Nothing is known about Gao Shaoyi's activities in the following years. In 577, with rival Northern Zhou having launched a major attack on Northern Qi, then-emperor Gao Wei (Emperor Wucheng's son) fled from the secondary capital Jinyang (晉陽, in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi) back to Yecheng, and he made Gao Shaoyi the governor of Ding Province (定州, roughly modern Baoding, Hebei). Subsequently, after Gao Wei was captured by Northern Zhou forces, most Northern Qi provinces surrendered. However, Zhao Mu (趙穆), the former gubernatorial secretary of Northern Shuo Province (北朔州, roughly modern Shuozhou, Shanxi), captured the Northern Zhou general (and former Northern Qi general) Feng Fuxiang (封輔相), whom Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou had made the military governor of the Northern Shuo Province and tried to welcome Gao Shaoyi's uncle Gao Jie (高湝) the Prince of Rencheng to Northern Shuo Province to head the resistance, but could not do so. He therefore welcomed Gao Shaoyi instead, and when Gao Shaoyi arrived at Mayi (馬邑), the capital of Northern Shuo Province, the people of the local region supported his resistance movement. He led his troops south to try to recapture Jinyang, but was unsuccessful in first sieging Xinxing (新興, in modern Xinzhou, Shanxi), and Northern Zhou's counterattack was successful in capturing Lu Qiong (陸瓊), the governor of Xian Province (顯州, part of modern Xinzhou), and Gao Shaoyi retreated to Mayi. As the Northern Zhou general Yuwen Shenju (宇文神舉) approached Mayi and defeated Gao Shaoyi, Gao Shaoyi decided to flee to Tujue. At this time, he still had about 3,000 men, and he issued an order, "If you want to return, do so." More than half took up his offer and left him.