Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1428 Life and Death
Guo Jia was being pulled by Yuan Xi, but he looked a little uncomfortable, "I have been playing bad for many years, I am ashamed that Your Majesty still remembers it."

Yuan Xi laughed, "Sir, you are one of my earliest team members, an important figure who carries on the tradition and opens up the future. Even Kong Ming was brought up by you. Without you, Jin would not be what it is today."

Guo Jia looked at the others who were all far away and whispered, "Your Majesty, have you heard about my health from Yuan Hua?"

Yuan Xi's grip on Guo Jia's hand suddenly tightened, "Mr. Yuan Hua, do you really think your illness is incurable?"

"How much time is left?"

Guo Jia said calmly: "Maybe a few months, maybe half a year, anyway it's almost the same."

Yuan Xi whispered, "Does your wife know?"

Guo Jia shook his head: "There is no need to tell her. Anyway, His Majesty has given her a lot of rewards, enough for her to live for the rest of her life."

Yuan Xi said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, Fengxiao, Guo Yi will always accompany Rui'er to study. I will not let your wife and children suffer."

Guo Jia laughed, "Of course I believe in Your Majesty, but it's a pity that we are just a little bit away from seeing Jin unify the world."

"However, with the current strength of Jin, even if they just pile up their counselors and generals, they can defeat Wei."

"The state of Jin has been changing rapidly over the years. I regret that I was so absurd when I was young. Otherwise, I could have lived a few more years and seen more new and interesting things."

Yuan Xi sighed, "Sir, your health is not good, so why don't we drink today?"

Guo Jia laughed, "Drink, why not?"

"In life, we should do things without regrets. Should I abstain from alcohol until I die just to live a few more days?"

After hearing this, Yuan Xi couldn't help but laugh and said, "Okay, I will get drunk with you today!"

Yang Xiu was talking to Zhuge Liang over there. When they heard the laughter, they both turned around. Yang Xiu said, "The Marquis of Weiyang is indeed your Majesty's earliest adviser and is deeply trusted by your Majesty."

Zhuge Liang sighed and shook his head. Yang Xiu asked, "What's wrong? Is the Marquis of Weiyang Ting ill?"

"Stargazing?"

Zhuge Liang could not help but sigh: "Dezu is still so good at guessing people's hearts."

"It's much more appropriate for you to be with His Majesty than to be with Cao Cao."

Yang Xiu said angrily: "Don't harm me. No matter how wise a king is, he doesn't want his subordinates to guess his thoughts."

"If I didn't know that you were an upright person, I would have resigned and retired now."

Zhuge Liang was amused by Yang Xiu's words, "You know your Majesty's character better than I do. Don't scare yourself."

"In recent years, Dezu has been with Your Majesty and has made many contributions to internal affairs."

Yang Xiu waved his hand and said, "Don't mention it. I have not had a good night's sleep since I followed Your Majesty. In a few years, I am afraid my body will not be able to bear it. Only Kong Ming can keep up with Your Majesty's pace."

"I can't compare to the intensity of your hard work day and night. Come on, let's drink!"

Over there, Zhen Mi was talking to Yang Xiu's wife Gao, but she saw that the four of them had already started drinking, and Yuan Xi and Guo Jia were drinking one cup after another. She couldn't help but shook her head helplessly. Guo Jia's wife Dong said carefully, "How about I go and persuade them?"

Zhen Mi smiled and said, "It's okay. Your Majesty hasn't drunk for a long time. Seeing Mr. Fengxiao probably reminded him of the past."

"When I married Your Majesty, Madam and Mr. Fengxiao were tricked by Your Majesty into coming to Jizhou. It has been more than ten years."

Mrs. Dong was quite touched. "Yes, but when the queen got married, she was bright and beautiful, and her name spread all over Jizhou. Now she is even better than before."

Zhen Mi couldn't help but laugh and said, "Everyone present here is of the same generation as Your Majesty, and they all have a long way to go in the future."

However, this statement did not come true. More than a month after the banquet, when the weather was about to warm up, Guo Jia caught a cold and fell ill. After the imperial physician arrived and tried to treat him, he was finally pronounced incurable and passed away.

Yuan Xi personally led all the officials to the funeral. He saw with his own eyes that Guo Jia's coffin was buried halfway up the mountain outside Yecheng. After the ceremony was over, he let everyone go.

He called Zhuge Liang to his carriage, and as the carriage started, he said, "It is really difficult to predict the length of one's life."

"Every time I think about the day in the future when I will also follow in Feng Xiao's footsteps and my consciousness will dissipate between heaven and earth, I feel overwhelmed by a huge sense of fear."

"The longer you live, the more you will feel the horror of death."

Zhuge Liang thought for a moment and said, "Birth, aging, illness and death are the laws of nature. I hope Your Majesty can be more open-minded and not follow the footsteps of the Qin Emperor and Han Emperor Wu who believed in alchemists and made elixirs recklessly."

Yuan Xi sighed: "I know, I won't believe those unreal things."

"But I still have a lot to do. I hope to see these things come to fruition as much as possible in my lifetime."

Zhuge Liang said in a deep voice: "I will do my best to help your majesty."

Yuan Xi nodded and said, "The latest water pump has been improved several times, and it is almost ready."

"We'll see the results in the next few days. If they're good, we'll make them as soon as possible and load them onto the first batch of ships for testing."

Zhuge Liang said, "Except for the baggage, the first batch of sea vessels and baggage equipment are almost ready and are now in the Huangxian shipyard." Yuan Xi said, "I will be going to Jicheng soon, so I'll leave this matter to the Prime Minister."

Zhuge Liang thought that Yuan Xiqi actually appointed Xiahou Yuan as the captain, and couldn't help but smile bitterly and said, "Your Majesty has a brilliant idea, and you really trust Xiahou Yuan."

Yuan Xi said leisurely: "Because he still cares about the retreat of the Xiahou family."

"Ocean voyages require men of great generalship, but they are too dangerous, and there is a high risk of death. I really can't bear to let my own men go out to sea."

"Xiahou Yuan was able to survive this desperate situation on the battlefield, which means he is very lucky. Maybe he can really succeed this time."

"As for supplies, give him whatever he wants. Compared to what I want, these are nothing."

Zhuge Liang agreed, but then he heard Yuan Xi say: "Feng Xiao's death also made me understand that when flowers are ready to be plucked, they should be plucked immediately, rather than waiting until there are no flowers left to pluck empty branches."

"I have already told the Queen about your concubine, Madam Huang, and she is very supportive. Prime Minister, please do not refuse."

Zhuge Liang said helplessly: "It is not impossible to take a concubine, but I cannot afford a woman from the Yuan clan, not to mention that she is from a public official. Your Majesty will surely be criticized by the world. It is better for me to find someone with a normal status."

Yuan Xi sighed, "That girl won't marry anyone but you, what can I do?"

"But don't worry, Prime Minister. I have already thought of a solution. Let Madam Guo Jia recognize her as her adopted daughter, and then she can just change her surname."

Zhuge Liang was stunned. Is this possible?
Yuan Xi looked confused, "I was forced into no choice. I've been waiting for you for five or six years. I've never seen anyone so stubborn."

Zhuge Liang saw that he couldn't refuse, so he nodded helplessly.

Yuan Xi looked at the sky outside the window and said with emotion: "Kong Ming, when you are alive, sometimes you should stop and look at the scenery, which is also a way to live a long life."

"The world is undergoing tremendous changes, and the process of man transforming nature is the greatest miracle in the world."

The morning light shone on the Bronze Sparrow Tower. A few spring swallows flew across the sky. Their crisp cries mixed with the flapping of their wings carried into the room. Yuan Xi, who was lying on the couch, slowly opened his eyes, only to feel a splitting headache and groan.

Zhen Mi was sitting at the desk by the window, correcting Yuan Rui's homework. When she heard the noise behind her, she turned around and stood up to help Yuan Xi sit up, saying, "Your Majesty is awake?"

Yuan Xi felt his mouth dry and asked, "Is there any water?"

Zhen Mi quickly poured a tea bowl of warm water from the copper stove next to her and handed it to Yuan Xi. Yuan Xi took a sip and sobered up a little. He recalled the scene last night and sighed, "Am I drunk again?"

Zhen Mi nodded and said, "Your Majesty drank alone last night after returning home. He has been drunk twice in this month."

Yuan Xi said: "Last time I was happy to see Feng Xiao, and last night I was sad because of his death."

"He's not even forty yet."

"I haven't been drunk in more than ten years."

Zhen Mi sat quietly aside and said, "Madam Wu..."

Yuan Xi looked out the window and saw a swallow carrying straw in its mouth, building a nest under the eaves. "As I get older, I've seen more separations and deaths, but sometimes I still can't let it go."

"No wonder. As long as you are a human being, there is no one who is not afraid of death."

"I even feel that being able to survive on the battlefield all these years is a miracle blessed by God."

Zhen Mi's heart tightened, and she said, "Every time your majesty goes to war, I..."

"I know," Yuan Xi gently pulled Zhen Mi into his arms, "There shouldn't be such dangerous things in the future."

"The world is now almost at peace, and there is no need for me to take risks myself."

"I will go to Jicheng in a while, just to rearrange the layout and appointments of Jicheng. After all, Yecheng is not a place for us to live in for a long time. When Jin is unified in the future, the capital will still be in Jicheng."

"Only when the North is stable can the Central Plains guarantee true stability. In three years or so, I estimate that I will be able to establish a new era name in Jicheng and take over your leadership."

"During this time, you can focus on educating Rui'er."

Zhen Mi said softly: "I will always wait for your majesty."

She suddenly remembered something, "Yesterday, His Majesty held a funeral for Mr. Fengxiao, and a letter came from Jicheng. It was from Madam Lu."

Yuan Xi drank water, "What is she going to do?"

Zhen Mi handed over the letter, and Yuan Xi took it with one hand. He unfolded it with a trembling hand and read the words carefully. He frowned at first, then relaxed his brows. "She has thought clearly from the beginning to the end."

In the petition, Lu Lingqi wanted to change her child's surname to Lu and asked for a fief in Wuyuan, Bingzhou, which was tantamount to giving up the succession rights of the Yuan family.

Zhen Mi sighed, "Mrs. Lu has made a great sacrifice, but she didn't have to do so. Why would I care?"

Yuan Xi said: "No, it could be to protect oneself, or it could be to stay away from unknown conflicts in advance. Living a peaceful life is not necessarily a bad thing."

"On the contrary, you can't avoid it. You will always have to face the trend and the whirlpool."

(End of this chapter)