Chapter Summaries

Liu Cheng gained the prestigious appointment of Gentleman of the Palace Attendant, Extra-Establishment, after the Empress Dowager reconsidered his reward, and he later received a pardon for bringing a blade into the palace. As A She's delivery approached, Xie An and several unexpected guests arrived at Liu Cheng's Manor, with Xie An demanding to know why his brothers had ordered him home.

• The court approved General Who Pacifies the South for Huan Yun, promoted Xie Shang to Western General of the Gentlemen of the Palace, and approved several other commendations and appointments.
• Empress Dowager Chu initially proposed giving Liu Cheng a general's title, but Liu Cheng argued that Wang Tanzhi had failed to teach the Young Emperor about weapons, prompting Chu to approve Liu Cheng as Gentleman of the Palace Attendant, Extra-Establishment.
• After Xie Shang and Xie Yi spoke with Chu about their family and Xie An, Wang Tanzhi reported that Liu Cheng had gone to the Court Commandant's office to await punishment for bringing a blade into the palace, and Chu ordered him pardoned.
• Liu Cheng returned to the Manor, slowed his routine as A She's pregnancy advanced, began population verification, and hired Chang Qu as Chief Registrar.
• Liu Cheng saw Wang Biaozhi off to Kuaiji with Wang Linzhi, then remained anxious as A She's due date neared.
• Xie An arrived with Monk Zhi Daolin, Sun Chuo, Yu Yun, and Yu Cun, demanding to know what Liu Cheng had said in his name at court, while Sun Chuo explained that he had come to seek office.

Liu Cheng confronted Xie An over his refusal to enter office, then learned that A She had safely given birth to a daughter. Pressed by his brothers, Xie An agreed to write a guarantee that he would join Huan Yuanzi’s staff when Liu Yulong left Langya for the Northern Expedition, while Xie Xuan arrived to serve under Liu Cheng.

• Liu Cheng defended dragging Xie An into politics, accusing him of evading responsibility while the realm’s people suffered.
• A messenger told Liu Cheng that A She had delivered a daughter safely, and Liu Cheng celebrated the birth of A Weng.
• Xie An explained to Xie Yi and Xie Shang that he should eventually serve Huan Yuanzi in Jiangling, but wanted to wait until the right moment.
• Xie Shang revealed that Liu Cheng had predicted Xie An would avoid office and demanded a written promise that he would join Huan Yuanzi when Liu Cheng left Langya for the Northern Expedition.
• Xie An agreed to write the guarantee, and Xie Xuan brought congratulatory gifts to Liu Cheng and said he wished to serve like Wei Qing and Huo Qubing.

After personally organizing flood relief in Langya Commandery, Liu Cheng launched household registration reforms and proposed challenging aristocratic estates to fund development and support a future Northern Expedition. He persuaded Sun Chuo to lead a memorial to the court, while the chapter ended with Xie Xuan asking about names for the newly established townships.

• Liu Cheng led flood relief across Langya Commandery, restored roads and waterways, inspected damage, and ordered officials to register households and investigate fraudulent aristocratic registrations.
• At a meeting to name local townships, Liu Cheng reported the commandery's population figures and discussed the unfairness of taxing refugees while aristocratic estates held land and laborers beyond his jurisdiction.
• Liu Cheng outlined a gradual Tuduan plan and argued that the court should require aristocratic estates to surrender unused fields for refugee cultivation.
• Xie Xuan proposed petitioning the court, Fan Ning recommended building support through a joint memorial, and Liu Jili suggested seizing estates if the aristocrats resisted.
• Liu Cheng persuaded Sun Chuo to lead a memorial on behalf of the people by promising to help him obtain a local Yangzhou commandery appointment.
• Xie Xuan pointed out that the seven newly established townships and villages still needed proper names, and Liu Cheng defended their existing informal names.

Liu Cheng’s campaign against fraudulent gentry registrations sparked a wave of memorials in Jiankang supporting Tuduan and reform. While Sima Yu sought to question him, Liu Cheng was in Caishi helping Xie Shang create a musical performance, leaving the court’s political maneuvering tangled with his theatrical plans.

• Liu Cheng’s investigation of Langya gentry households coincided with Sun Chuo’s memorial condemning fraudulent registrations, wasteful estates, and gentry encroachment.
• Gao Rou, Liu Lang, Ming Ji, Xie Shang, Fan Wang, and other officials submitted memorials supporting Sun Chuo’s call for reform, and Sun Chuo proposed gradual Tuduan with nineteen prominent co-signers.
• Sima Yu learned that Liu Cheng had coordinated the public campaign and summoned him to the Department of State Affairs, but Wang Tanzhi said Liu Cheng was in Caishi at Xie Shang’s invitation.
• Liu Cheng and Xie Shang organized the Qianxi Music Troupe to perform The Peacock Flies Southeast, with Yuan Hong writing and revising lyrics and Song Yi arranging the music.
• Xie Shang rejected the stone chimes he had commissioned, and Liu Cheng protested that without restoring the Imperial Music Bureau, Sun Chuo would lose the political reward of promotion.

Liu Cheng met Sima Yu after arranging stone chimes for the court and proposed using Langya Commandery to begin a gradual Tuduan policy. Sima Yu approved the plan, and Liu Cheng explained the political circumstances behind Xi Zaochi’s demotion before the meeting ended in laughter over Sun Chuo’s impatience.

• Liu Cheng finished gathering stone at Caishi and hurried to Jiankang to meet Sima Yu.
• Liu Cheng argued that Sima Yu should prepare for an eventual Tuduan by setting an example in Langya Commandery and transferring farmland attached to private estates to aid impoverished people on the White Register.
• Gao Song endorsed Liu Cheng’s proposal, and Sima Yu approved it.
• Liu Cheng explained that Xi Zaochi’s demotion stemmed chiefly from tensions with Huan Wen and discontent among Jingzhou Native Literati, rather than solely from Xi praising Sima Yu.
• Liu Cheng told Sima Yu that the stone chimes would be completed before winter so Sun Chuo could receive recognition sooner, prompting laughter in the hall.

Liu Cheng used the performance of “The Peacock Flies Southeast” to persuade the Empress Dowager to establish monthly ritual-music demonstrations at the Central Hall. The chapter ends with a later performance causing Murong Chui to collapse after hearing its final song.

• The performance of “The Peacock Flies Southeast” moved the Empress Dowager and the gathered officials, while the Young Emperor watched curiously.
• Liu Cheng explained that the ensemble was private but proposed monthly performances at the Central Hall, with senior ministers and titled ladies invited.
• Liu Cheng argued that the gatherings would let the young Emperor appear before court figures, and Xie Shang supported the proposal.
• The Empress Dowager approved monthly demonstrations and sent the restoration of ritual music’s merit to the Tai Pavilion for deliberation.
• At a later performance, Murong Chui heard the song’s final lines, stood up, and collapsed unconscious.

Liu Cheng explained how he would implement Tuduan and offered refugee leaders reassurance through marriage ties and a new school. He corrected the boys’ summer project and asked them whether he himself was happy in Langya.

• Liu Cheng met with refugee commanders and clan chiefs, explained the Tuduan policy, and proposed intermarriages and a school for their children.
• Liu Cheng reviewed Xie Xuan, Fan Ning, and Wang Linzhi’s mill and land survey, pointed out that they had proposed too many sites, and asked them to narrow the list to five or six.
• Fan Ning said he disliked the fieldwork and wanted more time to study the Confucian classics, while Xie Xuan said he enjoyed learning practical skills and looked forward to the winter hunt.
• Wang Linzhi said he preferred quiet conversation but could endure fieldwork when it pleased his father.
• Liu Cheng asked the three boys whether they thought he was happy in Langya.

Liu Cheng explained that his outward success in Langya could not hide his frustration at being unable to remedy injustice, then assessed the Murong Clan’s likely campaign and the court’s military choices. He left the court facing the problem of how to replenish its armies before the northern war began.

• Liu Cheng told Fan Ning, Xie Xuan, and Wang Linzhi that injustice was what truly troubled him, and praised each young man for understanding his own desires.
• Liu Cheng received the delayed Tuduan proclamations, then learned they had been pushed through after Murong Jun began registering households and preparing troops in Hebei.
• Liu Cheng predicted that the Murong Clan would invade after the next autumn harvest and attack Duan Kan first, explaining that Duan Kan threatened Murong power in both the Xianbei tribes and Bohai region.
• Liu Cheng urged the court to aid Duan Kan but warned that victory would require placing the Western, Central, and Northern armies under Huan Wen, a risk the court would likely reject.
• Liu Cheng explained that famine would delay Huan Wen’s campaign in Guanzhong and warned that the following year would bring renewed mass warfare, prompting Sima Yu to ask how the court could quickly fund and reinforce its armies.
• Sun Chuo’s account described how Emperor Taizu directed him to seek Xie Shang at Caishi, where a proposal to restore court rites helped Xie Shang advance and Sun Chuo gain an appointment.

Liu Cheng formalized local offices and drove his gradual Tuduan policy through Langya, confiscating estate fields and resettling refugees while the Jiankang court sought ways to raise troops from great-clan retainers. After Liu Cheng burned a Zhuge estate and demanded its owners serve on the front line, Sima Yu sent Zhuge Heng to a dangerous post, leaving Jiankang in a panic.

• Liu Cheng held an autumn feast, appointed township and village officials, and made Grandpa Liu San the senior township head of South Garden Township.
• The Jiankang court prepared to restrict great clans’ slave retainers and recruit able-bodied men for military service.
• Liu Cheng and Liu Dage confiscated estate fields across Langya, distributed them to refugees, and rebuilt local administration.
• Liu Cheng burned a Zhuge family estate after its owners complained about his measures, then memorialized against Zhuge Hui’s three sons.
• Sima Yu appointed Zhuge Heng Administrator of Xingyang, a dangerous post near enemy forces, and the news alarmed Jiankang.

Liu Cheng met secretly with Shen Jin to discuss the troops and resources Shen could provide, then considered using a possible uprising to gain Shen a path out of his political predicament. He was left struggling with whether to deliberately provoke turmoil in Jiankang, unsure whether history would otherwise avert disaster.

• Liu Cheng discussed Shen Jin’s pregnant relative and the Shen family’s offer to support the court, asking Shen to report his available troops, weapons, livestock, and supplies.
• Shen Jin secretly visited Liu Cheng in South Garden and said he could provide ten thousand men with basic equipment and three months of provisions, while potentially gathering thirty or forty thousand adult males from Wuxing and nearby communities.
• Liu Cheng told Shen Jin to keep the force’s true size secret, approach Wang Huzhi, and let Liu Cheng sound out the Prince of Kuaiji about a smaller force.
• Liu Cheng asked whether Shen Jin would serve under him to escape his status as a Punished Family; Shen Jin said he would if Wang Huzhi’s efforts failed, but preferred a better background for his children if possible.
• After Shen Jin offered to lend troops if unrest broke out, Liu Cheng considered whether to provoke turmoil himself so he could suppress it and benefit from the upheaval.

After settling into a comfortable routine in the eleventh year of Yonghe, Liu Cheng learned that the Prince of Wuling was preparing weapons and armor. Seeing an opportunity to intervene in the Sima Clan’s affairs, he questioned Sima Yu about the prince’s character and political ties.

• Liu Cheng concluded that he could stir up trouble only after first accepting responsibility for its consequences.
• Huan Wen reported that Quchi had submitted to him, while a locust plague in Guanzhong threatened to keep his forces occupied.
• Liu Cheng collected increased taxes through Gradual Tuduan, supplied Xun Xian, supported schools, and enjoyed a quiet life with his family.
• Sun Sheng’s performance of "Discussing Heroes While Boiling Green Plums" provoked Cai Mo, who left after their argument.
• Sima Yu told Liu Cheng that the Prince of Wuling had been preparing weapons and armor, and Liu Cheng asked about the prince’s character, relationships, and political views.

Liu Cheng advised Sima Yu that the Prince of Wuling was preparing for possible upheaval but was unlikely to act immediately, and urged Sima Yu to consider meeting Huan Wen. After consulting his trusted advisers, Sima Yu received a note from Wang Tanzhi and asked whether his father thought the Prince of Wuling was merely preparing to hunt.

• Liu Cheng explained the Prince of Wuling's position and warned Sima Yu not to dismiss his weapons preparations as hunting.
• Liu Cheng advised Sima Yu to watch for sudden changes and consider meeting Huan Wen before major fighting began in the North.
• Sima Yu summoned Gao Song, Liu Jili, and Wang Tanzhi separately to discuss Liu Cheng's advice.
• Gao Song supported meeting Huan Wen, while Liu Jili urged Sima Yu to send the Prince of Wuling away to Jingzhou.
• Wang Tanzhi arrived with a note, and Sima Yu asked whether his father believed the Prince of Wuling merely wanted to hunt wild boar.

Sima Yu weighed whether to meet Huan Wen while growing uneasy about his family and political allies, as Liu Cheng worked to arrange the meeting. The chapter ended with Sima Yu confining his heir, Sima Daosheng, after he described hunting to the Young Emperor and angered the Empress Dowager.

• Sima Yu consulted Wang Tanzhi, Liu Jili, and Gao Song about meeting Huan Wen, and they advised against deciding hastily.
• After the others left, Gao Song reassured Sima Yu about Wang Shu’s loyalty and listened as Sima Yu lamented that even his allies had their own interests.
• Liu Cheng wrote to Xi Chao, asking him to pass his observations to Huan Wen and encourage him to initiate a meeting with Sima Yu.
• Sima Yu drafted an incoherent letter to Huan Wen about their children’s betrothals and northern affairs, then abandoned it without deciding whether to invite him.
• Sima Yu learned that Sima Daosheng had described hunting to the Young Emperor, displeasing the Empress Dowager, and ordered his son confined to the rear courtyard.

Liu Cheng learned that Sima Yu’s conflict with Sima Daosheng and Princess Consort Wang had exposed deeper family and political resentments, but the household soon appeared reconciled. He arranged Huan Wen and Sima Yu’s secret meeting at Niuzhu, leaving Sima Yu to approve Xie Renzu’s transfer to Shouchun.

• Sima Yu refused repeated pleas to release Sima Daosheng, while rumors spread that Princess Consort Wang had also been confined.
• Liu Cheng met Sima Yu, who instructed him to arrange a meeting with Huan Wen and keep the family dispute out of their talks.
• Fan Kang told Liu Cheng that Princess Consort Wang had confronted Lady Hu and searched Sima Yu’s discarded letters, worsening Sima Yu’s resentment toward the Taiyuan Wang Clan.
• Sima Daosheng and Princess Consort Wang were released after four or five days, though Liu Cheng later noticed that Sima Yu still seemed unwell.
• Liu Cheng conveyed Huan Wen’s proposal: Sima Yu would restore Xie Renzu’s title and send him to Shouchun, while Huan Wen traveled to meet Sima Yu at Niuzhu.
• Gao Song began drafting Xie Renzu’s appointment, and Liu Cheng set out for Niuzhu to prepare for the meeting.

Liu Cheng arranged for Huan Wen and Sima Yu to meet at Niuzhu, then explained why Sima Yu’s growing awareness of his power and dependence on the great clans made him central to breaking the political deadlock. Huan Wen listened closely, leaving the meeting’s consequences unresolved.

• Liu Cheng met Yuan Hong at Niuzhu and teased him about his prospects, then learned that Xie Shang had been recalled to lead troops north.
• Wang Ahhuo, Fu Tao, Gao Heng, and Gao Song arrived at Niuzhu as preparations for the meeting continued.
• Huan Wen and Sima Yu arrived on July 15, and Liu Cheng visited Huan Wen with Xi Chao on the river island.
• Liu Cheng discussed literature and his Popular Romance of the Three Kingdoms with Huan Wen and Xi Chao before turning to politics.
• Liu Cheng told Huan Wen that Sima Yu knew he lacked an independent foundation, but still desired power and could serve as the key to controlling the political situation.

Liu Cheng witnessed Huan Wen and Sima Yu meet on a river islet and build trust by discussing their family affairs and political troubles. Huan Wen offered to handle the Prince of Wuling, and Sima Yu agreed, clearing the way for cooperation between them.

• Liu Cheng waited on the islet as Huan Wen and Sima Yu arrived by separate boats and greeted one another.
• Huan Wen and Sima Yu discussed Huan Ji and Sima Daofu’s marriage before turning to the Prince of Wuling’s threat to Sima Yu’s authority.
• Huan Wen urged Sima Yu to act decisively against the Prince of Wuling and criticized his reliance on advice from others.
• Huan Wen offered to return Gao Heng’s Huai River troops to Liu Cheng so Liu Cheng could deal with the Prince of Wuling discreetly.
• Sima Yu accepted Huan Wen’s offer after securing a promise that the Prince of Wuling and his sons would be kept safe.

Liu Cheng turned Huan Wen and Sima Yu’s meeting on the Western Islet into a political opportunity, proposing both a public show of unity and a plan to seize wealth from wealthy local Celestial Masters to support the northern campaign. The chapter ended with Huan Wen and Sima Yu affirming their alliance and agreeing to Liu Cheng’s proposals.

• Liu Cheng realized that Huan Wen and Sima Yu’s face-to-face meeting would signal unity to the northern armies, even if their discussion produced no immediate military solution.
• Liu Cheng proposed confiscating the wealth of wealthy local Celestial Masters to fund military supplies, while avoiding northern migrant Daoists who controlled refugees.
• Liu Cheng suggested using northern migrant Daoists to attack local Celestial Masters, and Huan Wen endorsed the plan while Sima Yu remained hesitant.
• Liu Cheng presented a joint declaration and urged Huan Wen and Sima Yu to publicize their meeting as a sign that the Upper and Lower Reaches stood together.
• Huan Wen promised to recognize Sima Yu as the sole regent and consult him on state affairs, and Sima Yu accepted his hand and agreed to the proposals.

The Prince of Wuling and Army Provisioning Officer Zong mistook Liu Cheng’s invitation for a hunt and accepted his challenge, unaware it was a trap. Gao Heng seized and bound them, then sent them to Jiangcheng, where Liu Cheng reported the capture to Gao Song.

• Army Provisioning Officer Xi and Army Provisioning Officer Zong debated Liu Cheng’s invitation, first refused it, then agreed to a hunting contest after Liu Cheng sent a more provocative note through Wang Linzhi.
• Army Provisioning Officer Xi and Army Provisioning Officer Zong rode north with their armed retainers and supplies, while Liu Cheng’s men guided them toward Flower Mountain.
• Army Provisioning Officer Xi and Army Provisioning Officer Zong praised and criticized Liu Cheng’s administration as they passed the market and North Camp township.
• Gao Heng’s troops ambushed the procession, seized Army Provisioning Officer Xi and Army Provisioning Officer Zong, and killed several fleeing axe-wielding slaves.
• Gao Heng’s men transported the captives and their supplies toward Jiangcheng, where Army Provisioning Officer Xi learned that neither Liu Cheng nor Gao Jian had personally come to arrest him.
• Liu Cheng delivered the prearranged capture note to Gao Song and told him to complete the paperwork.

Liu Cheng drove the Prince of Wuling from Jiankang, then turned the resulting uproar into a public revelation that Sima Yu and Huan Wen had met and agreed on a joint program to resist the Xianbei. The great clans stood to hear the proclamation, while Sima Yu privately savored the moment and gave Wang Tanzhi a piece of calligraphy.

• Gao Song prepared official documents for the Prince of Wuling’s departure, while Liu Cheng entered the residence with troops, sent away the prince’s family, and seized weapons and valuables.
• News of the prince’s departure stirred Jiankang’s great clans, who gathered at Sima Yu’s residence to demand an explanation.
• Liu Cheng told Wang Huzhi and the assembled ministers that Huan Wen had ordered the Prince of Wuling sent to his fief, then revealed that Sima Yu and Huan Wen had met at Western Islet three days earlier.
• Gao Song read the joint proclamation, and Liu Cheng urged the ministers to stand as they heard the governing program for resisting the Xianbei and supporting the court.
• Sima Yu heard reports from Gao Song, Liu Jili, and Wang Tanzhi, then gave Wang Tanzhi his calligraphy of the words “Large pearls, small pearls, falling on jade.”

Liu Cheng struggled to secure a military appointment that suited his work preparing for the Northern Expedition, while political tensions with Wang Tanzhi delayed his promotion. After Liu Cheng confronted Wang with a board of tofu, the court appointed him Archery Colonel and authorized him to command troops, leaving him ready to begin clearing deserters and bandits around Jiankang.

• Liu Cheng transferred the Prince of Wuling's seized goods to the public treasury, then discussed with Liu Jili the difficulty of choosing a suitable military title for his work in Jiangzuo.
• Liu Cheng suspected Wang Tanzhi was obstructing his appointment out of resentment over the Prince of Kuaiji's plans for the Heir Apparent and Princess Consort.
• Liu Cheng visited Wang Tanzhi with a board of tofu and urged him to secure any usable military post, suggesting a position among the Five Commandants if no generalship was available.
• Wang Tanzhi agreed to seek a fourth-rank miscellaneous title, and Liu Cheng asked him to pursue an appointment as one of the Five Commandants.
• Sima Yu approved Liu Cheng's appointment as Archery Colonel, granting him command of a thousand men and authority to pursue deserters and bandits within Yangzhou Province.
• The Department of State Affairs assigned Gao Heng and his unit to serve as Liu Cheng's Army Provisioning Officer, and Liu Cheng prepared to target deserters near Changgan Lane and Stone City.