I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 316 Advanced Version of Yuan Ji

In fact, Yuan Shao himself also had a tiny bit of a thought, hoping that someone would consider his feelings.

However, the chances of Yuan Shao becoming the victor are slim, unless Yuan Shu and Yuan Feng are both killed, then it will be Yuan Shao's turn.

But that doesn't matter, since Yuan Shao doesn't have many expectations at the moment, so his sense of disappointment isn't very strong.

His eyes were fixed on Yuan Shu. He didn't care about anything else as long as he could take down Yuan Shu.

It's not too late to consider other things after we've taken down Yuan Shu.

So after Chen Xiang revealed some of his intentions to Yuan Shao, Yuan Shao immediately understood what Chen Xiang meant. Then, without Chen Xiang having to say it explicitly, Yuan Shao directly asked Chen Xiang, "Lord Chen, do you wish for me to contact your brother?"

Chen Xiang praised Yuan Shao at the time, saying he was exceptionally intelligent and would surely achieve great things in the future!

Yuan Shao merely sneered.

Whether he becomes a great man or not is not important; what he needs is for Yuan Shu to fail!
So when it was Yuan Shao's turn, he looked at Yuan Ji seriously and said everything he wanted to say all at once.

“Brother, you are the eldest son of our uncle, and you are the true candidate to be the next head of the Yuan family in Runan. Although Zijia is also the eldest son, he is ranked after you. He cannot take your place and become our uncle’s successor. If he does, it would be a violation of the eldest son’s authority and a rebellious act!”
Brother, your position is unshakeable, and your status as the eldest son is indisputable. Even your uncle cannot change it. Therefore, as long as you can gain the support of the Yuan clan and win the support of some ministers, you will surely be able to reclaim your position as heir!

Zijia's current actions, along with his uncle's indulgence and spoiling, have seriously affected etiquette and violated family rules. You must be vigilant and take action to gain all possible support, and you must not give up. If you give up, then it will truly be the end!

Yuan Shao's words struck Yuan Ji's heart like a hammer blow.

Yuan Ji felt a jolt throughout his body, and he felt a sense of sublimation, and an impulse to transcend everything.

Yes, the Primordial One is right!
I am the eldest son!

I am the most indisputable heir to all of my father's legacy!

From the moment I was born, all of these things have been mine!
Regardless of who stole it, if it's mine, it's mine!
This was stipulated by the ancients! By our ancestors! By the laws and regulations! It was recognized by the whole society!

Yuan Shu!

No matter how much your father spoils you, how can you possibly stand against the entire Han Empire?!

As long as I live, you will always be behind me in line!

All of this is mine! It's mine!

Yuan Ji shouted and roared silently, his will becoming more and more resolute, and his mind no longer wavering.

The room remained quiet for a long time until Yuan Ji finally calmed down his boiling blood. He slowly raised his head, his eyes filled with a fierce fighting spirit formed by the burning, melting, and fusion of resentment, anger, and jealousy.

This is an unshakable, unalterable, and relentless fighting spirit.

Or you could say.

It was an obsession so intense it couldn't be dissolved.

Advanced version: Yuan Ji just looked at Yuan Shao and then slowly spoke.

“Benchu, you are right, you are absolutely right. I am the eldest son of my father, and whether he likes it or not, that fact cannot be changed. Whether he likes it or not, his legacy is mine!”

Yuan Shao was overjoyed.

"That's right! Brother! As long as you still have this intention, you will definitely get support. Putting aside others, I am willing to serve you faithfully and at your service!"

"Good! You truly are my brother!"

Yuan Ji nodded heavily, took a deep breath, and said, "But the two of us brothers alone are not enough, far from enough. Zijia's power is too great, deeply rooted, and not easily shaken. We need more helpers! More reliable helpers!"

“Yes!” Yuan Shao said excitedly, “There are many people like Chen Zhonglin in the court and outside Luoyang. There are only so many positions in the court. If Zijia occupies too many, it will inevitably cause dissatisfaction among many people. These people will definitely hate him and oppose him. And these people are your most loyal and reliable helpers, brother.”

"As long as my elder brother promises them some positions, they will certainly do their utmost to help him consolidate his position and ensure that Zijia can no longer threaten his position as heir. I believe that the one who will one day rule the world and command the winds and rains will surely be my elder brother!"

Yuan Shao's sycophantic praise filled Yuan Ji with boundless ambition and excitement. He felt as if something within him had shattered, and something else had appeared.

He didn't quite understand what it meant yet, but his subconscious told him that it was definitely a good thing.

To fight his overly outstanding and powerful younger brother, he needed to abandon past feelings—although there were no feelings to abandon at all.

Once you achieve this, you can focus wholeheartedly on your ultimate showdown with Yuan Shu.

However, there are still some issues to be resolved before that can be done.

Although Yuan Ji was full of ambition and excitement, he was not yet out of his mind, so he quickly realized some of his problems.

First of all, I am still serving as the prefect in another place and have not yet returned to Luoyang, which will take some time.

Secondly, he had no foothold in Luoyang. Even with Yuan Shao and Chen Xiang as intermediaries to help him make connections, it would take a considerable amount of time to unite all those who were dissatisfied with Yuan Shu. It would also take time to clarify everyone's interests and demands and form a group that could stand against Yuan Shu.

More importantly, during this period, Yuan Feng and Yuan Shu must not find out. Otherwise, if the matter is exposed, it is hard to say what Yuan Shu might do, and Yuan Feng will probably do something, after all, not every father can accept the identity of raising a filial son.

And this is also very difficult.

To defeat Yuan Shu, one must at least defeat him in Luoyang. However, he doesn't even have a foothold in Luoyang, while Yuan Shu has already thrived there. How can he possibly succeed?
It's alright. Yuan Shao and Chen Xiang discussed some details yesterday, and Yuan Shao himself considered some more details. So he told Yuan Ji all the things that he and Chen Xiang had considered.

The first issue is that both Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao were serving as governors in other regions.

Yuan Shao has just taken office and will not be able to return for a while, but Yuan Ji has already served two years as governor. According to the agreement he made with Yuan Feng, he will be able to transfer back to Luoyang in another year, starting as one of the Nine Ministers.

Then I'll discuss it with Yuan Feng and get a position with real power, so I can settle down in Luoyang and naturally gain the support of a group of scholars like Chen Xiang.

By making some promises, giving them positions, and gaining their support, Yuan Ji could establish his own personal power within the Luoyang court.

Based on this, they continued to expand and develop, using the power brought by their positions to constantly recruit and unite those who had not sided with Yuan Shu, winning them over and turning them into a force to fight against Yuan Shu.

Yuan Ji thought this was very acceptable.

He still believed that he was the eldest son of the Yuan family, and that he could gain the direct support of many people simply by speaking.

In this way, he was able to establish a firm foothold in Luoyang.

As for the second point, how to deceive Yuan Feng and Yuan Shu is also a big problem, because most of the power and positions in the Luoyang court are under the control of Yuan Feng and Yuan Shu. This is a fact. If they are discovered carelessly, they may face annihilation.

Therefore, Yuan Ji was very worried about this issue.

However, Yuan Shao was not worried.

“Brother, although this matter has not been announced to the public, the news circulating in the palace should be true. Our good brother seems to be leaving Luoyang to take up a post in Bingzhou to deal with the Xianbei. He has also made a bold statement that he will not return to Luoyang until the Xianbei are completely wiped out.”

Yuan Shao chuckled and told the worried Yuan Ji the news, which startled Yuan Ji, who was then overjoyed.

"Benchu, is this true? Is such a rumor really circulating in the palace?"

Yuan Shao nodded repeatedly.

"That's what Chen Zhonglin said. It seems he has a friend who holds a position in the Ministry of Personnel. This news came from within the Ministry of Personnel, so it shouldn't be false. Besides, think about it, isn't Zijia currently recruiting soldiers? If it's not for going to Bingzhou to attack the Xianbei, why would he spend so much money recruiting soldiers? And recruiting 30,000 at once, that's a huge expense."

(End of this chapter)