The Fall of Chang’an and the End of Western Jin
After the Jin court reestablished itself in Chang’an under the young Emperor Min (Sima Ye), Han Emperor Liu Cong repeatedly ordered his general Liu Yao to crush the last remnant of Jin rule. Initial assaults failed – but in autumn 316 CE, Liu Yao returned with overwhelming force and laid siege to the city.
For months, the defenders held out. But starvation soon set in. Half the population perished; even the emperor survived only on thin gruel. Cannibalism broke out in the streets. Terrified and heartbroken, Emperor Min told his ministers:
“We have no food, no hope of victory – why keep fighting? Let us surrender, so the people may live.”
Ignoring protests, he sent envoys with a letter of surrender. But minister Suo intercepted them and sent his own son to Liu Yao with a treacherous offer:”My father will open the gates – if you make him General of Chariots and Cavalry and grant him a ducal title.”
Liu Yao was furious:
“I’ve fought fifteen years by strength alone – not deceit! This man is the worst traitor under heaven!”
He beheaded Suo’s son and sent the head back to Chang’an as warning.
This time, Emperor Min submitted in full ritual humiliation: bare-chested, bound, holding a jade disc in his mouth, riding in a goat-drawn cart with a coffin beside him. Liu Yao accepted the surrender, burned the coffin, unbound the boy emperor, and sent him to Pingyang.
Thus ended the Western Jin dynasty – fifty-two years from Emperor Wu to Emperor Min.
Humiliation and Death in Captivity
In Pingyang, Liu Cong executed the traitor Suo, then granted Sima Ye the empty title of Marquis of Huai’an – just as he had done with the late Emperor Huai (Sima Chi).
But mercy was a mask for cruelty. Liu Cong forced the former emperor to:
- Stand guard during hunts, gripping a halberd on the imperial chariot;
- Pour wine for guests at banquets in servant’s black robes;
- Hold the chamber pot lid while Liu Cong relieved himself.
Crowds gathered to gawk – children curious, elders weeping.
After over a year of this degradation, rumors spread that Jin loyalists planned to kidnap Crown Prince Liu Can in exchange for Sima Ye’s freedom. Fearing unrest, Liu Can urged his father:
“Kill Sima Ye now – let the Jin cause die with him.”
Liu Cong sent poisoned wine. Knowing his end had come, Sima Ye drank it calmly, then asked to see his old attendant Xu Su. As Xu Su rushed in, tears streaming, he cried:”Does Your Majesty still know me?”
Sima Ye clutched his hand – and died moments later, not yet eighteen.
Thus, in just a few short years, Sima Chi, the third emperor of the Western Jin, and Sima Ye, the fourth and final emperor, were successively captured and killed by Liu Cong, the second emperor of the Han Zhao (also known as Former Zhao) kingdom, which was established by the Xiongnu people.
A New Hope in the South
While Chang’an fell, Jin loyalists in the south acted swiftly. In 317 CE, they proclaimed Prince Sima Rui of Langye as King of Jin, based in Jiankang (modern Nanjing). Though Sima Rui was Emperor Min’s uncle, he was a collateral branch of the imperial clan – never powerful, never famous.
Sent to govern the south earlier, he dreamed of making Jiangnan a refuge for Jin. But local elites – descendants of the former Wu kingdom – despised the Sima family. They ignored him. Sima Rui grew anxious.
His salvation came in the form of Wang Dao, a brilliant statesman from the mighty Langye Wang clan (based in Linyi, Shandong). Wang Dao had long advised Sima Rui, managing affairs with skill while his master remained shy and withdrawn. Soon, Wang Dao’s reputation eclipsed the prince’s – yet he knew true legitimacy required royal authority.
Then Wang Dun, Wang Dao’s elder cousin, arrived. A son-in-law of Emperor Wu, commander of six provinces, and famed general, Wang Dun wielded real military power.
Wang Dao urged him:”Langye Prince is virtuous but unknown. With your prestige, we can elevate him.”
Wang Dun agreed.
The Orchestrated Display: “Sharing the World”
On March 3rd, the Double Third Festival (Xi Xi) – a day when all gathered by rivers to cleanse away misfortune – the Wang brothers staged a masterstroke.
They escorted Sima Rui through the streets in a grand procession:
- Palanquin borne by eight men;
- Soldiers clearing the way;
- Wang Dun and Wang Dao flanking him on fine steeds, surrounded by officials.
The spectacle drew crowds. Local gentry, seeing the mighty Wangs bow to Sima Rui, rushed forward to pay respects. Sima Rui smiled and waved from his sedan.
Overnight, his stature soared.
Wang Dao seized the moment: “Now summon the great southern scholars – Gu Rong and He Xun. If they serve, others will follow.”
Both men, former Jin officials who fled south, were deeply moved by Wang Dao’s personal visit. Gu Rong declared:”Only a figure like Sun Quan can restore order in chaos.”
Wang Dao replied:”Langye Prince is that man. Will you aid him?”
They agreed. Appointed as senior advisors, they recommended dozens more. Sima Rui also appointed over 100 northern emigre elites – like Zhou Yi, Yu Liang, and Diao Xie – to key posts.
Yet many northerners mourned their lost homeland. At gatherings in Xinting Pavilion, they gazed at the Yangtze and wept for the Yellow River. One lamented:”The scenery is much the same – but the land is not ours!” Tears flowed freely – a scene immortalized as “Weeping at Xinting”.
Wang Dao rebuked them sternly:
“What good is crying? We must rally around the throne and restore our realm!”
He invoked Guan Zhong, who helped Duke Huan of Qi unify China: “Let us be the Guan Zhong to Langye’s Duke Huan!”
From then on, people called Wang Dao “Guan Yiwu” (Guan Zhong’s given name).
“Wang and Ma, Ruling the Realm Together”
When news of Emperor Min’s murder reached the south in 318 CE, calls for Sima Rui to assume the throne became universal – even Liu Kun and Xianbei chieftains sent petitions urging him to ascend.
In spring 318 CE, Sima Rui became Emperor Yuan of Jin, founding the Eastern Jin dynasty.
Grateful beyond measure, he granted the Wang brothers extraordinary power:
- Wang Dao as Chancellor, controlling civil administration;
- Wang Dun as Commander of Six Provinces, holding military supremacy;
- Wang clan members filled every key office.
At the coronation, in an unprecedented gesture, Emperor Yuan turned to Wang Dao on the dragon throne and said:
“Come – sit with me!”
The court gasped. Wang Dao knelt in terror:
“There is but one sun in the sky – how dare I share the throne?”
Only then did the emperor sit alone.
But the message was clear. The people soon coined a phrase that would echo through history:
“Wang and Ma, ruling the realm together”.
Though this alliance stabilized the south, it also planted seeds of future strife – as aristocratic clans vied for dominance, weakening the very state they saved.
The Last Heroes of the North
Just as Eastern Jin rose, its northern champions fell.
Liu Kun, isolated in Bingzhou, suffered final defeat at the hands of Shi Le. He fled to Duan Pidi, a Xianbei warlord in Youzhou, who initially pledged alliance. But poisoned by rumors, Duan Pidi executed Liu Kun in 318 CE at age 48. Despite his past flaws, Liu Kun was mourned as a patriot who never surrendered.
Zu Ti, meanwhile, faced betrayal from within. His stunning successes north of the Yangtze alarmed Emperor Yuan, who dispatched his confidant Dai Yuan as General Who Conquers the West, placing Zu Ti under his command.
Feeling distrusted and witnessing rising tensions between Wang Dun and the court, Zu Ti feared Eastern Jin would repeat Western Jin’s self-destruction. Heartbroken and enraged, he fell gravely ill – and died in 321 CE at 55.
With Liu Kun and Zu Ti gone, Jin’s northern foothold vanished. The Central Plains descended into the era of the Sixteen Kingdoms, ruled by Xiongnu, Jie, Xianbei, Di, and Qiang peoples.
The dream of restoring Han-Chinese unity across the north would remain unfulfilled for centuries.
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