My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 553 A New Variable Arrives
Gao Yu's guess was correct.

For the past six months, Erzhu Rong had devoted all his energy to appeasing and stabilizing the morale of the troops. Under these circumstances, he dared not take any military action rashly.

Frustrated by the situation, Erzhu Rong tore the secret letter in his hand to shreds!

For the past six months, secret letters have been delivered to Ye City every day.

The records describe how carefree Gao Yu was, even managing to steal moments of leisure from his busy schedule, ignoring state affairs and enjoying time at home with his wife and children.

And what about looking at ourselves?

"That scoundrel Moheduo is utterly detestable!"

The life Gao Yu was living was the life Erzhu Rong had imagined he should have lived.

He was exceptionally brave and had made outstanding military achievements, earning the love and respect of his soldiers.

He also had extensive good relations with powerful families, and was able to get many of them to support him from behind the scenes.

Suppressing his anger, Erzhu Rong brought the topic back to the present. He looked at the Prime Minister on the other side and asked with a solemn and serious expression, "Is the news true?"

"It's absolutely true."

Wang Xiang cupped his hands in reply, “I have had it confirmed repeatedly that Kezhu Hunyuan, who is stationed in Pinggao County, is secretly in close contact with Dou Tai in Yewang City.”

Zhu Hunyuan, however, had some connection with Gao Huan.

At the height of the Six Garrisons Rebellion, Zhu Hunyuan, like Yuwen Luosheng, was one of the princes under Ge Rong.

At that time, Gao Huan escaped from Du Luozhou and first went to seek refuge with Ge Rong for a period of time before going to Xiu Rongchuan to meet with Gao Yu. It was during this time that Gao Huan met Ke Zhu Hunyuan.

After Ge Rong killed Du Luozhou and Erzhu Rong stabilized Luoyang, both sides were free to fight for the title of "No. 1 in Hebei".

In the end, Erzhu Rong won a great victory, and most of the captured soldiers and civilians from the six garrisons were resettled in Bingzhou and Sizhou.

There were also truly elite troops like Kezhu Hunyuan who were incorporated into Erzhu Rong's forces.

Knowing that Ke Zhu Hunyuan had some connection with Gao Huan, why did Erzhu Rong still give him an important position?
Firstly, Zhu Hunyuan was indeed capable.

Secondly, after joining him, Erzhu Rong had intended to disperse this group of people from the original six towns, especially to prevent them from establishing too deep a connection with the Gao brothers.

However, Zhu Hunyuan, like the Heba brothers and others, had entered Guanzhong early on to quell the rebellion.

"Damn it! All that valuing and trusting him, and this is how Zhu Hunyuan repays me?!"

Erzhu Rong was extremely angry.

The main issue is whether Zhu Hunyuan truly betrayed him.

The loss of Pinggao and Huai County is a minor matter; the chain reaction it triggers is what's giving him the biggest headache, and it's also a significant signal.

His soldiers no longer trusted him as much.

"Prime Minister, shall I send men to strip him of his military command and detain him?"

Wang Lian hurriedly made a suggestion.

Su Chuo shook his head repeatedly, "We must not alert the enemy."

He sighed inwardly. From his various actions, it was clear how severely Erzhu Rong's confidence had been shattered after a series of defeats.

In this situation.

Erzhu Rong's first reaction was to be angry at Kezhu Hunyuan's betrayal, instead of thinking about whether there was a trap involved or whether Gao Yu was deliberately leading him to think in that direction.

The root cause is a lack of self-confidence.

Erzhu Rong himself may have stopped trusting anyone.

The contrast is stark: Gao Yu is thriving while Er Zhu Rong is declining.

Just as Su Chuo was about to speak up to remind him...

Erzhu Rong spoke up, "Lingchuo is right, we can't rush things, we can't alert the enemy..."

He then changed the subject, saying, "We must be wary of Moheduo deliberately sowing discord between me and my soldiers."

"No! I will go myself this time!"

Erzhu Rong immediately left his residence in a hurry.

Regardless of whether Zhu Hunyuan had betrayed him or not, he needed to get to the scene as soon as possible.

If there is no betrayal, then go personally to dispel the doubts in Kezhu Hunyuan's mind.

If they betrayed him, he could immediately go and take control of the situation. Just as he was leaving in a hurry, he did not notice that a strange look flashed in the eyes of the servant who was sweeping the floor of the mansion with his head down.

The servant sneaked into the room where the servants rested, secretly took out paper and pen from the corner, and wrote furiously. Then, when no one was paying attention, he ran to the courtyard wall of the mansion and whistled outside.

Soon after, the same rhythmic whistling sounded outside.

The secret code has been given!
The servant tied the secret letter to a stone and threw it over the courtyard wall!
After glancing around and making sure no one was paying attention, he went back to sweeping the floor as usual...

However, his eyes revealed a kind of 'fanaticism'.

"The Prime Minister has supported me for many years, and I am finally able to contribute my meager strength to the Prime Minister..."

........................

Inside Pinggao City.

But Zhu Huntian rushed into the prefect's mansion in a hurry.

"Brother!"

He looked flustered, but kept his voice down.

"What's the matter?"

"look."

He handed a secret letter to Kezhu Hunyuan, who, after reading its contents, was filled with doubt and surprise...

"How did the Prime Minister find out? Where did this letter come from?"

In recent days, Dou Tai has indeed been sending him letters, and the intention to win him over is very obvious. He feels that he is very upright, but Erzhu Rong may not see it that way.

Ultimately, he underestimated Erzhu Rong's change in mindset under the current circumstances.

“Brother, surrender! The Prime Minister came with a large army without any prior notice, which clearly shows that he doesn’t trust us. If we wait for the army to arrive, we won’t be able to escape!”

Zhu Hunyuan hesitated, "No, the Prime Minister has shown us great favor."

“Brother! Over the years, we have fought for the Prime Minister and made many contributions. We are already even. Yet, under these circumstances, the Prime Minister does not trust us! No matter who sent this letter, what it says makes sense. The Prime Minister doesn’t trust anyone right now. If we are captured and brought back to Luoyang, we will surely be used as an example to establish his authority, intimidate others, and stabilize the morale of the army.”

Just as Ke Zhu Hunyuan was filled with doubt and uncertainty.

Another series of hurried footsteps sounded.

His personal guards brought in an unfamiliar face.

"General, this man claims to be an envoy under Dou Tai and wishes to meet you."

"Dou Ningshi's envoy?"

Zhu Hunyuan was stunned, then broke out in a cold sweat!

He then realized that he seemed to have been pushed into a huge net by an invisible hand!
I've clearly been tricked!
If Erzhu Rong had brought a large army, they would have been blocked by Dou Tai on the way.

Now he's truly stuck in mud, with no way to defend himself.

But before the envoy could speak, Zhu Hunyuan angrily drew his sword and pointed it at him, shouting, "What a clever scheme you have!"

The envoy faced the sharp blade without fear, but instead smiled slightly, saying, "The Minister of the Imperial Secretariat often spoke with the Prime Minister in Ye City, saying that General Zhu Hun, you are a rare talent, yet you have surrendered to the enemy, like a bright pearl covered in dust."

"Isn't it wonderful to be able to serve my Prime Minister right now?"

Immediately afterwards...

Then someone else came to report.

"General, it seems there's a large army fighting outside the city. How should we respond?"

Zhu Hunyuan stood there silently for a moment, then sighed and said, "He Liuhun, Mo Heduo, you two have really caused me a lot of trouble!!"

How could he not know that he had no way out?

After closing his eyes in despair, he gritted his teeth and said, "Open the city gates and let Dou Tai's army in from outside the city."

And the other side.

Erzhu Rong's army had not actually arrived yet; quite some time had passed.

Only then did a scout rush to Erzhu Rong's side as he marched.

"Prime Minister! The garrison at Pinggao has rebelled! They've already hung up flags with the character 'Dou' on the city walls!"

(End of this chapter)