My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 127 The Six Garrisons are chilled by frost and snow, while the palaces of Luoyang are warm with song and dance.

Wu Chuan had clearly made preparations long ago.

An area was designated in advance within the city's drill ground for Huai Shuo's reinforcements to set up camp, and even military tents were readily available.

When Gao Yu arrived, medics were already treating the wounded.

Mulan and Peng Le are instructing their subordinates, Du Bo and the team leader, to compile statistics.

"My lord, the Xuanjia Army suffered 24 dead and 49 wounded to varying degrees; the Zhusheng Army suffered 19 dead and 38 wounded; the Ashina tribe..."

Listening to Liu Taozhi's report of the statistical results, Gao Yu felt a mix of emotions.

It's also good luck.

Wu Chuan's men charged into the rebel army's left guard camp first, attracting all the rebels' attention. Gao Yu's soldiers, on the other hand, became the surprise force that stabbed the rebels in the back. Even so, the casualties were not optimistic.

This time is different from the past.

They couldn't even retrieve the bodies of the fallen soldiers.

He passed by the wounded soldiers, personally checking on each one and patting them on the shoulder with encouragement—a tactic he learned from the story of Wu Qi.

Heba Yue also ordered his servants to bring over wine and meat.

The wine and meat were distributed to the soldiers. The armored cavalry of the Xuanjia Army received the most, followed by the light cavalry, the Zhusheng Army, and the Ashina tribe. Finally, the soldiers brought by Li Minzhi and Liu Rong were given the most.

Even if we don't consider the degree of closeness or distance.

The Xuanjia Army, following behind Gao Yu, were the first to charge forward, and in terms of merit, they should have received the greatest reward.

Besides, why shouldn't it be based on personal relationships?

Absolute fairness is absolute unfairness.

The soldiers who bravely charged into battle behind him, unafraid of death, deserve their due reward.

"Boys!"

Gao Yu stood in the crowd, looked around, and said solemnly, "Let us drink a cup together to commemorate those who did not return. It is their sacrifice that allowed us to return to camp safely. We are comrades who have shared life and death, and I will remember the name of each of them!"

"Their offspring are our offspring, their parents are our parents. I swear to God, I will never betray them for the rest of my life!"

"The deceased are gone, but we cannot let our comrades lose their lives in vain. In order to live up to their sacrifice."

"This battle must be won!"

The soldiers were all deeply moved, some even with red eyes and sobbing uncontrollably, but they were all as energetic as if they had been injected with chicken blood.

They all echoed loudly in response.

"Must win!"

"Must win!"

Its imposing presence drew the attention of other soldiers in the training ground, and the Wuchuan soldiers who were closer to it couldn't help but feel a sense of longing as they looked at the tall figure in the crowd.

How could soldiers not be willing to serve a general like this?

The soldiers of Wuchuan were infected by this atmosphere and couldn't help but shout along.

"Must win!"

Even from the town general's residence, the sounds coming from the drill ground could be heard.

The crowd, who were preparing to attend the banquet, all looked in the direction of the schoolyard, following the sound.

"Having Gao Lang alone is indeed better than having an army of 100,000. I ask you, among the six garrisons, who has such prestige to boost morale?"

Dugu Xin couldn't help but praise, "With Gao Lang here, what is there to fear from mere rebel bandits?"

Zhang Boyao couldn't stop smiling. The city's morale was low and people were restless, which had been a headache for them for a long time.

Now that Gao Yu has arrived, the problem has been easily solved.

Yuwen Luosheng murmured, "A true man should be like this. Black Otter, we should befriend such outstanding people."

Beside him, Yuwen Heita looked thoughtful and muttered softly, "Gao family... Erlang."

The brothers Heba Yun and Heba Sheng were also shocked. This was the first time they had witnessed firsthand just how powerful Gao Yu's influence on the soldiers was. How could such a small group of people from Huai Shuo have created such a commotion?

It must have been that the soldiers of Wuchuan were also impressed by him that such a big commotion could have been caused.

No wonder Heba Yue praised Gao Yu highly last night, completely losing his previous stubborn and unyielding attitude; he was truly defeated.

Gao Yu didn't keep everyone waiting for long; he soon arrived at the banquet with Mulan, Peng Le, Li Minzhi, and Liu Rong.

He was the first to approach Hebaduba and the others, and bowed in greeting.

"Thank you for the wine and meat from Patriarch Heba. I will definitely return the favor in full in the future."

Heba Duba waved his hand magnanimously and laughed heartily, "When Wuchuan was in trouble, we invited you, sir, to come and help. We should naturally offer you delicacies and fine wine as thanks. There is no need for you to say thank you."

Zhang Boyao nodded in agreement, "Gao Lang helped us win Wuchuan as soon as he arrived. The greatest credit for this victory belongs to Gao Lang."

"Come! Let us drink a toast to Gao Lang!"

Gao Yu shook his head repeatedly, looked around, and said loudly, "This great victory over the rebel Left Guard Camp was due to the soldiers' bravery in fighting the enemy. What merit have I made? How dare I claim credit for it!"

"Let me first raise a toast to everyone!"

"Hahaha, Gao Lang is being modest."

"All the plans were devised by Gao Lang; we were merely following his strategies to kill the enemy."

"........."

Everyone at the banquet was beaming with joy; who doesn't love to hear compliments?
Dugu Xin secretly glanced at Li Hu, only to find that the latter was also looking at him. The two couldn't help but smile at each other and raise their cups to drink together.

After a few drinks.

Hebayun suggested, "Our army has just won a great victory, and the soldiers are in high spirits, while the enemy's morale is low. Why not take advantage of the victory and launch another surprise attack after a few days? Let's further demoralize the rebels."

"I wonder what you guys think?"

No one rushed to respond, but Yuwen Heita suddenly spoke up, "I wonder what brilliant insights you have, Your Excellency?"

Ok?
Gao Yu glanced at him; the last time they met was two years ago during a football match.

In the blink of an eye, the black otter grew from a small black mouse into a big black mouse.

Gao Yu shook his head. "That's not appropriate."

"Today's victory is mainly due to the fact that the rebels were unaware of the arrival of reinforcements, which allowed us to launch a surprise attack."

"After suffering a great loss, the rebels will naturally strengthen their patrols and guards. Our army is ultimately outnumbered, while the rebels are numerous. In this way, we are the ones who suffer losses."

"We should continue to hold the city and defend it. It will snow soon. It would be safest to wait until the harsh winter is over and the snow melts in the spring so that the imperial army can come to quell the rebellion."

Yuwen Heita quickly flattered, "Your Excellency's insight is truly remarkable!"

He immediately drank a glass of wine, and Gao Yu smiled and nodded at him, returning the gesture with a glass of wine as well.

Everyone else agreed with Gao Yu's point of view.

The reason for this great victory was indeed because Gao Yu marched rapidly and his soldiers were very elite, which completely took the rebels by surprise and allowed them to seize the initiative.

Even if they set fires, the damage caused would be negligible for the size of the rebel army and would still be unable to influence the course of the battle.

For the people of Wuchuan and Huaishuo, continuing to hold their ground and waiting for the imperial army to arrive is the best course of action.

As Gao Yu had predicted, over the next two weeks, the previously complacent rebels immediately became more alert and increased their patrols and guards.

November arrived, and the howling north wind brought a heavy snowfall.

When I woke up, all I could see was a blanket of white, a vast expanse of white.

Gao Yu's earlier worries had indeed come true. The city lacked firewood for heating, and although the people weren't starving, they had no way to cope with the harsh winter temperatures and could only endure it.

Those with strong constitutions can barely endure it.

Those who were physically weaker were carried away by soldiers and burned in a centralized location.

………………

Luoyang, the Prince of Jiangyang's Palace.

Heavy snow swept across the entire northern border of the Central Plains, including Luoyang.

Outside, the cold wind howled and snow fell heavily.

Inside, however, it was as warm as summer. Yuan Yi enjoyed the dance performed by the beautiful concubines trained in the Yeting Palace, sipping his wine with relish, completely oblivious to the slightest bit of cold.

Seeing the heavy snow outside, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"A timely snowfall promises a bumper harvest; next year is sure to be a bountiful year."

Immediately, some people echoed and flattered him.

"May Your Majesty bring you great fortune!"

"Yes, yes, it is precisely because Your Majesty governs with virtue that this auspicious omen has occurred!"

"........."

Listening to the flattering words around him, Yuan Yi couldn't help but feel a little smug, as if he had completely forgotten that the northern border of the Great Wei was already engulfed in war and on the verge of collapse.

The Gao Yang Prince's Mansion was exactly the same as Yuan Yi's.

Yuan Yong's mansion was built in an extremely luxurious manner. He was playing with his beautiful concubines, blindfolding them with ribbons, and then suddenly pounced on them, finding them in his arms.

"Hahaha, I got you!"

The beautiful concubine in his arms looked at him sweetly, "Your Majesty..."

"Quick! Take it off!"

The concubine's eyes were alluring, her movements extremely slow, her demeanor like that of a virtuous woman being forced into marriage. She lightly bit her lower lip as she removed a piece of clothing, revealing her curvaceous figure, which delighted Yuan Yong. "Come on! Continue, continue!!"

After playing around for a while, Yuan Yong finally embraced the two beautiful concubines, who were already almost completely undressed, and returned to the main seat.

Looking at the various delicacies on the table that had gone cold, he frowned. "Someone, how can we eat this cold? Quickly bring me a fresh batch!"

The maids hurriedly came to remove the various kinds of beef and mutton from the table, and the removed beef and mutton was used to feed the hunting dogs in the mansion.

………………

It was nighttime at Erzhu Rong's residence.

Erzhu Rong, Erzhu Zhao, and others were watching.

A Han Chinese man dressed in strange clothes was burning talismans in one hand and holding a peach wood sword in the other. He wore a ghost mask and was chanting incantations as if he were performing a shamanic dance, circling around a raging fire in front of him.

As the fire burned out.

The Han man used his peach wood sword to brush away the ashes and found a piece of tortoise shell. After it cooled down, he quickly picked it up and touched the cracks on the shell.

Erzhu Rong also came over, looking slightly uneasy yet expectant as he asked.

"how?"

The Han man removed his mask, revealing himself to be a middle-aged man with a long, flowing beard, who looked somewhat like a hermit with an air of otherworldly wisdom.

This man was named Liu Lingzhu. He used to perform divination in Luoyang, and his predictions were said to be extremely accurate.

Although Erzhu Rong lived in Luoyang for many years, he had great faith in divination and fortune-telling. He wanted Liu Lingzhu to come to his mansion to perform divination and fortune-telling for him.

Liu Lingzhu looked up at the stars in the sky, his face contorted with a mystical expression, and began to speak.

"The constellation Antares has shifted, and Ziwei is now in the north..."

Upon hearing Liu Lingzhu's words, Erzhu Zhao was extremely excited, "North? Xiu Rongchuan is right there..."

"Be careful!"

Erzhu Rong was also extremely excited, but he quickly stopped Erzhu Zhao and asked again, "What will be the final outcome of the war in the Six Garrisons?"

Liu Lingzhu closed his eyes and after a long while answered, "The imperial court has suffered a great defeat, and the world will be in chaos."

Erzhu Rong could no longer control the expression on his face; he was extremely agitated, but he quickly calmed down his emotions.

He ignored Erzhu Zhao's advice.

Instead, they looked north.

Ziwei Star is the Emperor Star. Ziwei is in the north. Could it be that... our Erzhu clan is the current Yuan clan of the Xianbei people ruling the world?

………………

Inside Cui Guang's residence.

The elderly Cui Guang lay on his bed, with his old friends Li Chong and Li Shao beside him.

"I wonder how the war is going in the north?"

Li Shao shook his head and sighed, "After winter sets in, the rebels probably won't take any action. Wuchuan and Huaishuo are still holding out, but I don't know how long these two towns can hold out, how much food they have left in the city, or whether the morale of the troops is stable."

"What about the rebellion in Longxi?"

"There hasn't been much news since winter started, so we'll probably have to wait until next spring for any further action."

For a moment, everyone was speechless.

They weren't as heartless as those princes. Li Chong had personally been to the northern frontier, so he naturally knew... just how much impact this rebellion would have.

"Changren, you should rest and recuperate at home and not be distracted by matters of state."

After Li Chong and the others left.

Cui Guang summoned Cui Jie to his presence. Knowing his days were numbered, he needed to make arrangements for his affairs after his death. As if in a final burst of energy, he sat up on his own.

"Regardless of the outcome of the Six Garrisons incident next year, you must support the proposal of Duke Chenliu and others at the court meeting to change the Six Garrisons into prefectures and appease the arrogant troops there. This is the best course of action..."

"If anything changes in the world, you should send people to find out the whereabouts of the Gao brothers, observe the situation, and when the time is right, provide them with assistance."

…………

Taishan County.

The little girl has now grown into a graceful young woman.

Yang Changchu was practicing archery in the courtyard. She no longer used a slingshot for practice; instead, she used a replica of the bow given to her by Gao Yu, which was smaller and had less power.

"My lady has excellent archery skills! Even my husband would praise her if he saw her!"

Yang Changchu snorted, "What's the use of your praise, brother? His archery skills are terrible."

The maid's eyes widened in surprise. Who didn't know that the young master of the Yang family possessed astonishing strength, could draw a two-stone bow with ease, and shoot an arrow through a willow leaf from a hundred paces away?
Is this archery skill not good enough?

Yang Changchu handed the bow to the maid and returned to her room. Unlike the boudoirs of ordinary women, her boudoir hall had a slightly old-fashioned bow hanging on it, which was not strung. However, Yang Changchu cherished it very much and always took care of it herself.

The maidservant couldn't help but ask curiously, "Madam, what is the origin of this bow? Why do you examine it every day?"

Yang Changchu didn't answer her, but instead rested her chin on her hand as if she was thinking about something.

"When you are able to draw this bow, I will come back to teach you archery."

"My home is in Mount Tai, so don't go to the wrong place."

(End of this chapter)