Chapter Twenty-Six: Sworn Brothers

  (PS: Two updates today, the second update will be in the evening.)

  "What do you mean by this, my son?" Even Tao Qian, with all his cunning and experience, couldn't help but be taken aback by Tao Ying's response, and asked in surprise: "Ying'er, since you've already decided to support me in establishing an heir, why are you now advising me to establish a legitimate heir, thereby jumping into Zhongmou Gong's trap?"

  "Father, I suggest that this heir designation be different from the usual method of designating an heir." Tao Ying smiled and said: "The usual way of designating a first-in-line heir is either to designate one in advance or to do so on one's deathbed. Both methods have drawbacks and can easily be exploited by others. The method you suggest, child, is to secretly designate an heir."

  "How can we secretly establish him as the heir?" Tao Qian hastily asked.

  "Please, Father, have an iron box made and install three copper locks." Tao Ying didn't fear taboos and directly suggested: "Then, Father, gather all officials and publicly place the document of succession in the box, lock the iron box, and affix a seal. Next, publicly hide the iron box on top of the beam in the main hall of Father's governor's mansion. Give each of the three keys to one of the three trusted high-ranking officials of Xuzhou. After Father passes away, these three men can then publicly open the iron box, take out Father's document of succession and read it aloud, confirming Father's successor!"

  "Excellent!" TAO Qian's political talent was absolutely more than a hundred times that of his military talent. After listening to TAO Ying's few words, TAO Qian immediately slapped his thigh and said with joy: "My son's plan is excellent! In this way, not only will I get rid of the entanglement of all officials, but also in the future, I won't have to worry about the transmission documents being altered or forged, ensuring that Xuzhou will be passed on to the person designated by me!"

  "At the same time, it can also make a few people feel sick at once." Tao Ying said with an extremely sincere and smiling expression: "The child suggests that before Father takes action, he can summon Miao Bieji alone for a private conversation, and then Father can publicly announce that he made this decision after listening to Miao Bieji's suggestion. In this way, Xiaopei, who is eager to inherit Xuzhou, will not be able to help but suspect Miao Bieji."

  Tao Qian couldn't help but reveal a joyful expression, and laughed loudly: "Ying Er, your 'Gentleman's Army' name seems to be somewhat undeserved?"

  "The child is only using the other person's method to control their own body, and was forced to come up with this inferior plan." Tao Ying laughed even more foolishly and said: "The child dares to suggest again, Father's three keys should be secretly given to three high-ranking officials of Xuzhou, but not a single one can be given to Mi Bie Jia. At the same time, Father must set up a fake appearance, making everyone think that Mi Bie Jia has one key. In this way, Mi Bie Jia will be tongue-tied in front of Lord Xuande."

  "Hahaha……!" Tao Qian burst out laughing, patting Tao Ying's shoulder and said with a smile: "Ying'er, how come your father didn't think of letting you take office earlier? If you could have taken office a few years earlier, your father wouldn't have had to work so hard."

  Tao Ying humbly declined again, but Tao Qian laughed more and more happily, repeatedly saying: "Good, good, my son's plan is indeed wonderful. As your father, I will listen to you, let's do it this way!"

  At this point, Tao Qian suddenly stopped laughing and smiled at Tao Ying, asking: "Ying'er, on the letter of abdication, whose name do you want me to write? Yours or your elder brother's?"

  "The child is not a sage, of course, he hopes his father will write down the child's name." Taoyi replied without batting an eyelid, then bowed and said: "But Xuzhou is my father's foundation, my father can decide who to pass it on to, I have no right to ask. So whether my father chooses my brother or me, or even Zhongmou Gong, I will follow the order and assist them with all my might."

  Tao Qian smiled again, very satisfied with his son's hypocrisy. After thinking for a moment, Tao Qian asked Tao Ying again: "Son, you suggested that I shouldn't give any of the keys to Mo Bie Jia. I'll listen to you, and now I'll test you. In your opinion, who do you think I will give the three keys to?"

  The child then ventured to guess his father's thoughts. Tao Ying knew that Tao Qian was testing himself, and he didn't need to hide his clumsiness in front of Tao Qian, so Tao Ying quickly replied: "If the child is not mistaken, among the three keys, General Cao Bao, the chief general of Xuzhou, will definitely get one. The Chen family, a prominent family in Xuzhou, should also have one. As for the third key..."

  At this point, Tao Ying hesitated for a moment before adding: "The third one might be General Cao Hong or perhaps General Xu Geng of Xiapi, who also has the qualifications to hold one."

  "The first two guesses were correct, but the third one was not." Tao Qian smiled and shook his head, saying: "Xu Gao doesn't need to be given anything. He is Cao Jiao's deputy and has always listened to Cao Jiao and his father. Since Cao Jiao already has one, there is no need to give him another. As for Cao Hong, although he is the captain of our family's account and is responsible for safeguarding our family's imperial edict, over the years, in order to help his father with matters, he has offended countless powerful families and officials in Xuzhou, and his reputation is extremely notorious. Except for relying on our Tao family, no matter who he relies on, he cannot guarantee his wealth and glory, and may even be worried about his life. Therefore, his loyalty to our Tao family is beyond doubt, and Father doesn't need to add insult to injury by giving him another key that represents status and position."

  "Father is wise, the child admires him to the utmost." Tao Ying's flattery was truly heartfelt, and Tao Qian's words also gave Tao Ying great inspiration. After closing his triangular eyes and thinking for a moment, Tao Ying suddenly opened his eyes and blurted out: "Could it be that Father wants to kill two birds with one stone and have the third key kept by Ji Duwei Zang Ba?"

  "My son is brilliant! He understands it at once!" Tao Qian applauded loudly and smiled happily: "Ying'er, you are making your father look at you with new eyes more and more. Tell me, how do you plan to kill two birds with one stone?"

  "Qi Duwei Zang Ba, from a humble background, has never been valued by the Xu state aristocracy." Tao Ying replied quickly: "At the same time, Zang Ba is also a person with a strong personality, and the Xu state aristocracy cannot tolerate him. He also looks down on the Xu state aristocracy, which leads to his resentment towards them. As a result, he has a bad relationship with his father, who values family status. Rather than going to Xu state to suffer the disdain of the wealthy and powerful families, he would rather live in Kaiyang, struggling to make ends meet. His father is dissatisfied with him, but can do nothing about it."

  "Now, I am in a precarious situation with my vital energy severely damaged and surrounded by enemies on all sides. I urgently need the powerful force of Zang Ba to supplement me, so my father wants to take this opportunity to win over Zang Ba, let him participate in the establishment of Xu State's heir, entrust him with important tasks, raise his status in Xu State, satisfy his vanity and self-respect, draw closer to him, and eventually incorporate his troops into our own."

  Tao Qian fell silent again, staring at Tao Ying for a long time without speaking. In his heart, he was secretly calculating, "Ying'er's talent and strategy are far superior to those of his older brother, indeed my ideal successor. But why is Ying'er the second son? If I were to depose the eldest and install the youngest, what would Shang'er think? What would he do?"

  "Second brother! Second brother! Second brother——!"

  Suddenly, a loud shout interrupted Tao Qian's contemplation. Immediately afterwards, Tao Qian's eldest son, Tao Shang, rushed in like the wind, stumbling and staggering to Tao Ying's face. Without waiting for Tao Ying to get up and bow, he hugged him tightly and exclaimed with sobs: "Second brother! Second brother! My good second brother, you've finally condescended to come back! Do you know how much I've missed you? When you returned to Xuzhou, why didn't you say a word in advance? Your foolish elder brother could have gone to welcome you!"

  Yelling, Taoshang suddenly hugged Taoying and burst into loud sobs, his longing for his brother overflowing with emotion. Taoying was also deeply moved - he had guessed that the invitation from the Cao brothers to a banquet was actually a plot to do something treacherous, and he had deliberately let Cao Hong inform Taoshang just to test whether his elder brother had such thoughts. He wanted to see if Taoshang could still remember him, his younger brother whom he hadn't seen for over three months, in the face of temptation from the Cao brothers. Now, not only had Taoshang come immediately, but he had also rushed over with one shoe missing and was hugging Taoying so emotionally. Taoying finally understood that he indeed had a good elder brother.

  "I was worried for nothing." Seeing the emotions of Tao Shang towards Tao Ying, Tao Qian felt moved and delighted, and couldn't help but chuckle: "This old man has been worrying for nothing, worrying for nothing indeed."

  Rare true feelings, Tao Shang and Tao Qian hugged each other and cried bitterly, recounting their longing for each other. The sky had already darkened, and Tao Qian ordered someone to bring wine and dishes, and in the back room, he shared a happy reunion with his two sons. It was only then that Tao Qian and Tao Ying realized that Tao Shang hadn't eaten either. When Cao Hong sent someone to deliver the news to Mi Fu, Tao Shang had been drinking and immediately threw down his cup and chopsticks and rushed out of Mi Fu. No matter how hard Mi Zhu and Mi Fang tried to stop him, they couldn't. So not only did Tao Shang not eat his fill, but he also didn't even get to drink enough wine.

  "I'm afraid I've disturbed the gathering of seniors and juniors, it's my fault." After listening to Tao Shang's introduction, Tao Ying raised his wine cup with a very apologetic expression and said: "I'd like to offer a toast to my senior, please forgive me for any offense."

  "Dear brother, we are brothers of the same flesh and blood, why speak such polite words?" Tao Shang smiled and clinked cups with Tao Ying to take a drink. After putting down his cup, Tao Shang smiled again: "Besides, eating with Zou Jizhong's family is also uncomfortable. Even if you, second brother, didn't send someone to deliver the message, I wouldn't be able to enjoy the wine at the Zou residence."

  "Why?" Tao Ying asked with great curiosity: "Since Mo Bie invited his brother to dinner with sincerity, why did his brother say that drinking is not pleasant?"

  "What sincerity is this? The Hongmen Banquet!" Tao Shang let out a loud hum, "I thought it was something else, but when I arrived at the Zou Mansion, I found out that those two brothers wanted to persuade me to contend for the position of heir. They even said that as long as I opened my mouth, they would use their shoulders to carry me to the position of heir."

  "What did the elder brother say in response?" Tao Ying asked calmly.

  "My foolish brother directly told them that the younger brother's talent is a hundred times better than mine, so when Father chooses an heir, he should choose the younger brother first." Tao Shang frankly replied: "My foolish brother also asked Zou Jue and Zou Fang brothers to write a memorial to Father, requesting him to choose the younger brother as his successor. I will also speak in front of Father and request that Father make the younger brother the heir. As a result, those two brothers immediately changed their expressions."

  Tao Ying and Tao Qian exchanged a sly glance, both secretly laughing in their hearts. They thought to themselves: what's the point of flattering someone who doesn't appreciate it? What's the use of making eyes at someone who can't see? The Zou brothers are just like that - flattering those who don't appreciate it, making eyes at those who can't see!

  "Brother, I have something to say first. The position of the eldest son is yours, don't be modest with me." Tao Shang said sincerely to Tao Ying: "Although I am stupid, but I know myself well. In the future, Father can only pass on the position to you, and Xuzhou can be peaceful, our Tao family can also prosper more. If you are modest, Brother, and want to give up the position of heir, I will definitely ruin the ancestral business of the Tao family, so it's my sincere request to you, just take the position as heir."

  "Brother, you mustn't say that." Tao Ying smiled wryly, "Since ancient times, there have been distinctions between superior and inferior, and a sequence among brothers. How could I, the younger brother, dare..."?

  "Shut up." Tao Qian interrupted Tao Ying's hypocritical humility, with a seemingly smiling yet scolding tone: "You two unfilial sons, your father is still sitting here in good health, and you're already discussing matters after his death? Is there anyone else in the world who has sons like you?"

  "The son is unfilial, please father punish him." Tao Shang and Tao Ying were both startled, and they quickly got up together to apologize.

  "Alright, get up." Tao Qian waved his hand and said: "The matter of establishing the heir, from now on you two are not allowed to mention it again! Also, don't forget that your father has already proposed twice to give Xuzhou to Lord Xuande, so apart from you two brothers, your father still has a third choice, no need for you two brothers to push and yield here."

  He said, Tao Qian pointed at Tao Shang again and ordered: "Shang'er, you remember, in the future, if Cao Pi and Cao Zhi mention the matter of establishing a successor in front of you, you can tell them that their father has not made up his mind yet and is not very satisfied with the performance of you two brothers. It is possible to let Xuande Gong three let go of Xuzhou."

  "Father, is Second Brother so virtuous? Why then would Father want to give Xuzhou to an outsider?" Tao Shang asked with a puzzled expression.

  "Is your second brother really virtuous?" Tao Qian also couldn't help but ask with a mix of anger and amusement: "How can I not see it? It's rare that your ability to judge people is even better than mine!"

  "The child dare not." The pottery merchant was startled and quickly shut his mouth.

  "Right." Tao Ying suddenly remembered something important and asked Tao Shang in a hurry, "Brother, I almost forgot to ask you about something. Today, when Mo Bie invited you to dinner, did he mention anything about marriage?"

  "What marriage? What marriage?" Tao Shang was even more confused.

  "It's okay, those two rascals didn't use their charm on me, this silly brother. Otherwise, I would really be embarrassed to compete with this silly brother for her." Tao let out a sigh of relief and smiled: "I've heard that Mo Bie's sister, Mo Zhen, is as beautiful as a flower, and she's just the right age, 28 years old. And since you haven't gotten engaged yet, I thought Mo Bie would take this opportunity to bring up the topic of marriage."

  "There isn't." The pottery merchant shook his head and replied: "The Cao brothers only urged foolish brother to seize the eldest son's position, but didn't mention anything about marriage."

  "Ying'er, you suddenly asked about Miao Bie's sister, has our son taken a liking to her?" Tao Qian interrupted and asked.

  Tao Ying didn't dare to answer, and only smiled foolishly. The Tao merchant opposite him applauded and laughed loudly: "Second brother, no wonder you asked about my marriage! It's settled, the younger sister of Mo Bianjia, Mo Zhen, I've seen her once too, she's indeed beautiful and charming, elegant and virtuous, and with you, second brother, it's a match made in heaven!"

  "No wonder my son refused General Cao Jue's proposal, it turns out to be like this." Tao Qian suddenly realized and smiled: "It's good, since my son has made up his mind, how can I as a father not fully support him? It just so happens that I was preparing to summon Mi Zhu tomorrow, at which time I will bring up the matter of marrying your daughter to my son in person. Please ask your sister to marry my son."

  "That......" Tao Ying's face turned bright red as she twisted and turned, saying: "That child thanks Father then."

  "Don't thank me yet, success or not is still to be said, I'm just trying my best to help you get an opportunity." Tao Qian smiled and muttered: "This is also an opportunity for your brothers."