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Chapter 226 - Chapter 227: Mutual Calculation

The reason why Yuan Tan was moved was because of an extremely absurd fact.

Although Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi both seemed to be provincial governors, neither of them had been selected through the Han Dynasty's system of recommendation.

The system of recommendation was created by Liu Bang. If one wanted to become an official, one had to go through annual examinations and special examinations. The annual examinations included four categories: Xiaolian, Mao (Xiu)cai, Chalian, and Guanglu. Among them, Xiaolian was the most important.

Later in the Eastern Han Dynasty, after modifications by Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu and changes in the times, the status of Maocai exceeded that of Xiaolian, and the number of people selected became even smaller.

Although both are annual selections, Xiaolian is selected by the county, while Maocai is selected by the state, so they are rarer.

"The Three Dukes each recommend one outstanding talent," "The Censor, the Inspector General, and the Governor each recommend one outstanding talent every year." By this calculation, there are only about ten to twenty outstanding talents in the whole world every year.

Many aristocratic families who wanted to become officials had to go through the process of being selected as filial and honest officials or selected as outstanding talents. Otherwise, being appointed as an official according to the Han system would be neither legitimate nor legal.

Therefore, the titles of provincial governors granted to Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi sound good in name, but they are missing a key link in the middle. If we really investigate it seriously, they can be taken back.

Whether Yuan Shao relied on his power to suppress the Han court, or had other intentions to suppress the two, or was out of concern for promoting relatives and avoiding relatives, no one knew, but the parties involved knew it well.

So when Yuan Tan heard that Liu Bei could recommend him, he was immediately interested and realized that this was a good opportunity!

Originally, Yuan and Liu had already joined forces. Yuan Tan accepted Liu Bei's recommendation and recognized Liu Bei as his sponsor. He did not regard it as a betrayal of the Yuan family, especially since it was an opportunity he had fought for himself. Yuan Shao could not say anything.

Thinking of this, Yuan Tan couldn't help but look at the brothers Guo Tu and Xin Ping.

The three counselors whispered to each other for a while and nodded to Yuan Tan, who immediately said, "Okay! I will agree to send troops to Haixi!"

He then said, "The terrain of Mount Tai is not easy to walk on. I'm afraid..."

Chen Deng heard this and said, "Master Xianyi sent a letter saying that the envoy only needs to send troops to any port in Qingzhou and ask the Zhen family caravan to transport troops, and they will naturally do so."

After hearing this, Yuan Tan fixed his eyes and said decisively: "Okay!"

"Sir, please return to Haixi and report. I will send reinforcements as soon as possible!"

Seeing that the matter was settled, Chen Deng was also very happy, and said goodbye and left.

After Chen Deng left, Yuan Tan asked Guo Tu and the other two, "What do you think of my second brother?"

He suddenly realized and said with a wry smile: "Now that he has set up his own business, I shouldn't call him my second brother."

Guo Tu said, "Master Xianyi is not a simple person. You should be on your guard."

"This person's tactics are so powerful that if he doesn't move, it's fine. But if he moves, it's like thunder and lightning, leaving no room for the other party to react."

"Let's not talk about the surprise attack on Guangling this time. He first attacked Yuyang in the north, but then went south along the coastal road to surprise attack Guangling. He already has the demeanor of a famous general."

"Just look at Master Xianyi's marriage, it can be called a stroke of genius."

"She had anticipated all of Master Xianfu's actions. Once Master Xianfu's plan failed, she would get married in one day at lightning speed. She acted so quickly that she didn't even give Master Xianfu a second chance."

"This is a profound understanding of the art of war. It really is the essence of it!"

Xin Pi also agreed, "Fortunately, Master Xianfu is now on good terms with the envoy, but if he fights with the envoy in the future, it will be a huge trouble."

"However, fortunately, Master Xianyi and Master Xianfu fell out over the Zhen family's marriage, especially when Master Xianfu openly killed Zhen Fang, who was recommended by Master Xianfu. This caused the two sides to completely tear each other apart."

When Yuan Tan heard this, he looked at Guo Tu somewhat unnaturally. Guo Tu coughed and quickly lowered his head.

In the study, Yuan Shao held a tube of urgent news in his hand and said to Yuan Shang, "What do you think of Xian Yi's performance this time?"

Yuan Shang felt as uncomfortable as if he had eaten a fly, but he still said respectfully: "Yuan Xi's surprise attack on Guangling this time is quite a good military strategy. If he works wholeheartedly for our Yuan family, the day when our Yuan family unifies the world will not be far away."

Yuan Shao glanced at Yuan Shang and said, "As a lord, you should be tolerant."

"It would be fine if they were to deal with some insignificant strategists and generals, but if they were to force our own people to become our enemies, it would be very bad for the reputation and foundation of our Yuan family."

Yuan Shang said hurriedly: "I know, I will follow my father's teachings."

Yuan Shao nodded and asked, "What do you think of Cao Mengde?"

Yuan Shang's heart skipped a beat. He lowered his head and tried to keep his tone calm: "Meng Degong was my father's childhood friend. I dare not speak nonsense."

Yuan Shao sighed, "Sometimes I wonder if Xian Yi is right."

"Because Meng De has done things over the years that have made me very suspicious."

"I feel a little regretful now. If I had let Zang Hong take over Yanzhou, would it have been better than Cao Mengde?"

After hearing this, Yuan Shang asked in confusion, "Why do you say that, father?"

"Why Zang Hong?"

Yuan Shao said slowly: "When Liu Yu was captured by Gongsun Zan, the best opportunity for my Yuan family was to use this as an excuse to unite all parties, march north to Youzhou, and completely eliminate Gongsun Zan."

"However, this opportunity was fleeting. At that time, I sent someone to secretly order Cao Cao to lead his troops north to Yecheng and join me in the battle."

"But at this time, Meng De had gone to attack Xuzhou ahead of time and was unable to spare the time to send troops."

"The matter was delayed afterwards. Liu Yu died too quickly, and the Yuan family lost their legitimate status. It was a pity."

"At that time, Tao Qian was attached to Yuan Shu, so Meng De was not wrong to do so, it was just a coincidence."

"Since then, I have felt that Cao Mengde has great ambitions and will not be inferior to others for long."

"But this is just my guess. Cao Cao has been my Yuan family's thug for many years. He has been working diligently and has not done anything excessive."

"After your explanation of the incident of crossing the Yellow River last time, I also understand that this might be a misunderstanding. Meng De should have come to help attack the Black Mountain Army. Xian Yi and I were over-concerned at the time."

Yuan Shang hurriedly laughed and said, "It's not my father's fault now. It was Yuan Xi who often slandered Cao Gong. I heard that he even took Cao Cao's daughter as a concubine. It's really ridiculous."

Yuan Shao waved his hand and said, "Stop talking. Everyone knows what happened. Besides, he asked his wife to regard Bian Rang's widow as her stepmother. This was a very good move and it protected the reputation of our Yuan family. You should learn from him."

Yuan Shang cursed in his heart, but said respectfully: "I will follow my father's instructions."

Yuan Shao sighed, "But we must guard against Meng De. He has known the movements of our Yuan family for many times. I suspect Meng De has spies in our Yuan family."

"But after thinking about it, I still can't guess who it is, but this person must be of a high status."

"I wanted to find someone to catch him, but I couldn't find the right person."

"Xian Yi was the least likely candidate, but he has already joined another branch, so it's hard to talk to him about this."

"Now Xianfu, you are the person I trust the most. Please help me investigate secretly and make sure to find this person."

Yuan Shang was sweating profusely on his back, and he quickly knelt on the ground and said, "I will obey my father's orders."

Yuan Shao nodded in satisfaction, and suddenly remembered something, "You have heard that Chanyu Tadun sent an envoy to ask for a marriage alliance with my Yuan family, right?"

"Who do you think is the most suitable among the women of my Yuan family?"

Yuan Shang and Yuan Xing didn't have a good relationship, so he said without hesitation: "My sister is old, so of course she is the most suitable."

After hearing this, Yuan Shao hesitated and said, "Yuan Xing is my own daughter. How can I let her marry a foreigner and suffer in the north?"

Thinking of the closeness between Yuan Xing and Yuan Xi, Yuan Shang felt a little angry and said, "Father, my sister is already old."

"Besides, the two scholars who proposed marriage to me both suffered disasters. It is obvious that my sister is an unlucky person. It will be good for my Yuan family if I marry her off as soon as possible."

After hearing this, Yuan Shao hesitated and said, "Xian Yi once proposed marriage for her. At that time, I promised Xian Yi to give him a year."

Yuan Shang thought it was Yuan Xi again. Thinking of the close relationship between Yuan Xing and Yuan Xi, and how they both refused to buy his account, he said, "Father, Tadun has hundreds of thousands of troops, which will be of great help to our Yuan family in its fight for supremacy in the world."

After hearing this, Yuan Shao said, "I'll think about it again."

Yuan Shang came out of Yuan Shao's house and found that he was soaked.

Fortunately, he did not expose his private connection with Cao Cao!

Most of the Five-Stone Powder he needed was found with the help of the Cao family, so he couldn't leave the Cao family now. However, Yuan Shao had already become disloyal to Cao Cao, and he was reluctant to break off his relationship with him.

Yuan Shang is now struggling with the question of whether to break with Cao Cao, confess to Yuan Shao, or continue to hide the truth?

He went back into the room, opened the drawer, looked at the bottle inside, grabbed it, and was about to throw it to the ground.

However, after hesitating for a long time, Yuan Shang put the bottle back, pulled out the cork, and poured the powder inside into the bottle.

After a while, he fell into a state of ecstasy again.

Hong saw all this through the crack in the door of the inner room. She stretched out her sleeves and looked at the purple scars on her forearms, her face pale.

Yuan Shang's temper became worse during this period, especially after he took the Wu Shi San and woke up, he became extremely impatient and crazy, and would punch and kick her at will.

Hong didn't know how long she could hold on, so she secretly ran to Liu and told her about Yuan Shang.

What greeted her was several heavy slaps in the face, which stunned her.

Amid the roaring tinnitus, Liu, with a frosty face, warned Hong that if she dared to reveal a word about Yuan Shang, which would affect Yuan Shang's inheritance of the Yuan family, she and her entire family would be killed.

Hong sat back on the ground silently, wondering when this day would end.

I have already married Yuan Shang, and it is impossible for me to get out. Maybe I can wait until Yuan Shang dies, or I die, or they both die together?

In Juancheng, the capital of Yanzhou, Cao Cao was discussing matters with several advisers, with a young man of about twenty-five or twenty-six years old standing behind him.

Cao Cao unfolded a bamboo slip and read the information on it while shaking his head and sighing.

He passed the bamboo slips to his advisers, then turned to the young man behind him and said, "I didn't expect Yuan Benchu ​​to have such a good son."

"Zi Xiu, if you were half as capable as Yuan Xi, you would be able to stand on your own."

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