I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 320 Plastic Brotherhood

After leaving the palace, Yuan Shu checked the sky and felt that it was about time, so he hurried to the Sikong Mansion.

When they arrived at the gate of the Sikong Mansion, the carriage that had come to pick up Yuan Shao and Yuan Ji was already there. Yuan Shu entered the mansion and saw Yuan Shao and Yuan Ji walking side by side toward the gate.

These past few days, Yuan Shu has been extremely busy and hasn't had much free time to spend with his two brothers. Of course, their brotherhood is just superficial anyway, so there's no need for any tearful reunions after a long separation. The three Yuan brothers do have some affection for each other, but it's definitely not much.

With the two men about to leave, Yuan Shu didn't have much time to chat and laugh with his two elder brothers, so he had to ask them when they would be leaving so he could say goodbye and see them off, just to save face for them.

"Elder brother, second brother, are you leaving already?"

Yuan Shu greeted him with a smile.

Yuan Shao and Yuan Ji were both stunned, then forced slightly awkward smiles and came forward to greet them.

"The busy man finally had time to see us!"

Yuan Shao was clearly more eloquent and quick-witted. He picked up on Yuan Shu's words and said with a smile, "Yes, it's time to go back. After all, you are a high-ranking official with a salary of two thousand piculs. It's already quite difficult for you to find time to come back for a few days. If you don't go back soon, I'm afraid your subordinates will start gossiping."

After Yuan Shao finished speaking, Yuan Ji seemed to have finally composed himself before speaking.

"Zijia, after you get married, you will be the head of the family. You can't trouble your father with everything. You have to solve things yourself if you can. Your father is very busy and doesn't have that much time to solve problems for you. Do you understand?"

Yuan Shu paused for a moment, then smiled again.

"I will never forget your teachings, elder brother."

Yuan Ji nodded with a serious expression.

"Yes, and also, a real man can't achieve anything great if he always stays by his parents' side. When he reaches a certain age, he should leave his parents, venture out on his own, and build his own career. Only then can he be considered a good man, do you understand? And also, you..."

"Brother, brother, it's too late if we don't leave now!"

Before Yuan Ji could finish speaking, Yuan Shao suddenly interrupted him, pulling Yuan Ji outside without a word, and not forgetting to turn back and say goodbye to Yuan Shu.

"Zijia, do your job well, I'll be leaving now!"

"Why the rush? I haven't finished speaking yet, I..."

"Brother! If we don't leave now, we won't reach the post station before dark!"

"Oh, I see. Okay then..."

Yuan Ji seemed to have something he wanted to say but Yuan Shao didn't let him finish. He dragged Yuan Ji out, pushed him into a carriage, and then got into another carriage himself, urging the driver to leave quickly.

Yuan Shu walked to the outside of the Sikong Mansion and watched the departing carriage, feeling that something was not quite right.

The two of them were heading east, and the nearest post station to Luoyang was only about an hour away. If they rushed there now, they might arrive before sunset. Why couldn't they get there before dark?

Or do they want to move quickly to the next stop?
We definitely need to hurry, otherwise we really won't arrive before dark.

And if anything is strange, that's not the strangest thing.

Yuan Ji had always treated him with indifference, and there was a lack of brotherly affection between them. This was partly due to their significant age difference and the fact that they hadn't grown up together. As a result, their daily interactions were very limited, consisting of mere politeness and maintaining a facade of brotherly affection.

Why did he say so much this time?

Moreover, the implication was that he should not rely on Yuan Feng and should start his own business independently.
The problem is that most of the things I did didn't rely on Yuan Feng. Even when Yuan Feng helped, it was mostly by providing funds. As for the specifics of how to operate the business, sometimes Yuan Feng had to listen to him.

Yuan Ji's words were somewhat strange.

Yuan Shao found it even stranger and hurriedly pushed Yuan Ji outside, as if he was worried that Yuan Shu would discover something.

What on earth are these two brothers up to?
Yuan Shu was puzzled. After thinking for a moment, he recalled the angry look on Yuan Shao's face as described by Cao Cao, as well as Yuan Shao's frivolous and smirking appearance just now.

very strange……

Therefore, caution still prevailed in his mind.

Considering the superficial brotherhood among the three brothers and the almost non-existent warmth, the fact that Yuan Shao and Yuan Ji have become inexplicably close should indeed be approached with caution.

So Yuan Shu arranged for someone to find Cheng Li and ask him to use the intelligence team to investigate what Yuan Shao and Yuan Ji did and who they met after returning to Luoyang.

Leaving aside Yuan Shao, Yuan Ji is indeed the eldest son of the legitimate wife, which poses a slight threat to his own succession. If he were to raise the banner of the eldest son and use the pretext of righteousness to put pressure on Yuan Feng, his path to succession would not be so easy.

After all, the process of deposing the eldest son and establishing the younger one has never been smooth sailing. Yuan Shu did not believe that Yuan Ji would really be willing to watch Yuan Feng depose the eldest son and establish the younger one, kicking him, the eldest legitimate son, aside.

Yuan Shu kept a watchful eye on things.

Neither Yuan Shao nor Yuan Ji knew about this.

After their caravan quickly left Luoyang City, and once they were sure that the city was no longer visible, Yuan Shao alighted from his carriage, quickly boarded Yuan Ji's carriage, and began to recount the events of the previous day.

“Brother, Zijia is a smart man. Our plans are not yet ready to be implemented. What if Zijia finds out about them beforehand and knows something?” Yuan Ji was quite disdainful of Yuan Shao’s complaints.

He had been wondering why Yuan Shao was in such a hurry to send him away, but it turned out it was because of this.

"Oh, no wonder you wanted to pull me away. So that's what you were worried about? Benchu, aren't you being a little too cautious? Do you really need to worry about something so trivial? I only said a few words to Zijia and gave him some instructions. How could he have noticed anything?"

Yuan Shao looked displeased.

“Brother, we are planning something big, and once we actually do it, Zijia will no longer be a brother, but an enemy. How can you be so dismissive of an enemy? Besides, is Zijia some kind of mediocre person? He was a master of classics at the age of twelve, and he founded his own sect at the age of thirteen!”

When others boast about the great talent of their family members, it's all flattery. But Zijia doesn't need flattery; he is who he is. With such talent, brother, you mustn't judge him by ordinary standards. If you let slip anything and make him wary, given his current power, how could you and I possibly handle him?"

What he said made a lot of sense, but it sounded rather harsh to Yuan Ji.

Yuan Shao's words were full of praise for Yuan Shu and belittlement of himself, which made Yuan Ji very unhappy.

So he put on a stern face.

"Benchu, why do you boost the morale of others while diminishing your own? In the end, I am the eldest son and you are his elder brother. This is an indisputable fact. No matter how powerful he is, how can he really do anything to you or me?"
Yes, he is very powerful and prestigious now, but I am the eldest son, and the inheritance of our fathers' positions should belong to the eldest son. This is the way of the world. If he wants to ascend to the throne, or if my father wants to depose the eldest son and establish a younger one, how could it be so easy? Even if we do nothing, there will inevitably be opposition!

Yuan Shao felt helpless.

No wonder the older generation said Yuan Ji was mediocre. Now it seems that it really is true. He and Yuan Shu were brothers born of the same mother, so how could they be so different?

So, it's really just the eldest son's brain that's been implanted?
He let out a long sigh.

“Brother, I’m not trying to praise Zijia, these are just the facts. Besides, the status of the eldest son of the legitimate wife is not necessarily so reliable. Think about it, how many emperors of the Han Dynasty were born as the eldest son of the legitimate wife?”

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ji's eyes flickered, his expression froze for a moment, and then relaxed slightly.

"Benchu ​​has gone too far. The imperial family naturally has its own difficulties, but my Yuan family is not the imperial family. How many high-ranking gentry and noble families have deposed the eldest son and established the youngest? The imperial family is the imperial family, and the minister's family is the minister's family. Benchu ​​must not confuse the two."

"Brother, you are wrong!"

Yuan Shao pressed his advantage, saying, "Judging from the rumors, it's not a recent development that Uncle has favored Zijia. He's likely given it considerable thought and probably has some considerations on how to deal with the clan. We must be even more careful and not be careless! If we do this, we're practically going against Uncle, and we're facing more than just Zijia."

When Yuan Feng was mentioned, Yuan Ji's momentum noticeably weakened.

He could disregard Yuan Shu, but he couldn't disregard Yuan Feng.

Yuan Feng is his father, so he can certainly use his status as the eldest son to assert his rights. But does Yuan Feng have no way to retaliate?

Yes!

Once the label of "unfilial piety" is slapped on Yuan Ji, half of his life is over. As for the other half, that depends on his luck.

In an era where traditional ethics and morality dominated society, and where even the emperor's title had to include the word "filial piety," if Yuan Feng were to reject him on this level, he would probably be truly doomed.

As a result, Yuan Ji finally became cautious.

"What you said...makes sense, so...did I really do something wrong just now?"

"It's not entirely wrong, but it's true that it was said a bit too much."

Yuan Shao considered for a moment and slowly said, "We have never had much conversation with Zijia, and our relationship is rather distant. You rarely give him any instructions or guidance. If you suddenly say so much, Zijia might feel something is wrong. Fortunately, I took you away in time, so there should be no problem."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ji breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing Yuan Ji's appearance, Yuan Shao felt that he should know the importance of things, so he didn't say anything more. He just told Yuan Ji to be careful and cautious in his words and deeds, and not to let Yuan Shu find out anything.

We must wait until he leaves Luoyang and his brothers are able to return before taking any action.

At that time, while trying to win over party members for assistance, it will also be necessary to appease Yuan Feng.

Yuan Shao believed that the reason Yuan Feng favored Yuan Shu was mainly because Yuan Shu and Yuan Feng spent a lot of time together, while the two brothers were often away on business and could not spend much time with Yuan Feng, which gave Yuan Shu the upper hand.

The closer the relationship, the more intimate it becomes. And the closer the relationship, the more obvious the inclination towards certain things becomes. People tend to interact more frequently with those they have close relationships with, and they are more likely to consider those with whom they have close relationships when good things happen.

Yuan Shu used this to deepen his father-son relationship with Yuan Feng, and soon won Yuan Feng's favor. He enjoyed a lot of fatherly love, even the share that should have belonged to Yuan Ji. This was really unfair to Yuan Ji.

Upon hearing Yuan Shao's words, Yuan Ji felt a surge of intense dissatisfaction and jealousy.

He felt that Yuan Shao was right. It was because he did not seize the opportunity to deepen his relationship with Yuan Feng that Yuan Shu, that little rascal, took the initiative and not only enjoyed the care that belonged to Yuan Shu, but also stole the care that belonged to Yuan Ji.

That'smine!

mine!

Before Yuan Shao spoke up, Yuan Ji hadn't thought that much about it. But as soon as Yuan Shao did, Yuan Ji was immediately enraged. He felt that he had to have a serious talk with Yuan Shu about this matter in the future and get back all the care that Yuan Shu had taken away from him over the years, with interest!
(End of this chapter)