Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1154 Sincerity
Yuan Xi didn't know that Cao Cao was going to make a last-ditch effort to flood Jizhou, and he was already in Shouchun.

A few days ago, he joined forces with Lu Xun and marched westward, breaking through the defense line on the north bank of the Huai River from Xuzhou to Shouchun, forcing Cao's army to retreat to the north of Yuzhou.

Cao Zhen was no match for Lu Xun, and with the help of Yuan Xi, the territory over a hundred miles north of the Huai River was now occupied by Yuan Xi's army. Shouchun was no longer the front line across the river, so Yuan Xi took the opportunity to reorganize his troops and returned to Shouchun to rearrange the appointments of officials. After all, the captured cities in Yuzhou also needed officials and generals to garrison there.

Before this, he asked Lu Xun to defend the Huai River, but asked Wei Yan, who had made great contributions this time, to temporarily hand over the soldiers to Yuan Xi and return to Shouchun to see him.

Wei Yan led the army to defeat Cao Zhen several times, which was considered a great achievement. Logically, he should have been rewarded and promoted after the war. However, he did not expect that Yuan Xi asked him to return to Shouchun before the war was over. Is this good or bad for him?
He entered Shouchun with a worried mood, and a guard came to him and told him that Yuan Xi was waiting for him on the top of the city wall.

Wei Yan was full of doubts and felt even more uneasy because he had heard rumors about Yuan Xi. The other party had a very famous habit of hanging people who offended him on the city walls. When Xuzhou rebelled before, more than a dozen family heads had their heads hung on the city walls, and it was said that they were still there.

He climbed up the city wall along the stairs and saw several people with their backs to him, looking at the Huai River on the north bank and talking about something. Wei Yan glanced at the guards beside him, and the guards whispered, "The one in the middle is the king."

After hearing this, Wei Yan had no choice but to step forward, bow slightly and say: "I am Wei Yan, the last general, and I pay my respects to the king."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Xi turned around, walked over, pulled Wei Yan up, and asked with a smile, "Are you Wen Chang?"

He saw Wei Yan standing up straight. He was half a head taller than him, with long arms and legs. He was obviously very suitable for martial arts training. Wei Yan saw Yuan Xi looking him up and down and seemed very interested in him, so he quickly said, "That's right."

"I am a commoner, but I am where I am today, all thanks to your appreciation."

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "No, this is because Wen Chang has natural talent. He is like a needle standing in a bag. No matter where he is placed, he will be able to excel."

He pointed to the woman beside him and said, "This is Madam Mi. The Mi family is a noble family in Xuzhou. Now I am in charge of the caravan and the coastal trade routes."

After hearing this, Wei Yan hurried over to greet him. Yuan Xi pointed at Lu Lingqi and said, "This is also my wife, the daughter of Marquis Wen."

Wei Yan was slightly shocked and dared not to be negligent. He wondered what the king's intention was in introducing his family to him?
Unexpectedly, Yuan Xi's next words instantly made him sweat coldly on his vest, "Wen Chang should have heard the story of Wen Hou. I wonder what he thinks of Wen Hou?"

Wei Yan was paralyzed on the spot. This question could cost his life, right? How could he answer it?
Lu Bu betrayed his master twice, which made him notorious in this world where reputation is extremely important. Logically, I should use this to show my loyalty and rebuke Lu Bu for his betrayal.

But the person in front of him was Lu Bu's daughter. If he criticized Lu Bu, who knew if she would go back and persuade the king?

But if I praise Lu Bu, wouldn't it mean that I agree with Lu Bu's betrayal? Am I expressing my dissatisfaction with my lord Yuan Xi?

Wei Yan broke out in sweat on his forehead, thinking that maybe the king was looking for an excuse to punish him.

It doesn't make sense. I have never offended the king before, and I have made contributions after joining Lu Xun's army. The other party has no motive to make things difficult for me.
Just when Wei Yan was having trouble speaking, Lu Lingqi spoke up instead, "I want to talk to Madam Mi about something."

She wanted to pull Madam Mi away, but she heard Yuan Xi say, "You don't have to avoid it. After all, even if Wen Chang doesn't talk about it in front of you, people in the world will talk about it behind your back."

"Can you still silence the mouths of the people in the world?"

Lü Lingqi realized that Yuan Xi's question was meaningful and stopped immediately. Wei Yan seemed to be thinking about something. He felt that he could vaguely guess what Yuan Xi was thinking, so he said, "Your Majesty, what you mean is that as long as you act uprightly, you don't have to worry about what people in the world say?"

"Or does it mean that no matter what you do, you have to face the public's opinions?"

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "Wen Chang is very smart, not just a warrior. Has he ever studied before?"

Wei Yan said: "Although my ancestors were not from aristocratic family, they did have some military books and I have learned some of them."

After listening to this, Yuan Xi nodded slightly. Wei Yan's family background was indeed ordinary, and the military books he learned should be the simplest ones. However, Yuan Xi knew that Wei Yan had previously fought several battles to repel Cao Zhen, and he used troops in a very methodical way. It was obvious that Wei Yan had read the book thoroughly and was able to apply it flexibly.

It is said that because Cao Zhen was defeated so miserably, he was called back by Cao Cao, who said that he wanted to let the more powerful Cao Xiu take his place and open up the situation in Yuzhou.

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "Master Wen has not directly answered my question. How do you evaluate Marquis Wen?"

Wei Yan knew that he couldn't avoid what was coming, so he gritted his teeth and squeezed out four words from his mouth, "Wen Hou... is unfaithful."

He lowered his head, not daring to look at Lu Lingqi's expression, but heard Yuan Xi say, "What if, I mean what if, Marquis Wen is acting on imperial orders?"

Wei Yan was stunned. He was silent for a long time before he said, "Then he shouldn't abandon the emperor in Chang'an."

Yuan Xi asked, "What if the emperor betrayed him?"

Seeing that each question was more fatal than the last, Wei Yan thought to himself, "Maybe the king really wants to find an excuse to kill him?"
He calmed down and said, "If the king is unjust, he should repay the kindness before breaking up." Yuan Xi did not comment and said, "One last question."

"What do you think of the Yuan family, which has been receiving Han salaries for generations, but has now become the biggest rebel in the world?"

After these words came out, even Lu Lingqi couldn't hold it anymore. She scolded: "Husband, is this a question that a lord should be able to ask?"

Mrs. Mi couldn't help but smile bitterly. Among the female members of the family, only Lu Lingqi had the courage to say such words. But then again, Yuan Xi's question was a bit too much. Wasn't this forcing his subordinates to be at a loss as to what to do?
Wei Yan raised his head slightly and saw that Yuan Xi had a calm expression. He had an inexplicable feeling in his heart that if the other party wanted to make things difficult for him, he would never use such a straightforward approach.

He thought for a moment, then slowly replied: "Yan surrendered to the lord because what the lord has done over the years is better than Cao Cao in Yan's heart."

"If Cao Cao gains control of the world, the country will be in chaos, so Yan is just choosing a wise leader to serve."

"If the lord is like Cao Cao, Yan will not come out of the mountain."

Yuan Xi laughed and pulled Wei Yan to apologize, "These questions are really a bit difficult for Wen Chang."

"But Wenchang's answer has far exceeded my expectations. Initially, I just wanted to see if Wenchang could speak frankly."

"Wen Chang did not evade these questions at all, which shows that he is upright in his work."

"I hope that Wen Chang will remember what he said in the days ahead. As a king and his subjects know each other well, don't keep anything to yourself. You can always come to me and talk."

Wei Yan then felt relieved and immediately bowed and accepted the order.

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "Among my subordinates, there are only a handful of people who can discuss the issues that Wen Chang and I raised to this extent."

Lu Lingqi asked curiously, "Who is it?"

Yuan Xi said, "Kong Ming, Boyan, Zilong, and Guo Rang are just a few."

When Wei Yan heard this, he was shocked. Aren’t these the most core officials and generals of the King of Jin?

Why did the king trust me so much as soon as we met?

What he didn't know was that Yuan Xi had always been confused about Wei Yan's rebellion in later generations, because the whole thing was full of too many weird and unreasonable aspects.

In the biography of Wei Yan in the Records of the Three Kingdoms: Shu Shu: Biography of Liu Peng, Liao Li, Liu Wei and Yang, it is said that in autumn, Liang was ill and secretly made plans with the Chief Clerk Yang Yi, the Commander-in-Chief Fei Yi, and the Guard General Jiang Wei to retreat after his death, ordering Yan to cover the rear and Jiang Wei to take the second place; if Yan did not obey, the army would set out on its own. Liang died, but the death was kept secret. Yan sent people to spy on Yi and others, and then they wanted to follow Liang's plan, and the various camps led the army back one after another. Yan was furious, and before Yi set out, he led his troops to return south first, burning the pavilions and roads along the way. He occupied the Nangukou and sent troops to counterattack Yi and others. Yan's soldiers knew that the fault was with Yan, so no one obeyed his orders, and the army dispersed. Yan fled alone with several of his sons and fled to Hanzhong. Yi sent Ma Dai to chase and kill him, and then exterminated Yan's three clans.

The above is Chen Shou's own statement based on the history books of Shu Kingdom. The gist of it is that Wei Yan did not abide by the arrangements made by Zhuge Liang before his death, evacuated first without authorization and burned the pavilion road, and was eventually killed.

This statement was adopted by the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and then modified into a story about Wei Yan rebelling, blocking the entrance to the valley, and first sending troops to attack Yang Yi, which led to him being beheaded on the spot by Ma Dai.

But in fact, even according to this record, the official characterization of Wei Yan by the Shu Kingdom later was not a rebellion, but a power struggle.

Another version of the historical record is even more interesting.

Pei Songzhi, who annotated the "Records of the Three Kingdoms", quoted the Wei history book "Wei Lue" and gave another version of the incident.

Wei Lue said: Zhuge Liang was ill, and told Yan and others: "After my death, just be careful to guard yourself and be careful not to come back." He ordered Yan to take charge of his own affairs and leave with the funeral in secret. Yan then hid it, and when he reached Baokou, he announced the funeral. Liang's chief secretary Yang Yisu was not on good terms with Yan, and seeing Yan taking charge of military affairs, he was afraid that he would be harmed, so he spread the word that Yan wanted to lead his people to the north, so he led his people to attack Yan. Yan had no intention of doing so, and fled without fighting, so he was pursued and killed. The minister Songzhi believes that this is a rumor from the enemy country, and cannot be disputed with this biography.

This statement is very different from Chen Shou's record. Yang Yi's role and Wei Yan's role are completely reversed.

According to this theory, Wei Yan received Zhuge Liang's last order, and was ordered to lead the army back to Hanzhong. Yang Yi attacked Wei Yan first because of a personal grudge. Wei Yan did not want to fight, so he fled and was killed.

Yuan Xi could not judge which of the two statements was closer to reality based solely on his personal likes and dislikes, so he could only try to find the common points between the two statements and then derive the most likely conclusion.

Although these two statements are completely different in many aspects, they are similar in one point: both emphasize that Wei Yan did not rebel against the Kingdom of Shu, and that he had a personal grudge against Yang Yi from the beginning to the end.

Moreover, Wei Yan was one of the few people in Shu who had always been directly under Liu Bei's command. When Liu Bei became emperor, Wei Yan was the General Zhenbei and the Prefect of Hanzhong, with a higher status than Zhao Yun. Later, he was promoted to the position of Former Military Advisor, General Zhengxi, Governor of Liangzhou, Marquis of Nanzheng, and Envoy with Special Powers. The rank of Envoy with Special Powers alone was extremely rare, as it was a power that could execute officials below the rank of 2,000 stones, and it was only enjoyed by a few people like Zhuge Liang and Li Yan.

The fact is, during the Fifth Northern Expedition, Wei Yan was the absolute second most important figure in the army after Zhuge Liang, and the others were far inferior to him.

(End of this chapter)