Chapter 325 The End

Chapter 325 The End
On the evening of the fourth day of November, Shao Xun led a large army to Duyang.

During this time, news came that Wang Ru was ready to take action again and began to "recapture" the surrounding counties and towns.

On the sixth night, we stayed in Ye County.

On the afternoon of the seventh day, the army arrived in Kunyang and officially entered the territory of Yuzhou.

At this time, news from the north came in one after another.

During the march, Shao Xun drew a map on the mud on the side of the road and studied it carefully.

The situation was actually very clear, the Huns were restricted.

Their main force was in the Luoyang Basin and had only attacked Luoyang once, on the first day of their arrival.

That morning, they first attacked Guangmo Gate but failed.

In the afternoon and evening, they attacked Ximing Gate fiercely but failed.

Then he gave up.

There were 27,000 imperial guards in Luoyang city, plus conscripted men and miscellaneous soldiers such as the Inspector of the Capital, the Governor of Henan, and the Inspector of Finance. The total number exceeded 50,000 and was approaching 60,000.

Even if the Huns had 200,000 infantrymen, they might not be able to take the city head-on.

If they wanted to capture Luoyang, they still had to rely on siege, which was the tactic Sima Ying used back then.

The Huns also realized this, but they did not catch up with the good times and did not have the financial resources that Sima Ying and Sima Yong had when they joined forces, so they were destined to be unable to maintain the siege for a long time.

Shao Xun even suspected that Liu Han's army was not as strong as the coalition forces of Sima Ying and Sima Yong. They had more than 200,000 infantry and tens of thousands of Xianbei, Wuhuan, Xiongnu and miscellaneous Hu cavalry. Wouldn't they be able to defeat Liu Han?
Alas, in the final analysis, it was the Sima family who brought their own destruction upon themselves.

It is a black humor that such a huge army was destroyed together with the Luoyang Central Army within a few years.

Of course, the current Jin Dynasty cannot be compared with that of seven or eight years ago.

When Sima Ying's army marched out from Yecheng, the sound of drums stretched for a hundred miles. It was said to be a grand expedition that had not been seen in a hundred years and it would be difficult to replicate it again because the financial and human resources did not allow it.

"Yuan Yan, Zheng Long." Shao Xun wrote two names next to Jinmenwu in the Luoshui River Valley.

According to the military report, as of November 5th, the two still had more than 3,500 Zhongwu soldiers and 1,900 fort guards, who relied on the terrain to block the enemy at every level.

With student soldiers acting as fort commanders and village leaders, and village leaders and generals who have been reorganized for many years, the fort guards' fighting spirit is still good. However, the longer the fight lasts, the less they dare to surrender. Shao Xun feels that this journey will not lead to any results.

The most dangerous place was Yi Yang County. If the Huns had gathered a large army to besiege it, they might have already captured it.

There is no fighting in Gancheng, Yique, Dagu and Huanyuan for the time being.

The situation in the west has become clear.

The Huns, lacking siege infantry, would not achieve any major gains.

In fact, Shao Xun felt that the Huns might not have had high expectations.

Before Liu Yuan's death, almost none of the generals he had arranged to take charge of the imperial guards showed up. It is unknown whether they died in the civil strife or something else.

If he died in civil strife, then it would be Liu Cong's fault.

He was too impatient. His father had only been buried for a month and the imperial guards had not yet been reorganized, but he hurriedly sent people to attack Luoyang. I wonder if he heard about the rebellion in Jingzhou and immediately felt that the opportunity was great and wanted to give it a try.

Gamblers don't win.

Shao Xun also wrote Pei Chun's name at Hulao Pass.

Not only did this man not run away, but he spent all his family wealth to recruit strong men to defend the city, and he managed to withstand the double-sided attack from Shi Le and Shi Chao. This made Shao Xun look at him with admiration, and he felt that Pei Chun didn't seem that bad after all.

However, the city of Xingyang County fell.

Wang Sang and part of Shi Le's infantry captured it, then divided their forces into four parts to plunder and collect food and fodder.

No one knows what will happen next.

"Swoosh!" Shao Xun threw the dagger at Xingyang, then jumped on his horse and continued to move forward.

On the night of the ninth day, they arrived at Xiangcheng, took vehicles and supplies, replenished food and equipment, and joined up with a part of the government troops.

On the eleventh day, we arrived at Yingyin.

On the 13th, we arrived at Changsha. Due to the continuous march, the army rested here for a day.

At this time, Wang Sang, Shi Chao and others finally gave up the attack on Hulao Pass after suffering heavy casualties and began to plunder everywhere.

Among them, Shi Chao plundered in Xingyang and Chenliu areas.

Shi Le's troops, led by Lu Ming, Hu Yanmo and others, headed eastward to Puyang.

Wang Sang led his people southward and entered Yingchuan and Chenjun.

******
Snowflakes were actually falling from the sky.

The days go by so fast.

Pan Tao sighed, came to a manor, and after reporting, he was led in.

There was a strange smell in the room, which seemed to be a mixture of medicine, spices and something else, making it hard to breathe.

Pan Tao's gaze passed over everyone and fell on Sima Yue lying on the bed.

Sima Yue glanced at him and wanted to say something, but he was speechless.

"Oh!" Pan Tao sighed secretly.

At this point, I can let go of everything.

The King of the East Sea has reached the end of his life and will not live for many days.

Pan Tao came to the bed, held Sima Yue's skinny hand, and whispered, "Does Situ have any unfulfilled wishes?"

Two tears flowed from the corners of Sima Yue's eyes.

He has too many unfulfilled wishes, too many.

He recalled the time when he was young and served and taught in the Eastern Palace.

That period of life seemed full of sunshine in his memory.

He remembered the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers in Hualin Garden, he remembered the magnificence of Taiji Hall, and he remembered the endless stream of gentlemen and pillars of society.

The sky was so blue back then.

The sun was so bright back then.

At that time, the Jin Dynasty was at its peak.

"Si Tu, are you worried about the military situation?" Chief Clerk Guo Xiang asked softly.

Sima Yue stared at the ceiling, but nothing happened. Guo Xiang and Zuo Sima Pei Miao looked at each other, worried.

There’s actually nothing much to say.

When Shi Chao arrived in Chenliu, he broke through several walls, looted food, fodder, and property, recruited Latin soldiers, and killed thousands of the elderly, the weak, women, and children.

Shi Le's followers in Puyang once again swept through this county and state, which had been almost completely destroyed, and no one was able to stop them.

Sima Yue seemed not to have heard Guo Xiang's words. He just stared at the roof, immersed in sadness and helplessness.

He recalled the thrilling experiences he had experienced after joining the government.

The situation in Luoyang is changing rapidly, you finish your performance and I take the stage.

During that period of life, highlights and obscurity were intertwined, and regrets and joy coexisted.

Zhao Wanglun, Qi Wangjiong, Changsha Wangyi and others passed by him one by one.

Sima Yue opened his eyes wide, as if trying to see the expressions of these people clearly.

Some of them were indifferent, some were surprised, some sneered, and some had a regretful expression, as if they were regretting how the government fell into the hands of Sima Yue.

I am better than you!
A surge of anger surged in his heart, and he also felt a little unwilling.

The face of Changsha King Sima Yi became clearer.

He stood not far away, looking at him with pity.

Sima Yue's anger suddenly dissipated.

He closed his eyes and dared not look at Sima Yi.

Shidu, I have done nothing wrong to you. I am doing this for the sake of the Jin Dynasty.

If you keep fighting, the world will fall apart.

Sima Yi looked at him with even more pity, and after a long sigh, he disappeared into thin air.

Sima Yue slowly opened his eyes again.

Do you feel guilty? Maybe.

People can deceive others, but they cannot deceive themselves. When a person is about to die, he or she will recall his or her life with exceptional clarity.

What are you feeling guilty about? The legacy of the Sima family? Or the common people?
Maybe a bit of both.

There were footsteps outside the door and someone else walked in.

Wang, an attendant of the Imperial Secretariat, looked at Sima Yue from afar and tears started to flow down his face.

"Situ!" he wailed.

King Sima Fan of Xiangyang stood up, glared at him, and motioned him to be quiet.

The king stopped crying, sat down silently, and looked straight at Sima Yue.

Sima Yue seemed not to notice his arrival and was still immersed in his own world.

After Sima Yi left, He Sui, Gao Tangchong, Wang Yan, Gao Guang and others rushed over.

Their faces were filled with anger and they denounced him loudly, believing that it was Sima Yue who had ruined the government, brought chaos to the world, brought shame to the scholars, and made the people live a life worse than death.

Sima Yue defended himself weakly, but the other party's voice became louder and louder, almost breaking his eardrums, until the late emperor appeared.

The late emperor held the cake in his hand and said with a smile that he had forgiven him.

Sima Yue shed two more tears.

The late emperor continued to comfort him, saying that many people had harmed him, insulted him, and coerced him, but he no longer cared.

He has lived his life in a muddle, made many stupid moves, and made many jokes. Now the only thing he cares about is this world.

He hoped that no more people would be drowned in the river, no more scholars would be killed, no more disasters every other day, no more fighting and killing...

After the emperor finished eating the cake, he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, waved to Sima Yue, and turned into a starlight.

Sima Yue subconsciously wanted to reach out and grab it, but he was powerless to give up. He felt his life fading quickly, and he was at his last moment.

Sima Teng, Sima Hu and Sima Lue were the last to appear.

They looked at Sima Yue and sighed.

One regretted being too stingy in Yecheng, one lamented his sudden death in his prime, and one complained about the impermanence of life.

All in all, they ended up in the early stages, and there was nothing they could do to help him anymore.

After the three people disappeared, three figures appeared in Sima Yue's mind: Sima Chi, Shao Xun, and Gou Xi.

Sima Chi sneered and said, "Now you have come to this day. Just wait and see how I will eradicate your power."

Gou Xi looked at him with disdain, as if mocking him for going back on his word and enriching himself, thus ruining such a good situation.

Shao Xun held the sword and looked at him calmly, as if to say, I don't owe you anything anymore.

Seeing Shao Xun's expression, Sima Yue became a little anxious.

"Situ! Situ!" A soft voice called out in my ears.

Sima Yue returned to reality, rolled his eyes, and found that it was Liu Qia, He Lun, Wang Bing and others.

Everybody came to see me, to see me off for the last time.

"Si Tu, we have just discussed it and we are willing to follow Si Tu back to Xuzhou." Liu Qia wiped his tears and said softly.

"Situ, let's go back to the East Sea." He Lun burst into tears and said, "We came out together, and now we go back together. I, He Lun, swear to heaven that I am willing to serve the prince as my master. If I break this oath, heaven will strike me with lightning."

Prince? Sima Yue didn't know where he got the strength from. After two grumbles, he said, "Go find Shao Xun. I'm begging him."

"I'll go!" Wang Bing stepped forward and said, "I'll ask him to send someone to escort the prince back to the East Sea."

"And..." Sima Yue continued, "I can't do anything to the Xiongnu, let him fight well."

Wang Bing nodded heavily.

As if he had used up all his strength, Sima Yue closed his eyes slightly, his face becoming increasingly pale.

Everyone sat in silence, waiting for the end to come.

On the night of the 14th, Sima Yue, the prime minister of the Jin Dynasty and the King of Donghai, died of illness in Fan County.

(End of this chapter)