Jinting Han people

With Sima Ying, the Prince of Chengdu, leading his army back to Hebei, the brief period of three princes ruling in succession came to an end. What followed was a new era in which the Prince of Qi held sole control of Luoyang.

This was an inevitable development. The reason why the Hebei rebels were able to rival the Henan rebels was because Sima Yi and Sima Ying formed an alliance.

After the alliance between the two kings, their military strength, while not necessarily superior to that of the Henan rebels, was at least not far behind. In addition, the Hebei rebels had made greater contributions, so Sima Jiong became more cautious and naturally had to consult with the two kings on everything he did in governing the country.

Now that Sima Ying has left, taking 100,000 troops with him, Sima Yi only has 50,000 men under his command, and the Western Expeditionary Army, which he shares command with, is not trustworthy. Under these circumstances, even if Sima Yi has taken control of part of the Imperial Guards, it will be difficult for him to contend with Sima Jiong.

Therefore, when only the King of Qi and the King of Changsha remained in Luoyang, Sima Yi would inevitably be subordinate to Sima Jiong. The King of Qi would take control of the government, while the King of Changsha would become the King of Qi's advisor.

Fortunately, the Chengdu King's voluntary relinquishment of power immediately eased the tense political atmosphere in Luoyang. Although the three kings' regency maintained a balance, there was still a risk of infighting. However, with the departure of the Northern Expeditionary Army and the Eastern Expeditionary Army's sole control of Luoyang, it was less likely that they would turn against each other.

Moreover, given the noble character of the King of Chengdu, people would inevitably compare him to the King of Qi. This forced Sima Jiong to pay attention to his political image, consider the interests of all parties, and maintain overall harmony.

Otherwise, if any unrest were to occur in Luoyang, the people of the world would immediately want to invite the Prince of Chengdu to take charge, which is definitely not what Sima Jiong wants to see.

In any case, the political situation in Luoyang has finally stabilized completely, so people are no longer at a loss.

By this time, Sima Jiong had already built a massive Grand Sima Mansion. Within a month, he repeatedly consulted with Sima Yue, the Prince of Donghai, and Wang Yan, the Governor of Henan, recruiting scholars from Luoyang. For a time, a gathering of brilliant minds and outstanding talents emerged, including:
Left Chief Secretary Liu Shen, Military Advisor Liu Yin, Left Secretary Cao Shu, Right Secretary Zuo Si, Left Military Advisor Jiang Tong, Right Military Advisor Gou Xi, Eastern Clerk Zhang Han, Household Clerk Sun Hui, Five Military Clerk Zu Ti, Chief Clerk Wang Bao, Revenue Clerk Xun Kai, Capital Clerk Li Shu, Guest Clerk Ji Han...

This is only a portion of the people in the Grand Marshal's mansion. There are senior literary figures who have been famous in the literary world for a long time, as well as rising stars who have just entered Luoyang in recent years. Some have been following Prince Qi for a long time, while others have just expressed their opinions. Without exception, they are all extraordinary people and will make great achievements in the court in the future.

Meanwhile, in the imperial court, the Prince of Qi further expanded his influence. He promoted many of his former advisors. First, he appointed Dong Ai as the Director of the Imperial Secretariat, Sima Yue as the Grand Secretary in charge of drafting imperial edicts, and He Xu as the Commander of the Central Army, in charge of the imperial guards.

In addition, he appointed Ge Yu as Duke of Muping, Lu Xiu as Duke of Xiaohuang, Wei Yi as Duke of Pingyin, Liu Zhen as Duke of Anxiang, and Han Tai as Duke of Fengqiu, collectively known as the "Five Dukes." These five were all stationed in the Secretariat, serving as Attendants-in-Ordinary and Attendants-in-Ordinary, respectively. No edict could be implemented without the approval of Sima Jiong.

What is most striking is that he absorbed a large number of former officials of the former Crown Prince Sima Yu, appointing Liu Qiao, Wang Dun, and others as Attendants-in-Ordinary, while also re-employing former officials of the late King Sima You, such as Gao Guang and Wen Xian, into the Ministry of Personnel as Ministers. With such a combination of old and new, for a time, the three ministries were filled with Sima Jiong's cronies.

In contrast, Sima Yi's expansion of power was inevitably somewhat weak.

Sima Yi's own team was very weak. Compared to Sima Ying and Sima Jiong, he had no military command to directly recruit talent, only the Changshan Prince's Mansion, which was neither large nor small. Although he temporarily gained the support of Liu Hong and Liu Tun, there was still a layer between them, making it impossible for him to employ the talents within their ranks.

Moreover, after Sima Ying returned to Hebei, some of the soldiers who had come from Changshan to support the emperor began to miss their hometowns and desert to return home. In order to maintain morale, Sima Yi had no choice but to begin allowing them to leave, selecting only those soldiers with ambition to achieve fame and merit to supplement the imperial guards.

Sima Jiong was indeed quite generous; he entrusted important positions to almost all the meritorious officials that Sima Yi reported.

Including Liu Xian, who served as the Commandant of the Capital Region, many of the staff members under the Prince of Changsha's court were also promoted:
For example, Liu Tun was appointed Imperial Censor, Liu Hong was appointed General of the Vanguard, Shangguan Si was appointed Colonel of the Cavalry, Liu You was appointed General of the Palace Guard, Linghu Sheng was appointed Commander of the Palace Guard, Wang Hu was appointed Colonel of the City Gates, and Miao Yuan was appointed Director of the Arsenal, etc. Unfortunately, there were not many people who could directly intervene in the government; most of them were just acting as subordinates and were driven by others.

Sima Jiong probably felt bad about it, so the day after Sima Ying left, he submitted a memorial to report his merits and appointed Sima Yi, the Prince of Changsha, as General of the Cavalry, with the additional title of Imperial Envoy and Commander-in-Chief of all military affairs, both inside and outside the capital.

Although this was only a nominal conferment of honor, and it was impossible for Sima Yi to actually hand over the entire Imperial Guard, at least nominally, Sima Yi was undoubtedly the second most powerful man in the court.

At this point, the personnel appointments in Luoyang were essentially complete. The question on everyone's mind now was how this new court, led by the King of Qi, planned to handle state affairs.

Sima Jiong understood this as well, so after Sima Ying left, he immediately issued an order to hold a grand court assembly on the seventh day of the seventh month, an exception to previous years.

The so-called Grand Court Assembly was an annual event held by the imperial court to demonstrate its majesty to the world. It was usually convened on New Year's Day and consisted only of bestowing titles and issuing proclamations. Participants generally included officials of the sixth rank and above in the capital, as well as all the feudal lords and even some foreign envoys, in order to demonstrate the emperor's authority, the grandeur of the assembly, and the prosperity of the nation.

Sima Jiong's holding of the grand court assembly at this time was undoubtedly a good opportunity to show the world his attitude of implementing new policies.

On this day, all officials, dressed in summer red court robes, took their seats in front of the Taiji Hall. Military officials lined up in the west according to their rank, while civil officials lined up in the east, facing each other. To their north sat Liu Xian, the Commandant of the Capital Region; Liu Tun, the Vice Censor-in-Chief; and Wang Rong, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, each seated separately. The other three dukes and princes of the imperial clan sat on a high platform behind them, led by Sima Jiong and Sima Yi. Above them sat the current emperor and empress.

At Chenshi (7-9 AM), the grand court assembly officially began. Unlike ordinary court assemblies, the grand court assembly had its own complete set of rituals and did not involve immediate discussion.

After the officials and princes took their seats, the hall was filled with the faint, melodious sounds of bells and chimes, as if they came from beyond the heavens. Then, water flowed into the hall from both ends, and two thick ropes, several meters long, were stretched between the high platforms on the hall. Four exquisitely beautiful dancers then gracefully danced on the ropes from both ends. They were barefoot and wore long skirts, dancing on the ropes and singing to the music. They twirled freely on the ropes, like fairies.

The dancers danced towards each other, meeting and laughing as they stepped on the thick ropes. When they got close, they would skim across the water like dragonflies and then spin backwards. The ropes swayed up and down, revealing the dancers' beautiful figures and captivating the viewers.

After the dancers returned to the starting point, the palace maids removed the ropes and ordered the band to play the "Fish and Dragon Song." Then, led by eunuchs, the officials, in order of lower rank in front and higher rank behind, walked down the steps one after another to toast the emperor and empress, and then verbally wished them long life.

About a thousand people participated in the court assembly. After rounds of toasts, by the time it was Liu Xian's turn, almost an hour had passed since the assembly began. He walked to the foot of the hall, felt the gazes above him, and bowed deeply in perfect decorum. Then he stood up, drank the wine, and said, "Long live Your Majesty." He glanced up and saw the emperor and empress, who seemed utterly mismatched.

The emperor was clearly exhausted, his eyes fixed on the outside of the palace, seemingly lost in thought. The young empress, however, was still energetic, turning her head to nod and smile at Liu Xian.

Liu Xian bowed again and then retreated from the front of the platform to his seat. Only a few dozen people remained behind him. After they had also bowed, the long ceremony in front of the palace finally came to an end.

At this point, Sima Jiong finally reached the center of the high platform, holding the imperial edict, and read it aloud to the officials and ministers in the Taiji Hall:
"The wise rulers governed with perfect harmony, their actions aligning with the ultimate principles, their influence pervading all, thus ensuring the proper order of human relations and the well-being of all things. Now, I, though unworthy, have received the weighty trust of my ancestors, and am fortunate to be above princes and dukes. I am filled with anxiety and fear, lest I fail to uphold the profound principles of Taoism and understand the universe, and that my excessive influence will lead to resentment among the people, thus harming the nation." "The so-called 'eating honest words and guiding the righteous'—I hope the wise men will understand my sentiments. Though I am ignorant, I will not reject dissenting opinions. The responsibilities of Ji and Qi are entrusted to you all; I hope you will all strive together!"

This was a simple order to speak frankly. After reading it aloud, Sima Jiong smiled and said:
"Although today is a grand court assembly, as His Majesty said, it is for the peace and prosperity of our Great Jin Dynasty that we seek honest opinions from all people. If you have any ideas that can stabilize the country and bring peace to the nation, you may speak freely today."

Having said that, he waved his hand, ordering the palace servants to bring in a table with twenty silver goblets on it, each with a lid shaped like a white tiger. Sima Jiong pointed to the white tiger goblets on the table and said to everyone, "Anyone who offers a useful suggestion can drink from one of these white tiger goblets and will be rewarded with three hundred taels of silver!"

Sima Jiong spoke very magnanimously, but in fact, he had already informed Sima Yi and the others beforehand. The number of seats for offering advice was predetermined, and he generously allocated five seats to Sima Yi and others, while reserving fifteen seats for himself specifically to win over the hearts of high-ranking families.

As Sima Yi's most trusted advisor, Liu Xian naturally received one of the slots. However, upon learning this news, Liu Xian was somewhat amused and exasperated:

Your Highness, since you intend to win people's hearts, why not go all the way and truly assess the abilities of the court officials? This reward may not be much money for those from high-ranking families, but it's a fortune for those from humble backgrounds. If it's pre-arranged, those who receive the reward won't be grateful, while those who don't get the opportunity will complain about the unfairness. Sima Jiong is being rather stingy.

In fact, this was difficult to conceal. When Wang Bao, the chief clerk of the King of Qi, stepped forward to read a document nearly a thousand words long, many officials' expressions changed. To be honest, Wang Bao's article was not bad; its language was ornate and it had a gentle and affectionate style. The content was also quite proper, requesting that each prefecture and kingdom recommend virtuous and learned scholars and expand the enrollment of students in the Imperial Academy. No one could find any fault with it.

But this article clearly took many days to craft; how could it be improvised on the spot? As a result, many people guessed the truth that the spots were predetermined, and then a murmur arose.

Even Liu Xian couldn't stand it anymore and couldn't help but ask Liu Tun, who was standing next to him, "Lord Zhu Xu (Liu Tun's title), what do you think of His Highness the Prince of Qi?"

Liu Tun was a mature and prudent man. He glanced at Liu Xian, stroked his beard, and smiled, "Your Highness Prince Qi is still young and ambitious, so it's inevitable that you might make some mistakes. But that's a good thing. Perhaps we can often get rewards for offering advice!"

Liu Xian was speechless for a moment, thinking to himself: So this old man was indirectly criticizing King Qi for being ambitious but incompetent!
However, most of the suggestions arranged by Sima Jiong were still meaningful. Among the dozen or so suggestions submitted, there were those advocating frugality from the concubines in the palace, ideas for revising the history books and learning from past lessons, strategies for rebuilding the military in the prefectures and counties, and plans to reduce redundant officials and encourage procreation. Although some of these could not be implemented in the short term, it was refreshing to hear them at this time.

Liu Xian thought again: No matter what kind of person the Prince of Qi is, at least the Prince of Qi's mansion at present still has many talented people.

When it was Liu Xian's turn again, he submitted a memorial outlining his plan to dig a canal connecting the Bian and Ying rivers to facilitate grain transport. Sima Jiong indeed rewarded him with wine and gold, and promised to allocate some funds if needed.

This should have been a joyous occasion, but amidst the hushed whispers of some officials behind him, Liu Xian couldn't muster much enthusiasm; instead, he felt somewhat embarrassed.

But once he sat down, the next topic immediately caught his attention.

Just then, Liu Shen, the Left Chief Secretary of the King of Qi, entered the hall and said, "Your Highness, although we have now quelled the Zhao rebellion, we should be more concerned that the world is not yet completely pacified, and there are still troubles in Guanzhong!"

Although he only went this far, everyone present understood that he was referring to Zhao Xin of Yizhou. Since the Zhao King's usurpation last year, Zhao Xin had seized the opportunity to attack and kill Geng Teng, the Yizhou governor sent by Sun Xiu, and then occupied Jiange, establishing himself as a warlord in Bashu. The other princes had been busy fighting amongst themselves and had no time to attend to Zhao Xin. Now that the capital region had been restored, it was time to quell Zhao Xin's rebellion.

As expected, Liu Shen suggested, "Zhao Xin is a clown who, taking advantage of the chaos in the country, has harbored the audacity to steal the imperial artifact! He has also acted perversely and harmed the people of Shu. To appease public anger is not to let him go unpunished! Your Highness, we should immediately dispatch a general to quell his rebellion; otherwise, how can the court maintain its authority?"

Sima Jiong asked, "In your opinion, who should be appointed as general?"

Liu Shen said, “In my opinion, Luo Shang, the governor of Liangzhou, is the most suitable candidate. He participated in the campaign to destroy Wu and served as a military advisor to Wang Xiangyang (Wang Jun). He is quite skilled in martial arts. He is currently in Hanzhong, which is only a hundred miles away from Yizhou. Zhao Xin, on the other hand, rose to power through nepotism and has a reputation for incompetence. He relies on nothing more than refugees who came south during the chaos of Qi Wannian.”

"As long as Luo Shang is appointed as the governor of Yizhou and people are sent south to pacify those refugees, Zhao Xin will surely be powerless to resist and will be captured without resistance. It will be no problem for Luo Shang to lift a finger."

Having said that, Sima Jiong nodded in satisfaction. Just as he was about to offer Liu Shen some wine, the Empress on the throne suddenly waved to him and said, "Your Highness Prince Qi, I have some questions to ask you, is that alright?"

Sima Jiong, of course, wouldn't argue with a girl who was only seventeen years old, and smiled, "What does the Empress have to say?"

"Since we're going to use a famous general, why not appoint Lord Songzi? Is Lord Songzi not as good as Luo Shang? I remember that in the ninth year of Yuankang, it was he who pacified the refugees from Qin Prefecture and sent them south to Yi Prefecture, wasn't it?"

This remark caused an awkward moment for everyone present.

When it comes to dispatching renowned generals, almost everyone's first thought is Liu Xian. However, they quickly look away, deeming him unsuitable. The reason is self-evident: Liu Xian certainly possesses the ability to quell rebellions, but no one dares to gamble on whether he will remain a Jin subject after arriving in Bashu. If not, his potential harm would likely be far greater than that of Zhao Xin.

Liu Xian was well aware of this, and no matter what turmoil was churning within him, he could only lower his head and remain silent.

However, it was not appropriate to say this openly in court, so Sima Jiong could only say, "Why use a sledgehammer to crack a nut? The capital region needs the Duke of Songzi to govern, and the court sending Luo Shang is sufficient."

And so the topic ended. It was merely a minor incident during the grand court assembly, and few people paid it any mind. Afterwards, aside from a few minor complaints about Sima Jiong's feigned favor, everyone was generally satisfied with the assembly.

At least from the current situation, everything in the court is on the right track. If the suggestions made at the meeting can be implemented one by one, in time, perhaps we can really return to the stable and peaceful world of the Taikang era.

Strangely enough, just as the political situation was about to improve, a bizarre and major case was solved in Luoyang. (End of Chapter)