My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 145 Even High School Sophomores Have Their Own Quirks

Without much adjustment, Gao Yu grabbed a handful of arrows from his quiver and fired four arrows in rapid succession, each hitting its mark and instantly felling four bandits.

Peng Le had already led his men into the mountain stronghold, slashing left and right with his broadsword. In no time, his broadsword was covered in blood, and several bandits lay dead around him.

Many bandits tried to escape from the mountain stronghold, but they were easily wiped out by the Xuanjia soldiers that Gao Yu had left on the outskirts beforehand, and no bandits were allowed to escape.

"Take stock of the mountain stronghold and transport out all the grain, money, and goods that have been looted from it."

Peng Le grinned and immediately called out, "Men, come with me!"

The old brothers who had come with Peng Le to seek refuge were all beaming with joy.

For them, returning to the mountain village is just like returning home.

No one knows better than them how bandits set up their strongholds!
Li Si grinned and moved closer to Peng Le, "Leader..."

Peng Le turned around and stared at him with his big eyes.

Li Si quickly changed his tune, "Hehe, Commander, so all the mountain strongholds in the world are the same? Just like us."

"Shut up! I told you before, don't bring up the past again."

Peng Le directly rebuked him, interrupting him, but his face also showed a hint of nostalgia. "As you command, young master, quickly go and gather grain, fodder, and money."

"Why search? I can tell where the grain and valuables are kept at a glance."

Li Si immediately took the initiative to walk into the cave, as did Peng Le.

"Sure enough, there were some pretty young ladies, with delicate skin and tender flesh. What a pity they were ruined by those bandits!"

When was the last time I slept with a woman?
Was it during the Huai Shuo period?

The young woman inside the cave, though disheveled and covered in dirt, looked even more frightened and uneasy, which only made Li Si and the others more eager to eat.

The more pitiful she looked, the more it made them itch with desire.

I couldn't wait to rush up there.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?"

Peng Le seemed to have noticed something amiss. He roared and grabbed Li Si, "Don't you all know what kind of person our lord is? If he violates military regulations, I can't protect you either!!"

"Ah, my lord is good in every way, except that he is too kind-hearted. What are we soldiers doing, risking our lives to make a living?"

"Go and tell this to your husband."

Li Si shrank his neck, withdrew his reluctant gaze, and said, "Let's go, let's go, come with me to plunder grain and fodder!"

Gao Yu soon arrived inside the cave and saw the young women huddled together.

He had seen the same thing too many times on his way south.

There will always be someone who wields a knife against the weaker.

This is not a natural disaster, but a man-made one!
If the Great Wei court had been even slightly more competent, how could it have allowed the soldiers and civilians of the Six Garrisons to suffer such a catastrophe?
The people of Heng and Shuo prefectures were not much better off.

The people of the six towns are known for their fierce and unruly nature. Living in a harsh and cold place, their animalistic instincts will erupt when they can no longer survive.

The perpetrator may act alone or in a group.

The transformation from refugee to robber can happen in the blink of an eye.

As a result, the people of Heng and Shuo prefectures also suffered, but ultimately it was because some people in the imperial court acted inhumanely.

Gao Yu sighed inwardly. He could save one, ten, a hundred... but there were so many who needed to be saved. With his current abilities, he could only lend a hand when he saw them. He was simply not up to the task.

"Mulan, go find them some clothes."

Mulan nodded.

Upon hearing this conversation, the fear in the women's eyes gradually faded, and they all stared intently at Gao Yu.

Gao Yu didn't have time to deal with them for the time being, and there was no need for him to give them too many instructions.

He was confident in his control over the Xuanjia Army and the Zhusheng Army. As for the soldiers led by Li Minzhi and Liu Rong, they stayed at the foot of the mountain to guard the area and did not come with him.

"My lord! We've struck it rich!"

"This gang of bandits looted a lot of money, goods, and food! They've all stockpiled it here."

Li Si shouted excitedly.

Gao Yu rushed over to check, and upon a cursory glance, he found that there was indeed a considerable amount, which greatly alleviated Gao Yu's food shortage.

After the inventory was completed, Gao Yu continued to give orders.

"Transport all the grain, money, and goods down the mountain."

"Lang Jun?"

Li Si looked bewildered.

"Do you have any objection?"

"Don't dare..."

Li Si shook his head, sighed, and said, "Come on, help me transport the grain."

After giving his instructions, Gao Yu returned to the young women. Mulan had already found them a lot of clothes, so they were no longer in a state of being barely clothed.

“The bandits here have all been wiped out by our army. You will only be waiting to die if you stay in the stronghold. Why don’t you come down the mountain with me? I will give you some food. You can also follow behind my army. When we find a mountain village or county, you may be able to find a family to marry into.”

It wasn't that Gao Yu didn't want to seek benefits for his soldiers.

At other times, he wouldn't mind distributing these women to his soldiers as wives or concubines.

But right now...

They were already short of food, so how could they possibly care about these burdens?
Perhaps they never expected that in this world where people are treated unfairly, Gao Yu would actually treat them like human beings, or perhaps Gao Yu's handsome appearance dispelled most of the fear in these women's hearts.

Immediately, someone timidly asked, "Is what you say true, sir?"

Peng Le grinned and said, "You all should go out and ask around. Who in the six towns of the North doesn't know the name of Huai Shuo High School? My young master has a reputation for virtue. How could he do such a thing as a bandit?"

"Is this young master the second son of the Gao family?"

"No wonder he's so handsome."

"I have heard that when women in Luoyang see Gao Lang's carriage, they will hold hands and try to stop it, just to catch a glimpse of him... How fortunate we are!"

"........."

Gao Yu glared at Peng Le, thinking there was nothing to brag about, but still said, "In any case, you will all come down the mountain with me first. After that, you are free to go or stay as you please."

They transported grain, fodder, and money to the foot of the mountain.

Down the mountain, many refugees were also waiting. When they saw a large amount of grain being transported, they swallowed hard, having been hungry for a long time, and then looked at Gao Yu.

"Gentlemen, the provisions looted by the bandits are all here... I will distribute them to you. Do not fight or cause a disturbance, or you will not receive a single grain of rice!"

"The Xuanjia Army!"

Gao Yu shouted, and immediately armored soldiers with swords stood guard on both sides of the carriage.

The previously restless crowd immediately became as docile as lambs, remaining rooted to the spot and not daring to move.

Peng Le reluctantly asked, "My lord, shall we split it all?"

“We’ll give it all away. This grain was looted from the people by bandits. It was originally the people’s food. We are just returning it to its rightful owner.”

"We don't even have enough food for ourselves..."

"My mind is made up, say no more!"

Peng Le gritted his teeth and turned away in a huff.

Gao Yu ignored him, but instead called Mulan over, and then looked at the people in front of him and said, "Come and collect your grain."

It took a lot of time to distribute them one by one.

Some people, upon receiving their rations, immediately began preparing to cook and feast, while others quickly left, fearing being coveted. Still others approached Gao Yu, bowed, and kowtowed.

"Thank you, Gao Lang, for saving my life."

"I will never forget Gao Lang's kindness in this lifetime."

"Gao Liang..."

"........."

After the distribution was completed, Gao Yu led everyone to continue their journey towards Sizhou.

Fortunately, there was a village not far away. Gao Yu sent people to the village to take the young women. For them, if they wanted to survive, they could just marry into any family.

at night.

After delivering the food to Gao Loujin on the carriage, Gao Yu returned to the campfire. "Mulan, how much food do we have left?"

"Only two days' worth of rations left..."

Upon hearing this, Peng Le couldn't help but say, "My lord, I know you are kind-hearted, but kindness has its limits. Right now, we don't even have enough food to fill our stomachs, so why should we share the stolen food with others?"

It carried a slightly resentful tone.

Peng Le was just a representative; indeed, many soldiers were unaware of Gao Yu's actions.

You're starving yourself, yet you still want to share your food with others?
Do I really have to become a living Bodhisattva?

After a moment of silence, Gao Yu finally spoke, "These past two years have been difficult times. All they've been trying to do is survive."

"Young master is kind enough to help them, but what's the use? Many of them haven't even said a word of thanks."

"People have to live... and since we're both refugees, it wouldn't hurt to help each other out."

"If we help them, then who will help us?"

Gao Yu smiled and said, "Someone will help us."

"Who?"

"All the gods and Buddhas."

Peng Le was completely bewildered. How come he didn't remember Gao Yu being a Buddhist?

Since things had come to this point, there was nothing more he could say.

The next day.

Setting off again, Gao Yu once again sent people to scout ahead. When the scouts brought back news...

Gao Yu then called Peng Le to his side.

"Zixing, do you still remember what you said last night?"

What did you say?

"Didn't you ask who can help us?"

Peng Le paused for a moment before nodding and saying, "It is true."

“Our helpers have arrived.”

"Did the gods and Buddhas come to your aid after your sincere prayers last night?"

"Correct."

Peng Le was bewildered again, frowning as he carefully examined Gao Yu, a question nagging at him.

Gao Yu didn't play games with him.

"There is a large temple fifty miles ahead. Take your men there to buy some provisions."

Gao Yu remained unconcerned despite the fact that his supplies were nearly exhausted.

It was because when he left Huai Shuo last time and headed to Luoyang, he encountered many temples along the way.

Monks in temples do not perform military service or pay taxes. Even in years of famine, they never starve to death. Moreover, in addition to the incense offerings from believers, temples often have farmland, and the monks also cultivate the land themselves.

From Empress Dowager Hu to ordinary people, everyone in the Great Wei Dynasty deeply revered Buddhism.

Larger temples were often built with donations from local wealthy families, who would also provide money and food.

Such a temple must have stored grain, and quite a lot of it.

Peng Le scratched his head, looking quite puzzled, and asked, "We have no money or goods, how are we supposed to buy grain?"

Gao Yu chuckled and said, "If you don't have money or goods, you can just say so. If you want to borrow grain, and the monks don't believe you, you can just give them an IOU and charge them interest. It's just a few copper coins and silk; we can't possibly renege on our debt."

I overheard their conversation.

Mulan took the initiative to suggest, "If we're going to borrow grain, why don't I lead the way? Zixing is a crude and rude fellow; we don't want him to offend us with his words."

Gao Yu smiled and shook his head, saying, "To borrow grain from the temple, only someone as capable as Zixing can persuade them to lend us grain. Mulan, you can't do it."

Mulan is beautiful and has fought alongside Gao Yu in many battles. Despite her long service in the military, she remains as fair-skinned and clean-cut as Gao Yu.

What kind of deterrent effect is there?

"But if we want to borrow grain, we have to ask politely. Can Zixing really bring himself to do that?"

Mulan was skeptical.

He knew Peng Le all too well.

Extremely rude, not a kind person, it's unbelievable to ask someone for help.

It's likely that if someone had refused him or made a slightly careless remark, Peng Le would have drawn his sword and attacked him.

Borrowing grain turned into seizing grain.

Wouldn't that damage Gao Yu's reputation?
How many emperors who suppressed Buddhism throughout history have a good reputation?
What ordinary people seek is nothing more than psychological support and comfort.

If people offend temples, they will think, "If even temples that worship Buddha and Bodhisattvas can be destroyed so easily, what about ordinary people like us?"

Gao Yu, however, remained resolute.

He held Peng Le's hand and gave him repeated instructions.

"Zixing, you must remember to communicate with others sincerely and earnestly. Avoid conflicts and explain the pros and cons clearly to them. Do you understand?"

Peng Le's eyes darted around, and he immediately understood.

He grinned and said, "I understand. We need your help, so we should lower our stance. Don't worry, my lord, I'll take my men to borrow the grain right away!"

“If they don’t believe me, I will write an IOU in my husband’s name and allow them to calculate interest.”

"Ruzi can be taught."

Gao Yu nodded in satisfaction, and Peng Le led two hundred soldiers, fully armored and armed, to the temple to borrow grain from the monks.

Gao Yue was sitting in the carriage, not far away, and could hear part of the conversation.

He nodded thoughtfully.

"So... Prince is indeed quick-witted, able to come up with such a method. I wonder if Commander Peng has truly grasped the meaning behind Prince's words?"

Gao Yu continued to lead the group forward slowly.

It wasn't until sunset that they could vaguely see people approaching from ahead.

Take a closer look.

It's Li Si.

"My lord, my lord!"

Li Si rode swiftly to Gao Yu's side, his face beaming with joy, indicating that he had reaped a considerable harvest.

Gao Yu also rode forward quickly to join him.

"Can we borrow some grain?"

Li Si nodded. "My lord, with kind words, pleaded with that old bald monk in the temple. That old monk is also a man of cultivation and quite reasonable."

Gao Yu could roughly imagine what the scene would be like.

He asked the most crucial question, "How much grain and fodder have you borrowed?"

"It is thanks to your brilliant strategy, sir, that you knew there was plenty of surplus grain in that temple."

"The old monk was very generous and gave the military commander 150 shi of grain."

How many?

Good guy.

That's why they say monks are rich.

This was a bit beyond Gao Yu's expectations, but he quickly corrected himself.

"We are borrowing, we are borrowing. Did Zixing write an IOU?"

"Yes, yes, yes, lend it! The military commander will naturally act in accordance with what you say, sir."

Gao Yu burst into laughter upon hearing this!

If you borrow and repay, it's easy to borrow again.

If you sign an IOU, then it's a loan. You can repay them with interest when you have the ability to do so in the future.

(End of this chapter)