The infighting in Luoyang City lasted only three or four days before it quickly came to an end.
Prince Qi, Sima Jiong, never imagined that despite his meticulous efforts to expel the retainers and factions of the various princes from the city, things would end up like this.
His trusted general, Dong Ai, commanded two thousand retainers, while Prince Changsha, Sima Yi, had only a hundred or so troops.
Yet, against all odds, Sima Yi managed to turn the tables and achieve a great victory.
Before his death, Sima Jiong was filled with bitterness, but in the end, the victor writes history, and there was nothing more to say.
It was at this moment that he suddenly had a pang of conscience.
Since the first year of Yuankang (291), when Empress Jia Nanfeng summoned Prince Chu, Sima Wei, to the capital to kill the imperial relative Yang Jun, the world had been thrown into chaos.
Prominent ministers and princes like Prime Minister Yang Jun, Imperial Tutor Wei Guan, Prince Chu Sima Wei, Prince Runan Sima Liang, the deposed Crown Prince Sima Yu, and Prince Zhao Sima Lun were all killed one after another.
Now, it was Prince Qi Sima Jiong's turn, and perhaps his younger brother, Prince Beihai Sima Shi, would be next.
The descendants of the Sima family mostly died at the hands of their own kin.
The military forces of the Sima family were largely consumed in internal strife.
The empire of the Sima family was gradually collapsing.
Truly, they had brought this upon themselves!
He let out a bitter laugh and closed his eyes.
The executioner's blade swiftly came down, and Sima Jiong's head rolled outside the Changhe Gate.
After his death, his three sons were imprisoned in Jincheng City, and his followers were exterminated to the third degree.
The once-mighty faction of Prince Qi Sima Jiong had now completely dissipated.
The shaken emperor issued a general amnesty, not even waiting for the last few days of the year to pass, and immediately changed the era name to Tai'an.
The newly ascended Prince Changsha, Sima Yi, was also in a difficult position.
His primary task was to persuade the Guanzhong troops, who had advanced to the western gate of Luoyang at Xin'an County, to retreat.
His second task was to pacify the tens of thousands of soldiers from Yuzhou who were still outside the city.
The latter was easier to handle.
With Sima Jiong dead, the court issued an order to withdraw the troops.
These hereditary soldiers, who received no pay and were impoverished, had no reason to continue fighting for Sima Jiong.
It was better for them to return home and prepare for the spring planting.
Moreover, after Sima Jiong had raised troops to suppress the rebellion, he had resigned from his position as the governor of Yuzhou to demonstrate his integrity.
Now, the one stationed in Xuchang was General Annan, Governor of Yuzhou, Prince Fanyang Sima Xiao.
It was only natural for him to lead the troops back.
The former issue, however, was more complicated and required intricate negotiations of interests.
Princes Chengdu and Hejian had originally planned to lead their troops into the capital.
They had assumed that Sima Yi would be unable to deal with Sima Jiong and intended to use him to create chaos in Luoyang.
Then, the armies from Chang'an and Yecheng would swarm into the capital to seize power.
But who could have expected that Sima Yi, in a desperate move, would kill Sima Jiong and simultaneously take control of the court? With the emperor's decree issued, Princes Hejian and Chengdu lost their legitimacy to enter the capital and were likely now hopping mad.
Prince Donghai, Sima Yue, was the first to align himself with the new victor, attaching himself to Prince Changsha Sima Yi.
To be honest, it was a bit embarrassing, as he had done nothing during the infighting.
But he had his reasons—he only had fifty court-assigned attendants, no troops, and no power.
What could he do?
Perhaps Sima Yi needed to win over the princes, so he gave Sima Yue some benefits: an additional three thousand households and the right to recommend an official to serve as the governor of Donghai Commandery.
Before this, although Sima Yue had been granted six counties, it didn't mean he controlled them.
His fief only consisted of five thousand households, and he held no positions like governor or military commander, which put him at a disadvantage compared to other princes.
Now, he had both military and administrative control, finally putting him on par with the other princes.
In truth, this wasn't a particularly significant benefit, but Sima Yue had done nothing, right?
He lacked the courage to burn his bridges, unwilling to plan ahead like Sima Yi, and even less willing to risk everything with only a hundred or so followers.
High risk brings high rewards, but low risk still offers some gains.
One shouldn't ask for too much.
With the situation in Luoyang stabilized, the chaos outside the city was just beginning...
In the vast wilderness, refugees were everywhere.
They had been driven out by the chaotic soldiers.
With Sima Jiong dead, the tens of thousands of troops from the Yuzhou Governorate were left in disarray, unsure of where to go.
Before anyone from Xuchang could come to lead them back, they had already started to fall into chaos.
Most of them wanted to go home.
These hereditary soldiers were not conscripts; they received no pay and were destitute.
Returning home was their deepest desire.
With no one left to fight for, they had no reason to stay in Luoyang.
Before leaving, some "clever" soldiers decided to loot, as they hadn't even received any severance pay.
Once they started, more soldiers joined in, and the looting began to spread.
Some of the imperial guards stationed outside the city, under orders from the Northern Army Commander, moved in to suppress the chaos.
The looting Yuzhou soldiers couldn't hold their ground and quickly scattered, fleeing for their lives.
Thus, the looting around Luoyang was quickly quelled, with only a few lingering disturbances.
But even these disturbances were enough to cause trouble for many...
On the day of the Lantern Festival, soldiers lined the walls of Panyuan, and the sound of drums echoed loudly.
"Whoosh!" An arrow flew out, pinning a boastful looter to the ground.
"Whoosh!" Another arrow followed, killing another.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Shao Xun walked back and forth along the wall, wide enough for two or three people to stand side by side, occasionally drawing his bow and firing arrows, rarely missing his mark.
His accuracy terrified a group of several hundred looters.
News from Luoyang had been trickling in, but it was fragmented and hard to verify.
However, for someone like Shao Xun, a time traveler, it was enough to piece together the full picture.
He had been pondering what he had gained over the past year.
After much thought, the biggest achievement was his promotion from squad leader to company commander, even though he was managing a group of boys ranging from seven or eight to sixteen or seventeen years old.
This achievement had great potential for growth, and he had been working hard in this direction.
Apart from that, his second biggest achievement was earning the trust of the Princess of Donghai, who was in charge of Panyuan—or so he believed.
The princess had approved his teaching of reading and writing, not seeing it as "secretly gathering youths."
Through the connections of the Minister of Works, she had also sent a large batch of writing materials.
This, to some extent, legitimized Shao Xun's actions.
He had been thinking lately that this relationship needed to be maintained and further developed.
He had sensed the princess's unease—indeed, in these times, a sense of security was a rare luxury—and he instinctively wanted to do something about it.
This was his opportunity.
Beyond that, there wasn't much else he could do.
It was frustrating and sad, but that was reality.
Not everyone had the privilege to play the game of power; most were merely pawns.
The wisest course of action now was to follow Sima Yue's "progress" and "progress" alongside him.
Sima Yue had outlasted two "big brothers," Sima Lun and Sima Jiong.
Now, Sima Yi was his third big brother.
Would he take advantage of the chaotic situation to recruit people and secretly lay the groundwork?
Shao Xun believed he would, because that was the answer history provided.
Beyond political factions, military power was undoubtedly a top priority for Sima Yue.
During the rebellion of Sima Lun, the imperial guards in Luoyang had been deeply involved, fighting each other and suffering heavy losses.
In this recent infighting, the imperial guards had mostly stayed on the sidelines, even closing the city gates at critical moments.
The seven imperial guard armies stationed in the city acted like deaf and blind men, neither protecting the emperor nor quelling the rebellion.
The various armies stationed near Luoyang only moved in force after the situation had stabilized, to eliminate the looting soldiers from other regions.
Were their actions satisfactory? No, no one was satisfied.
Neither the emperor nor the princes were pleased.
The Northern Army Commander was likely to be purged, and the imperial guard generals would inevitably side with Sima Yi.
What would Sima Yue think then? Would he have a strong impulse to expand his private army?
This was the opportunity.
Although the benefits might not fall into his lap, an opportunity was still an opportunity, no doubt about it.
So, it seemed he needed to make more of an impression.
"Whoosh!" A long arrow flew through the air, directly striking a knight who was waving a whip to drive the looters.
The soldiers on the wall cheered loudly, their excitement uncontained.
Shao Xun put down his bow and instinctively glanced at Yang Bao, the company commander of the eighth company, who was waiting behind the gate.
He suspected that this guy had snitched on him, as he had once been disciplined by Shao Xun, and the eighth company was considered one of the main forces.
Naturally, the company commander wanted to advance further.
It was all the fault of the overseer!
Who didn't want a promotion?
This created a competitive relationship, and anything could happen.
At the same time, Shao Xun couldn't help but feel a bit感慨.
Even in their ragtag group, they were competing like this.
Was it because the lower-ranking soldiers were too cutthroat?
But in these turbulent times, it seemed one had to be a fierce competitor, or else they'd end up as cannon fodder—though even the fiercest competitors might end up destroying themselves.
Yang Bao, hearing the waves of cheers, felt both resentment and fear.
That scoundrel Shao Xun was indeed skilled in martial arts, though he had no idea where he had learned it.
He had once seen Shao Xun pick up a long sword, starting with clumsy movements, gradually becoming more proficient, until he wielded it with almost supernatural skill.
It seemed as if Shao Xun wasn't learning how to use the sword but rather recalling the feeling and memory of using it.
This monster! Yang Bao spat in disgust.
"Thud, thud..."
The drums continued to rumble.
"Creak..."
The gate slowly opened.
Two hundred soldiers filed out, lining up against the wall.
"Kill!" The sudden shout startled the looters watching from a distance, their faces gradually showing hesitation and fear.
They wanted to loot, but they weren't fools.
This farmstead had high walls, guards, and seemingly high morale, united as one.
Even more terrifying was the sharpshooter on the high ground, casually picking off anyone who dared to approach, each arrow striking true, making them unsure whether to advance or retreat.
If their main officers were still around, they would have attacked despite the sharpshooter, as military orders were hard to defy.
But now, the officers themselves had disappeared, and no one was willing to risk their lives.
Of course, they would pick the soft targets.
It was human nature to bully the weak and fear the strong.
Why attack a fortified stronghold that would cost many lives when they could instead loot defenseless scattered villages?
So, they really wanted to leave.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!" Two more arrows flew from the high wall, killing one and wounding another.
The other archers, seeing this, were greatly encouraged and began drawing their bows, shooting at the looters who came too close.
The looters retreated, and in the crush of bodies, panic began to spread.
"Kill!" The two hundred soldiers at the gate, in neat formation, jogged forward.
"Go!" Several looters on horseback didn't hesitate and led the way.
"Go!" The others followed, fleeing in disarray into the distance.
Shao Xun put down his bow.
The looters had lost their will to fight; there was no need to pursue them relentlessly.
This wave of crisis had been dealt with.
They had successfully protected themselves in these chaotic times—yes, just this once.
Future crises would only be greater.
(End of Chapter)