 Zu would not return to the central government for the rest of his life.In winter 576, rival Northern Zhou launched a major attack on Northern Qi.Around the new year 577, after a major defeat at Pingyang (平陽, in modern Linfen, Shanxi), Gao Wei abandoned the secondary capital Jinyang (晉陽, in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi) and fled back to the capital Yecheng.