Huan Xuan Seizes the Eastern Jin Throne

The northwest was tangled in Later Liang, Southern Liang, Northern Liang, Western Liang, Western Qin, and Later Qin.

Now the story turns back to Jiangnan. After Fei River, Eastern Jin looked quieter than the north. But inside the court, power was again moving toward a man who wanted more than office.

Emperor Xiaowu Dies in the Palace

After the Battle of Fei River, Eastern Jin did not march on to reunify the realm.

Compared with the north, however, its court was briefly calmer. Huan Chong, Xie An, Xie Xuan, and other major figures died one after another. No single strongman stood directly over the throne for a time, and the north had fallen back into multi-state war.

Emperor Xiaowu, Sima Yao, had a chance to restore government.

He did not use it. He sank into wine, pleasure, and palace entertainment.

In 396, after drinking with his favored consort Lady Zhang, he mocked and threatened her. He said that she was nearing thirty and could be replaced by younger women.

Then he went to sleep.

Lady Zhang became frightened and furious. She called trusted palace women, covered the sleeping emperor with bedding, and smothered him.

She then claimed that he had died from drunken nightmares.

The court did not seriously investigate. Sima Yao died inside the palace, and Crown Prince Sima Dezong succeeded as Emperor An of Jin.

Emperor An Becomes a Puppet

Sima Dezong could not handle government. Even daily life required others to care for him. Such an emperor could only become a puppet.

Power fell to Sima Daozi, Prince of Langya and grand tutor.

But Sima Daozi was also addicted to drinking and handled affairs poorly. The active men around him were Wang Guobao and Wang Xu.

Wang Guobao and Wang Xu wanted tighter central control. They urged Sima Daozi to weaken powerful regional governors, especially Wang Gong in Qing and Yan provinces and Yin Zhongkan in Jingzhou.

Wang Gong heard the news and refused to wait. He contacted Yin Zhongkan at Jiangling and prepared to march on Jiankang in the name of punishing Wang Guobao.

Yin Zhongkan hesitated.

Then Huan Xuan arrived.

Huan Xuan was Huan Wen's youngest son. Huan Wen's old power had left a complicated reputation, and that shadow damaged Huan Xuan's career. Sima Daozi also looked down on him. Huan Xuan held minor posts, then resigned and returned to Jiangling.

The Huan clan had deep roots in Jingzhou, and Huan Xuan still had influence there. When he saw Wang Gong and Yin Zhongkan preparing to move, he recognized the opportunity.

He told Yin Zhongkan that Wang Guobao had long wanted to remove him. If he waited until he was summoned to court, he would be trapped. Huan Xuan offered to serve as the vanguard.

Yin Zhongkan finally agreed.

Wang Gong and Yin Zhongkan marched against Jiankang. Wang Guobao sent Wang Xu to resist, but Wang Gong's forward commander Liu Laozhi defeated him quickly.

Liu Laozhi was a famous Beifu Army general who had already distinguished himself at Fei River. Wang Xu could not stop him.

Sima Daozi panicked and sacrificed his own men. He killed Wang Guobao and Wang Xu, then wrote to Wang Gong in submission. Wang Gong withdrew, and Yin Zhongkan returned to Jiangling.

Huan Xuan asked to become governor of Guangzhou. Sima Daozi agreed, hoping to send him far away. Huan Xuan accepted the appointment but did not go. He stayed in Jiangling and waited.

A Second Rising and Liu Laozhi's Turn

After the crisis, Sima Daozi realized that palace troops alone were not enough. He needed to control heavy armies.

He placed Wang Yu, Wang Guobao's brother, in Jiangzhou and gave him military authority over surrounding regions. This alarmed Yu Kai, governor of Yuzhou.

Yu Kai contacted Wang Gong and warned him that the court was clearly trying to weaken the regional commands. Today it was Yu Kai; tomorrow it might be Wang Gong.

Wang Gong rose again and again pulled in Yin Zhongkan.

This time Yin Zhongkan was more active. He sent Yang Quanqi as vanguard, Huan Xuan followed with troops, and Yin himself brought 20,000 men behind them. Yang Quanqi and Huan Xuan both wanted this campaign to lift their fortunes.

They quickly pressured Wang Yu, who fled without fighting.

Then Jiankang produced its own move: Liu Laozhi defected.

Sima Daozi had handed command to his son Sima Yuanxian. Though young, Sima Yuanxian saw the distrust between Wang Gong and Liu Laozhi. He promised Liu Laozhi Wang Gong's office if he changed sides.

Liu Laozhi accepted. He attacked Wang Gong, who was captured and executed.

The court gave Liu Laozhi Wang Gong's titles, and Liu brought the Beifu Army to support Jiankang.

When Huan Xuan and Yang Quanqi heard that Wang Gong was dead and that the Beifu Army was coming, they did not dare charge ahead. The court bought them off too: Huan Xuan could receive Jiangzhou, Yang Quanqi could receive Yongzhou.

They accepted and urged Yin Zhongkan to withdraw.

The second rising ended, but Eastern Jin's cracks had grown wider.

Sun En's Rebellion and Huan Xuan's Expansion

Afterward, Sima Yuanxian began taking power from his father.

He soon made a grave mistake. He conscripted people who had recently been freed from servile registration, along with ordinary households, into military service near the capital. Resentment spread through Jiangdong.

At the end of 399, Sun En rose in rebellion.

Sun En drew on followers of the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice and called for punishment of Sima Daozi and Sima Yuanxian. His force grew from thousands to more than 100,000 and seized the Three Wu region. Government troops fled in many places.

Sima Yuanxian sent Xie Yan, Liu Laozhi, and others to suppress him.

While Eastern Jin focused on Sun En, Huan Xuan acted in Jingzhou.

He attacked and killed his former allies Yin Zhongkan and Yang Quanqi. The court, under pressure, appointed him governor of Jingzhou and commander over several upper-Yangtze provinces, hoping to stabilize him.

Huan Xuan pressed further and demanded Jiangzhou too. The court yielded again.

By now, Huan Xuan controlled Jingzhou, Jiangzhou, and major upper-river positions. He held strong armies and a large part of Eastern Jin's territory.

When Sun En later pushed toward the capital, Huan Xuan claimed he was willing to lead troops against him. Sima Yuanxian knew Huan Xuan had another agenda and refused.

Huan Xuan gathered troops anyway and prepared to move east.

Liu Laozhi soon badly defeated Sun En, who withdrew to the islands. Sima Yuanxian ordered Huan Xuan to stand down.

Huan Xuan was furious. He cut the Yangtze grain transport. Supplies from upriver could not reach Jiankang, and the capital quickly felt hunger.

Sima Yuanxian issued an edict against Huan Xuan, with Liu Laozhi as vanguard. Huan Xuan issued his own proclamation and led his army downstream.

Liu Laozhi Defects Again

Huan Xuan's forces advanced quickly and neared Liyang.

Sima Yuanxian ordered Liu Laozhi to fight. Liu led the Beifu Army to Liyang and defeated Huan Xuan's vanguard soon after arriving.

Then he did not pursue.

Liu Laozhi was calculating. He wanted Huan Xuan to remove Sima Daozi and Sima Yuanxian, then planned to remove Huan Xuan later and control the court himself.

Huan Xuan saw the hesitation and sent men to persuade him. Liu Laozhi changed sides again.

With Liu Laozhi no longer blocking him, Huan Xuan sailed downriver, entered Jiankang, and seized Sima Daozi and Sima Yuanxian.

At first, Huan Xuan wanted to kill the emperor and take the throne immediately. Advisers warned him that regional powers remained strong and public support was unsettled. He should first control the emperor.

Huan Xuan obeyed. He used Emperor An to purge Sima Daozi and Sima Yuanxian's faction, then made himself chancellor and head of the secretariat, enjoying privileges associated with supreme ministers.

Once he held court power, he turned on Liu Laozhi.

Huan Xuan knew Liu Laozhi was unreliable and gave him a meaningless post. Liu sensed disaster and called his subordinates to discuss another rebellion.

But he had already betrayed Wang Gong, then Sima Yuanxian, and now wanted to betray Huan Xuan. His men would not follow.

Most soldiers left him. Liu Laozhi, frightened and ashamed, hanged himself.

Huan Xuan then struck at the Beifu Army. He intercepted Liu Laozhi's coffin, cut off the head, abandoned the body, and hunted Liu's followers.

For the moment, the force that could block Huan Xuan was broken.

Huan Xuan Becomes Emperor

Huan Xuan could no longer wait.

In 403, he forced Emperor An to make him King of Chu. When the court showed no clear resistance, he arranged an abdication.

Emperor An could not control events. Huan Xuan arranged the script, and the emperor had to follow it. Huan Xuan forced him to step down, took the throne, and named his state Chu.

After becoming emperor, Huan Xuan quickly repaired palaces and launched building projects. Officials were uneasy. Common people complained.

To stabilize the situation, he promoted Liu Yu.

Liu Yu came from a poor background, entered the Beifu Army, and had fought against Sun En. After Sun En withdrew to the islands, supply problems and repeated defeats drove him to drown himself. His remaining followers chose his brother-in-law Lu Xun as leader.

Lu Xun once submitted to Huan Xuan, who accepted in order to avoid more war and appointed him governor of Yongjia. But Lu Xun preserved strength and rose again.

Huan Xuan's forces struggled against him. Advisers recommended Liu Yu. Though Liu Yu had served under Liu Laozhi, Liu Laozhi was dead, and Liu Yu had submitted to Huan Xuan.

Huan Xuan sent Liu Yu against Lu Xun. Liu Yu spent more than a year suppressing the rebellion and drove Lu Xun southward.

After Liu Yu returned, Huan Xuan rewarded him. He later made Liu Yu governor of Xu and Yan provinces and personally toasted him at court banquets.

On the surface, Liu Yu was being honored.

In reality, Liu Yu was preparing to rise against Chu and restore Jin.

Liu Yu Rises

In early 404, Liu Yu raised troops.

His advance was fast. Huan Xuan panicked, took the deposed Emperor An with him, fled Jiankang, and sailed west toward Jingzhou.

Liu Yu entered Jiankang smoothly.

Wang Mi, a descendant of Wang Dao's line, and others supported Liu Yu as governor of Yangzhou. Liu Yu refused several times. Wang Mi presided over court affairs, while Liu Yu held military power.

Huan Xuan returned to Jiangling, the old Huan base, and quickly gathered forces for a comeback. Soon Liu Yu's troops defeated him again.

This time Huan Xuan lost heart. He planned to flee to Hanzhong and rely on Huan Xi, governor of Liangzhou.

The plan leaked. Disorder broke out in Jiangling. Huan Xuan had no time to organize troops and fled at night with only a few hundred close followers. In the rush, he even left Emperor An behind in the city.

Mao Xiuzhi, one of Huan Xuan's officers, also turned against him and hoped to lure him toward Shu, then kill him for credit. Huan Xuan believed the advice.

West of Jiangling, Mao Youzhi, a relative of Mao Xiuzhi, saw Huan Xuan's boats and ordered arrows fired.

Huan Xuan was hit. Feng Qian jumped onto his boat with a blade.

Huan Xuan cried out, asking what kind of man dared kill the Son of Heaven.

Feng Qian answered that he was only killing a rebel against the Son of Heaven.

Then Huan Xuan was killed.

From enthronement to death, his imperial dream lasted about half a year. The next year, Emperor An returned to Jiankang.

Eastern Jin had been restored on the surface. But the situation had changed. Liu Yu, the man who restored Jin by destroying Chu, now stood at the front of history.