Welcome to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms podcast. This is episode 40.

When we left off last time, Yuan Shao was dead, and his three sons quickly took to squabbling

with each other and getting smacked around

by Cao Cao. When push came to shove and Cao Cao was on the brink of destroying them, however,

the three brothers put their differences aside for just long enough to hold down the fort in Ji

province and prevent Cao Cao from breaching the city.

Cao Cao then decided that the best course of action was to give these guys a little breathing

room and wait for them to turn on their most hated enemy, each other.

So Cao Cao marched his army off to invade Liu Biao's Jing province instead.

The sons of Yuan Shao did not turn on each other immediately.

They first took a few minutes to congratulate each other on finning off Cao Cao.

But after Yuan Xi, the middle brother, and Gao Gan, their cousin, left for their respective

home provinces, Yuan Tan, the eldest brother, and Gao Gan, their cousin, left for their respective home provinces,

Yuan Tan, the eldest brother, and Yuan Shang, the youngest, began to plot against each other.

Yuan Tan said to his advisors, Guo Tu and Xin Ping,

I am the eldest son, but I did not get to inherit my father's title.

Yuan Shang was born to my stepmother, and yet he got the inheritance.

I cannot let this go.

My lord, you should move your troops to outside the city, Guo Tu said.

Then invite Yuan Shang and his advisor Shenpei to your camp for a feast, where you can ambush

and kill them.

Then all will be taken care of."

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