Standalone Northern and Southern Dynasties

Chapter 410 Family and State Affairs
Luoyang, Xuanyifang.

Dou Tai shouted enviously: "He Liuhun, this mansion is really magnificent!"

Today is the day Gao Huan is moving, and his old subordinates Dou Tai, Wei Jing, Sima Ziru, and Gao Aocao all come to congratulate him.

Because of his contribution in the Heyin Incident, Gao Huan was granted a mansion in Xuanyifang by Erzhu Rong. The original owner of this mansion was a minister who died in the Heyin Incident. After the owner of the mansion was killed, his family fled Luoyang.

There were many such empty mansions, all of which were awarded by Erzhu Rong to meritorious officials.

It was a pity that Lou Zhaojun was still in Jinyang, and the mansion was missing a hostess. The things that Erzhu Rong had rewarded him with were piled up in a mess, with no one to clean them up.

However, there was not much happiness on Gao Huan's face. After everyone arrived, Gao Huan took them to the secret room to discuss matters.

All those present were his trusted followers, and Gao Huan got straight to the point:

"The general is about to return north."

The general Gao Huan mentioned was Erzhu Rong.

Although he was named King of Taiyuan, Erzhu Rong still preferred his old subordinates to call him general, so now everyone in Luoyang calls this powerful official "Grand General".

Dou Tai was surprised:

"So fast?"

Sima Ziru said:
"It's already too late. I heard that Ge Rong has gathered his troops again and is preparing to attack Ji County again."

Ji County is located in the northeast of Luoyang and is a pass to the capital. Last autumn, Ge Rong had already besieged Ji County, but later withdrew his troops due to lack of food and returned to his old nest for supplies.

After the spring of this year, the troops were regrouped and Ge Rong personally took charge of Yecheng, commanding the Hebei rebels to attack Luoyang.

Gao Aocao is the only person in Gao Huan's group who has received complete military geography training. He said doubtfully:
"Ji County is northeast of Luoyang. Why didn't the general leave Ji County to resist the rebels, but returned to Jinyang?"

Gao Huan looked at Gao Aocao with approval. Unlike a rough Xianbei man like Dou Tai, the Han general was obviously more knowledgeable in strategy.

Since entering Luoyang, Gao Huan has been learning various knowledge. He even captured a chief academic officer of the Imperial College and forced him to teach him.

There was no way. As his status improved, he became more and more aware of his shortcomings.

If it comes to commanding a hundred men in battle, Gao Huan believes that there is not much difference between him and Suzer Zhu Rong, relying on his riding and martial arts skills.

If he were to command a thousand men in battle, Gao Huan could barely be considered first-rate, but compared with famous generals like Suzer and Zhu Rong, who could command the army as easily as with their own arms, Gao Huan might be able to avoid a too-bad defeat thanks to his courage.

However, Gao Huan lacked a lot of lessons in terms of strategic matters such as commanding tens of thousands of people in battle.

What are the important cities in the world? Which terrain is suitable for fighting? How to prepare transportation routes? These are the areas where Gao Huan urgently needs to make up for.

Fortunately, he had someone to learn from - Erzhu Rong.

After receiving Erzhu Rong's military order, Gao Huan also studied the geography of mountains and rivers, and finally said:
"The enemy army is powerful. If we defend Ji County to the death, we will be exhausted to death by the enemy army."

"The general returned to Jinyang. In addition to resting and gathering the troops, he should also attack from Jinyang and have a decisive battle with Ge Rong's main force."

Sima Ziru, the only military advisor in the team, said:
"Eight Peaks of Taihang Mountains?"

Gao Huan nodded and said:

"I just don't know which road the general will take to leave Taihang."

At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the only state that could compete with Qin was Zhao State located in Shanxi.

One of the main reasons why the State of Zhao was so important during the Warring States Period and was able to keep the State of Qin at bay in Guanzhong and intimidate other states was the geographical characteristics of the Zhao area, which, like Guanzhong, was an excellent geographical fortress where one could defend oneself by closing the doors and expand outward by occupying the passages.

The existence of the Eight Passes of Taihang meant that any force that wanted to attack Shanxi had to endure horrific consumption of supplies and fight with the defenders on narrow mountain roads.

As long as the exits of the Eight Passes of Taihang Mountain are controlled, the Shanxi forces can attack from all sides.

Sima Ziru said:

"General, this time you must follow the general back to Jinyang and leave Luoyang, this place of trouble."

Gao Huan nodded repeatedly and said:

"The general originally wanted me to stay in Luoyang. I have already told Brother Liu Gui in advance. Please take us back to Jinyang."

Among the people present, only Dou Tai was a fool. He asked:

"Luoyang is so good, why don't you stay?"

After seeing the prosperity of Luoyang, many generals under Erzhu Rong could not resist the temptation of this flashy world. Even Erzhu Shilon of the Erzhu family asked to stay in Luoyang and did not want to return to Jinyang.

Sima Ziru Dou Tai simply had no political sense at all, as he explained:
"There are undercurrents in Luoyang, but they are suppressed because the general is leading the troops there. Once the general leaves Luoyang, things will change."

"The general has killed so many people in Heyin, so it is his duty to guard Luoyang. If anything happens in Luoyang, it will be a great sin."

Dou Tai understood now, and he immediately said:
"Let's go! Let's go now! It's better to follow the general to fight than to stay in Luoyang and play tricks with these people!"

After reaching a consensus with his subordinates, Gao Huan turned down all kinds of banquets and spent all day in the military camp training troops and preparing for war.

As expected, in early February, Erzhu Rong suddenly submitted a memorial to the court, requesting to send troops to quell Ge Rong's rebellion.

Yuan Ziyou immediately agreed to Erzhu Rong's request and immediately made him the commander-in-chief of all military forces in the country to lead the troops to quell the rebellion. Erzhu Rong was not without a backup plan. He left Heba Sheng with a thousand elite soldiers to guard Hangu Pass and gave Heba Sheng the right to respond to emergencies. These troops were very close to Luoyang and could return to Luoyang at any time.

At the same time, Erzhu Rong also handed over the incorporated Luoyang Imperial Guards to Yuan Tianmu, and asked Yuan Tianmu to manage the Menxia Province as the head of the royal family and be responsible for the political affairs of Luoyang.

In addition to Yuan Tianmu, his sworn brother, Erzhu Rong also left his cousin Xi Yi in Luoyang. Xi Yi came from a noble family with the surname Jia and had many contacts and friendships with the nobles in Luoyang. He was kept to ease the tense relationship with the nobles in Luoyang.

Yuan Tianmu finally replaced the blood of all the palace maids and guards. Originally, even Su Shun was going to be expelled from the palace, but with Yuan Ziyu's protection, he was managed to stay by his side.

After completing all this, Erzhu Rong led his generals back to Jinyang.
-
"aunt."

When the young Emperor Yuan Xu heard about the Heyin Incident, he became bedridden due to the long journey and the shock he had suffered.

Thanks to Su Ze who sent a medical officer to diagnose him and prescribe a prescription for tranquilizing the nerves, and with the care of Imperial Concubine Pan Chonghua, he was finally able to get out of bed these days.

When the little emperor was ill, Princess Chenliu often came to visit him.

To be fair, the little emperor had a better life after being brought back to Xiazhou by Su Ze than when he was in Luoyang.

Chang'an was still renovating the palace, so Su Ze gave up part of the Baizhang Tower. Although it was still under strict guard, at least he could see people freely.

Su Ze was not afraid of his subordinates paying homage to the emperor. After the little emperor gradually recovered, Su Ze even arranged a public appearance for him and led all the ministers to kneel down and pay homage to the little emperor.

Yuan Xu was deeply moved. Although he knew in his heart that what Su Ze did was no different from what Empress Dowager Hu did, at least Su Ze respected him in name.

Princess Chenliu's daily visits also made the little emperor feel the long-lost family affection.

He recalled the days when he was imprisoned by Yuan Yi. At that time, it was this princess who ventured into the palace to bring him some news from the outside world and a rare sense of family affection among the royal family.

"Your Majesty, have you taken the medicine today?"

A girl with a delicate appearance came up and said:

"Princess, the doctor is coming to adjust the prescription today, and the medicine has not been used yet."

This woman is Pan Chonghua. Chonghua is not a name but a title of a concubine. When Empress Dowager Hu entered the palace, she was also given the title of Chonghua, so she was named Chonghua in history books.

Pan Chonghua came from a humble family, but she was favored by the young emperor because she was well-behaved and obedient. It was also because of this that she has survived to this day in the turbulent Northern Wei harem.

"I heard from the doctor that His Majesty will get better with more medicine. You have worked hard to take care of His Majesty these days. Princess Nanyang from Chang'an has sent a batch of brocade. Ask the embroiderer to make some new clothes for Pan Chonghua."

Pan Chonghua was overjoyed and wanted to thank Princess Chenliu, but Princess Chenliu pulled her to sit down and said:

"Your Majesty, can you please allow Pan Chonghua to attend my gatherings in the future? They are all women in the city."

The little emperor Yuan Xu looked at Pan Chonghua's expectant eyes and nodded softly.

Princess Chenliu chatted with the little emperor about family matters for a while before coming out of the little emperor's room.

What her husband Su Ze said was right. In every aspect, Yuan Xu was an emperor who was very easy to control.

I don’t know what’s wrong with my sister-in-law’s brain. She has to force her own son again and again.

It is obvious that Yuan Xu has no ambition now and is indecisive. He can be well controlled by using some gentle means.

All I can say is that Empress Dowager Hu really lacks political wisdom.

Now that he is imprisoned in the Luoyang Imperial Palace, it can be said that he has brought it upon himself.

However, Princess Chenliu did not know that Empress Dowager Hu's original destiny was to participate in the "Heyin Diving Competition". It was only because Su Ze snatched back the little emperor and changed the course of history that she escaped in order to preserve the little legitimacy she had left in her hands.

When she returned to the house, her husband, who had been busy dealing with military and political affairs recently, came back and played with his son under Luzhu's gaze.

It is always worrying to see a man taking care of a child, and Luzhu was afraid that Su Ze would hurt the precious prince.

When he saw his wife, Su Ze reluctantly handed his son to Lu Zhu and started chatting about family matters with his wife.

"Yuyao heard that the new city of Wuyuan has been built and she wants to go to Wuyuan. Can you help me persuade her?"

Princess Chenliu said unhappily:

"Didn't you promise Dugu Xin at that time? Now that the city is built, it is only natural for the couple to be reunited."

Su Ze sighed and said:

"Wuyuan has just been built, and the northern border is not stable. I am also worried about Yuyao."

Princess Chenliu raised her eyebrows and said:
"My dear, do you also want Dugu Xin to learn from you and leave his wife far away?"

Seeing that the fire was about to burn him, Su Ze immediately said:
"Forget it, let Yuyao go to Wuyuan after the spring."

Su Ze's hands unconsciously wrapped around his wife's waist. Smelling the fragrance of his wife's body, Su Ze realized that he had been busy since returning from Luoyang.

That’s what it means!
Su Ze picked up Princess Chen Liu and said with a smile, "It turns out that Your Highness is treating others as you would treat yourself. Let me serve you well!"

Princess Chenliu exclaimed:
"You pervert, are you going to flirt with me again?"

Su Ze knew that she was acting. This unique interest made him even more thirsty, so he carried Princess Chenliu to the inner room.

(End of this chapter)