Chapter 60 Mother and Child

Yuan Xi was actually very anxious.

Cao Cao could start attacking Xu Province at any moment, and Cao Song's family could be killed at any time.

Although he had made some arrangements beforehand, he didn't have anyone he could completely trust by his side. He couldn't even conveniently let Wu Zhao, the person he trusted most, know many of the inside details.

The resistance against him within Ye City was definitely not small.

The image Yuan Xi projected in front of Yuan Tan was that of someone who recklessly killed influential clans, indulged in pleasure, and won a few battles by luck. He had strengths, but also weaknesses.

If Zhao Yun showed his abilities in Beixin City, Yuan Tan should discover Zhao Yun's capabilities and feel that Yuan Xi was worth joining forces with.

Only with a Yuan Xi like this would Yuan Tan be willing to cooperate. Being too strong would make Yuan Tan wary, and being too weak would make Yuan Tan look down on him and reduce his support.

Currently, it seemed that deceiving Yuan Tan had been quite successful, but the final outcome would depend on the level of support from Yuan Tan's forces within Ye City.

But dealing with the other members of the Yuan family in Ye City wouldn't be simple.

Yuan Shao, Yuan Shang, Madam Liu – none of them were easy to deal with, especially when the three of them were together. Yuan Xi still hadn't figured out what kind of image he should project.

The more Yuan Xi thought about it, the more he felt a throbbing pain in his temples. He couldn't help but rub them a few times. When Wu Zhao saw this, she naturally raised her hand to help, but at that moment, the rumbling sound of horses' hooves came from afar, and she quickly lowered her hand again.

Yuan Xi lifted the curtain of the carriage and saw hundreds of soldiers galloping towards them. The person in the lead was quite young and had handsome features, but what was even more conspicuous was his large beard, which made him look even more mature than Yuan Xi.

Yuan Xi called out, and the convoy slowly stopped.

He whispered to Wu Zhao, "This is my third brother, Yuan Shang."

Yuan Shang rode his horse close to the convoy, dismounted, knelt on one knee, and said, "Second Brother, I am late in welcoming you, please forgive me!"

Yuan Xi opened the carriage door, jumped out, and helped Yuan Shang up, joyfully saying, "Third Brother, you've grown so much in three years!"

Yuan Shang's eyes were filled with tears, "Second Brother! This younger brother has missed you so much!"

Yuan Xi's face was also full of excitement, "Me too!"

The two brothers looked at each other and laughed heartily.

Yuan Xi said, "We brothers haven't seen each other for many years. Why don't we ride side by side? I have a lot to talk about with my third brother."

Yuan Shang hurriedly said, "Originally, if Second Brother gave the order, this younger brother would naturally obey, but this time I am here to pick up Second Brother on Father's orders. If something goes wrong on the way, Father will inevitably punish me."

"Father is already waiting for Second Brother. After entering the city, this younger brother will apologize to Second Brother. There will be plenty of opportunities to talk later."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Xi immediately said, "If that's the case, then I'll have to trouble Third Brother."

He turned around and got back into the carriage, watching Yuan Shang gallop back and forth in front of and behind the convoy, talking to everyone in the convoy and arranging for soldiers to guard them, doing everything in an orderly manner.

When Wu Zhao saw this, she thought to herself that this Third Young Master seemed to be very thoughtful in his work.

Yuan Xi lowered the curtain and saw Yuan Shang riding his horse to the front of the convoy before he breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing him looking like he was facing a formidable enemy, Wu Zhao softly asked, "How is it?"

Yuan Xi shook his head, "Very difficult to deal with, much more difficult to deal with than Big Brother. I'm afraid he will secretly investigate the convoy's details."

Wu Zhao's heart skipped a beat, and she whispered, "Then the matter between us..."

Yuan Xi nodded, "He will know sooner or later, after all, we haven't shown up for so many days."

"But it doesn't matter, he won't be able to find out where we went. Just be careful."

Yuan Shang rode his horse to the front of the convoy and ordered his subordinates to lead the way, while he called over a lieutenant and said, "Have our people probe the people in the convoy and ask about two things."

"First, when we left Beixin City, where did that guard with the scarred face go? I didn't see him just now."

"Second, there is a woman with a freckled face in the carriage. Find out her background."

The lieutenant obeyed and left. Before long, dozens of people went to the front and back of the convoy. While escorting them, they began to chat with the people in the convoy, speaking casually, but actually carefully trying to get information.

Yuan Shang turned his head and saw that the carriage curtain hadn't even moved. He thought to himself that his Second Brother was quite composed.

After a few words during their meeting just now, he knew that his Second Brother, like himself, was very good at pretending.

But it didn't matter. Within this Ye City, his foundation was already solid. Even if his Second Brother complained to Father, he would have a way to deal with it.

Moreover, before he left the city, his mother, Madam Liu, had already gone to find Yuan Shao.

I'm very interested, Second Brother. What are you going to fight me with?

In the Ye City Governor's Mansion, Yuan Shao was quite surprised to see his wife, Madam Liu, enter. He stood up and said, "Why have you come, Madam?"

Madam Liu was about thirty years old. Apart from her slightly thin cheekbones, she could be considered a beauty. The key was her background, as she was a relative of the Liu imperial clan, making her status quite noble.

The ancients often said that a mother's status was elevated by her son, but in reality, there was a rather counterintuitive fact.

A son's status was elevated by his mother.

If a mother's background was lacking, it would greatly affect her son's position in the family.

Because the maternal family's power was a huge asset for a son's competition for power in the family.

Because the principal wife was always of equal status, many lords and rulers were of humble origins before they rose to prominence, and their original wives were the same. The eldest son born to them received little help from his maternal family.

But after the lord rose to prominence, when the original wife died and he remarried, the principal wife he married was of much higher status, and the power of her maternal family was naturally incomparable to before.

So, what happened was that when the lord appointed an heir, because of the different powers of their maternal families, the youngest son would sometimes overwhelm the eldest son.

So, everyone knew that deposing the eldest and establishing the youngest was a path to disaster, but among the aristocratic families, this phenomenon was still not uncommon.

Now the Yuan family was facing this problem. Madam Liu had the support of the imperial clan and could naturally attract a group of aristocratic families loyal to the Han dynasty.

In the past three years, Yuan Shang's power had slowly begun to overwhelm Yuan Tan, which was why Yuan Tan was so eager to join forces with Yuan Xi.

Madam Liu looked respectful, "I suddenly remembered something and came to see my lord."

Yuan Shao listened and said gently, "Please speak, Madam."

Madam Liu sighed, "Soldiers have reported that Shang'er has already welcomed Xi'er. I'm afraid he will be able to enter Ye City within half a day."

Yuan Shao listened and nodded slightly, his mood also quite complicated.

The almost quarrelsome argument between the father and son three years ago had actually made the naturally cowardly Yuan Xi run to the dangerous northern lands to defend the city.

During that time, Yuan Shao fought several major battles with Gongsun Zan, and only last year did he drive Gongsun Zan to Yijing. Although he wanted to send more troops to Yuan Xi's side, he failed to do so for various reasons.

Looking back on it now, Yuan Shao also had some regrets.

Seeing this, Madam Liu hurriedly said, "There is also the matter that Xi'er has brought those dozens of concubines back to Ye City with him."

"Originally, I had already arranged a house for Xi'er, enough for seven or eight people to live in, but now it seems that it is not enough. The mansion cannot spare any extra space for the time being."

"So, I wanted to ask my lord how to arrange for these women. Should we find a separate residence for them?"

"Moreover, Xi'er is going to marry a daughter of the Zhen family. Would it be inappropriate for the Zhen family to see him with so many concubines?"

Upon hearing this, the expression on Yuan Shao's face, which had been quite joyful, turned slightly unpleasant.