My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 381 Divine Strategy and Ingenious Decisions
Standing atop the city wall, Gao Ji watched the departing army with deep emotion.

A southerly wind suddenly rose, making the military flags flutter.

Although the soldiers were not wearing armor, they all stood tall with their backs straight and their eyes filled with murderous intent. Just by looking at their physique and spirit, one could tell that they were a brave and capable army.

Apart from a small group of Huai Shuo's loyal followers that Gao Yu brought with him, his troops were all Han Chinese soldiers.

We also have to thank Erzhu Rong. After Gao Yu was promoted to the rank of Tian Ce General, he transferred all the Qi Hu people who had been transferred into Gao Yu's Xuanjia Army to other places. It seemed to weaken the core troops of Gao Yu, but it also helped Gao Yu.

"How long has it been since we've seen such bravery from the Han people? The Xianbei barbarians are wary of our Han sons. Zichong will surely bring glory to our Han sons this time, and let all the Han people in the Central Plains know that one Han man could take on five barbarians in the past!"

He increasingly felt that leaning more towards Gao Yu was the right decision.

Gao Yu's foundation is still shallow, while Bohai Gao has been in decline for a long time.

Both sides benefited from the agreement and quickly reached a consensus.

………………

On the Yellow River, boats come one after another, stretching as far as the eye can see.

The boat was drafted very deep, almost touching the sides, and was filled to the brim with provisions.

Both Sizhou and Yuzhou were under Erzhu Rong's control, and the Yellow River waterway in this section was his greatest asset. His grain supplies were mainly transported from Yuzhou, which was a major grain-producing area and had well-developed water conservancy and water transport systems. By using the waterway, he could enter the Yellow River and then recruit boatmen to pull the boats upstream.

Most of the soldiers transporting supplies along the river were not wearing armor or carrying weapons; instead, they carried leather whips.

He kept cursing and shouting, and every now and then he would swing the leather whip in his hand and lash the boatmen on the side, leaving a bloody welt with each lash.

Some boatmen, exhausted, collapsed to the ground. The soldiers whipped them mercilessly, but to no avail. So they ordered them to be thrown directly into the rolling Yellow River.

Seeing this, the other boatmen dared not speak out in anger, and could only continue to pull the grain transport boat with all their might under the urging of the fierce soldiers wielding their whips.

Gao Lin frowned as she looked at the scene before her.

He could be considered a member of the Bohai Gao clan, but he was not a Han Chinese; rather, he was a Goguryeo person, descended from the branch of Gao Zhao, a powerful minister during the reign of Emperor Xuanwu.

The Gao clan of Bohai reluctantly accepted Gao Zhao's branch, which originated from Goguryeo, but with one condition: the Bohai Gao clan asked Gao Zhao to move his ancestral graves from Goguryeo to the ancestral land of the Gao clan in Bohai County.

But Gao Zhao completely ignored him.

therefore……

The relationship between this branch of the Gao family and the Bohai Gao family is quite subtle.

However, Gao Lin ultimately grew up in the Central Plains of Han China and considered herself a Han Chinese.

He returned to the military camp and found Erzhudulu, who was in charge of logistics and food transport.

After losing Xuzhou, Erzhu Dulu was severely punished by Erzhu Rong, but he was not completely abandoned. Instead, he was given the cushy job of being in charge of logistics and transportation.

"General, aren't the transport troops being too harsh on the boatmen?"

"Eh."

Erzhudul waved his hand dismissively, "The boatmen are all conscripted Han Chinese. If they are even one coin's worth of Han Chinese, they will die with them."

Gao Lin was furious and about to speak when she heard an angry shout from the side!

"Nonsense! Who gave you the right to utter such utter nonsense!"

Erzhu Rong stormed over, startling Erzhu Dulu, who was kicked to the ground in a panic.

"Ji Min, you go to the tent and wait for me. I need to teach this bastard a lesson first!"

Gao Lin bowed slightly and then turned to leave.

Erzhu Rong glared angrily at Erzhu Dulu until Gao Lin had walked away, then he composed himself and said with a look of disappointment, "How foolish you are! How could you say such things in front of a Han general?"

"He's not Han Chinese..."

"How can you say such things in public! Don't I have other Han generals under my command? Don't I have Han civil officials, and Han aristocratic families?"

Erzhudulu had no choice but to bow his head and admit his mistake, saying, "I will definitely pay attention in the future."

"This will never happen again!"

Erzhu Rong gave a stern warning, but he was still very annoyed. How could the Erzhu clan members all be such scoundrels? They had already been given logistical support and supplies, yet they still managed to cause him so much trouble.

Erzhu Rong had quite a few Han Chinese under his command.

He was closely associated with the Wang clan of Taiyuan, one of the four major surnames. Conflicts between the Han and non-Han people were inevitable, but he still had to maintain a facade of harmony.

Otherwise, the fight wouldn't have even started yet.

Are they already fighting amongst themselves?
He let out a heavy sigh. If only Mo Heduo were here…

Erzhu Rong shook his head, quickly adjusted his expression before entering the tent, and walked in with a smile.

He summoned his generals to his tent to discuss the next course of warfare.

"Greetings, Prime Minister!"

"No need to be polite."

Erzhu Rong waved his hand and came to the main seat. "I'm sure you've all received the news that Moheduo has raised an army and marched north, intending to seize Ying, Yan, You and other places, in order to break my pincer attack."

Everyone nodded.

While information transmission was slow in ancient times, it was also relatively difficult to conceal information about large-scale military operations.

Moreover, Gao Yu was in Shandong, where merchants came and went in an endless stream, so it was impossible to keep the news a secret.

"What do you all think I should do now? Should I concentrate my forces and march north to defeat He Liuhun, or should I divide my forces and send another army out of Yuzhou to attack Xuzhou?"

Hebasheng quickly spoke up, "Dividing our forces will only weaken our strength. It would be better to concentrate our forces, head north directly, and defeat He Liuhun. Then we can go and relieve the siege of Yingzhou, and attack Mo Hedu from both sides!"

Gao Lin countered, "The Shandong troops have come out in full force, leaving Shandong's rear defenses vulnerable. If we can take advantage of this situation and conquer Shandong, the siege of Yingzhou will be lifted without a fight. At that time, it's uncertain whether Mo Heduo will still be able to control his soldiers."

"Everyone believes he is the reincarnation of the ancient overlord, and we can also make him fall like the overlord!"

Others also had differing opinions.

Heba Yue, however, offered a reminder: "Although Moheduo favors speed in warfare, he is also meticulous in his thinking. How could he be completely unprepared? Could it be that he is deliberately luring us into dividing our forces to relieve the pressure on He Liuhun? Otherwise... why would Moheduo have placed Wanren in Pengcheng to guard it?"

Erzhu Rong was certainly aware of this.

It is relative.

It can be said that Gao Yu deliberately lured them to divide their forces and attack Gao Yu's main camp from the south in order to relieve the pressure on Hebei.

But the other way around.

For Erzhu Rong and his men, this was indeed a good opportunity to raid their base.

If it's done, wouldn't that be the same as stealing Gao Yu's house?

From Gao Yu down to the families of ordinary soldiers, everyone's family is in Shandong. If their homes are raided, how can they have the will to fight?
"If... we can persuade Wan Ren."

Erzhu Shilong suddenly spoke.

Everyone looked at Erzhu Rong.

Yes.

If we could persuade Erzhu Zhao to act as an inside agent, we could coordinate an attack from within and without...

Xuzhou is easy to attack but difficult to defend. If they can easily take Xuzhou, they can immediately head north and strike Gao Yu's main base, Yanzhou, Qingzhou, and Nanqingzhou.

Erzhu Rong didn't dwell on it.

"It is possible to divide our forces..."

Having made his decision, he said, "I will personally write a letter and send a trusted confidant to meet with Wan Ren!"

"Although he was related to Mohedu by marriage and had a very close personal relationship with him."

"However... he is ultimately a member of the Erzhu clan, and he has also failed the Erzhu clan. He Liuhun used him, which led to the devastation of Xiurongchuan."

"I think he will make the right decision."

(End of this chapter)