Standalone Northern and Southern Dynasties

Chapter 354: World's Hope

Gao Huan gained great fame by defeating the Yanzhou army this time.

But after becoming famous, Gao Huan actually found himself in a difficult situation.

In fact, Ge Rong's support for Gao Huan was very limited. He used Huaishuo soldiers in the war, and the backbones were all brought out from Huaishuo by Gao Huan over the years.

Ge Rong's greatest support was a thousand sets of armor and weapons, but these were only enough to arm a battalion.

In addition, Ge Rong's support for things like food and fodder was to let Gao Huan "raise the funds himself." The so-called self-raising funds was nothing more than letting Gao Huan go to Jizhou and rob them himself.

For the rebels, this is the greatest support. They do not have a basic bureaucratic and logistical system, and can offer little.

Under such difficult circumstances, Gao Huan still defeated Yuan Yanming and won a great victory at Yecheng.

Gao Huan's followers were delighted, but after waiting for Ge Rong's envoy, the final reward made Gao Huan a little depressed.

Gao Huan was promoted to General Guanyong, and his subordinates Sima Ziru, Wei Jing, and Dou Tai were also promoted to commanders. Apart from them, that was all!
As for what title this General Guanyong had and what political status he held, the envoy could not explain it clearly.

Gao Huan did not make things difficult for the envoy. He believed that it did not matter what title one had in the rebel army. What mattered was how much power one had in his hands.

In other words, for such great contributions, Ge Rong's reward to Gao Huan was a bunch of worthless and unpopular official positions, and that was all!
This envoy was also from Huaishuo. He wanted to know that Ge Rong was not being kind this time. However, Ge Rong's own army was still hungry, and the spoils captured from the government army were not enough for Ge Rong's own people to share. How could he have any extra to reward Gao Huan?

For the sake of their fellow townsman, he tactfully told Gao Huan that Ge Rong allowed them to plunder Yecheng as a reward for the soldiers.

After Gao Huan sent the envoy away, he called his men together to discuss the matter.

After Gao Huan informed everyone of Ge Rong's reward and explained that the envoy had hinted that Gao Huan could plunder Yecheng, Sima Ziru first said:

"General, no!"

Sima Ziru said:

"Ye City has been robbed several times, and there is nothing left in the city. If our army robs Ye City again, we will never be able to enter Ye City again."

Gao Huan also nodded. In fact, it was not easy for him to win this time.

Gao Huan's plan was to feign defeat and retreat, luring Yuan Yanming's isolated troops into the deep, then stretching the supply line of the Yanzhou army and defeating him in one fell swoop.

But plans are just plans, and war is not a game. After several retreats, Gao Huan's morale was low and many soldiers began to flee.

By the time Gao Huan retreated to the city of Ye, half of his army had already collapsed.

Yuan Yanming was advancing rapidly with high morale. It seemed that there was no way to retreat. Gao Huan finally fought desperately under the city of Ye and defeated Yuan Yanming's army.

The victory of this battle was actually related to Yecheng.

Yuan Hongye defended Yecheng at that time and surrendered to Xianyu Xiuli after being defeated. Yecheng had already been harmed by Xianyu Xiuli once.

This time, Yuan Yanming came under the guise of killing rebels, and the officials and civilians in Yecheng who had surrendered that year were also afraid that the government troops would come to rob the city again.

There is no way. These days, the credibility of government troops is no different from that of bandit troops.

At least Gao Huan knew how to maintain military discipline and did not rob the city of Ye, so Ye finally supported Gao Huan and they worked together to defeat Yuan Yanming's Yanzhou army.

When guarding Yecheng, Gao Huan boasted and fabricated that he was a descendant of the Gao family of Bohai, which brought him closer to the local aristocratic families and led to their current close relationship.

The nobles and powerful families in Yecheng may not necessarily look down upon Gao Huan, but at least both sides got what they needed.

If the soldiers were allowed to loot Yecheng, the little trust that Gao Huan had worked so hard to build up with the local nobles would collapse.

Therefore, Sima Ziru firmly disagreed with the plan of robbing the city and rewarding the army.

But Dou Tai said:
"This won't work, and that won't work either. If we don't give our men some benefits, I'm afraid our heads will be in danger!"

What Dou Tai said was also true.

This group of soldiers followed Gao Huan to fight, and no one knows how many of their brothers died. Gao Huan also promised them a lot of benefits when they went to the battlefield, but now all they get are some useless official positions. Can the official positions of the rebel army be enough to make a living?
Soldiers who are not rewarded are terrible. As the commander, Gao Huan cannot give any benefits to the soldiers, so he will inevitably be abandoned by the soldiers.

In the rebel army, if you don’t have your own army, you will have no status.

Gao Huan gritted his teeth and said:

"No matter what, Ye City cannot be looted. I will go to the city and discuss with the big families to gather some supplies to reward the troops. In addition, I will not take a penny of the spoils of this battle. I will give it all to reward the soldiers!"

Gao Huan was also forced into a corner. After all these years of running around, his family assets were even smaller than before he married Lou Zhaojun. He used all the little money he saved to support the army. Seeing Gao Huan's statement, Sima Ziru, Dou Tai and Wei Jing also said that they would not take a penny, and like Gao Huan, they would use all their family assets to support the army.

After all this trouble, the gentry in Yecheng agreed to pool some silk and food, and Gao Huan finally distributed the reward.

The looting of Yecheng did not happen, but the towns and villages around Yecheng suffered. Those villages without the protection of large families were attacked and conquered by Gao Huan's army. After stealing the food, they left behind the naked women.

However, Gao Huan did not gain nothing this time. His reputation of being close to the nobles and powerful people finally spread. Even some poor scholars heard that he was a descendant of the Gao family of Bohai and came to serve him.

Gao Huan took the opportunity to stay in Jizhou and secretly communicated with the fleeing nobles in several states near Jizhou to protect their families and property left in Jizhou.

Those nobles and powerful families who were forced out of their old nests and settled in other states also had a hard time. They left their sphere of influence and were ostracized by local government and powerful families.

The imperial court forced them to send troops to counterattack. For example, several sons of Gao Yi, the governor of East Jizhou, were active near Jizhou.

When they heard the news of Yuan Shen and Yuan Yanming's defeat, they also lost confidence in the court.

Gao Qian and Gao Aocao, descendants of the Bohai Gao family, heard about Gao Huan. Gao Aocao decided to sneak into Jizhou and contact Gao Huan, hoping to get in touch with Ge Rong through Gao Huan.
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Gao Huan had managed to accumulate some wealth with great difficulty, but someone else lost it all again.

After the three Heba brothers escaped from Pingcheng, their soldiers continued to disperse. By the time they arrived in Sizhou, only 100 of the more than 300 cavalrymen were left.

The three brothers were in tears, as these 300 cavalrymen were what they had accumulated with great difficulty. They were all fully armored and equipped, and their war horses were carefully selected. They could be said to be the most important assets of the Heba family, and were also what their father Heba Du had exchanged his life for.

Now that more than half of it has been lost, all the savings in Pingcheng have been wasted.

Fortunately, the Yanmen Pass of Sizhou is ahead. This pass is an important pass between Sizhou and Hengzhou. As long as they enter Yanmen Pass, they will be safe.

The next day, the three Heba brothers escorted Guangling Prince Yuan Gong and raised the banner of Yuan Gong, the governor of Hengzhou. They saw a group of strong archers appear at Yanmen Pass, followed by a general wearing Liangdang armor standing on the city gate and saying:
"I am the cavalry commander Erzhu Zhao, and I am under the order of General Erzhu to guard Yanmen Gate. Who dares to break through?"

Someone from the Erzhu family?
The three Heba brothers and Yuan Gong looked at each other. Didn't the court just appoint the governor of Sizhou? How come Yanmen Pass has fallen into the hands of the Erzhu family?

Among the Heba brothers, Heba Yue, the youngest, had the quickest mind and he quickly thought of a possibility.

Heba Yue shouted to Erzhu Zhao on the city gate: "General Erzhu! We are coming from Pingcheng to the south, escorting Prince Guangling to join General Erzhu's government troops!"

Then Heba Yue waved the flag of Prince Guangling again, but unfortunately Erzhu Zhao on the city gate was a rough man and did not recognize the flag of a prince at all.

Erzhu Zhao's nephew was good at riding and shooting, and was very much loved by Erzhu Rong. He followed Erzhu Rong since he was a child and received military training from Erzhu Rong.

So even though Erzhu Zhao was domineering, his uncle Erzhu Rong gave him the task of receiving the remnants of the government troops heading south at Yanmen Pass. He sent people out of Yanmen Pass to verify the identities of everyone before letting the group into Yanmen Pass.

Erzhu Zhao was a simple-minded man who lacked strategy and had little knowledge of human relationships and worldly ways. He acted arbitrarily, but he knew how to lead troops, which was why he was favored by Erzhu Rong.

He could tell at a glance that the cavalry led by the three Heba brothers were elite.

So after the three Heba brothers entered Yanmen Pass, Erzhu Zhao immediately started a conversation with them. When he heard that they were the sons of Heba Duba, who had killed Wei Kegu, Erzhu Zhao exclaimed:

"My uncle once praised General Heba for his bravery. Today, after seeing the elite soldiers under your command, I can see that they are indeed warriors of Wuchuan!"

However, as the most senior member of the team, Yuan Gong, the Prince of Guangling, was not even looked at by Erzhu Zhao, which made Yuan Gong so angry that his face turned blue.

Erzhu Zhao took the hands of the Heba brothers and said:

"Brothers like you will be valued by your uncle. Now I am in Jiuyuan City, you should go and join me as soon as possible."

Is Erzhu Rong already in Jiuyuan?
The three Heba brothers looked at each other in tacit understanding. Erzhu Rong had already established the city of Jiuyuan in Sizhou. Did he send troops to annex Sizhou? That was no longer a pretense.

The three brothers, who had already thought of joining Erzhu Rong, immediately saluted Erzhu Zhao and said:

"Thank you for your guidance, General Erzhu. We will go south immediately to join General Erzhu!"

The group made a brief stop at Yanmen Pass and then headed south to Jiuyuan City without stopping. As expected, they met Erzhu Rong who was taking over Sizhou in Jiuyuan City.

This is when the importance of reputation comes into play.

The three Heba brothers followed their father in attacking and killing Wei Kegu. They were generals within the court system and had always been famous for their bravery. When Erzhu Rong heard that they had come to surrender, he personally welcomed the three brothers. After seeing the cavalry led by the three brothers, Erzhu Rong directly appointed the three as special generals.

The three brothers immediately swore allegiance to Erzhu Rong. Erzhu Rong pulled the three of them and said with a smile:

"With the support of you three brothers, I can rule the world!"

(End of this chapter)