I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 364 A Father's Heart
It's no wonder that Cheng Li and Yuan Wei were both shocked.

Yuan Feng, from top to bottom and inside to outside, doesn't seem like the kind of person who would say such things, especially since the person he's dealing with is his own flesh and blood.

How could Yuan Feng, who always valued blood ties and family bonds, do such a thing?
Yuan Wei looked at Cheng Li, and Cheng Li looked at Yuan Wei. Neither of them knew what to say.

In particular, Cheng Li suddenly remembered what Jia Xu had said. If he didn't know it was impossible, he would really suspect that Jia Xu was giving Yuan Feng advice and brainwashing him behind the scenes.

Yuan Feng didn't dwell on it too much, and soon he started discussing the details with Yuan Wei and Cheng Li.

He stated that upon returning to his residence the next day, he would not only invite some members of the Yuan clan to a gathering, but also summon some important court officials to the gathering, thus giving Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao an opportunity to kidnap everyone.

Once their wolfish ambitions are exposed and revealed to the world, I will turn around and take them down together. In front of everyone, I will depose Yuan Ji's eldest son from his position as heir and plunge both Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao into the abyss.

After the details were discussed, Cheng Li left the Ministry of Personnel with a complex mix of emotions.

Yuan Wei didn't leave; he stayed, looked at Yuan Feng, and asked the question that had been on his mind.

"Brother, you..."

Are you asking me why I made this decision?

Before Yuan Wei could finish speaking, Yuan Feng interrupted, "Ciyang, you must have many questions in your mind, right?"

"Yes."

Yuan Wei nodded and said slowly, "I feel that this is not something my elder brother would do. With my elder brother's personality, he would not be so ruthless to these juniors. If he really does this, Ji and Shao will really have no future. Even if they don't die, they will bear the name of sinners until the end of their lives."

“I do this because I am their father, because they are my sons.”

Yuan Feng sighed and slowly said, "I am really angry, that's for sure. These two unfilial sons actually did such a thing. Despite my repeated warnings and admonitions, they are still stubborn and even tried to kidnap me and launch a mutiny. How can I not be angry? Just a moment ago, I even thought about killing them with my own hands!"
But I can't do it. They are my sons. How can I be so heartless as to kill them? I'm not a good father. I haven't raised my sons well. They've come to this point; I'm at fault. So how can I kill them all as well?

"But……"

“Ciyang, I understand what you mean.”

Yuan Feng shook his head and sighed, "That's why I thought of using this method to make them sinners, so that they would never have a chance to turn things around. Only in this way can we save their lives, or at least let them live."

"This……"

Yuan Wei was somewhat surprised and quickly asked, "What do you mean by that, brother?"

Yuan Feng looked at Yuan Wei with an extremely complicated expression and slowly spoke.

"Only by making them known sinners will I be spared from killing them after my death and when Zijia takes power. Zijia may kill his two elder brothers, but he will not kill two sinners who pose no threat."

Yuan Wei's pupils contracted and his eyes widened as he immediately realized the meaning behind Yuan Feng's words.

He got it!

Leaving aside Yuan Shao, even if Yuan Ji lost his right to succession, as the eldest son, the word "inheritance" was inherently inextricably linked to him from birth.

Yuan Feng could use various methods to put Yuan Shu in power, but he could not completely deny the relationship between Yuan Ji and the successor.

In this way, if Yuan Ji were to become disloyal after Yuan Feng's death and Yuan Shu were to take over, or if some villain were to secretly instigate trouble by taking advantage of Yuan Ji's status as the eldest son, Yuan Shu would inevitably have to kill Yuan Ji to avoid being threatened.

Yuan Ji would definitely not survive.

The title of "eldest son" is bound to Yuan Ji from birth and cannot be severed. Regardless of whether Yuan Shu is in power, as long as the rules of ruler-subject and father-son relationships are still in effect, and as long as the rules of the Three Cardinal Guides and Five Constant Virtues are still being followed, Yuan Ji will always have the right to inherit!
This kind of noble cause would inevitably make Yuan Shu feel uncomfortable, like a thorn in his side, and would make him harbor deep suspicion and distrust towards Yuan Ji.

If Yuan Feng lives, he can save Yuan Ji's life. But if Yuan Feng dies, Yuan Ji's life will fall into Yuan Shu's hands. Who can guarantee that he won't die?
Therefore, the only way to save Yuan Ji is to render his status as the eldest son meaningless.

By labeling him as rebellious and unfilial, Yuan Ji's status as the eldest son of the legitimate wife would automatically lose its meaning, and his right to succession would be completely out of his reach.

As a rebellious and unfilial son, he no longer posed a threat to Yuan Shu. Naturally, Yuan Shu would not want to kill a harmless brother. On the contrary, he would show him some leniency to demonstrate Yuan Shu's "benevolence".

After figuring this out, Yuan Wei's gaze towards Yuan Feng became more complex, even showing a hint of heartache and sympathy.

He felt that his elder brother had truly gone through a lot, worrying himself sick over his sons' future, even risking his own life to ensure that fratricide and bloodshed were no longer inevitable. In this way, Yuan Ji's life could be saved.

As for Yuan Shao...

He had no right to inherit from the beginning. If he became a rebellious and unfilial son, he would be killed immediately and would not pose the slightest threat to Yuan Shu.

It is more valuable to keep these two brothers alive than to let them die.

Upon realizing this, Yuan Wei couldn't help but sigh deeply.

"Parents love their children and plan far ahead for them. I admire my elder brother's loving fatherly heart. But I wonder if those two rebellious sons can understand this, and whether they are even worthy of my brother's consideration."

Yuan Feng slowly closed his eyes and sighed softly.

"Who am I to ask? I am their father. Who are they to ask? They are my sons."

Yuan Wei said nothing more, but left the Ministry of Personnel with a heavy heart to carry out the task Yuan Feng had given him.

After Yuan Wei left, Yuan Feng silently picked up his pen and continued to deal with the mountain of official business until late at night before stopping. Then, with a heavy heart, he went to bed.

sleepless nights.

The next morning, Yuan Feng arranged for officials from the Ministry of Personnel to notify the main officials of the court to attend a banquet at his home, while he himself leisurely returned to the Ministry of Works, burned incense and bathed, and waited for the moment to arrive.

This day marked the day Yuan Feng's ultimatum to Yuan Ji took effect, the last day for Yuan Ji to decide whether to do as Yuan Feng said, and the last opportunity for Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao to launch a desperate counterattack.

Early in the morning, they learned that Yuan Feng had returned to the Sikong Mansion to burn incense and bathe. They then learned that Yuan Feng had invited many people to the mansion for a banquet, including not only officials from the Yuan family but also many important court officials.

Upon learning this news, Yuan Ji was somewhat worried.

"With so many people coming to the manor, the security must be extremely tight. Do we still have a chance to succeed?"

Yuan Shao, however, did the opposite and adopted a reverse approach.

"It's precisely because so many people have come that the manor's guards are insufficient. Who would have thought we'd be doing something so important in this kind of setting?"

Yuan Ji felt that Yuan Shao's words made sense, took a deep breath, and made up his mind.

Yuan Feng, as a father, is not kind. As a son, he has a responsibility to properly admonish his father why the primogeniture system is unshakable!
Around noon that day, five members of the Yuan clan who held official positions in the court, along with sixteen officials from the pro-Yuan faction who held important positions in the court, arrived at Yuan Feng's residence one after another to attend the banquet.

Such banquets were held continuously starting from the second year of the Zhengshi era, basically once a month, and occasionally twice a month. Those who were invited were either members of the Yuan clan or important figures from the pro-Yuan faction.

For example, the heads of families who were Yuan's protégés and former officials long ago, or some newly risen nobles in recent years, or people who have classical traditions but are very close to Yuan, and even some party members who are close to Yuan Feng himself.

In any case, these people were all important henchmen of Yuan Feng, his right-hand men, and the main pillars of Yuan's regime. They were also the owners of high-ranking positions and generous salaries.

Yuan Feng held these banquets for two reasons: first, to demonstrate his power and conduct obedience tests to see if these people would follow his orders; and second, to win people's hearts.

It is not enough to simply observe their loyalty. If they are not properly rewarded, their loyalty will also decline. Therefore, when attending the banquet, everyone will receive a gift from Yuan Feng upon leaving.

This includes Wuwei County wines and top-quality Shu brocade, which are hard currency and status symbols of the upper class.

Therefore, most of the people who came to the banquet came to the Sikong Mansion with the hope of gaining something, and drank and chatted with Yuan Feng. They did not know that this banquet was different from the previous ones. This time, Yuan Feng needed them to be witnesses, in addition to the previous ones.

As Yuan Feng's biological son, Yuan Ji was naturally on the list, and although Yuan Shao could not participate every time, Yuan Feng usually did not forget him.

Before this incident, Yuan Feng had not yet made up his mind to deal with his two sons, so he invited them to the banquet mainly to give them some room to maneuver.

Later on, Yuan Feng would even entrust the task of arranging banquets to Yuan Ji, in order to give him some experience.

Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao were both on the banquet list, but Yuan Shao claimed to be ill and did not attend in order to facilitate the operation. He remained in the shadows and became the actual commander-in-chief of the operation.

He spent a fortune bribing the steward of the Sikong Mansion, and used the two brothers and the party members' two most elite armed men to serve as the banquet staff. He then hid the weapons in the flower bushes around the garden where the banquet was held.

(End of this chapter)