No! We need to find someone! This humble general is willing to go in your stead!"

Xiao Heng waved his hand, his tone firm.

"This person is no ordinary individual; I need to go and confirm it myself. After I leave, you will be fully responsible for the defense of Huaipu. Don't worry, Shao Bao is very cautious and won't easily pursue us!"

Seeing that Xiao Heng's mind was made up and that everything was arranged, Han Yong knew he could no longer persuade him, so he could only clasp his hands in a deep fist salute:

"Your humble servant obeys! I will ensure the safety of Huaipu! Your Excellency, please be extremely careful!"

As night deepened, the gates of Huaipu City quietly opened, and Xiao Heng led twenty cavalrymen on a swift journey northwest.