The Sixteen Kingdoms of the Eastern Jin Dynasty: The Competition in the Central Plains

Not long after, dozens of cauldrons were set up on the shore of Chaos Yang. Some went to Du Zeng's barracks to find firewood, and some used wooden barrels to carry water from the Yangtze River to the cauldron, which was a great pleasure.

The calm shore of Chaoyang was filled with the scent of horse meat. The horse meat in the cauldron was cooked one after another, and a soldier shouted:"Brothers, come and eat big pieces of horse meat!""

"You go to the fishing boat, take the wine bottles, and transport the wine to the shore!"Xu Chao said to a group of soldiers around him. Twenty soldiers, rowing ten sampans, went to the fishing boat to transport wine. After a while, jars of wine were transported to the shore, and many wine bottles were placed around each jar of wine. The soldiers were so happy that they all came to the cauldron to receive the horse meat, each of them a large piece. The soldiers opened their mouths with joy, and one soldier said:"It's so delicious!""

"Eat big chunks of horse meat and drink big gulps of wine! That's great!"A soldier said while eating. The battle a few hours ago seemed as if it had never happened.

The sky gradually darkened, and dozens of bonfires were lit on the shore. Zhou Fang, Zhou Fu, Li Heng, Xu Chao , Zhao Yin, like the soldiers, also received a large piece of horse meat each. Zhou Fang smelled the fragrance of horse meat, thinking about the bloody storm that had just passed, and said to Li Heng and others:"Although we The final victory was achieved, but more than a thousand of our dead brothers will rest here forever. Now, we want to pay tribute to these brothers. After Zhou

Fang finished speaking, he placed the horse meat in his hands along the river. Li Heng, Xu Chao, Zhao Yin and Zhou Fu also placed the horse meat in their hands along the river. A soldier handed Zhou Fang a large bowl of wine. Zhou Wan spilled half of the wine into the river, and half of the wine onto the shore. Zhou Wan handed the bowl to the capable soldier, and then bowed towards the Yangtze River with Xu Chao and others.

Zhou Wan just picked up the horse meat from the riverside, He looked up and saw the soldiers still on duty on more than a hundred warships in the Yangtze River, and said to Xu Chao:"General Xu Chao, arrange for people to use small boats to carry horse meat to the big ships, so that the brothers guarding the warships can also enjoy it."

The soldiers who cooked horse meat ate at the same time, cooking pot after pot.

Looking at the mountains of trophies not far away, including bows, arrows, knives, spears, shields, and all kinds of luggage, they were filled with joy during the visit.. He said to Li Heng and Xu Chao:"The two generals arranged for the brothers to clean the bows, arrows, knives, spears, swords, shields, etc. that can be used in the river, and load them all on the ships to transport them back. If you can't use it, throw it into the river!"

"Yes!"Li Heng and Xu Chao agreed and turned around to arrange the matter. Watching hundreds of soldiers cleaning the trophies by the river, Zhou Fu asked Zhou Fang:"Father, our country has been at war frequently since I was a child. When will there be no more wars?"

"My child, this will have to wait until the swords and guns are stored in the warehouse and the horses are released to Nanshan! Zhou Fang smiled and said,"I can't see it anyway. I hope you can wait until then!""

By the time the soldiers finished eating and drinking, it was already midnight. After cleaning the battlefield, Zhou Fang summoned Li Heng, Xu Chao, Zhao Yin, Zhou Fu, and several other generals to the handsome ship. The lights on the ship were brightly lit, and the generals came When they got to the cabin, they sat around an Eight Immortals table. Zhou Fang said:"In the battle to defeat Du Zeng, all the generals and generals charged forward and were not afraid of life and death, so we won this battle. Every general and general was injured to varying degrees, but compared with those brothers who sacrificed their precious lives to suppress this rebellion, the most fortunate thing is that we are still alive, and we can still do a lot of things. I have already listed your military exploits in the merit book and asked His Highness the King of Jin to reward you based on your merits!"

The generals and generals stood up and applauded in congratulations, with rare smiles on their faces. Zhou Fang continued:"Currently, Du Zeng and other remaining forces are entrenched in Wudang and are still a thorn in the side of the imperial court. In two years, I will capture Du Zeng, a traitor!"

There was another round of warm applause. Zhou Fang added:"I immediately sent Zhou Fu and ten soldiers to Jiankang by boat to present a memorial to His Majesty the King of Jin. Zhao Yin led his soldiers to stay in Wuchang to protect the people here. I have already asked His Majesty the King of Jin in my memorial to promote General Zhao Yin to an official position, so that his father, General Zhao You, can smile."

Zhao Yin stood up, cupped his hands and saluted:"Thank you so much, Lord Sheriff, for your love!"

"Lord Sheriff, there is still a lot of horse meat cooked at the end, and everyone is full. What should we do?"A soldier who was cooking horse meat ran over and asked. Zhou Fang said:"Carry all the remaining horse meat onto the ship. Let's go back and have a celebration banquet!"

"Father, I'm going to Jiankang, please bring some cooked horse meat with me! It can be regarded as a tribute gift to King Jin."Zhou Fu said:"It's not what my father said. It has been very difficult for the civil and military ministers in Jiankang these years. Sometimes they can't even eat pork, so that the civil and military ministers can also have a full meal."

"Okay, okay, you have a great idea! Zhou Fang said,"Just look at the arrangements!""

The shore of Chaos Yang has gradually returned to its former peace. The warships in the Yangtze River are neatly arranged. The surging Yangtze River water is still roaring and flowing eastward.

"Okay, generals, please go back to your warships and organize your troops. We are preparing to return to Yuzhang. I hope everyone will take responsibility, perform their duties, and fulfill their responsibilities!"

The joy of victory kept Zhou Fang and all the soldiers awake all night. At dawn, Zhou Fu stood on the bow of the boat and saluted his father and other generals. Then he took the boat with twenty soldiers and sailed down the river to Jian. Kang Chao met Sima Rui. Zhou Wan held his sword in his hand and looked at the endless warship behind him. Looking at the soldiers standing in formation on the deck and facing out, he nodded with satisfaction. Zhou Wan looked up at the sky white clouds, and then looked at the plants and trees on the shore in the distance. Zhou Fang shouted:"Soldiers, go home!"

One morning two days later, Zhou Fu stood on the bow of the ship. Suddenly, the soldiers on the ship saw a huge fleet ahead. So they immediately reported to Zhou Fu:"General, look!"

"Row faster and keep up! Zhou Fu said. When he got closer to the fleet in front, Zhou Fu saw the flags on the fleet. Many of the flags said"King Langya". Zhou Fu thought in his heart:"King Langya?" Which Langya King? Oh, I remembered, it was Sima Ra!"

"Brothers, please row faster to catch up with the big boat in front!" Zhou Fu said. After catching up with the last boat in the fleet, Zhou Fu asked loudly:"Is that King Langya in front?"

"Yes, His Highness King Langya led us to conquer Shile and just returned!"A soldier on the boat replied. Zhou Fu asked:"Is His Royal Highness King Langya on the boat in front?"

"Of course, His Royal Highness King Langya is on the second big boat in front. The first boat was for the guards, and the following boats were for the Jiankang soldiers."The soldier said again. Zhou Fu bowed his hands and saluted and said,"Thank you, big brother!"