Video spoilers history, starting with the blitzkrieg on Poland

A new aerial view appears.

The scene depicts ancient soldiers in battle.

Armies belonging to different factions swept through the battlefields.

It's hard to tell who's better.

But it's clear that it's extremely chaotic.

It was also extremely bloody.

The celestial curtain begins to narrate:
After the defeat and fall of Ran Wei, the lands of Hebei fell entirely to Murong Yan, also known as Former Yan.

The power structure in northern China has been fundamentally reshaped.

This led to the formation of the Former Qin regime, based in Guanzhong and dominated by the Di ethnic group and the Fu clan.

[This is in contrast to the Former Yan regime, which was entrenched in Hebei and ruled by the Murong clan.]

A new格局 (geopolitical landscape) has emerged, characterized by East-West confrontation and a two-horse race for supremacy.

As the Qiang chieftain Yao Yizhong lay dying, he called his son Yao Xiang to his bedside and earnestly entrusted him with these words:

"Shi Hu was kind enough to recognize my talent, and I wanted to do my best for him."

"But now that the Shi clan is destroyed, the Central Plains are leaderless."

"After my death, you must submit to the Jin dynasty, faithfully fulfill your duties as a subject, and never disobey."

After Yao Yizhong's death, Yao Xiang, to prevent any unforeseen events, chose to keep the news secret and quickly led his followers south to surrender to the Eastern Jin Dynasty.

Meanwhile, after Ran Min's defeat at the hands of Murong Ke, the Former Yan army surrounded Ye City like a tidal wave.

At this moment, the focus of attention from all sides, besides this strategic location, was also on the Imperial Seal, the symbol of the legitimacy of imperial power within the city.

[Dai Shi, a general of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, seized the opportunity presented by Ran Wei's request for reinforcements and dispatched a hundred elite soldiers to defend Ye City.]

As Ye City was about to fall, Dai Shi cleverly stole the Imperial Seal of the State.

He returned alone to the Eastern Jin Dynasty at top speed.

The Eastern Jin court held a grand ceremony to celebrate this momentous event, symbolizing the return of the Mandate of Heaven to the Sima family.

However, after the Former Yan army entered the city, Murong Jun publicly declared that he had obtained the Imperial Seal of the State.

Not long after, at the urging of his ministers, Murong Jun formally ascended the throne and became emperor.

[Just then, an envoy from the Eastern Jin Dynasty arrived. Murong Jun made no attempt to conceal his true feelings and said to the envoy:]

"Return to your lord and report that the Central Plains are in chaos and the people are suffering terribly. I have been chosen by the people and have ascended the throne."

[Murong Jun was once granted an official title by the Jin Dynasty.]

However, this announcement is tantamount to an open challenge to the Eastern Jin Dynasty's status as the "legitimate successor to Chinese civilization."

This also signifies that the Former Yan dynasty has completely shed its pretense of being a vassal state of the Jin dynasty.

[To contend for supremacy as a completely independent empire.]

Beyond the sky, the Qin Dynasty.

Ying Zheng naturally paid close attention to the Imperial Seal of the State that he had passed down through generations.

The Imperial Seal of the State was once in the hands of the Ran Wei state, but was eventually brought back to the Central Plains by a general of the Eastern Jin Dynasty with only 100 men, which can be considered a good thing.

But as we see further on, after the Xianbei Murong clan entered Ye City, they completely revealed their wolfish ambitions.

They also falsely claimed to have obtained the Imperial Seal of the State.

He brazenly declared himself emperor despite being a barbarian!

Ying Zheng was immediately displeased.

Ying Zheng said with dissatisfaction, "Hehe, according to Tianmu, when the Later Zhao was powerful, the Former Yan regime established by the Xianbei people was still a vassal of the Eastern Jin."

"Now that they've risen to power, they're not hiding it at all, completely exposing their wolfish ambitions."

"It can only be said that this is how barbarians are; I am not surprised at all."

The curtain continues to fall:

[Regarding the escalating chaos in the north and Murong Jun's brazen declaration of himself as emperor, a direct confrontation ensued.]

The Eastern Jin court, confined to the south of the Yangtze River, was not indifferent.

The recovery of the Central Plains and the restoration of China remained their ultimate political goal.

However, while ideals are lofty, reality is often harsh.

The greatest obstacle does not come entirely from powerful external enemies, but rather from internal power structures and mistrust.

After successfully destroying the Cheng Han regime and recovering the Shu region, the powerful minister Huan Wen enjoyed immense prestige, commanded a large army, and held supreme military and political power in Jingzhou and Xiangyang.

This inevitably caused extreme anxiety within the Jiankang court.

Since the Wang Dun Rebellion, the imperial court has always been wary of powerful regional military governors who control strong armies and dominate the upper reaches of the country, fearing they might become too powerful to control.

Therefore, despite Huan Wen's repeated requests to lead an army on a northern expedition, [he refused to participate].

The imperial court rejected these proposals for various reasons, aiming to curb the further expansion of Huan Wen's power.

To counterbalance Huan Wen, the court promoted another minister, Yin Hao. Yin Hao was renowned for his refined and scholarly pursuits and enjoyed a high reputation. The court placed great hopes on him, expecting him to counter Huan Wen politically and militarily.

Yin Hao was well aware of the court's intentions. In order to establish his prestige and prove his abilities, he actively submitted a memorial, volunteering to lead the northern expedition.

The goal is to recapture the former capitals of Xuchang and Luoyang in the Central Plains.

The imperial court readily agreed, hoping to use this opportunity to have "one of their own" lead the Northern Expedition, both to achieve merit and to suppress Huan Wen.

However, Yin Hao's military talent was far from matching his reputation for philosophical discourse.

[Their enthusiasm for the Northern Expedition was very high, but the process was nothing short of a series of disasters.]

The first Northern Expedition targeted Xuchang.

As a result, Yin Hao not only failed to properly appease Zhang Yu, the northern general who had just surrendered, but also took inappropriate actions that exacerbated the conflict.

This led Zhang Yu to rebel in anger, retake Xuchang, and then defect to the Former Qin regime in Guanzhong.

The Eastern Jin dynasty's northern expeditionary force was aborted before it could even launch its offensive, halting its progress in a dismal fashion due to internal strife.

[During his second Northern Expedition, Yin Hao once again targeted Xuchang, dispatching General Xie Shang and Yao Xiang, the recently surrendered Qiang leader, to jointly lead the army.]

Upon hearing the news, the Former Qin dynasty swiftly dispatched troops to provide assistance.

In the ensuing battle, Xie Shang's Jin army suffered a crushing defeat.

Yin Hao was forced to retreat to Shouchun, and the Northern Expedition once again reached a stalemate.

After Yao Xiang led the Qiang people to surrender to the Eastern Jin Dynasty, they were settled along the Huai River.

Witnessing the overwhelming power of the Former Yan state in the north, he deeply felt that the Central Plains would be difficult to pacify in the short term.

Therefore, they became more pragmatic, vigorously developing land reclamation and grain storage both north and south of the Huai River, while actively training soldiers to strengthen their forces.

This was originally a sound strategy for consolidating the foundation and making gradual progress.

However, instead of reflecting on his own mistakes, Yin Hao, trapped in Shouchun and with his northern expedition unsuccessful, turned his attention to Yao Xiang, who was recuperating.

Perhaps they were wary of Yao Xiang's military strength.

[Perhaps they wanted to save face by attacking Yao Xiang.]

Yin Hao began a series of astonishingly foolish moves.

He first unreasonably detained Yao Xiang's younger brother as a hostage, attempting to use this to control Yao Xiang.

When this plan failed, Yin Hao repeatedly sent assassins to kill Yao Xiang.

Ironically, Yao Xiang possessed exceptional personal charisma and enjoyed high prestige.

Many assassins were either impressed by Yao Xiang's magnanimity or felt that she had been treated unfairly.

[They actually revealed Yin Hao's entire conspiracy!]

The assassination plot was completely exposed, not only failing to eliminate Yao Xiang but also exacerbating the conflict.

Enraged, Yin Hao not only failed to repent but escalated his actions, completely abandoning all pretense of civility.

[Send troops directly to attack Yao Xiang.]

The result was predictable.

Yin Hao's army was no match for Yao Xiang's seasoned Qiang warriors!

[After suffering a crushing defeat, the commander was killed, and the routed troops were taken over by Yao Xiang.]

Yin Hao's actions have turned an important ally into a mortal enemy.

Its political and military incompetence is blatantly exposed.

The comments section was filled with complaints at this point:

Is Yin Hao an undercover agent?

Yin Hao's performance was truly breathtaking.

Yin Hao is such a spendthrift!

"You missed a good opportunity to launch a northern expedition before, and now that the states of Yan and Qin have stabilized, you're finally launching one."

Huan Wen had long wanted to take advantage of the chaos to launch a northern expedition, but the Eastern Jin Dynasty insisted on creating Yin Hao, thus missing the window of opportunity.

When it was Huan Wen's turn, Fu Qin and Murong Ke had already secured their positions.

The Eastern Jin Dynasty was inferior to the Eastern Wu Dynasty; at least Sun Quan and Sun Hao genuinely wanted to launch a northern expedition.

The Former Qin, Later Qin, and Former Yan dynasties all make an appearance.

The Yao family is the most despicable!

From this perspective, Yao Yizhong and Yao Xiang are both quite kind-hearted.

Yao Yizhong is kind-hearted, but you should really teach your youngest son, Yao Chang a proper lesson!

"Yao Xiang had no base of operations at the time, and directly confronting the Former Yan would have meant certain death. Surrendering to the Eastern Jin was a wise move; otherwise, they wouldn't have survived for long."

From this perspective, the Eastern Jin Dynasty was truly rubbish.

"Don't be so harsh on them. At least the Eastern Jin Dynasty didn't have a pro-peace faction, which made it better than the Southern Song Dynasty." (End of Chapter)