"If God does evil, you can still violate it; if you do evil on your own, you will not live." [Shang Shu Taijia Zhong]
Yuan Shao was breathing hard on the couch. The group of people who had gathered around him had already dispersed quietly when they saw that the situation was not going well. Guo Tu was lingering by the pillars of the palace, still between leaving and not leaving, but Pang Ji was
In the name of letting brothers Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu reminisce, they took the opportunity to retreat.
At this time, a beautiful young concubine ran in crying from outside the palace, but she said that Yuan Shao's youngest son Yuan Mai was seriously ill and had a high fever, and doctors could not treat him. She cried and begged Yuan Shao to send someone to search for good doctors in the city.
Treat my son's illness.
Only then did Yuan Shao remember that he was not extinct, but that there was still a sickly child left in the world. The look in his eyes couldn't help but light up a little, but then it dimmed again: "How can I live if God wants to kill my Yuan family?
How can we live!"
The concubine didn't care about this. She was Yuan Mai's biological mother, and she only wanted to cure her son. She continued to plead with her in tears. Before Yuan Shu could get impatient, a middle-aged woman strode over and pulled him.
He grabbed the concubine's hair and dragged her back forcefully, followed by several more maids who came forward to punch and kick the concubine.
The middle-aged woman, Mrs. Liu, is officially Yuan Shao's step-mother, and is also the biological mother of Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang. She is jealous by nature. In the past, she was jealous of her concubine's youth, beauty and favor. Now she has lost her mind. At this moment, she
She could no longer bear the accumulated jealousy in the past: "You bitch! You don't care about Mr. Yuan's body, but you care about your four or five-year-old bastard!"
When Yuan Shao heard the word 'bastard', his breathing suddenly became rapid and his face turned red, as if he wanted to say something. Yuan Shu saw this and rarely said a word for him, stepped forward and scolded: "You are talking nonsense.
What? Get down quickly!"
Mrs. Liu then had some scruples and stopped talking angrily. However, after seeing the heads of her two sons, she burst into tears uncontrollably. Her voice was wailing and sad. Yuan Shu felt bored after hearing this and immediately took out Yuan's family.
The legitimate son's demeanor required people to push Mrs. Liu out. But here were all Yuan Shao's people. Many of the old Yuan family members did not recognize him as the legitimate son who had defeated the battle and returned with his nephew's head. This made Yuan Shu embarrassed for a while. Liu
When the lady saw this, she cried even louder.
"Get out!" But Yuan Shao suddenly showed his power and beat the couch hard.
His voice was so powerful that it made Mrs. Liu cry and make a fuss and leave.
There was no one in the palace at this time. Guo Tu, Pang Ji and others left on an excuse because the army outside the city was attacking the city again, leaving only Chen Yi and Geng Bao, two confidants, accompanying the Yuan brothers and sighing.
Guo Tucai breathed a sigh of relief after walking out of the back of the palace as if running for his life, and Pang Ji held his wrist. Besides many fellow villagers from Yingchuan, even Chen Lin from Guangling was among them. Pang Ji and others did not hesitate.
What did the Jizhou scholars think when they saw this? His voice was urgent and panicked, and he said directly outside the palace gate: "The three young masters were killed, and the three states of You, Ji, and Qing no longer exist. Now the Yuan family has been defeated."
There is nothing we can do to save it, so we should find a way out as soon as possible."
Guo Tu sighed heavily and looked back at the old main hall. Although it was decorated, it was still the layout of a royal palace. It was different from the Luoyang Nangong he saw when he was young: "The way out? I
Waiting can be regarded as aiding Jie in his cruelty, supporting the emperor, raising troops to rebel... Now that things have happened, is there any way out?"
"As long as you are willing to ask for help, why worry that there is no way out?" Someone said anxiously, but there was still a delusion in his heart: "Didn't Guo Fengxiao serve as a military advisor to the former general? And Xun Youruo, didn't he also surrender to the imperial court? There is the Xun family,
It’s not like the Zhong family and the Chen family can’t survive if they take care of them in the court.”
Guo Tu and Guo Jia are not close relatives, they just come from the same Guo family in Yingchuan. Since they are from the same clan, Guo Tu will naturally place his hopes on Guo Jia if there is no hope for him. In this case, he will die.
If he is dead, how can he harm Guo Jia, who has a bright future, because of his own life?
The same is true for the Xun family in Yingchuan. Pang Ji and his party were in a hurry to seek medical treatment, thinking that the friendship between fellow villagers would work everywhere, but little did they know that there would also be competition among fellow villagers. The Xun family, Zhong family, and Chen family who landed early
The Xun family had a great reputation in the court, so how could they take risks to rescue a group of defeated bandits? Besides leaving a reason for people to be liquidated at any time, what else could this group of bandits bring to the Xun family?
Pang Ji and others were in a state of confusion and could no longer distinguish between pros and cons, but Guo Tu maintained his last bit of calm. Since he was determined to die, he made up his mind to seek benefits for the clan. In this, they could not be allowed to
Yingchuan Guo caused a bit of a drag.
"Even if we want a way out, we must not surrender without success." Guo Tu said slowly. He heard the shouts of killing louder and more fierce than before from the top of the city. He knew that the scale and intensity of the imperial court's attack on the city this time was definitely not the same as in the past.
Comparable. In fact, since the imperial court let Yuan Shu enter the city, it can be imagined that the war has reached the final moment, and this is also their last chance to fight: "It is better to dedicate the city, as long as the dedication of the city is meritorious, or to dedicate the head of the king of Pingyuan, Yuan,
If the imperial court wants to do this, why can't it be open to one side? Even the Xun family of Yingchuan and the Zhong family can speak for us."
"Dedicate the city?" Everyone's eyes lit up, and everyone started talking about the possibility of this place, but Guo Tu took the opportunity to slip away.
"The offensive on the city is getting more intense. It is said that even the Yulin Army has begun to mobilize. In my opinion, it is better to make a decision immediately." As soon as Pang Ji finished speaking, the others agreed and said that they knew a certain general.
, how many domestic servants can help.
Pang Ji thought to himself that if he took the lead anyway and took the lead in judging the merits, the situation in the future might not be able to change for the better.
At this time, he heard someone ask Chen Lin: "Kong Zhang, what are your plans?"
Chen Lin seemed a little embarrassed to say anything. She hesitated for a long time before saying, "I have some things to do in my house, so I'll leave now!" After saying that, she ignored everyone's attempts to stay, turned around and left as if to run away.
"Isn't he going to report to Mr. Yuan?" Someone said worriedly, looking at his hurried away figure.
Pang Ji frowned, shook his head and said: "He is not that kind of die-hard person. Reporting on me now will not get much benefit." At this time, he seemed to have remembered something, and said with a smile: "I think he is busy going back.
I’m writing an article. I heard that besides calligraphy, today’s people love reading.”
Everyone laughed and laughed, and the matter was over.
Returning to the palace, Yuan Shu, after witnessing the farce, suddenly sighed: "I am ashamed of my ancestors."
This time Yuan Shao rarely refuted him, but took a breath and said: "The emperor let you come back, but what did he say?"
Yuan Shu shook his head and said with a smile: "You may not surrender, and he may not accept it, so what else is there to say? It's just to humiliate my family in the end."
"I actually lost to a weak emperor!" Yuan Shao still can't understand this, he said angrily: "When Dong Zhuo rode him back to Luoyang, he didn't even dare to say anything! Later!
He was taken captive to Chang'an like a puppet, but did he say anything or do anything? But he got Wang Yun's ready-made for nothing and got a huge advantage! I hate it so much, because I can't do it because of this person!"
Yuan Shu was quite convinced when he heard this. In their view, the emperor's tolerance for mistakes was too great after he took charge. Unlike them, who faced many difficulties and looked forward and backward, a moment of negligence could lead to death.
When brothers met, they didn't complain or insult each other. Instead, they shared the same hatred. They complained that the emperor was lucky and that if he changed positions, he wouldn't have achieved what he has today. The Han Dynasty was established again at the age of seventeen. How could there be such a miracle in the past?
They would rather believe that it was God's help than the emperor's personal wisdom.
At this time, Chen Yi walked over from outside the palace with an ugly face and hesitated to speak next to Yuan Shao.
The shouts of killing at the top of the city became more and more intense, like drum horns urging death. He didn't know when they would break into the city. He had no generals under his command. With the army outside the city going all out, it was only a matter of time before the city was broken.
Yuan Shao felt bored after hearing this and simply stopped thinking about this troublesome matter. He knew that Chen Yi was worried about Yuan Shu, so he waved his hand helplessly and said: "It's time, just tell me what you have to say!"
So Chen Yi told him everything Guo Tu had told him about the betrayal of Pang Ji and others, which made Yuan Shao's forehead veins jump: "If you are in trouble, you will not die, and you will not be sent away. Okay, okay..."
He suddenly looked up at Chen Yi. The man in front of him had worked hard for him, but Yuan Shao could not fulfill his promise to help him avenge his father. He said with shame: "I am ashamed of you! If you want to live, I can give you money."
I’ll give it to you and send someone to escort you out of the city with Geng Jun.”
Chen Yiji smiled, as if he knew that his father, Chen Fan, could no longer take revenge on the Han Dynasty. His heart, which had been suppressed by hatred, suddenly felt a lot more relaxed: "Mr. Yuan treats his scholars kindly, how can he not have loyal ministers by his side?"
?”
"Okay!" Yuan Shao no longer cared about the dignity of a scholar at this time, and said with a ferocious smile on the couch: "Then you go and take Guo Tu with you... These people used to flatter me, but now they dare to be so shameless.
Surrender to him? Dreaming!"
There was murderous intent in his words. Although Nanpi was about to be defeated, Yuan Shao still had a force that he could call upon. It was more than enough to kill some rebels. Chen Yi did not hesitate, even though many of these people had fought with him.
He had some friendship with Chen Fan, his father, and he still resolutely carried out Yuan Shao's orders with such cruel methods that even Guo Tu looked on with lingering fear.
"Guo Gongze! You villain!" Pang Ji was hit by a sword in the back, staggered and fell into a pool of blood, his hands silently holding the hem of Guo Tu's clothes.
Guo Tu took advantage of Chen Yi's opportunity to walk away, slowly squatted down, and while breaking open Pang Ji's clenched hand, he whispered: "It's not that I'm a villain, it's that you are too stupid."
"Do you think you can survive like this? Sooner or later, you will be buried with the Yuan family!" Pang Ji said viciously with blood on his face.
"Of course we can't live any longer." Guo Tu threw Pang Ji's hand aside and sighed: "But we are all going to die, so don't cause any more trouble to others... It's better to bring some benefits to my Guo family.
"
"Are they all here?" Chen Yi looked around at the corpses on the ground and frowned: "It seems that there is one missing Chen Kongzhang? Wasn't he involved?"
Before Guo Tu could answer, a man ran in in a panic and shouted: "No! The city gate has been lost!"
Chen Yi was so shocked that he quickly returned to the palace with Guo Tu and the others, regardless of whether there was any fish that slipped through the net.
Yuan Shao was already sitting on the couch and began to tell Geng Bao one last thing: "I have no face to see Tian Yuanhao again. At this time, he will be laughing in prison that I failed to make a good plan. Geng Jun, please see him for me."
Geng Bao felt as if he had escaped from death. He knelt on the ground and said with sincere gratitude: "Thank you, Mr. Yuan!"
After Yuan Shao let him leave, he suddenly saw the brocade box brought by Yuan Shu: "What's in here?" Naturally, the long and narrow brocade box could not contain anyone's head. At this time, even if he saw his nephew Gao Gan
With the head stuffed inside, Yuan Shao no longer felt shocked or angry. He muttered to himself and opened the brocade box with his own hands.
A cold light penetrated from the brocade box. Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu narrowed their eyes. After the sword light flashed, a long and narrow sword with a slightly broken blade lay quietly in the brocade.
Yuan Shao's breathing suddenly became heavy. He saw that the two seal characters clearly engraved on the sword were the words 'Si Zhao' that he had specially asked the craftsmen to cast!
"What a powerful sword..." Yuan Shao threw away the brocade box. At this time, Chen Yi and others were shouting outside the palace gate about the news of the Han army entering the city. It seemed to him that he had not heard it. He seemed to only have this in his eyes at this time.
The sword was lost and recovered. In order to pretend to be destined, he deliberately told the story of a god giving the sword to him. Later, he was left on the battlefield after being defeated by the emperor.
Unexpectedly, this sword had been picked up by the emperor a long time ago and was maintained to be sharper than before.
"Okay, okay! It seems that the emperor has given it a sharp edge!" Yuan Shao suddenly laughed wildly. Perhaps when Yuan Shu entered the city alive and brought the heads of his three sons, he was destined to accept the punishment from the emperor.
Ridicule and insult. When he looked at the bright sword blade with slight scars, reflecting his own face, he seemed to be able to see a pair of strange, indifferent eyes.
"A husband must die a husband's death. The Emperor has mercy. This sword is the only one worthy of beheading me!"
"Ming Gong, stop!" Chen Yi tried to run into the palace to stop Yuan Shao, but tripped over the high threshold.
At this time, Yuan Shao had his sword across his neck and smiled at Yuan Shu, who was standing beside him. The smile was pale and seemed to be a bit provocative.
Then Yuan Shu watched helplessly as Yuan Shao slowly and slowly cut the surface of his throat with the sword blade, and then used his wrist to force the sword blade to cut deep into the throat. When it hit the throat, Yuan Shao could only say "Whoa"
There was a vague sound of "ho". Then blood gurgled out like a spring, dyeing Yuan Shao's dark clothes and wide sleeves red.
Chen Yi had already rushed over, hugging Yuan Shao in his arms and shouting. Yuan Shu took a few steps back in shock, watching Chen Yi hugging Yuan Shao's body and crying bitterly. Suddenly, he realized with hindsight that he had just
It was such a mistake to remain indifferent and watch Yuan Shao commit suicide.
He obviously wanted the other party to die, but why now that Yuan Shao really died in front of him, Yuan Shu felt a trace of sadness and regret in his heart?
Yuan Shao was so angry that he stared at Yuan Shu with wide eyes.
He quickly fell to the ground, lay beside Yuan Shao and listened quietly:
"It's...is it sunny?"
Yuan Shu subconsciously looked at the gloomy sky outside the palace. After days of heavy rain, the sky still showed no sign of clearing up. But he seemed to hear a weak prayer from Yuan Shao's words, and then changed his words: "The sky is clearing up."
."
"It's sunny..." Yuan Shao's lips trembled, his pupils began to dilate, and he lost consciousness: "... Just call Meng De, Meng Zhuo and the others to go hunting."
Yuan Shu's body trembled, and he recalled in a daze that a long, long time ago, he and a group of people, wearing bright clothes and angry horses, galloped out of the city to hunt in the suburbs of Runan.
I remember that among that group of people there were Zhang Miao, Cao Cao, and Xu You. These people were in front and behind, talking and laughing, but the one who ran in the front, the most wanton and flamboyant, the one who couldn't catch up no matter how hard he whipped his horse.
, he will always be the elder brother who is determined to change the Han Dynasty.
"Brother..." This was the first time Yuan Shu called him this after many years.