My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 237 The Gao Clan of Bohai
The military camp at night was not as hot as during the day, and the occasional evening breeze brought a touch of coolness to everyone.

Ge Rong had a beautiful woman on each arm, serving him meat and wine in turn, while the special envoy returning from Southern Liang reported the situation below.

The main purpose of this expedition is to force the fortified commanders within Xiangzhou to submit; the pressure is not very great.

Ge Rong specially brought more than a dozen beautiful women with him to accompany him in the military camp.

Previously, being thrown into a harsh and cold place like Huai Shuo, it was understandable that we didn't have the conditions to enjoy this.

Now that he has ascended the throne and become emperor, holding the power of seven provinces and being the Son of Heaven, shouldn't he be able to enjoy himself?
Then wouldn't he have been emperor for nothing?

"General Wuwei of Southern Liang and Yuan Hao, the Prince of Beihai of the pseudo-Wei, are gathering their troops in Zhicheng. The Prince of Beihai has already sent his confidants back to the northern border to raise the banner of rebellion and summon his old troops."

No matter when, it is important to have a legitimate reason for war.

Even when nomadic tribes raid southwards, they still have to shout the slogan "We won't go hungry."

"In your opinion, when will the Southern Liang army be able to march north?"

"Your Majesty, we will probably march north around June. When I set off, the troops under General Chen Qingzhi of Wuwei will have been assembled and will be ready to go once the provisions and supplies arrive."

"it is good!"

Having conquered the fortified village and received the good news that the Southern Liang was finally heading north, Ge Rong could not hide his joy. He even increased the pressure on his hands. His strong and rough hands made the maidservant serving him blush slightly. She was shy but dared not resist, and her clothes gradually became disheveled.

This made the special envoy below extremely envious. He wanted to look but didn't dare to look directly, so he could only keep stealing glances with his eyes, which was quite comical.

Ge Rong laughed loudly, grabbed the concubine on his left with one hand, and pushed her hard. The concubine lost her balance and fell down next to the special envoy, trembling, which made the special envoy swallow hard.

"You have done me a great service, so look at women as you please! This concubine is yours; now go and rest well."

The special envoy was overjoyed and repeatedly kowtowed in gratitude, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your divine grace! Thank you, Your Majesty, for your divine grace!"

With a gleam of excitement in his eyes, he eagerly grabbed the girl and pulled her outside. The girl seemed to be used to it, and instead of resisting, she leaned against him sensibly, holding him firmly.

Yuwen Luosheng was inside the tent. He did not actually approve of Ge Rong sending his concubines to accompany the army on the expedition, as this would only disrupt the morale of the troops.

The biggest reason why peasant armies like Ge Rong have always failed to achieve anything is that they indulge in pleasure before they have even accomplished anything. Indulging in pleasure is acceptable, but there must be a limit.

Look at Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang.

God won't give someone so many chances to become a dragon. If you miss one chance, you may never become a real dragon.

"Prince Yuyang, why be so discouraging? With so much good news, we should celebrate properly."

The tent contained not only Yuwen Luosheng, but also several other kings. In fact, Ge Rong might not even remember how many kings he had appointed. With over 200,000 men under his command, how could he possibly remember them all?

As long as they are willing to obey my orders, that's fine.

Yuwen Luosheng said with a serious expression, "Your Majesty, this is a critical moment. You must not indulge in pleasure."

Ge Rong frowned, his face showing great displeasure.

He Kang, who had escaped with them last time, said sarcastically, “Brothers, we risk our lives to make a living, isn’t it all for the sake of drinking wine from large bowls, eating meat in large chunks, and having beautiful women to accompany us? Well… the King of Yuyang is of noble birth, and he certainly wouldn’t be as depraved as us, who are of lowly birth.”

"All right!"

Ge Rong suppressed his displeasure, but he also knew that he couldn't do without Yuwen Luosheng's help, so he immediately put on a stern face and waved his hand, "All of you, step back."

The women quickly got up and left the military camp.

"King Yuyang, tell us, what are our plans next?"

There's still hope.

Seeing Ge Rong drive Ji away, Yuwen Luosheng's expression and tone softened considerably, and he bowed respectfully.

"Your Majesty, I would like to ask you a question in return: Whom do you think the powerful clans in Hebei would prefer to support?"

Ge Rong's face turned cold. "Why does the Prince of Yuyang ask a question he already knows the answer to? In the eyes of these powerful families, we are nothing but bandits. If the pseudo-Wei court had not declined to this point, they would definitely continue to support the Luoyang court. Even the Southern Liang dynasty is more favored by the powerful families than we are."

"Yes! Your Majesty is absolutely right!"

Yuwen Luosheng explained, “Your Majesty, the Southern Liang army has already assembled and is poised to march north at any moment. If the Han Chinese aristocratic families in Hebei were to learn of this, do you think they might secretly send people to invite the Southern Liang army to come?”

The south is the legitimate Han Chinese territory, while the Han Chinese aristocratic families in the north might not have recognized it when the Great Wei was at its strongest.

However, the Great Wei is currently weak and vulnerable. There is hope of conquering the Han people's homeland in the south. Compared to associating with the barbarians of the grasslands, the Han families obviously welcome Han people who share the same ancestry, culture, and customs to come and rule the northern border.

"Moreover, the Southern Liang still has Yuan Hao, the Prince of Beihai, whose throne was established by the late Emperor of the Great Wei, not by the current pseudo-Wei court of Erzhu Rong."

“They oppose Erzhu Rong, but not the Yuan clan. They can also pledge allegiance to Yuan Hao, the Prince of Beihai.”

On the legal system.

Yuan Hao was actually no different from Yuan Ziyou.

Neither of them were direct descendants of Emperor Xiaowen, Tuoba Hong.

Yuan Ziyou's father was Yuan Xie, the sixth brother of Emperor Xiaowen, and Yuan Hao's father was Yuan Huai, the seventh brother of Emperor Xiaowen. In a normal succession to the throne, it wouldn't have been their turn.

However, just as Erzhu Rong could forcibly enthrone Yuan Ziyou, the powerful families could also forcibly enthrone Yuan Hao, who was much like Yuan Ziyou.

The anger on Ge Rong's face gradually subsided. After hesitating for a moment, he quickly got up and walked to Yuwen Luosheng, grabbed his arm, and said with emotion, "The Prince of Yuyang is my Marquis of Liu! If it weren't for the Prince of Yuyang's reminder, I would have almost made a terrible mistake!"

"Your Majesty, you flatter me."

Ge Rong quickly pressed on, "Then, according to the Prince of Yuyang's instructions, what should I do next?"

"Your Majesty! We must take advantage of the fact that the news of the Southern Liang army's northward march has not yet reached Hebei, and use swift and decisive means to coerce the powerful families in Hebei to provide our army with money, grain, and military supplies. Only in this way can our army overcome this crisis."

Ge Rong was facing a severe food shortage.

Although he controlled the fertile Hebei Plain.

But with the constant fighting, there was no time to grow grain. Only this year, when the situation has stabilized somewhat, has he arranged for people to grow grain in the three prefectures of Ji, Ding, and Ying.

But distant water cannot quench immediate thirst.

His biggest problem is that he has to get through this year, so he has no choice but to change his previous conciliatory attitude and force the powerful families to bow down by sacrificing lives.

"If we have sufficient provisions, our army can slowly wear them down until the Southern Liang army succeeds and Erzhu Rong is thrown into chaos, then we can launch a surprise attack and deliver a fatal blow!"

"As the saying goes, a skilled strategist wins by defeating the enemy, not by defeating the enemy."

"Erzhu Rong has few soldiers and cannot withstand the losses from defeat. As long as he is thrown into chaos and eager to fight our army, our army can decide the outcome in one battle!"

Ge Rong wholeheartedly agreed and exclaimed with delight, "Excellent! Excellent!"

"Guards, convey my military order: General, send Meiji back to Xindu. From this day forward, drinking alcohol is forbidden in the army, including for myself. Anyone who violates this order will be punished according to military law!"

"After we defeat Erzhu Rong, I will make merry with everyone!"

"Your Majesty! You are wise!!"

………………

Inside the Ba Mansion in Jinyang.

A steady stream of news also came back.

Erzhu Rong first looked at the secret letter sent by Erzhu Shilong and others. The contents of the letter were unremarkable.

Yuan Ziyou doesn't seem to have been causing much trouble lately.

He simply pulled out the case files that had been piling up in the Court of Justice, seemingly to investigate wrongful convictions. He even went out of the palace to personally adjudicate cases for the people outside Luoyang.

"A move to win people's hearts and minds."

Erzhu Rong could see right through Yuan Ziyou's thoughts at a glance.

After the Hebei Incident.

Erzhu Rong was thus completely demonized, and in the eyes of the people, he was a bloodthirsty, murderous maniac.

Yuan Ziyou wanted to use this method to create a stark contrast between himself and Erzhu Rong.

However, at the end of the secret letter, it caught Erzhu Rong's attention.

"His Majesty issued an edict, promoting Gao Yi to the position of Governor of Ji Province."

Compared to the other two secret letters, Erzhu Shilong was slightly more considerate, adding information about Gao Yi's family background in the latter half of his letter.

It originated from the Gao clan of Bohai.

He was the father of Gao Qian, a Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate.

“Gao Qian…”

Erzhu Rong put down the secret letter, squinted his eyes and thought hard, and finally came up with some clues.

"This person once entered the palace and accompanied the late emperor in his studies along with Yuan Ziyou. Their relationship was very close."

"Is it an attempt to cultivate your own loyal followers?"

The mere fact that Gao Qian and Yuan Ziyou studied together clearly indicates that they were old friends.

The purpose of giving Gao Yi a high position was to win over the Gao family of Bohai.

Do they want to cultivate foreign ministers to compete with them?
Erzhu Rong couldn't help but sneer, "Ji Province has already been taken over by that scoundrel Ge Rong. What good would it do to be promoted to Governor of Ji Province?"

"If this son had become emperor ten years earlier, the Great Wei might not have declined to this extent."

"However... at present, the affairs of the world are in Jinyang, in my hands, not in Luoyang, nor in the hands of Your Majesty."

"A powerless emperor, yet he wants to support foreign officials? To play the game of checks and balances?"

Erzhu Rong immediately picked up his pen and gave his reply, "Continue to keep an eye on His Majesty."

This was given specifically to Erzhu Zhao.

The reply Erzhu Tianguang and Erzhu Shilong received included an additional note: "Keep a close eye on Moheduo, especially his every word and action when he meets His Majesty!"

He trusted Gao Yu, knowing that Gao Yu was a pragmatic person.

However, they still placed Gao Yu, such an obvious target, next to Yuan Ziyou.

Firstly, it was for Yuan Ziyou's fishing.

Secondly, it also serves as a test for Gao Yu.

Trust is one thing, but there are limits to trust.

"Erlang, I regard you as an old friend and a close friend. You must not disappoint me."

"You and Dalang are both intelligent men, but you don't have Dalang's ambition. If you can wholeheartedly assist my king in conquering the world, you might just be able to be made a king!"

(End of this chapter)