My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 229: Compassion does not command troops
"Drive, drive, drive..."

Ge Rong kept waving his whip, spurring his warhorse forward at breakneck speed!

With disheveled hair and a dusty face, he dared not pause for a moment, fearing that the killing god behind him would come after him.

"Xilulu."

The horse beneath him was clearly exhausted; it buckled on its front hooves and collapsed to the ground.

Ge Rong was caught off guard and was thrown out. Exhausted and terrified, he couldn't react in time and fell to the ground, rolling around for a long time before finally stopping.

I felt dizzy and lightheaded, as if my internal organs were being churned up, and my limbs felt like they had completely fallen apart.

however.

Ge Rong ignored the pain and gritted his teeth to stand up, intending to turn back and mount his horse again.

But they found that the horse had died from exhaustion.

The sound of rapid hoofbeats could be heard in the distance, growing ever closer.

A sense of despair welled up in Ge Rong's heart. "My ambition for hegemony has not yet been realized. Is it truly Heaven's will to destroy me?"

He closed his eyes in despair, a wave of regret washing over him.

He regretted not heeding Yuwen Luosheng's advice a few days ago. Continuing to plunder was acceptable, but it was necessary to retreat the main camp several dozen miles to ensure that he would have enough time to escape when the imperial army attacked.

However, Ge Rong's repeated victories against the imperial army in Hebei made him completely disregard the imperial army.

Even……

If only I had strictly enforced military discipline and paid a little more attention to the security around the main camp, I wouldn't have given Gao Yu such an easy opportunity to launch a sneak attack.

One step wrong, step by step wrong.

Ultimately, it was his own greed that caused the problem. His original plan was to plunder only the area bordering Sizhou and Xiangzhou, but when he discovered how 'wealthy' the people in Sizhou were, his greed grew and expanded, to the point that he wanted to rob all the way to Luoyang.

From afar, they could already see armored figures riding horses charging towards them.

Ge Rong hung his head helplessly, completely giving up resistance.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!!"

That familiar voice made Ge Rong, who had been ready to surrender and whose spirits had plummeted, suddenly look up, and his lifeless eyes instantly regained their light!
As the figure drew closer, it was discovered that it was Yuwen Luosheng.

"His Majesty!"

Yuwen Luosheng quickly dismounted and hurried to his side.

"King of Yuyang".

Ge Rong was incredibly excited. He gripped Yuwen Luosheng's arm tightly, as if he had grasped a lifeline.

"Your Majesty, there is no need to worry. No pursuers are coming."

"really?"

Ge Rong's voice trembled slightly as he spoke.

"Absolutely true, Your Majesty."

After receiving a positive reply, Ge Rong finally felt relieved. His tense nerves relaxed, and his legs went weak, causing him to collapse to the ground.

But his face was filled with the joy of surviving a disaster. He looked up at Yuwen Luosheng and said, "I regret not listening to the advice of the Prince of Yuyang back then, which led to today's disaster."

Yuwen Luosheng shook his head and said, "It is not Your Majesty's fault, but my fault. I underestimated Mohedu."

"If I had been able to accurately predict the speed of Mohedu's march, we would not have ended up in this situation."

These words were rather comforting to hear. Ge Rong slammed his hand on the ground, "What a pity for my tens of thousands of elite troops and countless grain supplies."

The thought of the mountains of grain being stolen made Ge Rong's heart bleed. "If we fail to seize enough grain to take back this time, there may be hidden dangers."

"His Majesty!"

Yuwen Luosheng retorted, "Your Majesty, this defeat may not be such a bad thing for our army!"

"Oh? What's so good about it?"

"Your Majesty, our army has won many victories against the imperial army in Hebei. Under your wise leadership, we defeated Du Luozhou and now control seven prefectures! We are riding high and our soldiers are in high spirits. However, this victory also sows the seeds of disaster. The soldiers have become arrogant and complacent and no longer take the imperial army seriously."

"However... the person we will face next is Narzhu Rong. His elite Qihu troops are far superior to the imperial army. Moreover, Narzhu Rong has already taken control of the court and is in dire need of a great victory. Unlike the previous infighting within the imperial army, if the soldiers still view the enemy they are about to face with the same old perspective, they will only face an even greater defeat."

"Right now, Erzhu Rong has not yet sent out his troops. Our army will suffer a defeat first, but we will still have time to rebuild our morale after we return. This will also allow the soldiers to have a clear understanding of the opponent they are about to face."

Ge Rong was taken aback, but nodded in agreement. What Yuwen Luosheng said made a lot of sense.

He, as the 'emperor,' had become so arrogant that he no longer respected anyone, let alone his subordinates, who were even more arrogant than before.

"But... without sufficient food supplies, we can only go east to plunder for food."

Ge Rong was still worried about the supply of provisions.

Yuwen Luosheng then spoke up to persuade him, "Your Majesty, Xing Gao has already ascended the throne in Shandong. If we lead our troops there, he will surely fight us to the death, needlessly wasting the lives of our soldiers. It would be unwise!"

"Then what should we do?"

"Your Majesty should send a special envoy to write a letter to Xing Gao to form an alliance, and then invite him to join in besieging Erzhu Rong. Places like Sizhou and Xuzhou are easy to attack but difficult to defend. Your Majesty only needs to take Erzhu Rong's Shanxi territory, and then you will be able to attack or defend as needed."

"As for the matter of provisions, Your Majesty can take the captured strongmen from Sizhou back to Hebei and order them to launch a strong attack on the fortified villages of the powerful families. If the powerful families cannot withstand the losses, they will naturally offer up provisions."

Ge Rong's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but tease, "I never thought that the Prince of Yuyang could offer such a ruthless and cruel plan that treats human life as worthless."

It wasn't that Ge Rong couldn't capture the fortified village; rather, the effort and reward were disproportionate.

Most fortified villages are built against mountains, making them easy to defend and difficult to attack. If you want to force an attack, you can only pay with your life.

Forcibly using the people of Hebei as cannon fodder will lose popular support.

But it doesn't matter if the able-bodied men are conscripted from Sili. What does it matter to the people of Hebei if people from Sili die?

On the contrary, the people of Hebei will be grateful to Ge Rong. They were supposed to be the cannon fodder, but His Majesty is kind-hearted and risked his life to come to Sili to conscript men to be cannon fodder, which will win him some popularity.

There's no need for much loss; just ensure these people don't starve. No need to provide any weapons; just give each person a wooden stick, and the supervisory team will escort them to their deaths, consuming the defensive supplies within the fortified village.

Find a few small to medium-sized powerful families to bully the weak and force them to submit, while also giving a warning to powerful families like the Cui family.

"A compassionate leader is not fit to command an army; in extraordinary times, extraordinary measures must be taken."

Yuwen Luosheng remained expressionless and then bowed again, "Your Majesty, please punish me severely when we return! It was my failure to understand the enemy's movements that led to our army's crushing defeat. All the blame lies with me!"

"His Majesty will certainly not forgive me!"

Ge Rong, having been involved in officialdom, immediately understood.

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Yuwen Langjun is truly a kind and honest man.

They can offer advice and strategies, and at crucial moments they will ruin their reputation to take the blame for the monarch.

Where can you find such a good subordinate?
Ge Rong was deeply moved and personally helped him up, saying, "If I can achieve hegemony, I will dedicate my life to never betraying the Yuwen family!"

........................

"Report! General, His Majesty and the Prime Minister have personally led all the officials out of the city to welcome you."

Hou Jing and the others were all astonished upon hearing this, and filled with envy.

He inspected Luoyang on behalf of the emperor, and the emperor himself came out of the city to welcome him.

Although Yuan Ziyou and Erzhu Rong used Gao Yu to engage in a magical duel, Gao Yu's treatment alone was enough to secure his place in history.

Upon hearing this, Gao Yu countered, "How far are the emperor's, prime minister's, and officials' carriages from here?"

"Less than three miles away."

Gao Yu has now crossed the river bridge and arrived south of the Yellow River.

He immediately ordered the entire army to speed up their advance. After crossing a hillside, they could see the emperor's carriage in the distance. Gao Yu immediately raised his hand and ordered, "All troops, dismount!"

Gao Huan originally wanted to speak, but seeing how cautious Gao Yu was, he swallowed his words back.

Erlang did not become arrogant because of his high position and great achievements.

They remained as cautious as ever.

As they approached Yuan Ziyou, Gao Yu once again ordered his soldiers to stop where they were, and only took a few generals with him to meet Yuan Ziyou.

"My lord, pay homage to Your Majesty!"

Gao Yu and the others quickly bowed and paid their respects.

Yuan Ziyou smiled and took the initiative to help everyone up.

He smiled broadly, his eyes fixed on Gao Yu. The more he looked at her, the happier he became, but the more he regretted not having arranged for his own sister to marry Gao Yu.

But just think about it.

Yuan Miao was already Erzhu Rong's bottom line. Erzhu Rong would never allow Yuan Ziyou's direct blood relatives to be associated with any of his generals other than Erzhu clan members.

"The Right Guard General is indeed exceptionally brave! Why didn't he bring his soldiers with him?"

"Your Majesty, my men are all warriors who do not know etiquette. I am afraid they will offend Your Majesty."

Yuan Ziyou waved his hand dismissively, "I prefer dealing with straightforward people. Warriors are the purest, without so many tricks up their sleeves. Let's go! I want to personally meet the warriors who protected the face of Great Wei!"

They really seize every opportunity to subtly and overtly undermine Erzhu Rong.

Gao Yu subconsciously looked at Erzhu Rong.

Yuan Ziyou countered, "What? Does the Right Guard General have any concerns?"

"How dare I? It is an honor for my soldiers to meet Your Majesty. I will now lead the way for Your Majesty."

"Let's go! I will personally accompany you!"

Yuan Ziyou held onto Gao Yu's arm tightly and wouldn't let go.

Erzhu Rong stood by and watched coldly from behind.

Upon approaching the soldiers, Yuan Ziyou carefully examined them.

Each of them was burly and strong, and one could tell from their physique that they were brave soldiers. Their faces were solemn, and their eyes were filled with a chilling murderous aura, which made people shudder. Yuan Ziyou was deeply shocked.

That's what you call elite!

Compared to the true elite troops under Gao Yu, the Central Army and the Imperial Guards are all useless!
If the Central Army and the Imperial Guards were all this valiant, how could the Great Wei have declined to such an extent? Why would the Emperor of Great Wei have to be mindful of Erzhu Rong's feelings?

"Quickly bow and pay your respects! How dare you meet the Emperor's gaze!"

"You are all my benefactors! There's no need for such formalities."

Yuan Ziyou said excitedly.

"Reward! Reward everyone! Those who have made contributions will all be rewarded, especially the Right Guard General, who is skilled in leading troops and deserves the greatest credit in this battle!"

Gao Yu immediately bowed and explained loudly.

"Your Majesty! We will achieve a great victory this time."

"Firstly, it is because His Majesty is blessed with great fortune and has blessed the Great Wei Dynasty. Moreover, His Majesty and the Prime Minister are discerning in their judgment of people. Secondly, it is because the soldiers under his command have worked tirelessly, marching day and night and fighting bravely against the enemy. Only in this way were they able to defeat the enemy army. What merit have I made?"

"How dare I claim credit for this victory? The greatest credit for this battle belongs to Your Majesty, the Prime Minister, and all the generals and soldiers!"

(End of this chapter)