Ran Sheng had been promoted to Tunzhang and had brought a hundred soldiers, ready to accompany Chen Caozhi to Kuaiji. Chen Caozhi, however, had him select only twenty to go with them, leaving the rest with Huan Mi, General of the Central Army-
On this journey to Kuaiji to review the Tuduan registrations, they would certainly face obstruction from the great local clans and might even have to enter gentry estates to conduct searches. But that would chiefly require the strength of the local commandery and county authorities. Ran Sheng's hundred soldiers alone would not only be of little use but could easily arouse the suspicions of gentry and commoners alike in Kuaiji. Chen Caozhi had no wish whatsoever to inflame tensions.
On the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, Chen Caozhi, Xie Daoyun, and Jia Bizhi parted ways with Xie Xuan and Liu Shangzhi in Jurong County and headed toward Wu Commandery. Some rode horses, some traveled in carriages, and others walked, so their progress was not particularly swift, covering sixty or seventy li a day. Fortunately, the late-autumn air was crisp and the weather remained fine day after day. They traveled in the morning and stopped for the night at dusk. Xie Daoyun had learned to ride and spent these days on a brown mare, riding alongside Chen Caozhi.
At Chen Caozhi's instruction, Shen Jin's son Shen Chiqian also accompanied Xie Xuan and Liu Shangzhi back to Wuxing Commandery to lend them a hand with Tuduan. Although the Shen Clan of Wuxing had declined over the past twenty years, it still wielded considerable influence in its home commandery. With its assistance, the pressure on Xie Xuan as he reviewed the Tuduan registrations would be greatly eased-
On the morning of the fifth day of the tenth month, Chen