My Sims of the Eastern Jin Dynasty

The silence on the river lasted for about ten breaths.

Within those ten breaths, the hustle and bustle of Jiankang City on the opposite bank suddenly disappeared.

The nobles scrambling for cabins on the docks forgot to push and shove, the military supervisor gazing into the distance from the city walls forgot to stroke his beard, and the ministers arguing in the palace forgot to use flowery language.

Until a wave crashed in, carrying up a tattered piece of black armor, which slapped against the side of the Imperial Guard's warship with a loud crack.

The sound was like breaking a spell.

On the Imperial Guard's warship, the captain suddenly realized what was happening.

"Quickly, go salvage it!"

On the dock, the scholar whose copy of Zhuangzi had been trampled into the mud suddenly bent down and, trembling, dug out the soaked pages from the mud. The writing on them was a smudged mess.

He stared at the stain, then suddenly looked up at the still-unsettled whirlpool in the middle of the river.

"Zhuang Zhou! Zhuang Zhou—!"

He glanced around at the fleeing crowd, then looked down at the stained books in his arms, and suddenly burst into maniacal laughter, a shrill and agonizing laugh.

"All living beings are going to their deaths, and all you see is life and death! Do you even know this word, this word!"

His trembling fingers wiped away the smudged words, his voice suddenly becoming sharp.

"This word is more important than life itself!!"

The refugees around him avoided him as if he were a madman.

No one could understand what he was yelling.

He eventually collapsed in the mud, clutching his books, gazing at the surging river, and muttering to himself.

"The Way is lost! The Way is lost..."

He murmured, unsure whether he was referring to the Qin soldiers who had jumped into the river, or to himself clutching the soiled pages of the book.

Inside the palace of the imperial palace, the arguments about moving the capital and the southern tour also ceased.

"Gentlemen! Do you see?! It's not that the Hu horses can't cross the river! It's that they chose not to cross, preferring death to a life of dishonor!"

The hall was filled with people in crimson and purple robes, but no one answered.

Only Sima Yao asked a question with a hint of doubt.

"Why...did they jump down themselves?"

Yes, why?

In the riverside shantytown, the limping old soldier silently grabbed a handful of wet mud from the riverbank and slowly smeared it on his face.

His grandson, who was standing beside him, was so frightened that he forgot to cry. Among the neighbors, someone quietly stuffed the packed bundle back under the bed.

On the banks of the Qinhuai River, the old man selling bean soup finally boiled in his pot, steaming with white vapor. He scooped up a spoonful and gently poured it onto the ground towards the river.

"Respect those who are not afraid of death."

On the Jiangxin, aboard Xiao Heng's flagship.

Liu Laozhi's speedboat approached, and the fierce general showed no joy of victory on his face, only deep fatigue and confusion.

"Is that all?"

He leaped onto the deck.

"I chased them for a whole day and night, and this is what they show me?"

Xiao Heng didn't turn around; he continued to gaze at the river.

"Is this satisfactory?"

Liu Laozhi scoffed.

"Defeat is defeat. What kind of behavior is jumping into the river!"

Xiao Heng turned around and slowly walked towards the bow of the ship.

"That's because fate won't allow it. They're defying fate, so they're risking their lives to question it. They're not afraid of death, so why would they be afraid of this river?"

Liu Laozhi opened his mouth, but no words came out.

"Notify all ships to retrieve the bodies; don't let those scum steal them!"

Xiao Heng gave the order.

"Whether soldier or horse, all those who can be recovered should be buried together on the north bank, and a monument should be erected!"

"Erect a monument?"

Chen asked, puzzled.

Xiao Heng remained silent for a moment.

"Yes, erect a monument. Inscribe it the place where the Qin cavalry commander and two thousand soldiers perished on the river, without date or list of merits or demerits!"

Chen Da accepted the order and left. Liu Laozhi frowned, not understanding what Xiao Heng was going to do, but ultimately did not object.

Xiao Heng bent down and picked up the pair of heavy drumsticks on the deck. The red silk on the drumstick heads had been soaked by the river water and the color looked somewhat dull.

He walked to the side of the boat and gently placed the drumsticks into the river.

The red silk fluttered in the turbid stream, like two streaks of blood, and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"Both are difficult!"

He whispered to the empty river, his voice so soft that only he could hear it.

"You win!"

In the afternoon, Xie Xuan's army came from the direction of Guangling.

The army lined up on the outer edge of the riverbank.

Xie Xuan was not wearing armor, but only a dark blue robe, and rode his horse slowly to the water's edge.

Xiao Heng had already sent scouts to inform them of what had happened here. He looked down at the muddy riverbank. His accompanying guards wanted to remind him, but they saw that Xie Xuan had stopped and looked up at Jiankang.

The river was calm, and several Beifu warships were slowly moving downstream, with soldiers using long poles to dredge something.

Occasionally, black objects are dragged onto the ship's side; it's impossible to tell whether they are fragments of armor or corpses.

"Commander."

Liu Laozhi strode over and clasped his hands in a salute.

"The Qin general Ju Nan and his remaining two thousand cavalry all drowned themselves in the river here!"

Xie Xuan remained silent, watching as Xiao Heng's flagship slowly approached the north bank in the distance.

"Where is Xiao Sanlang?"

Xie Xuan asked a question on purpose.

"on board!"

Liu Laozhi pointed ahead.

"Two thousand iron cavalry! We'd rather sink to the bottom of the river than kneel before the south."

He looked toward Xiao Heng's flagship, which was docking.

"Send him to see me!"

After saying that, he turned his horse around and left the place.

On the flagship, Xiao Heng heard that Xie Xuan had arrived and hurriedly rushed to the shore without delay.

"Have you found them yet?"

He straightened his clothes and asked Chen Da a question.

"No!"

Xiao Heng nodded, took off the sword from his waist and handed it to Chen Da, then jumped onto the small boat that had been prepared in advance.

As they disembarked, they saw Xie Xuan standing alone on a rock on the riverbank, gazing at Jiankang City on the opposite shore.

The afternoon sun cast a false golden glow on the city, and the docks returned to a certain order, as if the morning's escape was just a farce.

"This humble general, Xiao Heng, pays his respects to the Commander-in-Chief."

Xiao Heng approached and respectfully clasped his hands in greeting.

Xie Xuan did not turn around.

"Why did you personally beat the drum?"

Xiao Heng was taken aback, then gave a wry smile.

"yes..."

Before Xiao Heng could finish speaking, Xie Xuan drew his long sword and pointed it at him.

"Disturbing the capital and shaking public morale, this is a capital offense!"

Xiao Heng neither dodged nor avoided the attack. He didn't believe Xie Xuan would cut him like that, and pondered for a moment.

"This humble general merely feels...pathetic!"

Why?

"The river defenses are too lax; what if the Qin army really..."

Xie Xuan looked at him quietly.

Then Xiao Heng added humbly.

"This humble general had already sent a message to the defending troops before the battle, but..."

A sudden gust of wind blew, causing the two men's robes to flutter loudly.

Xie Xuan's arm, which was holding the sword, must have gotten tired, because the longsword fell right at Xiao Heng's feet.

Xiao Heng suddenly took a step back, but quickly picked up the longsword and respectfully held it up with both hands.

Xiao Heng remained silent for a long time before speaking in a low voice.

"Jiankang...some people want to see you!"

Xiao Heng suddenly looked up, then quickly looked down again.

That's the truth. When he beat the drums, he just wanted to wake up the sleeping city. He didn't care whether it would be more lucid or more insane after waking up.

Seeing that he hadn't replied for a long time, Xie Xuan looked at the boats still being salvaged in the middle of the river.

"Jiankang's illness is not in Hu Ma, nor in the Yangtze River!"

He paused, then looked at Xiao Heng.

"What you did today has served as a reminder to them; whether it was a merit or a demerit will be judged by others!"

Xiao Heng felt a chill run down his spine.

Xie Xuan suddenly smiled, but the smile was very faint.

"To be able to anticipate the enemy's moves is truly no easy feat!"

As he walked down the rocks and brushed past Xiao Heng, he patted Xiao Heng's shoulder armor.

"Pack your things, and come with me to the capital!"

Xiao Heng stood frozen in place.

Xie Xuan had already walked towards the waiting guards, his voice carried on the wind.

"By the way, it's good to keep that monument so that future generations can see what else has sunk in this river besides fish and shrimp."

The afternoon sun cast a long shadow of him, which loomed obliquely over the riverbank, overlapping with the messy hoofprints, scattered arrows, and still-wet bloodstains.

In the distance, Jiankang City had returned to its usual tranquility, as if nothing had happened.

But the public discussion had shifted from the Xiao family of Lanling to the idea of ​​a thousand horsemen throwing themselves into the river.

Only Jiang Feng knew that some things, once they sink, can never rise again.

......