My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 7 The Dividing of the Loot After a Bumper Harvest

Gao Huan wasn't sure how effective his comforting words would be.

He could protect Gao Yu in many ways, but as Hou Jing said, no matter how much Gao Huan and Gao Loujin protected him, there were always some things Gao Yu had to face alone.

He also thought about the first time he killed someone, when he was also bewildered, but his reaction was not as strong as Gao Yu's.

They simply assumed that Gao Yu was naturally kind-hearted.

"Erlang, rest here."

Gao Huan turned around and went to clean up and take stock of the battlefield with the others.

Having experienced emotional highs and lows, Gao Yu was quite exhausted, but the biting cold wind kept him alert at all times.

He managed to stand up straight and turned to look at the others.

Hou Jing and his men were chatting and laughing. Killing people was as easy to them as killing chickens. In their eyes, the Rouran people were no different from livestock.

They killed him, that's it.

Can we blame them for being cruel?

Can we stand on the moral high ground and condemn them?

Gao Yu had no answer in his heart.

He came from a modern society with abundant resources. Although he was a lowly servant, he had never experienced hunger or seen anyone starve or freeze to death, so he could not empathize with them.

At this moment, he felt somewhat lost, experiencing this for the first time since his transmigration.

The experience he just had had an immeasurable impact on his 'modern' soul.

The rest of the group spent a considerable amount of time recovering many of the scattered cattle, sheep, and horses, and also found a lot of animal hides, bows and arrows, and ironware in the felt tents.

After taking stock, Gao Huan and the others were overjoyed!

This was a very fruitful experience!

There were two or three hundred cattle and sheep, forty or fifty horses, and even two rare camels. This was enough to exchange for a sufficient amount of supplies from the caravan!
"I never expected this tribe to be so plump!"

After the inventory was completed, Gao Huan pulled Gao Yu out of the camp, while the others lit torches with tinderboxes and threw them at the felt tents, burning them down in a large fire.

Everyone mounted their horses and drove the herds of cattle, sheep, and horses toward the agreed-upon location.

Gao Yu sat on his horse in a daze, not knowing how much time had passed, when he heard the sound of a rushing river.

Looking into the distance, he could see a large river flowing from north to south, which, given Huai Shuo's geographical location, would most likely eventually flow into the Yellow River.

Thinking about it this way...

No wonder Huai Shuo became one of the six towns.

Nestled against mountains and beside water, it is a place where tigers crouch and dragons coil.

According to feng shui books, this kind of terrain is a place of strategic importance, and it is bound to produce heroes!
As everyone approached the river, they dismounted to drink. Gao Yu also dismounted and rushed to the riverbank, frantically rubbing his hands and face, even though the river water was icy cold.

After washing all the blood off his hands and face, he seemed to find some psychological comfort.

But when he looked down at the bloodstains on the armor, his mental comfort was shattered once again!
No matter how much he washes it, he can't change one fact!

He has already taken a life!
Gao Huan walked over, removed the stopper from the leather pouch in his hand, and handed it to Gao Yu. "Erlang, drink some milk wine to warm yourself up."

After calming down.

With water droplets all over his hands and face, Gao Yu shivered in the cold wind.

Upon receiving the leather bag, a strong fishy smell wafted from it.

This was probably obtained from the previous Rouran tribe camp; it's unclear whether it's mare's milk wine or goat's milk wine.

Gao Yu didn't care about anything else and took a few big gulps. His body temperature recovered a lot, and the icy chill was also dispelled.

He then returned the leather bag to Gao Huan, who picked it up and took a few big gulps before standing up and saying...

"Mount up quickly, we'll rest properly at the agreed location."

The group immediately mounted their horses again and continued to drive the cattle, sheep, and horses in another direction.

At this moment, the full moon that had been hanging in the sky was about to set, and it was clearly almost dawn.

After a night of running around, everyone was exhausted!
But everyone put on a brave face, and some even kept their armor on.

No one dared to slack off until the transaction was completed.

Fortunately, they didn't have to travel for too long before they found the caravan's camp.

The lookouts outside the caravan camp had spotted them and alerted them with whistles. The camp quickly lit torches to dispel the surrounding darkness. The camp's layout was identical to that of the Rouran tribe, with no shortage of necessary precautions.

When Gao Huan and the others arrived at the door.

The caravan leader, Liu Gui, was already waiting there. He could see the herds of cattle, sheep, and horses from a distance, and his face immediately lit up with a smile.

"Haha, it seems like this trip has been quite fruitful!"

Gao Huan quickly dismounted to greet him, smiling and raising his hand in a gesture of flattery.

"Thanks to your good fortune, my harvest this time has been quite fruitful. I was delayed a bit on the way, and I apologize for the long wait.

Liu Gui waved his hand dismissively and immediately grabbed Gao Huan's arm, leading him into the camp.

"I have already prepared fine wine. Brothers, please come in and let us have a drink together!"

Gao Yu had already dismounted and smelled a strong aroma of meat when he arrived at the camp entrance.

A sudden wave of hunger washed over me, and I quickened my pace.

Two wooden racks stood beside the campfire in the camp, on which sat whole roasted lambs. The rest of the caravan brought over several earthenware jars and bowls. Gao Yu sat down on the ground around the campfire with the others, the towering flames dispelling the chill from their bodies.

Taking the earthenware bowl handed to him by someone, Gao Yu drank the warm wine in one gulp. The warm wine dispelled the fatigue from his excessive mental exertion, and his hands and feet no longer felt cold and numb.

"Good wine, good wine!"

"Even celestial dew couldn't compare to this, could it?"

"Hahaha, thankfully the hunt went smoothly and all the brothers are safe and sound!"

Attacking the Rouran camp was tantamount to risking one's life for a living.

Gao Yu was able to see clearly only with the help of the firelight...

Several people had wounds, and some members of the caravan brought herbs to apply to the wounds and then bandaged them up. Fortunately, no one lost their lives.

"Congratulations to all the brothers on your successful hunt! Let us all drink together!"

Liu Gui, who was also sitting on the ground, raised his earthenware bowl, and everyone else followed suit and drank the wine in one gulp!

Gao Huan was right next to Liu Gui after they finished drinking.

He leaned closer and whispered, "Although this operation went smoothly, several brothers were injured, and there is a high possibility that they will cause disaster later. I hope you can raise the purchase price for this transaction."

They didn't give Liu Gui a chance to refuse.

Gao Huan then said, "Once we get through this winter, we can ask for less next time we trade, to compensate you for your losses this time."

"What is this nonsense?"

Liu Gui shook his head and asked in return, "Brother, do you think I'm the kind of short-sighted, petty person who's always looking for the best?"

"I'll offer an additional 20% on top of the original price for this transaction!"

“In that case, I thank you on behalf of my brothers.”

The two spoke softly, but everyone could hear what they were saying. When they heard that Liu Gui was willing to give an extra 20%, everyone couldn't help but smile.

Even if there is no snow disaster, who would complain about having too many winter supplies?
Both sides immediately sent people outside to count the goods, and then handed over all the cattle, sheep, horses, camels, and some ironware to the caravan for registration.

They then began to share the whole roasted lamb in front of them.

Gao Yu is still waiting.

Gao Huan immediately handed him a plump leg of lamb!

Smelling the aroma of meat, Gao Yu swallowed hard. He had thought that with his hands stained with blood and carrying the weight of a life on his shoulders, he would need a lot of time to adjust his emotions.

Can……

Driven by hunger, no one cared about anything else.

He took the lamb leg and began to eat the meat heartily and drink wine from large bowls!
Seeing this, Gao Huan smiled slightly, patted him on the shoulder, and said.

"Brothers, let's divide the spoils this time according to the usual rules. Does anyone have any objections?"

No one spoke.

Everyone had great faith in Gao Huan and naturally had no objections.

at this time.

Hou Jing, who was eating meat, raised an objection, "This time, we should give Erlang a larger share, since Erlang also contributed."

Gao Yu was stunned, and stopped eating the meat.

He noticed that everyone was staring at him.

Upon hearing this, Gao Huan shook his head expressionlessly and refused, "Erlang, he did not contribute anything, so he has no part in this operation."

Hou Jing was about to say something.

But Gao Yu reached out and pressed him down.

Gao Huan and his gang had a mutually agreed-upon distribution ratio for the stolen goods.

If you rashly break this ratio, it's easy to cause disputes over the spoils, since not everyone treats you like a brother like Hou Jing did.

Gao Yu was able to understand Gao Huan's thoughts.

Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, he immediately stood up and spoke.

"The success of this operation is due to the meticulous planning of my brother and others, and the bravery of my brothers. What credit do I have?"

The expressions on everyone's faces varied. Gao Huan remained expressionless, but he glanced at Gao Yu a few more times before turning to observe the expressions of the others.

"You flatter me, Erlang. Being able to come out of the city with me is already a merit."

"Yes, yes, yes, I'm not old enough to go out of the city to intercept the Rouran."

"Erlang also fought the enemy, so he should indeed get a share!"

Liu Gui, who was going to inventory the goods, also heard Gao Yu's words and couldn't help but glance at him again.

He whispered to the attendant beside him.

"I never expected that the second son of the Gao family would have such a magnanimous spirit at such a young age. He is truly a hero!"

"Interesting, interesting!"

"To gain the friendship of such heroes is only a small fraction, not much at all."

(End of this chapter)