I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 363 The Best Way to Repay the Young Master's Kindness

Yuan Shao made up his mind and immediately arranged for someone to invite Chen Xiang and others again for a final consultation.

Yuan Shao told them that the Changshui Camp was no longer usable, and that their last hope lay in their hands. He said if they accepted this, they should; if not, they should.

Then let's go to the woodshed with Zhang Xiu!
Chen Xiang was alright, but the others were dumbfounded. They never expected the situation to get any worse, or that Yuan Shao had such ill intentions in calling them over!

Well, it's either participate together or go into the woodshed and face an uncertain fate. What should I choose?
In fact, Yuan Shao was also a little nervous, worried that these opportunistic bastards would only fight when things were going well and not when things were going badly. Fortunately, most of them were persuaded by Chen Xiang and Wang Lei, and only three people resolutely refused to participate, preferring to be locked in the woodshed.

"If that's the case, then please proceed!"

Yuan Shao sent these three cowardly "softies" who had failed in battle to the woodshed, to keep Zhang Xiu company, who had gone in earlier.

Zhang Xiu was puzzled when he saw three more people being tied up and taken to the woodshed.

"Weren't you involved? How come you've been locked up too? Has something else happened?"

After the three told Zhang Xiu what had happened, Zhang Xiu was first stunned, then sneered repeatedly.

"Leaving aside whether the matter has been leaked or not, even if it hasn't, the Changshui Battalion has been transferred away. Doesn't that prove how wary and distrustful Yuan Sikong is of his eldest son? They've come this far, and they still want to continue?"

In my opinion, this is less of a warning and more of a final chance for them to live! If they're caught, they might live a peaceful and wealthy life, and their food and drink will never be lacking. But if they're not caught, well, their lives are in danger!

Zhang Xiu spoke very bluntly, leaving the other three looking at each other in bewilderment.

After a short while, the three of them also sighed deeply, no longer concerned about the fate of the Yuan brothers, but worried about their own fate.

As the three newcomers were locked in the woodshed, the latest news was delivered to Cheng Li without any hindrance, and Cheng Li was surprised when he learned of it.

"Yuan Benchu is quite persistent. Even at this point, he still won't give up and wants to continue his attack? He can't even move the Changshui Camp's troops anymore. All he has left are some household guards and protectors. How can he possibly succeed?"

Jia Xu, who happened to be there to advise on matters, also learned of this, and merely sneered at it.

"In my opinion, this is actually a good thing. If they give up now, Yuan Sikong will definitely not kill them. He will just leave them idle and take good care of them. When the young master achieves great things in the future, he will inevitably be granted the titles of king and duke. That would be too easy for them."

If they were to commit the heinous crimes of kidnapping high-ranking officials or murdering their own fathers, it would be an outrage against heaven and earth. Killing them would be easy, and even if they managed to survive, they would be sinners and would never be a threat to the young master again.

After listening to Jia Xu's words, Cheng Li thought about it and felt that what Jia Xu said made sense.

It's still necessary to let them continue their reckless actions. Only by making them extremely reckless can we ensure they reap huge profits and are completely and utterly destroyed from both the perspective of national law and family law. In this way, Yuan Shu's future will be free of any risks.

Otherwise, we would have to feed and care for them, and spend money on them; otherwise, it wouldn't be "brotherly affection," which would be disgusting.

Thinking this, Cheng Li stood up, intending to tell Yuan Feng about it, but was stopped by Jia Xu.

"Zhongde, are you going to inform Minister Yuan about this?"

"That's natural."

"I think it's better not to go."

"what?"

Jia Xu's suggestion startled Cheng Li, who hurriedly asked, "Wenhe, what do you mean? If we don't tell Yuan Sikong, what if he lowers his guard and Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao successfully kidnap him?"

"Isn't that just right?"

Jia Xu's lips curled into a slight smile as he said softly, "Zhongde, don't you want Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao to court their own demise?"

"you……"

Cheng Li seemed to have figured something out, his eyes widened slowly, and then he exclaimed in surprise, "You...you don't mean to let Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao go free and threaten Yuan Sikong's life, do you? That's absolutely unacceptable!"

“Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao wouldn’t be so foolish as to endanger Yuan Sikong’s life.”

Jia Xu took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "They can't be unaware of what patricide means, but whether they can successfully kidnap Yuan Sikong, or rather, threaten Yuan Sikong, is very important. If they are captured directly without threatening Yuan Sikong, their crimes will be lighter."

Cheng Li then realized what Jia Xu was trying to do.

He lowered his head, paced back and forth, and then looked up at Jia Xu.

"Wenhe, this is a risky move. I know what you're trying to do, but don't you think it's too risky? What if Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao really have malicious intentions and, seeing that the situation is beyond saving, actually try to kill Yuan Sikong?"

"This... might not be a bad thing." Jia Xu sneered, "The rebellious son murdered his father, the Minister of Works suffered a disaster, and the court is leaderless. The only legitimate son, Yuan Zijia, is the last and most suitable successor. He can return to Luoyang to take charge of the government and purge the rebels. This will not only solve the problem of the partisans, but also directly establish the young master's unshakable ruling position."

Zhongde, when you advised Minister Yuan to abolish the temple names of the four former emperors, was it really because of the significance of temple names? Or was it just about the matter itself, without any other intentions? You and I both know that the young master has great ambitions and will not remain subservient to others for long; he will surely change the dynasty in the future!

"In that case, as your subjects, we must naturally consider the greater good of our lord. What our lord finds inconvenient to do, we must do for him; what our lord finds inconvenient to eliminate, we must help him eliminate, leaving no future trouble. This is the best way to repay your kindness!"

Cheng Li gasped, shocked by Jia Xu's ruthless decisiveness.

But he quickly calmed down, thought about it for a while, and still refused to agree.

"Firstly, Yuan Sikong and you, young master, have a deep father-son relationship. Yuan Sikong is always thinking of you. If something happens to Yuan Sikong because of this, do you think you, young master, would feel good about it? Even if Yuan Sikong is fine, if you, young master, find out about this, how do you think he will view you and me?"

Secondly, although Yuan Sikong was the son's father, he was also the father of Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao. How could he just watch his son die? He told me that it didn't matter how it was handled, but there was one thing: the lives of these two had to be saved. He didn't want there to be any internal strife or brothers fighting each other.

That is why Minister Yuan accepted my suggestion and took matters into his own hands to resolve the issues between Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao, preventing the young master from gaining a bad reputation for fratricide. With such a loving father's heart, how could I bear to do such a thing?

Upon hearing this, Jia Xu remained silent.

Cheng Li ultimately did not adopt Jia Xu's suggestion.

He was the second vice president of the Yixin Society appointed by Yuan Shu, and also the person in charge of Luoyang officially authorized by Yuan Shu. All people left in Luoyang by Yuan Shu had to obey Cheng Li's orders after this order arrived.

So even though Jia Xu insisted on his opinion, Cheng Li rejected his proposal and went to the Ministry of Personnel to tell Yuan Feng about it.

Yuan Feng was discussing matters with Yuan Wei at the time, so Cheng Li told Yuan Wei about it as well.

Unsurprisingly, Yuan Wei flew into a rage and immediately suggested that Yuan Feng send troops to capture the two unfilial sons.

"We've already warned them to this extent, and even transferred the Changshui Battalion away, yet they still refuse to give up their treacherous intentions! Rebellious sons! Rebellious sons! Brother, what use are such rebellious sons? They are a disgrace to the family! If you are unwilling to take action, please let me handle this matter! I am willing to lead troops to capture these two rebellious sons!"

Yuan Feng's face was also ashen, veins bulging on his forehead, burning with rage, almost unable to control his anger.

But he didn't make a decision immediately. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly calmed himself down to avoid making a decision in a fit of rage.

After a short while, he managed to calm himself down, looking at Yuan Wei, who was furious, and then at Cheng Li, who had a calm expression.

"Minister Cheng, how many capable men do you estimate those two rebellious sons have at their disposal?"

Cheng Li did a quick calculation.

"If they had enough time, they might be able to gather seven or eight hundred people, but there isn't enough time right now. They can only gather three or five hundred people at most."

Yuan Feng nodded slowly and began to think again.

Yuan Wei, however, was starting to lose his composure.

“Brother, you’re not going to let these two rebellious sons go, are you? You’ve given them so many chances to turn back from the brink, but they just won’t give up! They’ve missed their last chance! They’ve even decided to use weapons to kidnap you! These aren’t just ordinary rebellious sons! They’re traitors to the country! They’re rebels! They must be dealt with seriously! They must not be tolerated!”

Upon hearing this, Yuan Feng raised his head and looked at Yuan Wei.

“Ciyang, I understand your considerations, but I also have my own. Deposing the eldest son in favor of the younger son is not reasonable according to etiquette and law. This is my problem. Ji and Shao are somewhat innocent in causing trouble because of this. If we are to deal with this seriously, we cannot ignore this point.”

"Innocent? Are they still innocent?"

Yuan Wei was furious. He pointed at Cheng Li and said, "He already said that those two rebellious sons planned to kidnap you and me, as well as many important Yuan family officials, and then seize military power to forcibly take control of Luoyang! This is a mutiny! It's rebellion! It's treason! How can we tolerate this? How can they be considered innocent?"

Yuan Feng shook his head.

“You misunderstood, Ciyang. What I mean is, if we take the initiative to arrest Ji and Shao now, their crimes will not be serious enough, and their unfilial and rebellious behavior will not be exposed to the world. In this way, the argument of deposing the eldest son and establishing the youngest son will not stand.”

However, if their rebellious acts were exposed to the world and to the high-ranking officials of the court, their filial impiety and rebellion would be irrefutable and irrefutable evidence. In this way, deposing the eldest son and establishing the younger one would be a logical course of action, and Zijia's ascension to the throne would be without further public criticism.

After Yuan Feng finished speaking, not only was Yuan Wei surprised, but Cheng Li also stared wide-eyed in shock.

He suddenly raised his head and looked at Yuan Feng, who was sitting calmly on the cushion, with a shocked expression.

This……

Is this something Yuan Feng could say?
This is something a pacifist leader who is good at compromising, willing to compromise, and unwilling to fight too much with others would say.
Isn't this character a bit off?
(End of this chapter)