Sorry for missing yesterday update. Got busy
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Besides these main figures, over a hundred wandering warriors under Wang Yue's command also set out in full force, significantly expanding the size of the cavalry.
Zhang Cheng, Yuan An, and a group of Yuan Shu's trusted stewards and servants, anyone capable of riding a horse, all came along.
It could be said that this journey was Yuan Shu's entire current force moving out.
Fortunately, they were traveling under the banner of the Wanshan Merchant Guild and carried a large amount of supplies, disguising themselves as a trade caravan, which prevented any suspicion.
For the cavalry, a journey of 200 li was not far. After about three to four hours, they arrived at the Yuan family estate.
"Young Master, you have arrived. This old servant has been awaiting you for a long time."
At the entrance of the estate, the Yuan family's chief steward, Yuan Lang, personally came forward to greet Yuan Shu.
Yuan Lang was a middle-aged man of around forty years old, dressed in black steward attire, with a capable and efficient demeanor.
He was one of Yuan Feng's most reliable aides in handling family affairs.
To facilitate the handover of several Yuan family estates to Yuan Shu, Yuan Feng had personally assigned Yuan Lang to integrate the estates.
Yuan Lang had set out a few days in advance and had already organized the personnel and resources in an orderly manner.
Upon receiving the news of Yuan Shu's arrival, he had been waiting at the entrance for two hours.
Yuan Shu dismounted and politely said to Yuan Lang:
"Uncle Lang, I appreciate your efforts."
As the chief steward of the Yuan residence, Yuan Lang's loyalty and capability were beyond doubt.
Having watched Yuan Shu grow up, Yuan Lang was more than worthy of being addressed as "Uncle Lang."
Yuan Shu had once used his system to assess Yuan Lang's attributes and found that his intelligence and political skill were both above 80.
For such a person to willingly serve as the Yuan family's steward demonstrated the deep foundation of the Yuan family, which had produced high-ranking officials for four generations.
Yuan Lang smiled at Yuan Shu and said:
"Young Master, there is no need to be so polite."
Then he turned to the stewards and servants of the Yuan family and ordered:
"Settle the Young Master's cavalry and welcome him into the estate!"
These stewards and servants had served the Yuan family for generations, displaying unwavering loyalty.
At Yuan Lang's command, they stepped forward to lead the horses, unload the supplies, and assist the cavalry in entering the estate.
Yuan Lang then said to Yuan Shu:
"Young Master, you have traveled the whole day and must be exhausted.
This old servant has already prepared a banquet in the estate to welcome and refresh you."
Yuan Shu nodded. Seeing the orderly arrangements around him, he was very satisfied with Yuan Feng's planning.
If not for his father sending Yuan Lang, it would have taken him several days to organize the estate himself.
Moreover, it would have been a tiresome effort, far less comfortable than now.
Yuan Lang had prepared a feast in the estate's guest hall. The hall was quite spacious, easily accommodating twenty to thirty people, and Yuan Shu's trusted subordinates all took their seats inside.
The other warriors and stewards were also properly arranged and served with fine food and wine.
Yuan Shu sat in the main seat at the center of the guest hall.
To his left sat Xi Zhicai, and to his right sat Yuan Lang.
The others were seated in order below them.
After several rounds of wine and a variety of dishes, their exhaustion had mostly faded, and Yuan Shu began to discuss business.
"Uncle Lang, I came here to train my personal guards. Has the recruitment of soldiers been arranged?"
Yuan Lang replied, "Young Master, there are a total of 15,000 able-bodied young men from the estates, all gathered here and ready for your selection at any time."
Yuan Shu nodded in satisfaction and continued:
"Uncle Lang, I've just arrived and am not yet familiar with the situation of the estate. Please enlighten me."
Yuan Lang respectfully responded:
"It is this old servant's duty to assist the Young Master.
The primary function of these estates is to manage the Yuan family's land and mines,
as well as to train household soldiers, stewards, maids, and servants for the Yuan family.
Essentially, all of our Yuan family's retainers come from these estates.
These people have served the Yuan family for generations and have received great favor from the family, their loyalty is unmatched by outsiders.
Our Yuan family has many such estates, but these are the ones closest to Luoyang,
so the Master assigned them to you.
Originally, there were five estates connected together,
but to make it easier for you to manage, I have already integrated them into one in the past few days."
After hearing Yuan Lang's explanation, Yuan Shu now had a general understanding of the estate's situation.
He continued asking, "Uncle Lang, does the newly integrated estate have a name?"
Yuan Lang chuckled and said:
"Young Master, our Yuan family has so many estates that we never bother naming them.
However, now that this estate has been assigned to you by the Master, it is considered your private property."
If the young master is interested, naming this estate would be fine as well.
Hearing this, Yuan Shu couldn't help but secretly click his tongue.
An estate like this, with some training, could raise thousands of elite soldiers.
In times of chaos, having such an estate would be enough as a foundation to rise.
The Yuan family actually has many such estates, to the point where they don't even bother naming them.
The heritage of four generations of high-ranking officials is truly terrifying—no wonder they are the foremost noble family in the land.
It's no surprise that in history, Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were able to amass hundreds of thousands of troops in such a short time—they must have relied on these estates.
Thinking carefully, those two were truly disappointing. With such a strong foundation, they still ended up failing one after another.
Yuan Shu shook his head inwardly, thinking to himself that those two were even better at squandering wealth than he was.
Now that such a valuable asset had fallen into his hands, he would make full use of it.
Yuan Shu smiled at everyone present and said:
"Since that's the case, what should I name this estate? Give me some suggestions."
Ju Yi was the first to speak: "This is the lord's estate, why not call it 'Gonglu Estate'?"
Yuan Shu said, "Gonglu Estate is fine, but does anyone have a better suggestion?"
Xu Rong cupped his fists and said, "Since the lord plans to train soldiers here, why not call it 'Wuwei Estate'?"
Xizhi Cai, who was sitting nearby, shook his head and said:
"'Wuwei Estate' is inappropriate. We are training soldiers in secret, and this name would be too easy for others to notice."
Hearing this, Xu Rong quickly apologized:
"I did not think it through. Please punish me, my lord."
Yuan Shu smiled at Xu Rong and said:
"I asked everyone to speak freely—what crime is there in that, Xingyao?"
Seeing that Yuan Shu did not blame him, Xu Rong felt at ease. He raised his cup and said:
"Even if I misspoke, I should still be punished. I will drink as a forfeit."
With that, he drank his cup of wine in one go, drawing laughter from everyone.
After the lighthearted moment, Yuan Shu turned to Xizhi Cai and asked:
"Sir, do you have any good ideas?"
Xizhi Cai thought for a moment and said:
"Since my lord is training soldiers here in secret while using the Wanshan Trading Company as a cover, why not name the estate 'Wansheng Manor'?"
"First, the name contains 'Wanshan,' so we can claim it as a commercial property of the trading company, reducing suspicion about military training.
Second, 'Wansheng' means 'ten thousand victories,' which can boost our army's morale."
Yuan Shu was overjoyed upon hearing this and thought to himself that when it came to naming things, he really couldn't rely on these military men—it had to be Xizhi Cai.
Just look at how well Xizhi Cai explained it.
So he immediately decided: "Sir is absolutely right. From now on, this estate shall be called 'Wansheng Manor'! (Victorious Mountain)"