009—Wang Jinglue (3)

The envoy that the Yan Kingdom had sent was named Murong Ling¹. For a while, Fu Jian and Wang Meng negotiated with him. Murong Ling announced that the Yan Kingdom agreed to concede Luoyang if the Qin Kigndom agreed to withdraw their forces. While Wang Meng was strictly against the idea of withdrawing forces, Fu Jian said, “Qin and Yan have always been part of the same family. To be truthful, We do not want to invade the Yan Kingdom either. We agree to withdrawing our faces, and will also grant Chang’an to you.”

Towards this kind of compromise, Wang Meng gnashed his teeth with fury, but could only grudgingly agree to withdraw the forces in Luoyang to preserve Fu Jian’s face. Hearing this, Murong Ling smiled and extended a hand to him. Wang Meng stared blankly at Fu Jian, but eventually reached his hand out as well. Thus, the peace talks were completed.

After they left, Xuan Cheng was left alone inside the camp. He passed the time closely observing the workings of the kingdom.

At this time, the sky suddenly erupted with a glow of orange light. It scattered onto the nearby horses and troops, creating a magnificent sight. As the golden light glinted, the men appeared more valiant and fierce as ever. In Xuan Cheng’s eyes, this seemed almost like a fantastical dream.

The grey tents sprouted from the grounds innumerably. Displayed on every tent was a large flag emblazoned with the ‘Qin’ character on it. As Xuan Cheng studied his surroundings, he suddenly heard the faraway sound of soldiers at drill practice.

Although the scene around him was calm and quiet, this was still a time in the midst of war. Thinking about this, Xuan Cheng’s heart began to broil with turmoil.

This place was Former Qin, the most colorful and intense dynasty of Chinese history. This was a dynasty established by the northern nomadic tribes in the south, the sacred land of the five ethnic groups.

This wasn’t a dream, Xuan Cheng told himself. His head still felt a bit incredulous and muddle-headed, so he took to pinch the fat in his arm, telling himself repeatedly that this was real, it was really real. Right now he wasn’t in the 21st century or in Nanjing. This was a time nearly 1600 years ago, set in the Sixteen Kingdoms dynasty.

As the night began to settle, Fu Jian visited him again. With a troubled look on his face, he asked, “Younger Brother, has your condition improved?”

Xuan Cheng nodded. He didn’t dare to say anything, or rather feared speaking. Inside his heart were an infinite amount of questions broiling beneath the surface. He feared that if he were to speak, he would ask, Fu Jian, why did you surrender? Your dreams were so lofty and hot-blooded, but yet in the end you lost so bitterly. Was it the Heavens that failed you, or does the blame lie on yourself?

Fu Jian grasped his hand, looking at him with an expression of deep affection. Tenderly, he said, “Tomorrow morning you’re returning home with Us. The battle aftermath and funeral reparations are all being managed by Jinglue, and we’ve made an arrangement with the Yan Kingdom. They will cede us the territory if we retreat from here now.”

“Cede what?” Xuan Cheng suddenly asked, not knowing why himself. But when he had heard Fu Jian talking about how the Yan Kingdom had agreed to cede territory, his heart began thumping rapidly.

The Yan Kingdom were of the Xianbei people. They were known for their inconsistencies and unfaithfulness. Why did Fu Jian always trust these kinds of people?

“Luoyang. Murong Ling has already agreed to give it to us.”

“And you agreed?”

Fu Jian nodded. “Yes. The possibility of peace is always better than a bloodbath. This way, the people of Luoyang will not have to suffer.

Xuan Cheng hatefully said, “Even if you do this, why do you trust the words of Murong Ling? Did you forget the previous year when Murong Wei promised to cede the Western territories before reneging on the deal last minute?”

“Younger Brother?” Fu Jian became startled, his grip becoming tighter. “You remember these events?”

Xuan Cheng stared blankly.

Fu Jian was right. How had he remembered these events? And why?

“That year, Murong Wei requested Us for troops for a campaign against Huan Wen of the Jin Dynasty. As We remembered that they were also a branch of the five ethnic groups and our brother-in-arms, We agreed to his request. In return, he agreed to cede the Western territories to Qin.” He paused for a breath. “But what nobody had expected was that he would regret this decision.”

Xuan Cheng indignantly shook off Fu Jian’s hand. Turning away, he asked, “Then why do you still believe him?”

¹No Wikipedia page for this guy but somehow all eighteen bazillion of his brothers have one :(. Basically he was the favorite for the throne of Later Yan and Wang Meng (Jinglue) tricked him into defecting back to Former Yan, which caused him to become exiled from the throne of Later Yan by his father. At this time he should have been exiled and is now serving his cousin, Murong Wei, who is the emperor of Former Yan.