Chapter 495: Elder Brother Has Arrived

When the Youzhou cavalry again marched through Shangdang in mighty array, the Prince of Shangdang Commandery thought the Great King finally could not hold back from heading south.

He was still hesitating what attitude to adopt when he heard there were fewer than five thousand men, which didn't seem right; the old man reckoned and gave up.

If he resisted a bit, what if he couldn't make it through the year?

With his example, the neighbors in the Northern Border all went blind together.

Zhou Ke and Liang He led the troops along the route the Great King had laid out, though they actually didn't know the specific reason for the mission; the Great King only ordered them to go out to meet him, saying only six of his personal guards nearby had safety concerns, and both thought the Great King had encountered something and his guards had suffered losses. Thus the marching speed was fast—almost nonstop day and night.

With only ten people, the Great King was indeed stretched thin, because their line was much longer than imagined.

As soon as the personnel gathered and just left Li Qu, they were followed by the refugees of Gu Mountain, namely those who had attacked the Zhou Family Fort. The Great King allowed them to trail behind the column, but those aristocrats objected, feeling that their paid-for sense of security was threatened.

With only ten people, the Great King found it took a long time to circle the long line—there were too many to keep an eye on.

No matter how skilled you are, ten people really aren't enough, so the Great King withdrew to wait for reinforcements on the spot.

After waiting another whole day, the aristocrats with eyes on their heads began to complain. Even if the Prince of Jiangxia didn't come that day, or there were fewer refugees, they still couldn't take part in such a ridiculous undertaking. It was literally a gamble with their lives, and seeing the weather grow colder made them especially anxious.

When a playboy spoke insolent words to the Great King's face, that fellow didn't hesitate, grabbed his whip and lashed out: 'Insolent! The last guy who acted like that probably had his ashes blown to the Southern Frontier—do you want to try too?!'

More dissolute, more arrogant—who could outdo the Great King?

Now it's fine—the restless and fidgety have calmed down, and everyone grew quiet.

The Great King was actually anxious too—having too many people cramped in that miserable Gu Mountain was inconvenient, and he feared bad weather would freeze more to death; that fellow had become so urgent he started ordering the Heaven‑Covering Lord to urge the cavalry forward.

He was anxious even without urging Liang He and Zhou Ke; they didn't know what had happened to the Great King that required the Owl Cavalry to come out personally. After the Black Wind Horse went berserk for a day leaving Qinghe, they entered Qingzhou territory, and before they could send scouts to find the Great King, they ran into the Heaven‑Covering Lord flying about wildly.

That morning the Heaven‑Covering Lord went to Luoshui Pass and didn't find Liang He; returning, the Great King tossed him out again to keep searching, still refusing to give him Beast Feed Pills. The fellow was slacking off, flying about listlessly, when he spotted a familiar squad of armor below—eh? And an unexpected surprise!

Liang He and Zhou Ke hurriedly followed it to Gu Mountain, where the Great King, fully armed, was squatting on a broken wall of the small county town; seeing them, he almost shed a tear of joy.

Liang He saw nothing wrong with the Great King at first, but soon realized he was mistaken—it was a serious matter.

The Great King had gathered nearly seven thousand troops and countless crates of supplies to take back to the Northern Border, with a portion of refugees still following behind.

Actually, the tense atmosphere over Gu Mountain had already dissipated the moment they appeared.

"How was it—did the court's troops blocking the Northern Border's key route withdraw when you arrived?"

"…We thought we were coming to rescue His Highness, afraid of getting tangled with them and wasting time, so we took a detour."

Liang He glanced at the unseen people and vehicles and added, "But the return trip can't be lenient—the route the Black Wind Horse can pass is definitely not usable by these wagons."

The Great King nodded, recalling something and adding, "…Also, I'm now Liang Bin—don't get it wrong! You are my elder brother, Wei Ke is the second, I am the third—got it?"

Liang He: ……

What virtue or ability does my father have?!

That afternoon the troops mustered again, with the Owl Cavalry leading the way, followed by those who had paid protection fees, then the volunteers willing to migrate to the Northern Border, and finally two thousand cavalry as rearguard. The remaining thousand cavalry rode the flanks on patrol—the column was so long you couldn't see head from tail.

This time the Zhou family put their hearts at rest—their largest payment earned them Great King VIP status, so they followed behind the Owl Cavalry. The Owl Cavalry's formation needed no explanation; anyone could see they were not to be trifled with, and now they finally believed the whole family could reach the Northern Border safely.

After days of worry, the Great King could finally set his mind at ease, start to loaf, and wait for the Owl Cavalry to bring flight.

Where the passing prefectures could detour, they did; where they couldn't get around the Owl Cavalry leading the way, they didn't have to worry—few dared to resist to the death. In cities without garrisons, the city guards, seeing only a pair of eyes peeking from the Owl Cavalry's wrappings, began to go weak at the knees.

The Great King's excuse was far‑fetched, claiming they were heading north to seek refuge with the Prince of Qinghe.

The Prince of Qinghe's personal guard was just borrowing a passage; the excuse was full of holes, though everyone knew the truth and mostly let it slide. Even this simple permission displeased the Great King, who caught a whiff of aged rot.

After detouring past Shangdang, it was already the end of the twelfth month when they finally saw the court's new frontier defenses at Gaoping.

By then the Great King had also picked up a gentry family, three wealthy merchants, and several thousand refugees; the migrating force exceeded ten thousand, and together with… enough substantial wealth to move the economy a bit.

Chewing jerky in the carriage, the Great King issued an important order: 'First quibble; if that doesn't work, give them a taste of their own medicine. Quick battle, quick decision—I still have to rush back to perform the ancestral rites～'

Liang He: ……