My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 438: Copy it, it's not shameful.
"hiss……"

Erzhu Rong clutched his forehead, his face contorted in rage. The barrage of bad news had left his head buzzing and throbbing with pain.

He had no idea how long it had been since he'd heard any good news.

Why is there no one who makes me feel at ease, no one who can make me happy and cheerful?

Wang Xiang and the others remained silent, trembling with fear. Even as trusted confidants, they dared not provoke him at this moment, and all lowered their heads in silence.

Yuwen Tai quickly spoke up, "Prime Minister, it's not entirely bad news... Yao Xiong defeated the invading enemy from Jingzhou and inflicted a great defeat on Chen Qingzhi of Southern Liang!"

"Back then, Chen Qingzhi led his army on a northern expedition, fighting all the way to the walls of Luoyang. How impressive that was! Mo Heduo also defeated him, which earned him the title of 'General of Heavenly Strategy.' It's not that I want to boost the morale of others and diminish our own, but this battle clearly shows..."

"The Prime Minister has many brave and valiant men under his command. With such brave men by his side, the Prime Minister has no need to fear Mohedu!"

Erzhu Rong's expression softened considerably, which was indeed the only good news.

If the Southern Liang were to seize the opportunity to attack the vicinity of Luoyang again, he would truly lose all face and prestige.

But then I thought about it again and my face couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.

With so many capable and skilled warriors under his command, his three armies set out in a grand procession, only to be completely defeated by Gao Yu.

Doesn't this mean they're admitting they don't know how to use people?

A general's incompetence can lead to the downfall of an entire army.
Husichun seized this opportunity. He was originally a 'sycophant' and was very clear about his ecological niche under Erzhu Rong.

Help Erzhu Rong to attack someone as prestigious as Gao Yu without any conditions.

While he was at it, he flattered her.

Yuwen Tai's original position was quite awkward.

After all, he was still young. Although his father and brothers had been kind to the Wuchuan faction, they were all dead. It was uncertain whether others would remember this kindness. It was not up to Yuwen Tai to take charge of the Wuchuan faction.

They were all led by the Heba brothers, and Dugu Xin and Li Hu had higher prestige than him.

It's different now.

Yuwentai was very pleased with himself in front of Erzhu Rong.

Especially from Yingzhou, news of exactly how Hou Yuan lost has been gradually arriving, and everyone knows the details...

Heba Yun surrendered to Gao Yu.

Although the brothers Hebasheng and Hebayue were still serving under Erzhu Rong, their situation had become somewhat delicate.

It still comes down to Erzhu Rong's situation.

If this had happened a few years ago, when he had just quelled Ge Rong's rebellion, and his personal power and prestige had reached their peak, when he was at his most confident, Erzhu Rong might have let bygones be bygones.

What now?
After suffering a major defeat, Erzhu Rong's prestige and self-confidence were severely damaged. Could he still have the magnanimity to embrace and conquer the world?
Dugu Xin, Li Hu, and other elders of the Wuchuan School all defected to Gao Yu.

Instead, it brought Yuwen Tai, who was originally on the periphery, into everyone's view.

Erzhu Rong certainly wouldn't do anything to the Heba brothers, but he certainly wouldn't value them as much as before; at the very least, he would support Yuwen Tai.

"Black Otter, what are your true intentions in saying such things?"

Yuwen Tai, however, remained serious. "Prime Minister, honest advice is hard to swallow. Anyone can say nice things or pretty words, but will that solve the problem?"

"Prime Minister, your ambition lies in conquering the world! Throughout history, who among those who have conquered the world has not been good at recognizing and employing talent, and open to good advice? On the contrary, some foolish and incompetent people only want to listen to flattery, and by the time they regret it, it is too late. Empress Dowager Ling, who brought chaos to the Great Wei and caused its decline to this point, is a bloody example!"

"you!"

Husichun was furious, "Who are you calling a sycophantic minister?"

"enough!"

Erzhu Rong shouted, "What kind of behavior is this, making such a racket?"

He glared sharply at Husichun before turning to look at Yuwentai.

It is indeed rare for someone to be willing to stand up and say something "unpleasant" at this time. He looked at Yuwen Tai and said, "Black Otter, now that everyone is here, you may speak your mind about what you "unpleasant"." Yuwen Tai immediately cupped his hands and said, "The Prime Minister has extraordinary talent and ambition to save the world, which is known to all."

"The Prime Minister's staff is filled with capable warriors and outstanding statesmen who can govern the country and assist in administration."

"However... why does the Prime Minister always have the upper hand when facing Moheduo, yet he never gains any advantage against Moheduo?"

"Is it merely because Mohedu possesses unparalleled bravery?"

"No!"

Yuwen Tai said decisively, "These past few days I've been thinking, why has it come to this?"

"After thinking it over and over... I finally figured it out."

Erzhu Rong suddenly looked up, stepped forward and grabbed Yuwen Tai's hand. His expression was slightly agitated. He tried to calm himself down, but still couldn't wait to ask, "Oh? Black Otter, tell me..."

All eyes were now focused on Yuwen Tai.

They also wanted to know what Yuwentai's brilliant insights were.

"system!"

Yuwen Tai said, "Has the Prime Minister noticed that Moheduo has actually trained a group of Han people into such brave warriors in Shandong? I only learned after making many inquiries that Moheduo implemented the 'Fubing' system in Shandong, which distributed land to the gentry and assigned able-bodied men to Fubing to cultivate the land. Fubing only needed to stay at home and focus on studying and improving their martial arts."

"In addition, he would also award soldiers with honorary titles and various privileges and benefits based on their military achievements."

"In that case... how could his soldiers not fight bravely and repay his kindness with their lives?"

The Fubing were essentially a Plus version of the Fuhu system of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

The households of the Northern Wei Dynasty, also known as the Six Garrisons, were a group of professional soldiers who had left their jobs.

but……

There was no basic guarantee; the only guarantee was the right to a share of the spoils when raiding other regions. As a result, the fighting power of the garrison troops was extremely fierce during the Northern Wei's expansion.

The Rouran, who were known as the weakest and most miserable grassland overlords in Chinese history, are the most qualified to speak on this point.

However, due to the lack of a safety net mechanism, it was inevitable that when the government could not plunder enough spoils and the court did not provide subsidies, the households would easily go bankrupt. The Six Garrisons Uprising was essentially a case of all the households going bankrupt and unable to survive, while the court did not care at all, leaving them with no choice but to rebel.

Furthermore, the households had no way to advance; they only had the right to share in the spoils of war, but they could not be promoted even if they made meritorious contributions in battle.

The Fubing system was designed to address this issue by providing a patch: land was distributed and able-bodied men were given the opportunity to cultivate it for the Fubing soldiers. Even without external expansion, the Fubing system would not go bankrupt.

As for honorary titles, they are not difficult for those of them who read history books to understand.

It is a variant of the military merit system of the Qin state.

Fubing (府兵).

This combines the military merit system and the household registration system.

The minimum guarantee mechanism is combined with the incentive mechanism.

"Prime Minister, we should emulate Moheduo's strategy in Shandong and implement the Fubing system in Guanzhong and other places. We should register all the soldiers, incorporate them into the Fubing system, and put them under the unified management of the Prime Minister... In this way, the Prime Minister will gain a group of brave and fearless warriors!"

Erzhu Rong squinted.

He didn't respond immediately.

He admitted that Yuwentai's words made a lot of sense.

Although it was a little hard for the proud Gao Yu to accept that he had to lower his head and learn from Gao Yu, it couldn't be denied that it was the best solution.

At present, he still controls Henan, Luoyang, most of Shanxi, Guanzhong, and Longxi, and still occupies half of the Great Wei territory, so there is still hope for him.

"Prime Minister, these are my heartfelt words..."

(End of this chapter)