My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 59 The Barbarians of the Northern Frontier (Please read on! Please read on!)

Clan members are also divided into 'three, six, and nine' ranks.

However, the relatives who could live in Luoyang were definitely within five degrees of kinship with the imperial family and were not considered particularly marginal relatives.

After all, the truly marginalized members of the clan had long been driven out of Luoyang.

Saving the princess is a great achievement, and there might be a hefty reward for it.

He immediately brought Gao Huan along to give a reply to Zheng Dache. Zheng Dache was clearly surprised to see the more mature Gao Huan and praised him.

"Both of you brothers are outstanding individuals."

Gao Huan bowed respectfully with clasped hands, saying, "Thank you for your praise, Your Highness."

Zheng Dache nodded, then looked at Gao Yu, his eyes flickering before he asked, "What you just said?"

"The Princess Consort's health is of utmost importance; no matter how important the official duties, they are not as crucial as the Princess Consort's safety! My brothers and I will certainly escort the Princess Consort back to Luoyang safely; this is our duty!"

Gao Yu was incredibly righteous and awe-inspiring.

Who doesn't love to hear flattery?
Zheng Dache was immediately overjoyed, but her good upbringing made her keep a straight face. Besides, there were so many servants and guards around. After adjusting her expression, she said with the same righteous indignation, "National affairs are also very important. My personal safety is nothing to worry about!"

"But Luoyang is just around the corner, so there's no need to rush. Why don't we travel together? Your brother can also protect me."

"Here!"

Gao Yu's response, which sounded like that of a soldier, startled Zheng Dache. He then covered his mouth and chuckled, staring intently at Gao Yu with his clear eyes and asking curiously, "I still don't know where you two brothers come from, or what your names are."

“My name is Gao Yu, or you can call me Mo Heduo. This is my elder brother, Gao Huan, or you can call him He Liuhun. My brother and I came from Huai Shuo and served as messengers to deliver official documents to Luoyang.”

A murmur of laughter rippled through the crowd. Although people like Zhu Wenyu were also Sinicized Xianbei, they had lived in the Central Plains for a long time and no longer used Xianbei names; they all had Han names.

Originally, seeing the Gao brothers' dignified appearance and bravery, I felt quite inferior, but now...?

Each of them couldn't help but puff out their chests with pride, their eyes looking at the Gao brothers with a hint of disdain and contempt.

They really are barbarians from beyond the Great Wall.

Zhu Wenyu was even more annoyed now!

No.

He usually doesn't even dare to look Zheng Dache in the eye, so why is Gao Yu standing face to face with Zheng Dache, chatting and laughing like this?
Two stinky out-of-towners came to Luoyang to beg for food, and they're acting all high and mighty?
What are you laughing at?

Zheng Dache understood perfectly well the meaning behind the mocking laughter, and frowned. Everyone then lowered their heads and dared not laugh anymore.

When Zheng Dache looked again, he saw that the Gao brothers were neither angry nor embarrassed, but rather composed, showing that both brothers were magnanimous.

I already had a very good impression of Gao Yu, and now it's even stronger!
"This place is not safe to stay for long. I don't know if those bandits have gone far. Please, Your Highness, get into the carriage and rest. We will continue our journey after clearing the road, in case anything goes wrong."

He interrupted before Zheng Dache could speak.

The excuse she found was good, and Zheng Dache couldn't refute it, so she nodded and returned to her original carriage. As she got into the carriage, she couldn't help but steal a glance at Gao Yu.

Zhu Wenyu gave Gao Yu a cold look before instructing the others to move the corpses off the ground. Burying them was out of the question; they could only pile them up and burn them.

He directed the others to pile up the bodies.

The guards pulled the arrows out of the corpse. The undamaged arrows were quite valuable; even if they didn't use them themselves, they could be cleaned up and exchanged for money.

"This band of thieves must be quite capable; their arrows are rather exquisite."

The guard's casual remark startled Zhu Wenyu. He immediately stopped and snatched the arrow from the guard's hand.

The guards, who were about to start cursing, immediately dared not say anything when they saw that it was their leader. They could only continue to deal with the corpses, but in their hearts they had already cursed Zhu Wenyu to the bone.

Zhu Wenyu carefully examined the arrow, holding it up to the light. The shaft was straight and perfectly round, extremely exquisite, but this was an extremely unusual signal!

Where would ordinary bandits get the money to make such fine arrows?
Moreover... the arrows are all of the same design.

Zhu Wenyu calmly approached Yang Junxian and asked, "Didn't a group of bandits chase after us just now? How did you handle it?"

“We naturally fought to the death to protect the princess. However, there was indeed a rider who chased after her, but the princess returned safely with the Gao brothers. It is likely that she was killed by that young man.”

Upon learning the crucial information, Zhu Wenyu immediately went to Gao Yu's side.

"Young Master Gao, I heard that a bandit was chasing the Princess just now, but you killed him. I wonder... what happened to the bandit's body?"

"I was busy coming to help earlier, so they should still be by the roadside."

"Thank you, sir. My king will surely reward you handsomely once we reach Luoyang!" After piling up the bodies of the dead guards and servants, the caravan continued on its way, while Zhu Wenyu and a few others stayed behind to clean up the mess.

He gestured to his men to gather some hay and resin, which they then set on fire.

Instead of chasing the convoy directly, they ran in the opposite direction!

Soon after, he saw a corpse by the roadside. He dismounted and immediately examined it. There was a knife next to the corpse. He picked it up and saw that it was not a common ring-pommel sword, but a horizontal sword used by the central army. It was said that this sword was a design from Persia in the Western Regions, and it was lighter and sharper than the traditional ring-pommel sword.

Zhu Wenyu was terrified!
What exactly happened in Luoyang?
He was merely escorting Zheng Da's carriage, who had just married the Prince of Guangping, back to his parents' home, and the situation in Luoyang had already changed so drastically.
Or has our king offended someone?

He suppressed his doubts and said to the guard beside him, "Take this bandit's corpse back to Luoyang!"

………………

In the woods, about a few miles from the convoy.

The sound of rapid hoofbeats continued, and the group that had attacked the caravan earlier began to slowly regroup until a group arrived with three carts of goods.

The group then took off their masks, and each of them beamed with joy.

"As expected of the Princess Consort of Guangping, she is from the Zheng family of Xingyang. She brought back so much money and valuables on her trip back to her maternal home."

"Hahaha, indeed! I never expected to have such a gain this time!"

"Brothers, let's go have a drink after we get back to town!!"

The crowd was already discussing what to do with the stolen money and valuables.

Kowen was one of the leaders, but he didn't join the discussion. He was quite cautious and kept counting the number of people.

After a quick count, he froze, then shouted at the others to stop talking, "Shut up, are there still others who haven't returned?"

The crowd looked around and shook their heads. However, one person spoke up, saying, "Mu Yong went to pursue the escaped people and has not yet returned."

Hear this.

Kou Wen's mind went blank for a moment!
Oh no!

"not good!"

"It seems that Mu Yong will either be captured alive or killed."

Kou Wen shared his guess.

The others were also terrified.

Assassinating the Princess Consort of Guangping is a crime punishable by death.

One by one, they were filled with fear and anxiety, completely at a loss.

"What...what should we do?"

"Why panic!"

Kou Wen remained relatively calm. "You all wait here. I'll go and investigate the situation further!"

He immediately spurred his horse and galloped away, not daring to get too close. He could only see smoke rising in the distance and smell a foul odor, so he guessed that the body had been burned.

"If we're killed, that's fine, but if we're captured alive..."

"If you are captured alive, the Prince of Guangping will definitely report to the authorities immediately. At that time... there will still be room for punishment. It would be best if you died! For the sake of the brothers, you must die too!"

"Brother Mu Yong, rest assured! I will take care of your wife and children!!"

Kou Wen immediately rode back!

"Rest assured, Mu Yong is dead, and his body has been burned."

The others were relieved.

But Kou Wen still couldn't shake the feeling and instructed, "Remember, you must insist that we haven't seen Mu Yong for several days. Also! We've all been resting at home today and haven't left the city. No matter who asks, that's the answer you have to give!!"

"As for the money and goods... half of it will be used to subsidize Mu Yong's family. Do any of you have any objections?"

Seeing that no one spoke.

Kou Wen then ordered, "We should not linger here. Come back to the city with me immediately!"

(End of this chapter)