Chapter 75 Family Banquet

Yuan Xi hesitated slightly when he received Yuan Shang's invitation to a farewell banquet.

Logically, he had no reason to refuse the banquet; after all, he and Yuan Shang were brothers in name, and he still had to feign cordiality.

However, with his departure only days away, he had hoped to speak privately with Yuan Shao. Regardless, the next step for Youzhou depended on Yuan Shao's plans. Yuan Xi, with his few hundred soldiers, couldn't possibly contend with Gongsun Zan alone.

A letter from Zhao Yun in the north stated that Yuan Tan had suffered a small defeat at the hands of the White Horse Volunteers and was now dutifully defending the city, though constantly plotting revenge.

Thinking of this, Yuan Xi grew somewhat agitated. The matter of Gao Lan was truly a significant problem!

He genuinely hadn't anticipated Yuan Shang's treachery in dispatching his future brother-in-law, Gao Lan, to Beixin City, assigning him a reconnaissance mission.

Unfortunately, Gao Lan recognized Qu Yi and decisively fled, leaving Yuan Xi in a very awkward position.

Gao Lan's disappearance was likely being covered up by Yuan Tan and Xun Chen, who hadn't officially reported the news, probably waiting to see how he would handle it.

Although he could join forces with Yuan Tan to frame Gao Lan, such tactics were unsophisticated and reserved for situations where there were no other options.

Yuan Xi's agitation was evident to Wu Zhao, but she didn't ask about what had happened after Yuan Xi took Zhao Yun out that night, as Yuan Xi hadn't spoken about it.

However, she vaguely sensed that something had occurred that evening that would be difficult to explain to the Zhen family.

When Zhen Rong visited the previous day, Wu Zhao learned that she was Gao Lan's wife. She noticed Yuan Xi's body stiffen at that moment, and immediately felt uneasy.

Moreover, Wu Zhao acutely observed that Zhen Rong's maidservant had been constantly watching Yuan Xi's expression and had also changed color.

Had they been noticed?

Wu Zhao's head began to ache. She was only guessing, relying on her keen intuition without any evidence.

But she couldn't shake the feeling that tonight's banquet seemed unusual.

In the end, Yuan Xi decided to attend the banquet because Yuan Shang's wife, Hong, had personally come to invite him.

Seeing Hong kneeling on the ground and bowing her head slightly to him, revealing a large expanse of jade-like skin inside her collar, Yuan Xi quickly said, "Sister-in-law, there's no need for such formality. My third brother could have simply sent a servant to inform me. Why trouble you to come in person?"

Hong breathed a sigh of relief and stood up, saying, "Thank you for your understanding, brother."

Wu Zhao, standing behind Yuan Xi, could tell that Hong seemed very afraid of Yuan Shang.

Just as Hong straightened up, a muffled thunderclap sounded outside, startling her. Her face paled, and she curled up like a frightened rabbit.

Realizing she had lost her composure, she blushed, bowed slightly to Yuan Xi, and hurriedly left.

Before Yuan Xi could speak, Wu Zhao suddenly said, "She's very afraid of you."

Yuan Xi was puzzled and asked, "Wasn't she just frightened by the thunder?"

Wu Zhao shook her head and said, "Her eyes never met yours."

Yuan Xi was stunned. Could there be something wrong with the banquet?

But in Yuan Mansion, what could Yuan Shang possibly do? Surely he wouldn't ambush him with hidden swordsmen?

He thought for a moment and said, "I can't avoid the banquet, or it will seem like I have a guilty conscience, especially after yesterday's encounter with Zhen Rong."

"My third brother is not simple. Every action is a scheme, so I can only take things one step at a time."

"I'll need you to keep an eye out for anything unusual and warn me in time."

Yuan Xi knew that Wu Zhao had likely seen many social gatherings among aristocratic families, so having her around would provide an extra layer of security when facing Yuan Shang.

He looked up at the sky. The autumn rain was still drizzling. He thought it would be best to leave tomorrow. No one knew how quickly Cao Cao was advancing in Xuzhou. Arriving even a day earlier to bring back Cao Song's family might save many lives.

Another thunderclap sounded. Outside Xiapi City in Xuzhou, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei led a few hundred soldiers, braving the misty rain, towards Mount Tai.

Riding his horse, Guan Yu said to Liu Bei, "Brother, my concern is that almost all of Tao Qian's generals are former Yellow Turban rebels, their discipline is lax, and it's hard to say what might happen."

"Moreover, we are marching in the rain, and the soldiers are exhausted. I fear that when we reach Yinping, we won't have much fighting strength left."

Yinping was where Tao Qian had sent Zhang Kai to welcome Cao Song's family. Now, the three were rushing to prevent the events described in the silk scroll from happening.

Liu Bei sighed, "Second Brother, I know, but if we're even a step late, it might be too late, and many more people in Xuzhou will die."

Guan Yu nodded in silence.

Zhang Fei snorted, "It's just a little more running. If these soldiers are lazy, I'll whip them until they run!"

"I'm just afraid that Cao Cao has a large army in Yinping. We are few in number and difficult to resist."

Liu Bei, riding his horse, also muttered to himself, because Mount Tai was the site of a personal feud between Tao Qian and Cao Cao.

Although Mount Tai belonged to Yanzhou, Tao Qian had taken it first under a false pretense.

In the fourth year of Chuping (193 AD), Tao Qian sent Zhao Yu to present tribute to Emperor Xian to show his support for the Han Dynasty. Emperor Xian received Tao Qian's memorial, praised him, and promoted him to Governor of Xuzhou and General Who Pacifies the East.

In the same year, Que Xuan of Xiapi gathered thousands of people, proclaimed himself emperor, and Tao Qian and Que Xuan jointly raised troops and led their armies to attack the counties of Rencheng and Mount Tai in southern Yanzhou.

Later, Tao Qian killed Que Xuan, annexed his followers, and took Rencheng and Mount Tai counties.

At that time, Cao Cao, with the support of the aristocratic families of Yanzhou, had just appointed himself Governor of Yanzhou and was naturally furious about Tao Qian's occupation of these two counties.

So Cao Cao led his troops to attack Xuzhou, capturing more than ten cities, so that the corpses blocked the Si River and cut off its flow. Tao Qian retreated to Tancheng, and later Cao Cao's army ran out of food and retreated. This was the first massacre of Xuzhou.

This was the regret that Tao Qian spoke of to Liu Bei on his sickbed. It was a mess and an open case.

Logically speaking, Tao Qian had indeed made the first move. Que Xuan was also encouraged by Tao Qian to attack Rencheng and Mount Tai, and was later killed by Tao Qian after crossing the river, which was indeed Tao Qian's doing.

However, Cao Cao's governorship of Yanzhou was self-appointed and had not been appointed by the court at all.

Tao Qian's official position was officially granted by the court, so it was justifiable to send troops to Yanzhou to quell the rebellion, but he did not expect Cao Cao to counterattack so fiercely.

This was the first time in Tao Qian's life that he had tried to step out of Xuzhou, but he was ruthlessly beaten back by Cao Cao, and Cao Cao was given an excuse to send troops. Now, he had to continue to bear the consequences.

In this chaotic world, whoever has the bigger fist is right.

Since ancient times, Xuzhou has been a strategic location for military strategists, and its commerce and agriculture are prosperous, and its population is large. It can be said that from Yuan Shao to Cao Cao to Yuan Shu, no one does not covet it.

In his heart, Liu Bei didn't have much hope for this trip, but after all, he could reduce Cao Cao's moral justification, and he really had no other way.

He shouted, urged the horse under his crotch, and disappeared into the vast night with Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and hundreds of soldiers.

Ye City.

Yuan Shang, with a smile on his face, grabbed Yuan Xi's arm and pulled him into the house, smiling, "Second Brother, you will be leaving tomorrow. I wish you success here."

Yuan Xi humbly said, "Third Brother is too polite. In recent years, Father has been able to do so much thanks to your thoughtful care in everything. I, as your Second Brother, am ashamed of myself."

In fact, Yuan Xi had not yet come up with an effective way to deal with Yuan Shang.

Yuan Shang was Yuan Shao's favorite, which was a protective charm in itself, and his biological mother, Liu, was also the nominal mother of Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi. With filial piety as a protective charm, he was inherently invincible.

Therefore, Yuan Shang was able to boldly trip Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi without touching Yuan Shao's bottom line. Yuan Xi thought it was quite frustrating.

Yuan Xi thought that perhaps only when Yuan Shao was no longer his father would he be able to take action without any scruples.

Yuan Xi walked into the house and took a look, and found that Zhen Rong was also among the few people, and immediately felt a little strange.