Can I get to the other side?.

Chapter 58: Phoenix Fate! The Emperor and Empress! (Two in One)

In the Yuan family, Yuan Shao, as the head of the family, has absolute authority.

No matter how favored Yuan Shang was, he could not and dared not disobey Yuan Shao's will, so even if he was extremely unwilling, he could only suppress it in his heart.

Seeing Yuan Shang kneeling on the ground in silence, Madam Liu felt distressed. She went forward to help Yuan Shang up, patted the dust off his body, and then said earnestly: "Your father is doing this for your own good. He loves you and wants to find a family with a deeper background for you to marry into."

"You are already such a grown-up, you can no longer act arbitrarily, and everything must be based on the interests of the family."

Mrs. Liu certainly felt sorry for her youngest son Yuan Shang.

But she knows better what is more important.

As the eldest wife of the Yuan family, she has to consider the entire Yuan family.

Yuan Shang had calmed down by now, his expression returned to normal, he nodded and said, "I understand, I will follow my father's arrangements."

"Mother, I'll take my leave now."

After saying this, he bowed to Mrs. Liu and turned to leave.

Looking at her young son's back, Mrs. Liu sighed.

She could see that Yuan Shang still had resentment in his heart, but there was nothing she could do because family interests always came first.

……

After leaving the villa, Yuan Shang did not return to his own residence, but left the Yuan Mansion and took a carriage to the official residence.

Shen Pei and Feng Ji were handling affairs in the lobby of the official residence. When they saw Yuan Shang coming, they wanted to report to him about government affairs, but Yuan Shang ignored them and walked in without saying a word.

This made the two of them look at each other in bewilderment.

"Third Young Master, what's wrong?"

Feng Ji was full of confusion and asked Shen Pei.

Normally, Yuan Shang would talk and laugh with them when he met them, and was very close to them, but his reaction just now was completely different from usual.

Shen Pei didn't know the reason, so he said, "Let's go and take a look."

He could see that Yuan Shang was in a very bad mood.

What happened?

The two of them went to the back hall together, and then they saw Yuan Shang sitting alone behind the table, with his chin in his hand, in a daze, not knowing what he was thinking about.

Shen Pei and Feng Ji looked at each other. Shen Pei was about to ask something when Yuan Shang suddenly spoke first.

"Mr. Shen."

Yuan Shang cast his gaze towards Shen Pei, his eyes slightly reddened, "Tell me, am I really not as good as my second brother?"

Faced with this sudden question, even Shen Pei, who was very sophisticated, was caught off guard. He didn't know how to answer for a moment and could only ask, "Why do you say that, Third Young Master? What happened?"

Yuan Shang sighed and said directly without hiding anything: "Today I went to visit my father and happened to see my mother discussing with him about finding a bride for my second brother and me."

"Father plans to have my second brother marry the Zhen family of Zhongshan."

Upon hearing this, Shen Pei and Feng Ji were both shocked.

The Zhen family of Zhongshan is a well-known and prestigious family in Jizhou. They have excellent foundation and influence. Most importantly, they control a large amount of wealth and can be said to be quite luxurious.

The lord actually let the second son marry into the Zhen family?

"What about you, Third Young Master? Which daughter does the Lord intend to have you marry?"

Feng Ji asked, since they were discussing a marriage, it was impossible that they would marry only for Yuan Xi and not for Yuan Shang.

Yuan Shang gritted his teeth and said, "This is what makes me angry! Father only allowed my second brother to marry this Zhen girl, but not me!"

"He said I wasn't stable enough and wanted to help me find a more suitable wealthy family for marriage. How am I not stable enough? Isn't the Zhen family big enough?"

In Yuan Shang's view, all the talk about not being stable enough and helping him find a better family marriage were just excuses!

It’s an excuse for father and mother to favor the second brother Yuan Xi!

After listening to this, Shen Pei and Feng Ji finally understood why Yuan Shang was in a bad mood. It turned out that it was because of this incident.

Shen Pei then began to comfort him, "Please calm down, Third Young Master. The Lord has always loved you, so how could he favor one over the other? He must be looking for a better family for you..."

"But I want to marry the daughter of the Zhen family!"

Yuan Shang interrupted Shen Pei with a look of annoyance.

He was tired of hearing this kind of talk.

Shen Pei was speechless for a moment. He finally realized that his son did not really want to marry the daughter of Zhen, but simply could not swallow this humiliation.

Just as the two were thinking about how to persuade Yuan Shang, a voice suddenly came: "If the Second Young Master marries the Zhen family and gets this great help, I'm afraid he will be able to suppress the Third Young Master even more in the future."

Shen Pei, Feng Ji and Yuan Shang's faces changed when they heard this.

They all turned their eyes towards the door.

The person who spoke was a scholar in plain clothes.

Seeing this man, Shen Pei frowned and asked, "Guo Zhubu, what do you mean by this?"

He recognized this commoner scholar, who was also one of his staff members.

It's just that he is very inconspicuous on weekdays. He only came to Yuan Shang's official residence to do some work a few days ago, and there is not much contact between them on weekdays.

The scholar in plain clothes was Guo Jia. He smiled and said, "What do you mean? The judge should know clearly."

"The wealth and influence of the Zhongshan Zhen family in Jizhou are beyond the reach of ordinary wealthy families. They are second to none in Jizhou. Jizhou is the base of the lord, where the lord has been operating for the longest time and has the deepest foundation. Its importance is self-evident."

"If the Second Young Master has the help of the local wealthy family Zhen, what will the Third Young Master use to compete with the Second Young Master for Jizhou in the future?"

"My lord, I'm afraid there is another deeper meaning behind this marriage."

Yuan Shang's expression changed immediately after hearing this. He couldn't help but asked Shen Pei and the others nervously, "Gentlemen...is what Master Guo said true?"

The ownership of Jizhou actually represents the ownership of power of Yuan Shao's lineage.

Whoever of the three sons of the Yuan family can control Jizhou will be the legitimate heir!

Yuan Shang initially thought that this marriage was just his father's favoritism, but after Guo Jia mentioned this, he realized that something was wrong.

Shen Pei had a complicated expression and remained silent;
Feng Ji also looked embarrassed.

In fact, they also had such concerns in their hearts, but they dared not say it out loud because it was groundless speculation, which would easily cause conflicts between the two brothers Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang, and then arouse Yuan Shao's anger.

As a retainer, what do you mean by trying to sow discord between the two brothers?
The consequences were not something the two counselors could bear.

And seeing the reactions of the two, how could Yuan Shang not understand?

"Father actually, actually..."

Yuan Shang clenched his teeth, with unspeakable anger in his eyes!

No wonder he let his second brother Yuan Xi marry the daughter of the Zhen family.

It turns out that he has been secretly identified as the heir!
The so-called helping him find a more suitable marriage partner were all excuses, excuses to deceive him!

At this moment, Yuan Shang felt deeply angry at being deceived.

Then he suddenly stood up from behind the table, came to Guo Jia, held his hands tightly, and almost begged: "Please help me, sir!"

Shen Pei knew the situation but did not say anything, which made Yuan Shang extremely disappointed.

However, it was the Chief Secretary Guo who had just surrendered a few days ago who said what Shen Pei dared not say, which gave him hope!

"Don't panic, Third Young Master. There is still room for maneuver."

Guo Jia said with a smile, and at the same time glanced at Shen Pei and Feng Ji. "It's not that Shen Zhizhong and Feng Biejia don't want to tell the Third Master, it's just that as a minister, it's really inconvenient to talk about this kind of thing."

"And this is just speculation. The lord may not really mean this."

He took the initiative to explain for the two of them.

Yuan Shang nodded, and then said to Shen Pei and Feng Ji: "Don't worry, gentlemen. I understand your difficulties and will not blame you for it."

"Although this is just speculation, it does not rule out the possibility that my father has secretly designated my second brother as the heir. Since you two gentlemen have chosen to help me, then help me to the end!"

"I will never forget this kindness!"

Yuan Shang said this and bowed deeply to the two of them.

Both the words and the attitude are very sincere.

"Third Young Master, you are too serious!"

Shen Pei and Feng Ji quickly returned the greeting and helped Yuan Shang up.

Yuan Shang has already said this, if they don’t help, they would be ungrateful.

After this matter is revealed, the next discussion will be much simpler.

That is how to stop Yuan Xi from marrying Zhen’s daughter!

Yuan Shang invited Guo Jia, Shen Pei and Feng Ji to the study room behind the hall and began to discuss the matter.

"Mr. Guo, you just said that there is still room for maneuver in this matter, but do you have a plan in mind?"

Yuan Shang asked Guo Jia respectfully.

Guo Jia smiled and said, "It is very difficult to get the Lord to agree to the Third Young Master marrying the daughter of the Zhen family. It is basically impossible to do so. But it is very easy to stop the Second Young Master from marrying the daughter of the Zhen family."

"Please enlighten me, sir!"

Yuan Shang's eyes lit up and he asked quickly.

In fact, he really had no feelings about arranged marriages. It didn't matter whether he married the girl from the Zhen family or not, but the main thing was that he couldn't let his second brother Yuan Xi marry her!
Guo Jia did not answer directly, but asked: "If my guess is correct, the daughter of the Zhen family that the second young master is going to marry is Zhen Mi, the youngest daughter of the former head of the Zhen family, Zhen Yi?"

"That's her."

Yuan Shang nodded.

Upon hearing this name, Shen Pei was somewhat surprised and asked, "So it's her?"

Yuan Shang asked doubtfully, "Mr. Shen has also heard of her?"

Feng Ji, who was standing by, explained, "Third Young Master, you may not know this, but this Zhen girl is quite famous in Jizhou. Not only is she extremely beautiful, but she is also extremely intelligent."

"I heard that Zhen Mi loved reading when she was nine years old. She was well-informed and could immediately understand what she had read. She was also very precocious. A few years ago, when the country was in turmoil and the people were in hardship, she suggested that her brother open the granary to release grain to help the people. Because of this, Zhen Mi gained great prestige, and the family's wealth increased instead of decreasing. She was truly an extraordinary woman."

Feng Ji briefly introduced the deeds of this Zhen girl to Yuan Shang.

It was the first time that Yuan Shang heard this. He was surprised and at the same time even more jealous of his second brother Yuan Xi.

"Sure enough, my father is partial to him!"

Marry such an outstanding woman to Yuan Xi.

Isn't this partiality?
Taking a deep breath to suppress the resentment in his heart, Yuan Shang continued to ask: "Then how does Mr. Guo plan to stop this marriage?"

Guo Jia smiled and asked Shen Pei, "I wonder if Shen Zhi has ever heard a rumor about Zhen Mi?"

"Is it that prophecy? I've heard of it."

Shen Pei nodded, then he suddenly realized something, looked at Guo Jia in surprise and said: "Do you want to..."

"Yes."

Listening to the cryptic conversation between the two, Yuan Shang was confused.

What prophecy?

What do you want to do?
What are they talking about?
Speak human language!
Yuan Shang had no choice but to look to Feng Ji for help, but Feng Ji smiled bitterly and spread his hands to indicate that he didn't understand either.

This is a tacit understanding and dialogue between smart people.

Shen Pei looked at Guo Jia with complicated eyes, and then explained to Yuan Shang: "In addition to her early wisdom, there is also a very widely circulated prophecy about this Zhen girl."

"A famous fortune teller once read her face and said that she was extremely noble and had a phoenix destiny. She would become an empress in the future."

"what?!"

After hearing this, Yuan Shang widened his eyes, unable to hide his shock.

With the fate of phoenix, she has the appearance of becoming an emperor or empress!

Doesn’t this mean that Zhen Mi can become the queen in the future?
Guo Jia continued, "This prophecy is very famous, and you, the Third Young Master, can use it to prevent the Second Young Master from marrying the Zhen family."

"You only need to spread the news of the marriage, hire people to discuss the prophecy, and create public opinion. In this way, given the lord's character of cherishing his reputation, he will definitely not let the second son marry Zhen Mi."

In this era, people are still quite awed by and believe in divination, physiognomy, fortune-telling and other methods, and there are indeed some people who are very capable and skilled in these methods.

The fate of an empress is either to marry the emperor or to marry someone who will become the emperor in the future.

Now that Yuan Shu has just proclaimed himself emperor, you, Yuan Shao, have let your son marry Zhen Mi, who is destined to be emperor or empress. What does this mean?
Do you want to be emperor too?

It would be fine if no one mentioned this prophecy, but if someone mentioned it and deliberately spread the discussion, Yuan Shao would be pushed directly to the cusp of the storm!

"This is a great plan!"

Yuan Shang was very happy, but at the same time he was worried, and hesitantly said: "But if this happens, won't the marriage between my Yuan family and Zhen family be interrupted?"

"Father would be furious if he knew I did this."

On the one hand, Yuan Shang wanted to prevent the marriage, but on the other hand, he felt that doing so would harm the interests of the Yuan family, and he was also afraid of being scolded by Yuan Shao.

After all, he is still a descendant of the Yuan family.

"This is simple."

Guo Jia didn't even think about it and directly gave a solution: "The third young master's goal is to prevent the second young master from marrying the Zhen family, but he doesn't want to harm the interests of the Yuan family."

"In this case, the Third Young Master can directly suggest offering Zhen Mi to the Emperor. This way, the Zhen family will naturally be won over. Who can still say that you are wrong?"

Zhen Mi was presented to the emperor, and the emperor is now under the control of the Yuan family, who else can Zhen Mi lean towards if she doesn't lean towards the Yuan family?

"Mr. Talented!"

After listening to this, Yuan Shang thought about it carefully. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Guo Jia's suggestion was perfect, and he couldn't help but feel very satisfied.

Then he said to Guo Jia with great emotion: "Sir, your strategy is so brilliant, why have I never heard of your name before?"

Guo Jia said modestly: "My lord, you have many advisers under your command. I am really insignificant. Shen Zhizhong and Feng Biejia are far more talented than me."

"I just happened to have a good plan this time, so I offered it. I hope it can help Third Young Master relieve his worries."

After hearing this, Yuan Shang admired Guo Jia even more and said with a smile, "I will need to rely on you more in the future."

"Haha, I will do my best."

Shen Pei, who was standing aside, frowned as he watched Guo Jia and Yuan Shang chatting happily together.

It’s not that he was jealous or anything, but for some reason, he always felt that the strategy proposed by Guo Jia was a bit strange.

But this is clearly a perfect strategy.

What's the problem?

　Give me some monthly tickets, don't force me to kneel down and beg you

　　
　
(End of this chapter)