Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1460 Thoughts
The next morning, Yuan Xi asked Zhen Mi to call Yuan Rui and Sun Shangxiang over. When the two came in, they knew that Yuan Xi wanted to ask questions, so they bowed and said, "Greetings, Father," and "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Yuan Xi had seldom seen the two of them in the past few years, and at this moment he suddenly realized that they had grown up without him noticing.

Sun Shangxiang was seventeen or eighteen years old, with a slender figure, and she became more and more graceful. Although Yuan Rui was three years younger, he was tall, even taller than Sun Shangxiang, and he inherited the good qualities of Yuan Xi and Zhen Mi, and had a handsome face and figure.

But Yuan Xi found that the two were very far apart, and thought that there was something wrong, so he said, "I heard from the Queen that a marriage was arranged for you two, but someone seems to be unwilling?"

Yuan Rui glanced at Sun Shangxiang and saw that she was keeping her head down and not saying anything, so he gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty, we both feel that this marriage is not appropriate. I hope Your Majesty will accept my order."

After hearing this, Yuan Xi's face turned unhappy, and he said, "How can we treat national affairs as a joke? If you two are not compatible, why didn't you mention it to me all these years? Why did you have to wait until you were about to get married to tell me?"

Yuan Rui shuddered, "Your Majesty, I have always regarded her as my elder sister since I was a child. There is no romantic relationship between us."

After hearing this, Sun Shangxiang also said, "I think so too. Your Majesty, please take back your order."

Yuan Xi laughed angrily and said, "Okay, you guys have your own ideas."

"Do you know that this marriage is to maintain and strengthen the relationship between the Central Plains nobles and the Jiangdong nobles? It is precisely because of this that the Jiangdong nobles have been working hard over the years. If the marriage is broken off at this time, and if there is unrest in Jiangdong, will you two go to deal with the aftermath?"

"Do you think that these national affairs are all child's play?"

Sun Shangxiang bit her lip and said, "Your Majesty, isn't Prince Chen also your heir?"

"He is in Shouchun, and he has already represented your majesty's attitude. Why do you insist that I marry the prince?"

Yuan Xi stood up angrily, "Because this is my promise to your mother!"

"She kept talking about your marriage when she was alive. If I can't do it, how can I explain it to her in her grave?"

The two of them immediately lowered their heads in fear. Seeing that Yuan Xi was rarely so angry, Zhen Mi hurried over to persuade him gently, but Yuan Xi was still angry and said, "Go back and reflect on yourself. When you have figured it out, come and see me again!"

After driving the two away, Zhen Mi saw that Yuan Xi was still angry, so she gently advised: "Your Majesty, calm down. It was my fault that I didn't enlighten them all these years, and as a result, something happened."

Yuan Xi sighed to Zhen Mi, "It's not your fault. I just thought wrong."

"A few years ago, I thought that if I raised them together, they would naturally fall in love, but I didn't expect that they would develop a sister-brother relationship. I was angry just now, but I was actually angry at myself."

"I always focused on competing for the world, but neglected my family affairs. I only have myself to blame for my mistakes."

Zhen Mi said softly: "I can only hope that they change their minds, but I always feel that things are not that simple."

Yuan Xi asked: "Why do you think so?"

Zhen Mi said, "I have watched them grow up over the years, so I can naturally notice some slight differences."

"How about your majesty talk to them separately in private?"

After hearing this, Yuan Xi said, "Indeed, my family has been the only one that has the final say over the years, but I have ignored their own ideas. In the final analysis, I am also an incompetent father."

"Let me talk to Rui'er first."

The next day, when Yuan Rui was called over, he was still a little afraid. Yuan Xi said, "Yesterday, I was a little harsh. No matter if he is the emperor or the crown prince, no matter if he is from the royal family or not, he is first and foremost a living person."

"Although the royal family puts state affairs first, it doesn't mean that they should be heartless. I didn't give you a chance to speak yesterday. I was inconsiderate."

"There's no one else here right now. If you have any ideas, just tell me. Don't hesitate."

After hearing this, Yuan Rui's expression relaxed a lot. He said, "Your Majesty, I will tell you now."

"First of all, the character and qualities of the Sun family girl are both top-notch choices. She is indeed qualified to be a princess."

"But my child has grown up with her since childhood, and it has been more than ten years now. The two are too familiar with each other. I have always regarded her as my elder sister and have no other thoughts."

"Moreover, Sun has a strong personality and has practiced martial arts since she was young. From her words and actions, I always feel that I will be outshined by her. The choice of the princess should be a woman who can assist me and who is not so arrogant."

"This is my personal opinion. If state affairs are more important, I can tolerate it. But when it comes to state affairs, I think Sun is even less suitable."

Yuan Xi raised his eyebrows, "Oh?"

"Then tell me, why is it not suitable?"

Yuan Rui mustered up his courage and said, "If the princess is too strong, it may lead to instability in the harem in the future, and the hen may crow at dawn."

"And Sun's identity is extremely sensitive. Forgive me for being blunt, but the power that my father has given Sun is already too great."

"My second brother has already been crowned the King of Chen, which is enough to win over the Jiangdong nobles. If my son marries Sun now, what will the Central Plains nobles think?"

Yuan Xi said in a deep voice: "I am very pleased that you can think of this step."

"But it is precisely because I need your second brother to win over the Jiangdong nobles that I need you to have someone who can also win over the Jiangdong nobles. That person can only be Xiang'er." "Only if you marry her will the Jiangdong nobles balance their bets on both sides instead of investing all of them on your second brother."

Yuan Rui said, "Forgive me for being blunt. If that is the case, then there is no need to marry Sun. Wouldn't it be the same if he married another woman from a Jiangdong noble family?"

"And in this way, the power of the Sun family as an in-law has expanded too much. I don't doubt the character of the Sun family, but who can guarantee that other members of the Sun family and the Wu family will have ambitions in the future and be tempted to covet the imperial power? What will happen then?"

"I have studied the history of the Han Dynasty with the Prime Minister. It has only been thirty years since the fall of the Han Dynasty, starting with General He Jin. I don't want to repeat the same mistake."

"As the crown prince, I must plan ahead in order to protect the foundation laid by my father. I will not let go of even the smallest hidden dangers, let alone such a major event as choosing a concubine."

"Not to mention that the emperor is guarding the country's gate, which is the gate of the north. If the heir of a country is born in the south, how can the people of the north be willing to defend the border? Can I transfer soldiers from the south to guard the border?"

"At the beginning, Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu violated the agreement with the Hebei gentry and deposed Guo Shengtong, which led to the separation of the people of Hebei. Hundreds of years later, the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out and the people of Hebei rebelled. This is a lesson for us."

"It is precisely because I put state affairs first that I oppose this marriage. I hope your Majesty will understand!"

After hearing this, Yuan Xi pondered for a long time before showing a look of relief, "You can think of these things, you have really grown up."

"To be honest, I feel like I owe a lot to your second brother and Xiang'er's biological mother, Madam Wu, so I've been thinking about making up for it."

"Because of this, I really didn't think enough about your marriage. Please go down first and let me think about it carefully."

Read more latest popular novels at 6.9*shuba!

After hearing this, Yuan Rui said goodbye and walked out. He took two steps and suddenly raised his head and said, "I still have a question in my mind, but I don't know whether I should talk about it or not."

Yuan Xi said, "You say."

Yuan Rui whispered, "Was Sun Quan secretly executed by our father?"

Yuan Xi did not answer immediately. The atmosphere fell silent for a moment. Yuan Rui felt beads of sweat on his back, and then he heard Yuan Xi slowly say, "If it were you, what would you do?"

Yuan Rui said without hesitation: "He must be killed."

"Sun Quan is a man who is indecisive, ambitious, and disloyal. Even after he surrendered, he still has ulterior motives. The State of Jin does not need such a person."

After he finished speaking, he lowered his head. Yuan Xi, who was sitting at the top of the table, did not say anything else, but continued to tap the table lightly with his fingers. Yuan Rui felt the sweat on his forehead slowly seeping out, and he became more and more uneasy.

At this time, Yuan Xi said, "Raise your head."

Yuan Rui mustered up his courage and looked up, only to hear Yuan Xi say, "When the King of Hannan, Xuande, passed away, he left a will. I asked your mother to teach you. Do you remember?"

Yuan Rui said without hesitation: "Remember."

Yuan Xi said: "Carry it on your back."

Yuan Rui immediately recited: "...Do not commit an evil deed no matter how small it is, and do not refrain from doing a good deed no matter how small it is. Only virtue and morality can win the hearts of others. Your father's morality is poor, so do not imitate him..."

Yuan Xi waved his hand, "Just these few words, I won't recite anything else."

"Liu Xuande acted upright throughout his life. His high moral standards made him a role model for the times, but he was not a saint either. He did some unjust things, so he told future generations not to imitate him."

"Those few things he did were to lay a good foundation for his descendants, so he had to do the helpless actions of a wicked man. He hoped that his descendants would be benevolent rulers and not follow his example and do unjust things."

"I am the same. I don't want to leave some hidden dangers for you to deal with. Since anyone will get their hands dirty, I will just do it."

"But I don't want you to do this kind of thing. After all, using methods used in times of chaos in times of peace will gradually corrupt people and lead to eternal damnation."

Yuan Rui knelt down and said, "Father, I will remember your painstaking efforts."

Yuan Xi sighed, "I understand your thoughts. It's a pity that we didn't have a good talk before, so that things have developed to this point. This is my negligence."

"But I am very pleased that you can think of so many things. You are fully qualified to be the crown prince."

"Go back and pack your things, and come back to Jicheng with me in a few days to officially complete the ceremony of establishing the crown prince in Jicheng."

"You will follow me for the next two years. At first, I thought the battlefield was dangerous and didn't want you to go there, so I neglected to train you. Now I will teach you by words and deeds, so that you will know the responsibility of being a monarch."

Yuan Rui's face lit up with joy, and he kowtowed, saying, "I will definitely live up to your expectations!"

After Yuan Rui left, Yuan Xi stood up and looked at the sky outside the window, feeling emotional. Children must grow up eventually, and since they will fly into the sky sooner or later, it is time for them to leave the warm nest.

Seeing that it was still early, he wanted to ask someone to call Sun Shangxiang over, but he heard from the palace maid that she had gone to Queen Zhen's room early that morning.

Yuan Xi thought about it, then stood up and went straight to Zhen Mi, thinking that it would be easier to ask Zhen Mi in person.

But when he walked outside Zhen Mi's room, he heard voices inside, and the tone seemed quite excited.

(End of this chapter)