I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 386 Five Horses Dismembering Tan Shihuai
How could Yuan Feng, who loved his son so dearly, have any other thoughts?

He looked at Liu Li and said in a low voice, "The soldiers risk their lives and fight bloody battles for Your Majesty's country. Your Majesty should grant their request and not discourage the meritorious soldiers."

Liu Li nodded.

Then he personally announced the imperial edict of approval.

Once the emperor's word is law, the matter is considered settled.

Tan Shihuai understood Mandarin. Ever since Yuan Shu told him about this, he had been turning his head to glare at Yuan Shu. If his mouth hadn't been gagged, he probably would have already started cursing.

But when people are at his mercy, who cares about his opinions?
No.

Thus, under the operation of the most experienced executioner, Tan Shihuai was forced to open his eyes and witness the entire process of his wives, concubines, and children being slaughtered.

Yuan Shu also had a very perverse sense of humor, allowing his wives, concubines, and children to call out to him for help, and he was not allowed to kill them with a single blow; they had to be stabbed at least nine times to kill them completely.

The pig-like screams echoed across the execution ground.

Tan Shihuai was in unbearable pain. Veins bulged on his forehead and veins protruded from his neck. His eyes were filled with sorrow and pain as he looked at his family, while his gaze toward Yuan Shu was a burning hatred that seemed to reach the heavens.

If looks could kill, Yuan Shu would be doomed.

But what's the point?
He should have foreseen this day when he decided to oppose the Han Empire.

The Gongyang Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals remains one of the guiding documents of the Eastern Han Dynasty's national ideology and has not yet lost its legitimate status. The concept of great revenge is still politically correct in Eastern Han society.

Under the guise of revenge, whatever Yuan Shu does to Tan Shihuai and his family is politically correct and a great thing that pleases the people. It will only increase his reputation and his efficiency in winning people's hearts, without any negative impact.

Tan Shihuai never considered Han people as human beings, so Yuan Shu wouldn't consider him and his family as human beings either.

He shall die within nine cuts, and the executioner shall be brought to justice!

So the executioners focused their attention on finding places where a single cut would cause excruciating pain but not immediate death, and with each cut, Tan Shihuai's wives, concubines, and children bled profusely and screamed in agony.

Tan Shihuai could only watch helplessly, unable to do anything about it.

My throat is hoarse, I can't make a sound, I've cried all my tears, and my eyes are red.

All of this was something that Tan Shihuai, who was full of vigor and arrogance just two months ago, could never have imagined.

But now, all of this is right before his eyes.

Soon, his last daughter was killed by the executioner's ninth blow, her head falling to the ground. Tan Shihuai was completely devastated, feeling like he was living a life worse than death.

But this is not the end yet; the final dish is just beginning.

Since Yuan Shu had severed one of his arms, theoretically, it wouldn't have taken five horses to dismember him; four horses would have sufficed, thus saving some horsepower.

However, Yuan Shu was not satisfied with this.

"If it's going to be dismembered by five horses, then five horses should be used! What's with four horses?"

The officials in charge of the execution were at a loss. After much discussion, a group of people came up with a brilliant idea. Their eyes lit up and they came up with a bold idea.

Tan Shihuai lost one arm, but still has a small head. Although it's not as long as the arm, it should be enough.

Everyone agreed and praised the idea master for his brilliant solution.

Thus, Tan Shihuai was still subjected to the punishment of being torn apart by five horses.

Yuan Shu didn't watch the process of him being torn apart by chariots. In any case, Yuan Shu didn't care much about the life or death of his defeated opponent. He only ordered that Tan Shihuai's body parts be thrown out of the city to feed the wild dogs, and that his head be hung on the main gate of Luoyang for public display.

At the subsequent victory celebration banquet, Yuan Shu only made a token appearance, telling everyone to eat and drink well, and then went to Yuan Feng's office in the Ministry of Personnel to meet Yuan Feng.

Father and son were overjoyed to see each other. Yuan Feng was deeply proud of Yuan Shu's achievements and praised him highly, saying that Yuan Shu was indeed worthy of being his son and had not disgraced the Yuan family.

However, the main topic of this father-son conversation was not so simple praise and compliments; the conversation quickly shifted to Yuan Shao and Yuan Ji.

When Yuan Shao and Yuan Ji were mentioned, Yuan Feng's expression clearly darkened. He reached out and took Yuan Shu's hand, pulling him to sit on the same cushion.

"Have Cheng Li and Jia Xu already told you about this?"

Yuan Shu nodded.

"I know everything I need to know."

"Well, what are your thoughts?"

Yuan Feng stared into Yuan Shu's eyes and slowly said, "Is there anything else you want to say about this matter?"

"Have."

Yuan Shu nodded and said, "What I want to say is, why did Father not immediately arrest them when he knew they had rebellious intentions, but instead allowed them to run rampant in the mansion? This matter is too dangerous. If we are not careful, Father's safety may not be guaranteed, not to mention there are so many high-ranking officials present." Yuan Feng was silent for a moment before slowly speaking.

"At the time, I didn't think too much about it. All I wanted was to protect them both as much as possible and not let them lose their lives..."

"Just as I thought."

Yuan Shu lowered his head, chuckled, and slowly said, "I found it strange at the time. How could my father do such a thing? But if you look at it from this perspective, everything makes sense."

Yuan Feng glanced at Yuan Shu and gave a self-deprecating laugh.

"As expected, I couldn't hide it from you. I had figured it out too. With your intelligence, how could you not see through my motives?"

"But doing this puts my father in a very dangerous situation as well. I deeply felt my father's love for his son."

Yuan Shu shook his head and sighed, "I just don't know if the two of them can understand their father's good intentions, or if they will continue to harbor resentment towards their father until they die."

"It does not matter."

Yuan Feng shook his head and said, "I feel somewhat guilty towards Ji and Shao. Since you were little, I have focused too much energy on you and neglected them. I even wanted to depose the eldest son and establish the younger one in order to help you. In Ji's opinion, it would not be wrong for him to disown me as his father."

As for Shao, it's even more so. I gave him to your uncle as soon as he was born, and I've never been his father for even a day. Although we are related by blood, we are not truly father and son. I can understand why he resents me.

I thought I wouldn't care much about them, that I would only focus all my energy on you. But when the time came, I found I couldn't bring myself to do it. After all, I am their father. How could I kill my own son?

Yuan Shu sighed and gripped Yuan Feng's hand tightly.

"Let them commit an unforgivable mistake in front of everyone, so that I can rightfully depose the eldest son and establish the youngest son without being blamed. My position will not be shaken, and they will have no chance to turn the tables. In this way, even after my father passes away, I will not want to get rid of them. As the ancients said, parents love their children and plan far ahead for them. A father's love for his son is as clear as heaven and earth."

Yuan Feng immediately looked up at Yuan Shu.

"In that case, Tree, can you promise your father that after I die, you will take good care of them and let them die peacefully in their old age?"

Yuan Shu pursed his lips and nodded.

"I will keep a close watch on them and will not give them even the slightest chance to cause trouble. I will do everything in my power to ensure that they die peacefully in their old age."

Yuan Feng looked at Yuan Shurou's gentle face, and a smile gradually appeared on his face.

"In that case, I can rest assured. Tree, everything in the future, including this world, is entrusted to you."

"I will certainly not let my father down."

Yuan Shu also gave Yuan Feng a clear answer.

Yuan Feng smiled and nodded, as if a huge weight had been lifted from his heart, and he was no longer troubled.

However, what Yuan Feng didn't expect was that when he started discussing with Yuan Shu what position to give Yuan Shu to return to Luoyang, Yuan Shu talked to Yuan Feng about Youzhou, expressing his desire to take charge of Youzhou and continue to deal with the northern border troubles.

"With the Xianbei eliminated, where could there be any greater border troubles?"

Yuan Feng was somewhat puzzled.

Yuan Shu then told Yuan Feng about the previous rebellion of the Wuhuan people in the two counties who had joined forces with the Xianbei people. He also said that these people were always restless and that if they could not be eliminated in one fell swoop, the Wuhuan people might fill the vacuum left by the Xianbei people on the grasslands, and a new border threat would arise in a few decades.

"If we cannot completely eliminate and control the grasslands, and remove the root cause of border troubles, then border troubles will always exist, and will continue endlessly for generations to come. Now that I have the ability to do it, of course I must eliminate the scourge for future generations!"

Yuan Feng was immediately in a dilemma.

He actually really wanted Yuan Shu to stay by his side.

After Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao were deposed, Yuan Shu was his only hope. He wanted Yuan Shu to stay by his side and didn't want Yuan Shu to continue to be away.

But his son has lofty ambitions, so how could he, as a father, hold his son back?
After much hesitation, Yuan Feng finally decided to support Yuan Shu's idea, but he felt that the matter of managing the grassland should be considered in the long term.

“It is not convenient to set up government offices and register households on the grassland. The things you mentioned before have never been done before. I dare not say that they can be accomplished. If things are not done well, it may cause trouble on the grassland. Isn’t that what you are most worried about?”

Yuan Shu knew Yuan Feng's concerns, so he gently tried to persuade him.

"No one has ever done this before, and no one knows the outcome. So not knowing is neither a good thing nor a bad thing. Father's concerns are indeed reasonable, but if it succeeds, it will also bring many benefits to the Han Dynasty."

"Since that's the case, let me give it a try. If I succeed, there's nothing more to say; if I fail, I will nip the trouble in the bud. I beg you, Father, grant my request so that I may accumulate more prestige!"

The mention of reputation reminded Yuan Feng of Yuan Shu's ultimate goal.

Everything he had done before was in service of Yuan Shu's goal.

Since that's the case, what more is there to say?
Yuan Feng pondered for a moment and then made a decision.

"Since that's the case, let's take advantage of this great victory to promote you to General of Chariots and Cavalry, allow you to establish your own government, and then, in the name of the General of Chariots and Cavalry's government, take charge of the military and political affairs of You and Bing provinces, and be fully responsible for all affairs of You and Bing provinces. As for the governors and prefects, we'll remove them from You and Bing provinces and let the prefects of each county directly obey your orders. What do you think?"

(End of this chapter)