My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 254 The Heartbreaking Story of General Tianzhu
Bingzhou, within the Jinyang Bafu (a powerful military headquarters).

boom!
Erzhu Rong slammed his hand on the table, his face contorted with a murderous expression, and tore the letter in his hand to shreds!

The guard who came to deliver the message in place of Erzhu Shilong knelt on the ground tremblingly, not daring to raise his head, for fear that Erzhu Rong would vent his anger on him!

"Ah! Damn it!"

As if that wasn't enough to vent his anger, Erzhu Rong angrily stood up and walked up to the guard.

"Prime Minister...Prime Minister."

The guard looked up at Erzhu Rong's tall figure, and stammered as he spoke.

Erzhu Rong suddenly put on a smiling face and patted his shoulder heavily, "Good! Good! Good!"

"Tell Shilong for me that he did a great job!"

"His ability to assess the situation and preserve his own strength truly makes him a worthy successor of the Erzhu clan! It was worth keeping him in Luoyang!"

As he spoke, Erzhu Rong looked up at everyone and said with a smile, "Yang Yu and Fei Mu actually lost Xingyang overnight, which led to the fall of Hulao Pass as well. Erzhu Shilong's retreat to preserve his strength is very much to my liking."

"The Southern Liang-Northern Expeditionary Allied Forces boasted a force of 300,000; it would be unwise to confront them head-on."

"The Southern Liang and Northern Expeditionary Allied Forces are probably still secretly rejoicing. They have captured Xingyang and Hulao in succession without losing a single soldier, and can immediately march their troops straight towards Luoyang. They never expected that our army has preserved its strength and can march south at any time to take back Luoyang!"

Hou Jing exchanged glances with Dou Tai and others beside him, and Heba Yue also exchanged glances with Li Hu and others, but none of them spoke.

They all witnessed Erzhu Rong's anger, yet their attitude suddenly underwent a complete 180-degree change, which is quite intriguing.

With a kind and amiable smile, Erzhu Rong personally helped the guard up and then ordered someone to take him away to rest.

Only then did he return to his seat.

Suppressing the anger in my heart.

The deed was done, and there was no point in dwelling on it. Even though Erzhu Rong was extremely dissatisfied with Erzhu Shilong's cowardly act of fleeing without a fight, he could not show it in front of the arrogant and fierce soldiers and generals from Dai and the Six Garrisons who had come to surrender.

The only option is to pretend to be ignorant even when you know the truth.

There's no point in dwelling on what has already happened; what we should be discussing now is how to make amends.

"The combined forces of Southern Liang and Northern Expedition are so formidable. Do you have any strategies to repel them? Tell me, what should our army do next?"

Erzhu Tianguang hurriedly spoke up, "Prime Minister, if Hulao Pass also falls into the hands of the Southern Liang army, there will be no natural defenses to the east of Luoyang, and there are no troops to be transferred from the surrounding areas of Luoyang. I'm afraid His Majesty and all the civil and military officials have already gone north."

"Our most urgent task right now is to head south to Shangdang County to meet with His Majesty and the officials. This is the best course of action."

Everyone present knew better than anyone how weak the defenses around Luoyang really were.

Let alone 300,000 troops, even 30,000 troops might not be able to hold Luoyang.

Erzhu Rong's expression softened slightly. Not all the members of the Erzhu clan were incompetent; there were still some who understood the situation. He nodded in agreement.

"Wan Jing, what do you think?"

Hou Jing's ancestors were Jie people, and he was a key figure whom Erzhu Rong tried to win over to counterbalance the Gao brothers. The main reason for this was Hou Jing's ability.

After a moment's hesitation, Hou Jing said, "Prime Minister, no matter what the situation in Luoyang is like, we are already unable to go to its aid. A distant water cannot quench a nearby fire."

"If Luoyang falls, the Prime Minister can send heavy troops to guard the North Central City, cut off the river bridge, and destroy all the ferry crossings along the river. The Southern Liang army will then be able to only look at the river and sigh. With Jianzhou and Jinzhou in hand, the southern part of Shanxi can rest easy."

"Our most urgent task right now is to quell the bandits in Hebei and join forces with the army that marched eastward. As long as we can control the land of Hebei, our army can march south and fight our way back to Luoyang at any time!"

Erzhu Rong's feelings were inevitably complicated.

The joy I had just felt vanished instantly.

Look at people.

Even Hou Jing, who was suppressed by Gao Da and Gao Er in the Huai Shuo faction, still had such strategic vision and considered the overall situation.

Even now, Erzhu Tianguang's eyes are still only on the emperor and the court.

The difference in perspective is too obvious.

What do you think of A Dou?

Heba Yue nodded in agreement. “I also agree with Wan Jing’s words. For our army, the bandits in Hebei are the real threat. Our army has been confronting them for a long time. We must take them down first in order to put the minds of the powerful families in Hebei at ease.”

"As for the Southern Liang-Northern Expeditionary Allied Forces in Luoyang?"

"I have heard that Ge Rong has also sent people to get involved. Once they enter Luoyang, they will be unable to continue the campaign and will surely collapse due to internal disputes over the distribution of spoils. The Prime Minister has no need to worry about this."

What good end has ever come for allied forces throughout history?

Luoyang City is filled with endless wealth. Before Erzhu Rong led his troops south to Luoyang, he strictly ordered his soldiers not to plunder the city's wealth.

Faced with such insane wealth, infighting over the unequal distribution of spoils was inevitable.

The allied forces appeared to be mainly composed of the Southern Liang Northern Expeditionary Army, but Xing Gao and Yuwen Luosheng also had a considerable number of troops under their command. Most importantly, within the Southern Liang Northern Expeditionary Army, Chen Qingzhi represented Xiao Yan, but Yuan Hao gathered many of his old subordinates and recruited and defected along the way, so the number of his troops had long exceeded that of Chen Qingzhi's White Robe Army. He also had his own ambitions.

The rebel soldiers, having conquered so many cities along the way, were eagerly awaiting the promised war rewards upon arriving in Luoyang.

Where is the will to strive?
Erzhu Rong nodded in agreement, but a hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes. He hadn't heard the answer he most wanted to hear, but the suggestions from Hou Jing and the others were all pretty much the same.

Everyone believed that Luoyang could be ignored for the time being, and that the Northern Expeditionary Army could not threaten Shanxi for the time being, thanks to the natural barrier of the Yellow River.

Let's conquer this fertile land of Hebei first.

"Issue my military order: the entire army shall follow me south to Shangdang County. Erzhu Tianguang, I hereby appoint you as the Governor of Bingzhou, stationed in Jinyang..."

One military order after another was passed down.

Because of the Southern Liang's Northern Expeditionary Army, he was forced to make various arrangements in advance.

That very day, he took all his wealth accumulated over the years and led seven thousand elite Qihu cavalry south to Shangdang County.

The reason for heading to Shangdang County is that it is closest to Fukou. Ge Rong's army is besieging Ye City, and Fukou is just west of Ye City. The most effective way to quell Ge Rong's rebellion is to march east from Fukou and defeat his army.

Erzhu Rong adopted an elite force strategy, but he didn't have enough troops to fight on multiple fronts, so he could only seek a decisive battle with Ge Rong.

Just as they were about to reach Shangdang County.

Liu Taozhi and others arrived at their camp at night.

Upon learning that it was Liu Taozhi who had come, Erzhu Rong immediately summoned her to his tent.

"Greetings, Prime Minister!"

"Get up quickly."

Erzhu Rong seemed very anxious and hurriedly asked, "What is the current situation in Luoyang? Has your general already abandoned Luoyang with the emperor and officials?"

Liu Taozhi shook her head, "It's hard to explain in just a few words. This is a handwritten note by my general. Please take a look, Prime Minister."

Erzhu Rong didn't waste any words, took the letter, opened it, and read it carefully.

Liu Taozhi kept observing his expression, but found that Erzhu Rong was expressionless and could not discern anything amiss.

After a long silence, Erzhu Rong picked up a pen and paper and wrote a personal letter, which he handed to Liu Taozhi. “You must be tired from your journey. Please make sure to deliver this letter to your general.”

"Here!"

After Liu Taozhi left the camp.

Erzhu Rong then picked up Gao Yu's letter again with a complicated expression and examined it carefully.

"You understand me best, Erlang..."

In his personal letter, Gao Yu not only explained the situation and the necessity for Erzhu Rong to defend Luoyang.

at the same time……

He also offered advice and strategies to Erzhu Rong.

"Ge Rong's supplies are running low, and he is certainly eager to fight the Prime Minister's army. The Southern Liang army's northern expedition is pointing directly at Luoyang. Ge Rong will surely use this to motivate his soldiers. The Prime Minister must not rush into a decisive battle with Ge Rong because of the danger in Luoyang. We can delay for a while, and wait until Ge Rong's army is demoralized and lacks morale before seizing the opportunity to launch a decisive battle to settle the score!"

"Once the bandits in Hebei are pacified, the Prime Minister can lead his troops south again, and the siege of Luoyang can be lifted."

"I will hold Luoyang until the Prime Minister's reinforcements arrive!"

Gao Yu had indeed figured out Erzhu Rong's thoughts.

Knowing that Luoyang held immense political significance for Erzhu Rong and could not be lost, the loss of Luoyang would be a huge blow to the Erzhu clan's political prestige, triggering numerous chain reactions and causing the situation to develop in unpredictable directions.

Erzhu Rong will also lose the favorable situation he originally had.

Arriving at the candlestick, he lit Gao Yu's handwritten letter and watched it burn until it became a pile of ashes on the ground.

A complex expression flashed across Erzhu Rong's eyes as he muttered to himself.

"Erlang... after this battle, how should I treat you?"

Since entering Luoyang.

Erzhu Rong's feelings toward Gao Yu became extremely complicated.

On the one hand, he regarded Gao Yu as a confidant.

When he was in Heyin, everyone, including the members of the Erzhu clan, forced him to commit murder and do something outrageous in order to advance his career, making him a notorious executioner. Only Gao Yu advised him to consider his reputation after death.

So when Erzhu Rong took everyone into the sea, he left Gao Yu alone on the shore to preserve Gao Yu's reputation.

Erzhu Rong showed a rare moment of sentimentality.

On the one hand, he was also very wary of Gao Yu's abilities.

Having spent so much time together, he knew better than anyone how outstanding Gao Yu's personal abilities were.

As Gao Yu was forced into his struggle with Yuan Ziyou, Yuan Ziyou also discovered Gao Yu's personal abilities and tried his best to win him over.

This completely thwarted Erzhu Rong's plan to 'hide' Gao Yu.

He was very afraid that Gao Yu would really side with Yuan Ziyou.

As it stands, Gao Yu is still on my side.

But what happens after this battle?

The Southern Liang army, advancing northward with unstoppable momentum, reached the outskirts of Luoyang. If Gao Yu could lead the remaining troops in the city to hold out for several months, it would be a true act of "turning the tide and saving the collapsing edifice!"
To do what ordinary people cannot do.

He then went south to help lift the siege of Luoyang.

He will surely become famous throughout the world!
Those who make contributions will certainly be promoted significantly.

By then, will I still be able to control Gao Yu?
Will the two eventually become adversaries?

Erzhu Rong's feelings were extremely complicated. He hoped that Gao Yu could successfully defend Luoyang, but at the same time, he also secretly hoped that Gao Yu would give up defending Luoyang and lead the emperor and officials north.

Two thoughts were clashing in his mind, causing him great anxiety.

Outside the tent, Erzhu Rong's personal guards could hear his sighs coming from inside from time to time.

They did not know why Erzhu Rong sighed.

(End of this chapter)