Prior to the Battle of Fei River As prime minister, Xie tried to show leniency to people, and that was manifested by a number of general pardons that the Jin imperial government declared. He also changed the tax system from based on land ownership to a
head tax in 376. Meanwhile, Jin's rival Former Qin was expanding itself in the north, destroying
Former Yan in 370, seizing Jin's Liang (梁州, modern southern
Shaanxi) and Yi (益州, modern
Sichuan and
Chongqing) Provinces in 373, and destroying
Dai and the nominal Jin vassal
Former Liang in 376. In 378, Former Qin launched attacks on the key Jin cities of
Xiangyang, Weixing (魏興; southeast of present-day
Suqian,
Jiangsu), and Pengcheng (彭城, in modern
Xuzhou,
Jiangsu). While Xie An's nephew, the general
Xie Xuan, was able to repel the Former Qin attack on Pengcheng, Xiangyang and Weixing fell in 379, and Jin's position appeared even more desperate. However, it was said that Xie, through his calmness, calmed the hearts of the people. In 383, Huan Chong launched a counterattack to try to recapture Xiangyang, but after some inconclusive battles, Huan withdrew.
The Battle of Fei River In fall 383, Former Qin's emperor
Fu Jiān launched a major attack, hoping to destroy Jin and unite China. Xie sent his younger brother Xie Shi (謝石) to command the forces resisting Former Qin. As Xie Xuan, the advance general under Xie Shi's command, was ready to depart for the frontlines, he sought further instruction from Xie An, who only stated, "I will have additional instructions later." Xie Xuan did not dare to ask anything further. They then went to Xie An's vacation home, where they played
Go—a game that Xie Xuan was typically far better than Xie An at, but Xie Xuan, anxious about the coming battle, lost to the far calmer Xie An. Meanwhile, Huan, believing that the capital
Jiankang needed additional defenses, sent several thousand elite soldiers to help the capital defense; instead, Xie sent them back to Huan, stating that the capital was already well-guarded and that the troops would be better off defending the western provinces (under Huan's command). The Former Qin forces quickly captured the important city of
Shouyang. However, after the armies stalemated at the Fei River (which no longer exists, but probably flowed through Lu'an, near the
Huai River), Former Qin forces, in an effort to try to draw Jin forces across the river, retreated—and then oddly enough panicked and collapsed. When news of the victory arrived at Xie An's headquarters, he was playing Go with a guest, but did not display particular emotion, but only stated, "The kids won a battle." However, his excitement became evident when, after the game, he was going back to his bedroom, and he forgot about the threshold to his bedroom and broke his wooden sandal without realizing it.
After the Battle of Fei River After the battle, however, Xie's power began to wane. Part of it was that his son-in-law
Wang Guobao, a son of Wang Tanzhi, whose behavior Xie disapproved of, began to attack him before both Emperor Xiaowu and his brother
Sima Daozi the Prince of Kuaiji, leading to the emperor no longer trusting Xie An as much, although he remained prime minister. In 384, Huan Chong died, and initially most officials favored having Xie Xuan replace Huan, but Xie An, not wanting his own clan to wield too much power and also apprehensive that the Huan clan may feel slighted, declined, and divided Huan Chong's domain between his nephews Huan Shimin (桓石民) and
Huan Shiqian, and another member of the Huan clan,
Huan Yi. Later that year, Xie An requested permission to lead an army north to try to regain territory in light of Former Qin's collapse. However, while Xie Xuan recovered the territory south of the
Yellow River, and other generals regained the Liang and Yi Provinces, Xie An himself did not appear to actually carry out a campaign, although he did leave the capital to avoid confrontation with Sima Daozi, who wanted to take over as prime minister. When he grew ill in fall 385, he required permission to return to the capital, and he died soon thereafter. Emperor Xiaowu posthumously created him the Duke of Luling (a greater dukedom than Jianchang, which he was previously the duke of) and buried him with the same honors that Huan Wen was given. == Family ==