My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 5: The Moon is Full, A Night of Murder!

After landing, Gao Huan counted the number of people to confirm that there were no mistakes. Then he turned around and pulled on the rope. The people on top took the rope back. Gao Huan lit a torch and led the way, repeatedly giving instructions.

"Silence!"

I don't know how long we walked, but then I saw firelight in the distance.

Upon closer inspection, they discovered that Hou Jing and his men were already waiting there.

There were about twenty people and more than twenty horses in total. Everyone was wearing armor, but there were only five sets of iron armor. Apart from Gao Yu, there were four other people wearing iron armor, while the rest, including Gao Huan and Hou Jing, wore leather armor.

Gao Yu immediately understood.

It must be that Gao Huan gave him his iron armor.

“Brother…this armor.”

"No need for further explanation. This is your first time 'hunting,' so it's best to play it safe. Remember to stay by my side during the hunt."

Gao Huan waved his hand and gave repeated instructions.

Gao Yu then asked curiously, "Aren't you going out hunting? Why is everyone wearing armor? What kind of wild beast requires such caution?"

"Hahaha, Erlang, you will know when the time comes."

Hou Jing laughed loudly, then led over a horse. "Erlang! Mount up! Show us the skills we've taught you!!"

Gao Yu reached out and stroked the mane of the horse in front of him, while pulling on the reins with one hand. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the horse was saddled and had stirrups on both sides of its belly for leverage.
Single-sided stirrups already existed during the Three Kingdoms period, and by the Northern Wei Dynasty, double-sided stirrups had been developed, making heavily armored cavalry quite formidable and laying the foundation for the explosive growth of cavalry power in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

Gao Huan and the others were all looking at him.

Gao Yu gently patted the horse's back, and as if by instinct, stepped into the stirrups, stood up, and sat steadily on the horse's back.

"Looks like all that hard work last time paid off, I can ride it now!"

Gao Yu was stunned!

He had no experience riding horses, but for some reason... his body had an unconscious instinct, as if he had already mastered all kinds of riding skills!
It was inexplicable, but he was very happy!
This is great news!!

He took the reins, squeezed his legs together, and the horse circled the crowd under his control.

Everyone was amazed and full of praise!
"Could it be that Erlang was born brave and skilled in horsemanship! He just learned to ride without being taught?"

"Hahaha, this is a truly valuable skill! He Liuhun, you can rest assured now!"

Hou Jing also stared wide-eyed and came closer, curiously looking at Gao Yu. Was this the same unlucky guy who had been thrown off his horse as soon as he got on it last time?

Gao Huan had also mounted his horse. He spoke up, reminding everyone, "It's not too late to praise us after we've succeeded. Everyone, quickly gag yourselves. We'll go and return quickly, and we mustn't make too much of a commotion! After all, we've gone out on our own..."

Seeing this, everyone quickly mounted their horses.

Several people led the way with torches.

Gao Yu was even more bewildered looking at the endless grassland around him.

What kind of prey is it?
Moreover, by the light of the fire, he discovered that the horses all had bridles in their mouths and their hooves were wrapped in coarse hemp.

While he was in a daze, Hou Jing, who was beside him, handed him a small wooden stick.

"Erlang, bite this thing in your mouth and do not let go."

Gao Yu took the wooden stick, while Hou Jing had already placed the stick horizontally in his hand and bit it.

The man had a gag in his mouth, and the horse's hooves were wrapped in mud!
Is this really a hunting trip?
After an unknown period of time, Gao Huan suddenly raised his hand to signal everyone to stop, and everyone immediately extinguished all the torches in their hands.

"Bilugu, Shitu, and I, Wan Jing, Dugu Qi, the four of you go ahead and scout the sentries. Make sure to eliminate the sentries. After you get around to the back of the camp, you can meet up and light torches as a signal!"

The four men who were called nodded, dismounted, crouched down, and then disappeared into the night.

Gao Huan then selected four more men, all carrying horse bows, and divided them into two teams, sending them to the left and right flanks. "Do not let anyone escape!"

After giving his instructions, Gao Huan looked at the remaining people and gave them further orders.

"The rest of you, wait here with me. If anything happens to Wan Jing and the others, you all shout loudly to create a great commotion, making the Ruanru think that a large army is attacking! Then charge forward with me!"

"Once we storm the camp, leave no one alive, regardless of age or gender! We cannot let anyone escape!"

Gao Yu was completely dumbfounded.

Even if he's stupid, he'll realize it eventually.

This is hardly hunting.

This is clearly a sneak attack on a small Rouran camp near Huaishuo!

No wonder everyone was wearing armor, no wonder their behavior was so strange, and they were laughing so happily when he said he was going to make traps to hunt.

Co-author?

Did he misunderstand?
Gao Huan came to Gao Yu's side with a solemn expression, "Second Brother, remember to stay by my side."

He then placed a ring-pommel sword on Gao Yu's waist.

Gao Yu nodded subconsciously.

When he finally realized the cruel scene he was about to face, he couldn't help but swallow hard to relieve his tension and anxiety.

The night was bitterly cold, and he pinched himself hard.

The intense pain seemed to be telling him that this was not a dream!
He looked up.

A dark cloud obscured the full moon in the sky, making visibility even dimmer. Suddenly, a strong wind arose.

Gao Yu was surrounded by darkness, with only the whistling wind in his ears.

but……

He seemed to see Hou Jing wielding a ring-pommel sword, killing the sentry. The cold blade sliced ​​open the man's throat, and blood gushed out.

Gao Yu's entire body trembled uncontrollably!

I don't know how much time has passed!
The howling wind kept blowing, making Gao Yu's limbs numb from the cold.

When I looked up again and gazed at the camp in the distance, what had been pitch black was now illuminated by faint firelight.

Gao Huan was overjoyed!

This means that all the sentries around the camp have been cleared out, allowing them to approach the camp stealthily, leaving the Rouran people inside the camp very little time to react!

The danger of this operation will be greatly reduced!
Three people were left behind to guard the horses, while Gao Huan led more than ten people, including Gao Yu, forward.

There is no way out!

Gao Yu suppressed his inner unease, anxiety, and fear, gripping the hilt of the knife at his waist tightly with one hand!
Everyone was crouching as they slowly moved forward.

near, near.

The outline of the yurt and tent in front of me was clearly visible. Deer antlers were placed at the entrance of the camp, indicating that the defenses were very thorough. Lying on the ground, I could vaguely see the reflection of a person in the hiding place behind the deer antlers, which meant that there were people on guard inside!
Gao Huan waited patiently, and soon...

Inside the camp, a man came to the antlers and whistled, then looked around as if waiting for someone to respond to him!

Having waited in vain for a response, the Rouran people probably guessed something and turned to walk into the camp!
At this moment!

Gao Yu was taken aback. Gao Huan, who had been beside him, had silently moved behind the sentry at the camp entrance, like a venomous snake.

Gao Huan suddenly sprang into action, giving the sentry no chance to react. He covered the sentry's mouth tightly with his left hand, and with his right hand, he pulled out a sharp horn knife used for cutting meat and slashed it across the sentry's neck. He then held the sentry firmly in place until the sentry was completely still!
Gao Huan gently placed the body on the ground and continued to feel his way forward.

He was clearly very experienced and knew a great deal about the Rouran people's hidden sentries in the camp. In no time, he had killed all the hidden sentries in the camp!

After clearing out the hidden sentries, Gao Huan returned to the camp entrance and waved for everyone to follow.

Gao Yu watched as the people around him quickly got up from the ground. Since things had come to this, he had no choice but to pick up his knife and follow behind them.

Gao Huan divided the people into pairs, giving instructions without speaking, only through hand gestures. The group immediately understood and walked lightly towards the felt tents in different directions.

After assigning tasks, Gao Huan looked at Gao Yu, gestured for him to be quiet, shook his head, and then went alone to the felt tent on the right front.

Gao Yu stood alone in the camp, the wind howling, yet he could faintly hear the muffled sound of blades piercing human bodies.

A short while later, the two men who had entered the tent first came out, their ring-pommel swords stained with blood, which dripped onto the ground.

Gao Yu knew perfectly well what had happened inside, and he couldn't help but swallow hard.

The dark clouds dispersed, and the full moon reappeared!
Gao Yu's vision cleared up considerably, and he could see the drops of blood on the ground!
Gao Huan also came out, his face smeared with blood, and without pausing, went to another tent.

After a while, fewer and fewer of the remaining yurts were left, which meant that fewer and fewer Rouran people were still alive in the camp.

Just after the two men in iron armor entered a felt tent, something unexpected happened.

A loud shout came from inside, but Gao Yu couldn't understand what it meant.

But the same shouts rang out throughout the camp, and the quiet camp suddenly became chaotic. Several naked Rouran people rushed out of their tents and ran out of the camp without looking back.

Seeing that he had been exposed, Gao Huan stopped hiding and shouted, "Kill! Don't let any of them escape!"

"kill!"

The crowd joined in the shouting and began slaughtering the defenseless Rouran people with their swords.

Gao Yu stared in horror at the scene before him, his ears filled with the muffled sounds of blades slicing through flesh and the cries of infants.

Gao Huan pierced a Rouran man's chest with a single stroke. As the blade was withdrawn, the man's blood gushed out, and he collapsed to the ground, convulsing uncontrollably.

Gao Yu was so frightened that he quickly turned around!

But just then they saw a woman carrying a swaddled baby running out of a yurt, trying to escape.

Just as she stepped out the door, someone slashed her face with a knife. The man was swift and, after the woman fell, immediately followed up with several more slashes, not even sparing the baby who had fallen to the ground with her!
Gao Yu was completely stunned. The woman on the ground stared at him with horrifying knife wounds on her face, blood all over her face, and her eyes filled with despair, resentment, and hatred.

clang
The ring-pommel sword in Gao Yu's hand slipped to the ground. He was so frightened by the horrifying scene before him that he was completely disoriented!
Even though I had mentally prepared myself beforehand, I was still shocked when I actually saw this scene.

"Erlang, watch out!!"

Gao Huan kicked the Rouran man in front of him away and saw another Rouran man rushing towards Gao Yu with a blade in his hand. He shouted an urgent warning!

The man gripped a knife in one hand and slashed horizontally at Gao Yu!

A clang!
Gao Yu felt a tremendous force on his chest. Caught off guard, he stumbled back several steps, a sharp pain shooting through his chest, and he couldn't help but groan.

Looking up again, I saw the man wielding a knife with both hands, slashing down. But with a muffled thud, the man's fierce eyes suddenly dimmed, his arms went limp, and the blade fell to the ground.

Hou Jing stabbed him to death from behind!

Hou Jing approached and roared, "Erlang! Do you want to die? Don't be distracted! Pick up your knife and come with me to kill!"

Having just escaped death, Gao Yu was still in shock. He hurriedly picked up the blade from the ground and gripped it tightly with both hands!
This……

It was his only lifeline!
(End of this chapter)