My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 19: The Most Crucial Step!
the next day.

Gao Huan and Wei Jing went out of the city together to Lou's fortified village.

The news that Lou Zhaojun was in love with Gao Huan and forced Lou Neigan to agree to the marriage spread throughout the Lou family.

The servants who remained in the fortified village also changed their attitude towards Gao Huan, greeting him with smiles.

In the hall.

Lou Neigan glanced at Gao Huan and Wei Jing, then looked down at the betrothal gift list in his hand, repeating it several times.

Especially when she kept staring at Gao Huan and saw his calm expression, she became even angrier.

The betrothal gifts listed on the gift list.

Shops, pastures, cattle and sheep, horses, silk, cloth, money...

The location and quantity were exactly as he had imagined, without the slightest surprise.

As for why Lou Neigan was so familiar with it?
Because all these things were the generous dowry he had prepared for Lou Zhaojun over the years. As a daughter of the Lou family, her marriage must be grand and dignified, and the dowry must be extremely generous to be worthy of the Lou family's status.

In ancient times, the amount of a woman's dowry reflected how much she was valued in her family. The more generous a woman's dowry, the more confident she was in her husband's family!

result?

Is Gao Huan now using all the dowry he prepared for his daughter to pay the betrothal gift?
Gao Huan didn't spend a single penny; he got it all for free, right?

What's even more infuriating is...

These are considered Gao Huan's betrothal gifts, so he still needs to prepare an additional dowry.

Given how infatuated her daughter was with Gao Huan, sending the dowry there was no difference from giving it directly to Gao Huan.

That's equivalent to Gao Huan.

He got ripped off by the Lou family twice, both inside and out, just because of his good looks!
So all the wealth the Lou family has accumulated over the years is going to benefit Gao Huan, the son of a military household?

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, wishing he could immediately call someone to cut Gao Huan into a thousand pieces to vent his anger.

In the end, I gave up.

After all, Lou Zhaojun threatened to kill herself to save the lives of everyone in the Gao family. The lives of the Gao family were of no concern to him, but since it concerned the life of his own daughter, he had no choice but to grant Lou Zhaojun's wish.

Lou Neigan had two sons and three daughters.

His eldest son, Louba, once served as the Minister of the South, but died young.

The eldest daughter, Lou Xinxiang, and the second daughter, Lou Heinu, are both married.

Lou Zhaojun and Lou Zhao were Lou Neigan's children born late in life. They stayed by his side every day and he loved them dearly from a young age.

and.

Lou's eldest son-in-law, Duan Rong, was fond of studying the Book of Changes and was especially skilled at observing celestial phenomena. When Lou Zhaojun was born at night, Duan Rong observed the celestial phenomena and predicted that this girl would be extremely noble in the future!

Lou Neigan firmly believed this.

But now?
He suddenly wondered if his eldest son-in-law had drunk too much that night and was talking nonsense in a drunken state.
Marrying a military household would be an incredibly noble thing.

but……

This is a record of my interactions with Gao Huan these past few days and some of the things I've learned about Gao Huan's daily life through my investigations.

Putting aside the fact that he was the son of a military household.

Gao Huan's character, actions, temperament, and methods are those of a rare hero, and his shamelessness is quite reminiscent of the "Emperor Gaozu".

Lou Neigan put down the gift list. Although he had accepted the reality, he still didn't give Gao Huan a good look. He snorted and spoke sarcastically.

"My Lou family has many people who are very good at business in the shops and caravans under our name, but they are far inferior to you, my nephew. Perhaps you should take over the management in the future."

Isn't this a direct mockery of Gao Huan for getting something for nothing?

Wei Jing looked slightly embarrassed, but Gao Huan pretended not to understand the implication in his words and instead smiled modestly, saying, "Father-in-law, you flatter me."

He then asked, "I have reviewed the gift list. Is my father-in-law satisfied?"

The air inside the building was incredibly dry. In Gao Huan's eyes, everything he did and said seemed like a boast to him.

Whom should we call our father-in-law?

Who the hell is your father-in-law?
He sneered, "The gifts prepared by my nephew are so 'generous' that I am extremely satisfied."

Lou Neigan emphasized the word "abundant" in his voice, but his heart was bleeding.

Oh my god, oh my god, this is all my family property!

"So, my father-in-law has agreed to my marriage with the young lady?"

Lou Neigan retorted, "Could I possibly object?"

"Very well, very well. You should go home first. In a couple of days I will send someone to deliver the baby girl's birth date and time, and then find someone to choose an auspicious day."

“Father-in-law, there’s no need to worry. I’ve already had someone calculate the auspicious date.” Lou Neigan’s vision went black upon hearing this. Even with his high level of composure, he couldn’t hold back and his expression became extremely uncharacteristic.

So Lou Zhaojun had already told Gao Huan her birth date and time in advance?

Why are you in such a hurry to marry this pretty boy?

After a long while, Lou Neigan finally came to his senses and waved his hand, saying, "If that's the case, please go back first. Let my family make some preparations, and we'll discuss the wedding details on another day."

"Marriage is a major life event, especially for someone as distinguished as the Lou family, so it should be taken seriously."

Wei Jing quickly smiled and said kind words, adopting an extremely humble posture.

A man was peeking outside the hall. When he saw Gao Huan and Wei Jing get up to leave, he turned and ran to the inner courtyard. The servants and maids all gave way and bowed when they saw him.

This person was Lou Zhao.

The sole heir of the Lou family, the future head of the family!

"Sister, sister!"

Lou Zhao pushed open the door and walked straight into the room.

When Lou Zhaojun saw him, she immediately asked, "How is it?"

Lou Zhao said with a smile, "It should be done. You didn't see how Father looked just now. I've never seen him so out of control."

Upon hearing this, Lou Zhaojun felt somewhat embarrassed.

She knew better than anyone why her father had lost his composure; wasn't it all her fault?

After receiving the reply, she felt relieved.

The thought of finally being able to marry Gao Huan filled her with immense joy, like a young girl experiencing first love.

………………

Gao Yu didn't understand what it meant before.

One person attains the Tao and the chicken and dog ascend to heaven.

But now he knows, and he is one of the 'chickens and dogs'.

The Lou family soon came and gifted Wei Jing a mansion, a three-courtyard house. It couldn't compare to the mansions with high platforms and pavilions that the town generals and nobles lived in, but it was a huge improvement in their living conditions compared to before.

Not only that, they also sent precious silks and satins, and sent people to take the measurements of Gao Yu, Gao Loujin, and others, clearly in preparation for their future weddings.

Those who came to offer their congratulations included the town general and powerful families from the surrounding area. It wouldn't be appropriate to let the Gao family members dress so shabbily, would it?

The most important thing is.

They gifted Gao Huan horses, money, and provisions, finally elevating him from a low-ranking soldier to a squad leader!
The military system of the Northern Wei Dynasty followed that of the Wei and Jin Dynasties.

The most basic units were squad leaders and platoon leaders. Every fifty men formed a team, with one team leader in charge. Ten teams were led by one general, who carried a banner.

A banner is a flag in the army. Every ten squads of five hundred soldiers can get one banner flag. Therefore, five hundred people are commonly referred to as "one banner". The general who commands a banner is also called "banner master".

Although Emperor Xiaowen's Sinicization reforms were very radical, given the administrative efficiency of ancient times, it would have been difficult to fully implement them in a short period of time.

Especially in frontier military towns like Huai Shuo, many old systems of grassland tribes are still preserved.

The military system of the grassland tribes can be simply understood as a 'franchise system'. The so-called Khan is actually the most powerful shareholder with the largest share, while the smaller tribes are the smaller shareholders. The army consists of their own private soldiers who follow the Khan into battle and are paid according to their contributions, which is their share of the shares.

In Huai Shuo, becoming a team leader is simple: all you need to do is support a team of people. This team is the team leader's private army, and the team leader bears most of the expenses.

After Emperor Xiaowen's reforms, he began to pay salaries to officials and military pay to the army, but... with layers of deductions, relying on the court to support them was tantamount to waiting to die.

This is one of the reasons why the Six Towns still retain the grassland tribal system.

The military town can't support so many soldiers. Whoever can support them will become an officer and receive a share of the profits when they go out to fight.

Hou Jing and others also benefited as a result.

Hou Jing became a squad leader under Gao Huan, while Bilugu served as the deputy squad leader.

Gao Yu didn't get anything because the Northern Wei Dynasty stipulated that men were considered adults and could only serve full military service at the age of 15. Gao Yu was not yet an adult at that age, so Gao Huan was not in a hurry to send him into the army. Moreover, military households only needed to send one male member to serve.

Just like before, when Gao Shusheng didn't die in battle, Gao Huan didn't need to go out for rotation and could simply guard the city gate.

I really want to talk about it.

Gao Yu's greatest gain was...

Finally, I can truly start eating meat to my heart's content and no longer go hungry.

During the golden period of physical growth, lay a solid foundation for yourself so that you can have a strong physique in the future!

PS: The Southern Minister was an official position before the Northern Wei Dynasty was Sinicized. At that time, the Northern Wei Dynasty had four ministers: Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern, with a rank of the third grade.

However, after Emperor Xiaowen's Sinicization reforms, the official positions of the central court fully followed the Han system. The positions of the four ministers were abolished and their functions were gradually distributed to the ministers of the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Finance, and other departments.

(End of this chapter)