Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

Yuan Shang suddenly stepped forward with his sword, pressing the cold light against Xin Ping's throat: "Speak! Are you afraid of death and become a lobbyist for Xiliang?" Xin Ping's face suddenly turned paler than snow, and cold sweat mixed with blood slid into his eyes, stinging him so much that he could hardly open them: "I, I was indeed captured with the young master..."

"As expected!" Yuan Shao laughed in anger. "Say! What conditions did they propose? Do they want me to cede land? Or do they want me to submit?" He rushed down the stairs in three steps, and the force with which he gripped Xin Ping's jaw was almost enough to break his bones. "If you dare to tell a lie today, I will cut you into pieces!"

Xin Ping collapsed to the ground, his forehead nearly digging into the wine-soaked tiles. His voice was hoarse and broken, as if it had been repeatedly rubbed with sandpaper: "Mr. Yuan! Xiliang wants to marry Zhen Mi off to be the princess' concubine! They say that from now on, all members of the Zhen family, young and old, will be members of the princess's family." He suddenly looked up, his eyes bloodshot. "They also specifically request that all the hundreds of members of the Zhen family be sent to Chang'an immediately to reunite with the princess, and that all the Zhen family's vast wealth be used as a dowry..."

The hall erupted in chaos. Yuan Xi's sword clanged halfway out of its sheath, and his white jade crown jingled as it trembled violently. "That bastard Ma Chao stole my wife! Now he's insulting my Yuan family with these words. I'll tear him to pieces!" Ju Su slammed his jade scepter to the ground, sending shards flying. "This is clearly an attempt to drain Jizhou's treasury and sever our army's foundation!" Yuan Shao's roar had already overturned the hall's ceiling—he grabbed the bronze wine jar on the table and smashed it against the pillars, sending gilded shards raining down like a torrential rain. "This is bullying me too much! How can he just rob my Yuan family's purse if he wants?!"

Yuan Shao's eyes were red as he ripped off his crooked gilded crown and threw it to the ground. The sound of the gold threads breaking startled the birds in the corridor and made them flutter in the air. "Zhang He! Wen Chou!" He shouted so loudly that the beams and pillars vibrated. "Each of you should lead 50,000 cavalrymen and march out immediately! Deploy your troops at Tongguan and crush Xiliang!"

Wen Chou's towering body slammed to his knees, the dark iron sword at his waist clashing with a dull thud: "I will definitely chop off Ma Chao's head!" Zhang He knelt on one knee, his knuckles knocking against his armor, making a clanging sound: "I will not return to the court until Chang'an is conquered!" Yuan Shang could no longer hold back, drawing his sword and pointing it to the west: "Father, I am willing to be the vanguard! I will definitely grind that villain to dust!"

Yuan Shao stumbled and clung to the Panlong Pillar, his blood-stained nails digging deep into the sandalwood grain: "Peace talks? Wishful thinking!" He suddenly looked up to the sky and laughed wildly, the sound mixed with blood splashing on the steps below, "I, Yuan Shao, have been roaming Hebei for half my life, how could I trade my wife and daughter for my son! If Yuan Tan is truly a descendant of my Yuan family, he should learn from Tian Heng's five hundred warriors back then—" His voice stopped abruptly, and a suppressed sob escaped his throat, "If you dare to kneel and beg for life, I will personally take his head!"

Amid the shattered remains of the banquet, candlelight flickered in the cold breeze. Xin Ping was about to speak, but was cut off by a cold, stern look from Guo Tu. Feng Ji had barely uttered a word when his words froze in his throat. The gilded table, overturned by Yuan Shao in his fury, lay strewn across the hall. Shattered jade cups, wine, and blood mingled, creating strange patterns on the blue bricks.

As the sound of Yuan Shao slamming the door faded, Guo Tu quickly dragged Xin Ping, Feng Ji, and the others to the shade of the corridor. The heads of the aristocratic families looked at each other in bewilderment. They had staked their entire family's success on Yuan Tan, and now, with nothing to show for it, they were all like frightened birds.

"Don't offend the lord again!" Guo Tu lowered his voice, the secret letter hidden in his sleeve was soaked with cold sweat, "To speak out at this moment is nothing but to push the eldest son to a dead end!" He swept his eyes over the pale faces of the crowd, and his fingertips knocked heavily on the pillars: "The only thing we can do is to ask the mistress for help!"

Xin Ping was shocked: "But in recent years, the lord has favored Liu, and his original wife has lived in seclusion..."

"That's why!" Guo Tu suddenly opened his collar, his neck veins bulging. "My lord has neglected his first wife for many years, and he already feels guilty. What's more, the mistress's mother's family is also a big family in Jizhou. How could she sit by and watch her own son fall into dire straits?" He pondered and said, "As long as the mistress cries in front of the bed, no matter how hard-hearted the lord is, he will remember the love they had for each other!"

Feng Ji stared at the swaying candlelight in the puddles under the corridor, his Adam's apple rolling as he lowered his voice: "These are all fine, but I'm afraid Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang will take advantage of the opportunity to do this to our lord..." Before he could finish his words, Guo Tu sneered and slammed his folding fan against his palm, shaking off a few raindrops.

"I'm hoping they'll start stirring up trouble!" A sinister light flashed in his eyes. "The more those two idiots rush to kick someone when they're down, the more the lord will have to wonder—why are they so eager?" Guo Tu's lips curled up in a calculating arc. "Then I'll bring this to the attention of Tian Yuanhao and Ju Gongyu. How could these two stubborn old men tolerate brothers killing each other?"

Rain poured down from the eaves, making the dragon reliefs on the corridor pillars look even more ferocious. Wen Chou suddenly spoke in a muffled voice, the broadsword at his waist making a dull sound as he moved: "I'll go find Mr. Tian and Mr. Ju right away!" Guo Tu raised his hand to stop him, his eyes sweeping over the pale faces of the crowd: "Don't worry. Let the mistress cry by the bed first, and then have General Wen take Mr. Tian and Mr. Ju to expose the Yuan brothers' slander. The master trusts these two upright people the most, and even if he is angry at that time, he will have to consider his reputation."

Feng Ji watched the lanterns gradually dimming in the rain, and suddenly remembered Yuan Tan's heroic figure as a horseman and archer. Now, his life was hanging by a thread, and he had to rely on such a tortuous calculation to survive. He couldn't help but shudder.

The night rain poured down, darkening the nightscape of Yecheng. Guo Tu, Feng Ji, and Wen Chou hurried through the muddy alleys, rain pouring down from the eaves, soaking their robes. Guo Tu's eyes flickered in the rain, calculating the success or failure of his next move. Feng Ji frowned, glancing back frequently, fearing their whereabouts would be discovered. Wen Chou clutched the broadsword at his waist, silent, his presence emanating a reassuring calmness.

Finally, they arrived at a somewhat deserted courtyard. In front of the gate, decorated with hanging flowers, an old servant held a lantern, warily observing the late-night visitors. Guo Tu stepped forward, pulled a silver ingot from his sleeve, and pressed it into the servant's palm. He lowered his voice and said, "Please inform the mistress. This concerns the eldest son's life and cannot be delayed!" The servant took the silver, hesitated for a moment, and then turned and walked back through the gate.

The door slowly opened, and the candlelight from inside the room spilled through the crack, revealing the mistress's slightly trembling figure. The soft sound of the embroidery frame hitting the ground was particularly clear in the silent room. The mistress's voice was filled with unconcealed fear: "But something happened to Tan'er?" Guo Tu and others hurried into the room. Seeing the mistress's pale face and panic, they felt even more heavy-hearted. Guo Tu stepped forward and presented Yuan Tan's blood letter. His voice was low: "Mistress, the eldest son was defeated and captured in Chang'an. Xiliang put forward harsh conditions. The mistress was furious and unwilling to compromise. We really have no choice but to come to you for help."

The mistress took the blood letter with trembling hands, tears instantly blurring her eyes. She stumbled back a few steps, slumped down in a chair, and muttered to herself, "My son, my son..." Guo Tu and the others saw this and knelt down, saying in unison, "Madam, please save the eldest son!" The mistress raised her head, a determined light flashing in her eyes. She wiped away her tears and stood up: "Tomorrow morning, I will go to see the mistress!"

The next morning, a thin mist enveloped Yecheng. Yuan Shao sat in his study, brow furrowed, flipping through the bamboo slips in his hands, unable to comprehend a single word. The devastating news Xin Ping had brought him the previous day weighed on him like a mountain, suffocating him. His 50,000-man army had been annihilated, his beloved son had been captured, and the humiliation he had suffered at the hands of Xiliang had inflamed his rage.

At this moment, suppressed sobs could be heard from behind the screen. Yuan Shao's heart tightened, and he looked up to see his mistress, her long, untied hair loose and her plain clothes stained with mud, stumbling over the table. She clutched Yuan Shao's sleeve, tears pouring out like a flood: "Husband! Save Tan'er!" Yuan Shao's heart ached at the sight of his mistress's haggard appearance, but remembering yesterday's humiliation, he forced himself to suppress his reluctance: "He's a general, defeated and captured. How can he have the nerve to ask me to save him?"

After hearing this, the mistress cried even harder: "He has followed you in battles since he was a child, and every time he has risked his life to protect the Yuan family. Now he is trapped in the enemy camp, and his life or death is uncertain, but you want to abandon him like a worn-out shoe. He is our son, how can you be so cruel!" Yuan Shao's face became more and more gloomy. Just as he was about to speak, a fierce argument suddenly came from outside the door.

Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang strode into the study. Yuan Shang wore a sneer, his eyes filled with disdain. "Mother, why are you doing this? My eldest brother's defeat and capture has already brought disgrace upon the Yuan family. Do you really want Father to trade the foundation of Jizhou for a piece of trash?" Yuan Xi feigned grief. "Father, a wise and powerful man, would never allow the Yuan family to fall into irreparable ruin for a defeated general. My eldest brother has been captured, and he might have already betrayed the Yuan family and colluded with Xiliang."

"Shut up!" A roar like a bell exploded in the room. Wen Chou's towering figure blocked the doorway, his broadsword gleaming coldly. His eyes widened as he glared at the Yuan brothers: "How dare you speak such callous words when your brother's life or death hangs in the balance? Do you still have any brotherly love?" Tian Feng, bamboo slips in hand, strode forward, his eyes filled with anger: "My two lords, 'fraternity' is the foundation of human relations. Do you have any shame in slandering your brother like this? The eldest son is loyal and has made great contributions to the Yuan family. How can you slander him so casually!" Ju Su followed closely behind, bowing and saying gravely: "My lord, if you abandon your son in a moment of anger, the loyal and righteous people of the world will be disheartened. Who will be willing to serve the Yuan family in the future? I hope my lord will reconsider!"

Yuan Shao's knuckles turned white from pinching the armrest, and his veins bulged. His eyes swept over everyone's faces one by one. His mistress was still crying on the ground, her tears soaking the floor; the Yuan brothers' faces were pale, and there was a flicker of panic in their eyes; Tian Feng and Ju Su's eyes were full of disappointment and earnestness. Outside the window, thunder exploded, and a flash of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the faces of everyone in the room. Yuan Shao suddenly stood up and overturned the table, and bamboo slips, writing brushes and ink scattered all over the floor. He roared: "Get out! Let me think about it..." But the moment he turned around, he quietly grasped Yuan Tan's childhood jade pendant that his mistress had stuffed in him, and hid it in his sleeve. The warm jade pendant, as if it still carried the warmth of his son's childhood, gradually calmed the anger in his heart.

The eagerness with which Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang burst through the door echoed the memory of Yuan Shu's imperious intrusion into the Yuan family ancestral hall—similarly with his disdain for his brother, and similarly with his ambition to seize power. Their actions stirred a deep well of emotion within Yuan Shao. For years, Yuan Tan had been at the forefront of every battle, his people in the prefectures and counties praised his generosity. Now, based on a single speculation, he was ready to abandon his own flesh and blood?

Yuan Shao stumbled, holding onto the table. He was at odds with Yuan Shu, having spent half his life fighting the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children. If he were to abandon Yuan Tan now because of a temporary defeat, wouldn't that be exactly what the Western Liang wanted? They wanted more than just money and food; they wanted to see the Yuan family repeat the farce of fratricide between legitimate and illegitimate children!