Pang Ji followed Xu You back to Yecheng, and met Shen Pei and Yuan Shang on the way.
When Yuan Shao heard that Xu You had only brought Pang Ji back, but not Yuan Tan, he was very unhappy.
When Xu You repaid him, Yuan Shao's words were full of deep blame for Xu You.
But Xu You obviously didn't take this matter seriously.
After he calmly listened to Yuan Shao's rebuke, he began to describe the specific circumstances of his trip to Xuzhou in detail.
When talking about Yuan Tan's matter, in order not to show his incompetence, but also to try to involve the issue in the fact that he had been bribed by Mi Zhu, Xu You immediately cast a careless eye on Yuan Shao.
It can also be said to be a white lie.
Xu You showed a sad expression: "General, when I was in Pengcheng, I had a serious discussion with the pottery merchant about the eldest son's belonging. However, no matter how hard I pressed, the traitor Tao merchant would not give me a positive answer.
He didn't even tell me that he wanted to use the eldest son in exchange for anything with the lord. This matter is really strange and really puzzles Xu You. Please forgive me, lord!"
After saying that, he knelt on his knees and kowtowed as if pounding garlic.
When Yuan Shao heard this, he couldn't help but feel a little confused.
If what Xu You said is true...then the pottery merchant caught Yuan Tan and didn't use Yuan Tan to negotiate terms of exchange with him? Why is this happening?
Do you simply want to raise a son for Yuan? Someone named Tao can't be such a mean person, right?
Seeing that Xu You was so cooperative, the judge was even more happy. He didn't care whether Xu You's words were true or false, so he hurriedly seized the opportunity to go out and remonstrate: "Ming Gong, this matter is not difficult to understand! Pang Yuantu is in Xuzhou
He has been detained by the pottery merchant for three months. Although he is a prisoner, he may not be imprisoned in the name of the potter's gentleman. He must have heard something about it. If the lord wants to know the truth, you might as well ask him.
Yes."
Yuan Shao suddenly woke up, slapped his forehead and said: "This makes sense! Call Pang Ji to come quickly!"
In order to show his generosity, consideration and favor, after Pang Ji returned to Yecheng, Yuan Shao did not let him come to visit him immediately, but sent him home first to avoid the pain of being separated from his family, and only met him alone.
Xu You.
But now, Yuan Tan's life or death was at stake, and Yuan Shao could no longer pretend to be generous, so he had to summon Pang Ji for questioning.
Soon after the guard who went to deliver the order left, he saw Pang Ji hurriedly running into the hall, paying homage to Yuan Shao and saying: "Pang Ji has seen the general! Thanks to the great general's grace, Ji Fang is proud to escape the thief's leader.
There is really no way to repay the kindness of the general in this life, I can only do the hard work of dogs and horses!"
Yuan Shao looked him up and down and said: "Yuan Tu has suffered... You missed everything this time. How was your stay in Xuzhou?"
Pang Ji looked around at everyone. When his eyes met with Shen Yu's for a moment, he saw that the other party nodded to him almost without leaving any trace.
Pang Ji knew that now was the time to talk nonsense.
His heart skipped a beat, and he pretended to sigh: "Thanks to the great blessing of the eldest son, Pang Ji did not suffer much in Xuzhou this time. On the contrary, he was treated with courtesy and respect by the pottery merchants, and his life was considered peaceful... But it was...
It’s a shame, eldest son.”
"Thanks to Tuo Xiansi?" Yuan Shao frowned and asked in confusion: "What do you mean by this? Come with me quickly?"
Pang Ji gritted his teeth and made up a lie, saying: "The eldest son is unparalleled in his wit and scheming. After arriving in Xuzhou, he got into trouble with the thief Tao Shang and even called him brother. The Tao Shang treated the eldest son with courtesy and favor.
He has a small banquet every three days and a big banquet every fifth day. Every day he and the eldest son spend every day reading and shooting in pairs, talking about their feelings, and commenting on the world. The two of them are not brothers, but they are better than brothers. Their relationship is very close..."
What Pang Ji said was actually barely true, with a little polish added, but to Yuan Shao's ears, it had a different flavor.
The real situation is that the pottery merchant deliberately tried to find a way to befriend Yuan Tan, but from what Pang Ji said, it was as if Yuan Tan was a useless person and took the initiative to flatter the pottery merchant and provide shoes.
Therefore, the Chinese language is broad and profound, and a few sentences can kill you.
After hearing what Pang Ji said, Yuan Shao was so angry that his hands hidden in his sleeves trembled a little. His handsome and mighty face became a little distorted, and if you look closely, it even looked a little ugly.
"This traitor!"
When the judge saw that the heat was coming, he immediately admonished: "My lord, don't be angry! The eldest son must have his own reasons for acting like this. He is trapped in the enemy's hands to protect himself. It is reasonable to be hypocritical and submissive. After all, the eldest son is also a human being.
ah."
His words sounded like persuasion, but in reality they were adding fuel to the fire, indirectly saying that Yuan Tan's qualifications were mediocre.
"Spineless thing!" Yuan Shao stood up and walked back and forth in the hall: "As the son of the Yuan family in Runan, I couldn't even show any strength after being captured by mistake, and even flattered the opponent who captured me alive.
! When Yuan was in Luoyang, he was not weak in the face of Dong Zhuo! How can such a villain with no ambition be worthy of being my eldest son! How can he take up my great cause in Hebei in the future!"
When Shen Pei and Yuan Shang heard this, they couldn't help but feel overjoyed.
This plan is done!
But at this time, Jushou stood up.
"Ming Gong, there are some things that we cannot jump to conclusions about. We have to send someone to Xuzhou to find out the truth."
Ju Shou's words were extremely fair, but they were not pleasant to Yuan Shang's ears.
Could this bastard be with Yuan Tan? What are you messing with!
Although Yuan Shao was angry at Yuan Tan for not living up to expectations, he was still his son after all. He also hoped that there was something wrong with what Pang Ji said, so he followed Ju Shou's suggestion and sent a large number of Hebei spies to Pengcheng to inquire.
…
Now it was New Year's Eve, and the pottery merchant really followed his preamble and invited Yuan Tan into his house to celebrate the New Year with his people.
Tao Shang first introduced Yuan Tan to Tao Qian and Wang Yun who came back from the Taoist temple outside the city, and then introduced him to his family members. He also coaxed the young Tao Ji, who was learning the language, to call him Uncle Yuan Tan.
Of course, Tao Ji didn't know how to scream at all, she just shouted "Aba Aba" and made Yuan Tan foam in the face.
The family spent the New Year's Eve happily. Yuan Tan was deeply moved by the enthusiasm and goodwill of the Tao family.
So cozy.
During the evening banquet, the pottery merchant specially invited Yuan Tan to taste a newly popular staple food.
It is said that this thing was invented by Zhang Ji, the medical officer under his command, and was improved by the potter himself. It is called Crescent Moon Chaos, and it can also be called dumplings.
Yuan Tan put a dumpling in his mouth with some hesitation and chewed it, his eyes couldn't help but shine brightly.
"Is it delicious? Brother?" the pottery merchant said with a smile.
"It's delicious! It's delicious! The southeastern land is not only beautiful with beautiful mountains and rivers, and has outstanding people, but it also has such a unique taste! My dear brother, I am really lucky to be born in a land with beautiful mountains and rivers. It is much better than the bitter cold people in the north.
." Yuan Tan nodded in praise while eating.
The potter chuckled and said, "That's natural. Brother, do you know that there is a saying here that the dumplings are not as delicious as they are, but they are not as fun as my sister-in-law."
When Yuan Tan heard this at first, he laughed out loud, but after a while he thought about it and couldn't be happy anymore.
Just because the potter called him "brother", his head glowed green.
When the family dinner was being held happily, Pei Guang, who was on duty on New Year's Eve, came to the pottery merchant to report.
The potter put down his chopsticks and walked out of the hall with him.
"Taifu, there have been many Hebei people from other places in the city recently. They must be from Hebei, but the number is so large that it is a bit unusual."
The pottery merchant raised his eyebrows slightly, thought for a while, and suddenly became happy.
"It seems that these people are here for Yuan Tan... Haha, it is indeed right to let Pang Ji go back first. This old boy belongs to Yuan Shang's family. There is nothing good to say from his mouth!"
Pei Guang suddenly said: "It turns out that the Taifu made a decision to befriend Yuan Tan!"
Tao Shang said: "In this way, my plan has come true! I tell you not to allow anyone to take action on the details of Hebei... Let the school affairs office find a way to spread the news about my banquet for Yuan Tan to celebrate the New Year at Tao Mansion today. It would be best if
Let’s do some more plump touches.”
Pei Guang didn't know why, and asked curiously: "Master, what is plump decoration?"
"Pig!" The potter patted Pei Guang on the head and said angrily: "Do you understand the rumors? Is it okay to lie?"
Pei Guang shook his head sincerely: "I have followed my father's instructions since I was a child and will not lie."
Tao Shang took a deep breath and said helplessly: "Pei Guang, it's a blessing that you followed me in these troubled times! If a kind person like you were put into society, I'm afraid it wouldn't just be called Pei Guang.
, I’m afraid you’ll have to change your name by then.”
"What should I change my subordinate's name to?"
"Change your name to Pei Qingguang, or Pei Guangguang."
Pei Guang: "..."
"You still don't know how to do such a simple thing? Let people use the reason that Yuan Tan is celebrating the New Year with me today to spread some rumors, such as Yuan Tan becoming my father as his godfather, and becoming brothers with different surnames with Wang Yun, etc.
…Do you understand these rumors?”
Pei Guang suddenly realized, but said: "Master, if Yuan Tan becomes a brother with Wang Situ, wouldn't you have to fall down the hierarchy? When you see Yuan Shao later, wouldn't you have to call him grandpa?"