Compared to Cao Song, his own father, Yuan Feng, was clearly much more virtuous.
No wonder the Han dynasty was on the decline—above, there was Emperor Ling, Liu Hong, such a muddle-headed ruler, and below, there were corrupt officials like Cao Song.
Yuan Shu suddenly felt that it was already impressive that the Han dynasty had managed to last this long.
However, since Cao Song was still Cao Cao's father, Yuan Shu remained very respectful and saluted him, saying:
"Nephew Yuan Shu greets Uncle Cao."
Cao Song quickly helped Yuan Shu up and said with a gentle smile:
"I was very close to your father, Zhouyang (Yuan Feng's courtesy name). When you come to the Cao family, it's just like returning to your own home.
Mengde, take your cousin around and let him see my grandson while you're at it."
Hearing this, Cao Cao responded, "Yes, Father."
Then he turned to Yuan Shu and said, "Gonglu, come with me this way."
With that, he led Yuan Shu down a small path toward the backyard.
Cao Cao didn't like dealing with guests in the main hall either; with his father and younger brother present, that was enough.
"Mengde, what's my grandnephew's name?" Yuan Shu asked as they walked.
At the mention of his son, Cao Cao's face showed a rare trace of tenderness as he said:
"My father named him Cao Ang, hoping that this little one will grow up to be a strong and upright man who can bring glory to the Cao family."
Hearing Cao Cao's words, Yuan Shu sighed internally:
Cao Ang was indeed outstanding—he could be considered both literate and skilled in martial arts, bearing much of his father's demeanor.
The military also greatly acknowledged Cao Ang, seeing him as the heir apparent to Cao Wei.
If he hadn't died young, he might have truly fulfilled Cao Song's hopes of revitalizing the Cao family.
But unfortunately, he had an unreliable father...
The Cao family placed great importance on their eldest sons and grandsons.
Young Cao Ang was placed in the most comfortable room, with several wet nurses attending to him.
Cao Cao led Yuan Shu into the room, where they saw little Cao Ang.
The baby was lying on the bed, kicking his little legs unconsciously.
His big eyes were curiously observing the world around him.
Yuan Shu suddenly had an idea—could he check Cao Ang's attributes?
Without hesitation, he quietly said to the system:
"System, check Cao Ang's attributes for me."
The system immediately responded:
"Ding! This individual's worldview has yet to form. It is not recommended for the host to check."
Oh? This was the first time the system refused to reveal attributes.
Yuan Shu said to the system in his mind, "Hurry up and check, I just want to see what attributes Cao Ang has."
The system replied, "If the host insists on viewing this individual, it will cost 1,000 reputation points."
1,000 reputation points was no small amount for Yuan Shu at the moment.
This made him hesitate—should he check or not?
In the end, curiosity got the better of him, and Yuan Shu gritted his teeth: "Check."
"Ding! 1,000 reputation points consumed. Host's current reputation: 2,700."
Hearing the system prompt, Yuan Shu felt a pang of regret.
With only 2,700 reputation points left, even exchanging for some small snacks would be difficult. He needed to start squandering more to replenish it.
"Ding! Retrieving Cao Ang's attributes for the host.
Talent Name: Cao Ang
Current Attributes:
Strength: 2, Leadership: 0, Intelligence: 3, Politics: 0, Charm: 70 (Extremely Cute), Luck: 70 (Born into a Wealthy Family)
Peak Cao Ang Attributes: Unknown. The talent has yet to mature and cannot be evaluated."
Seeing the system's results, Yuan Shu couldn't help but exclaim internally: What the hell?
1,000 reputation points... for this?!
He regretted not listening to the system's advice.
But regret was useless—the 1,000 reputation points weren't coming back.
This little guy's stats, aside from charm and luck, only added up to 5 points in total.
So this is what they mean by a legendary "battle five scum" (hopelessly weak in combat)...
Cao Cao noticed Yuan Shu staring intently at Cao Ang and laughed:
"Gonglu, do you like Ang'er?"
Hearing Cao Cao's question, Yuan Shu snapped back to reality and replied:
"Ah, yes! My grandnephew is just too adorable. I couldn't help but keep looking at him."
Cao Cao carefully picked up Cao Ang from the bed, making the little one giggle with delight.
He turned to Yuan Shu with a smile and said:
"Gonglu, having a son feels completely different. Why don't you have a child too?
Then he and Ang'er can play together, just like you and me."
Yuan Shu thought to himself: Just like you and me?
You spend all day swindling my money. Do you want your son to continue swindling my son as well?
Suddenly, Yuan Shu thought of the beautiful face of Miss Zou Rong and felt that having a child wasn't a bad idea.
But then he shook his head and dismissed the thought.
This era was different from the future. As a warlord aspiring to conquer the land, his firstborn had to be a legitimate heir to avoid unnecessary troubles.
The matter of having children could wait until he was properly married.
The two of them played with little Cao Ang for a while before leaving.
By this time, it was already close to the Shen hour (3 PM – 5 PM), and the banquet for Cao Ang's full-month celebration was about to begin.
Many guests had visited the Cao residence today, so Cao Song had arranged over a dozen banquet tables in the courtyard.
Fortunately, the Cao family's courtyard was spacious, and the weather was quite nice today.
As a result, the guests naturally divided into small circles, mostly sitting with those they were familiar with.
At Yuan Shu's table, everyone was naturally close to Cao Cao.
His elder brother, Yuan Shao, was also seated at this table.
Yuan Shao had clearly arrived right on time. Upon entering, he took his seat without greeting Yuan Shu, merely nodding at him as a simple acknowledgment.
Yuan Shu didn't mind and didn't bother talking to Yuan Shao either—he was happy to enjoy the peace and quiet.
After taking his seat, Yuan Shu began observing the guests.
Since these were all friends of Cao Cao, some of them were likely to become key figures in Cao Cao's future faction.
As the host, Cao Cao naturally had to introduce his friends after taking his seat.
He started with Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, as the Yuan family, with its four generations of high-ranking officials, was the most prestigious guest present.
Next, he pointed to a young scholar dressed in blue robes and introduced him to everyone:
"Gentlemen, this is my good friend, Xun You, courtesy name Gongda. He has been studying at the Yingchuan Academy and is one of its top scholars.
He has just recently returned after completing his studies, so I hope you will all get to know him better."
Xun You cooperatively stood up and gracefully saluted the crowd, saying:
"Yóu greets the gentlemen."
Xun You!
Yuan Shu's gaze immediately locked onto Xun You.
This was one of the Three Kingdoms era's boss-level strategists—the man whom Cao Cao would later call his chief advisor.
Yuan Shu was highly attentive to Xun You's presence and secretly spoke to the system:
"System, check Xun You's skills and attributes."
The system immediately responded:
"Ding! Retrieving the skills and attributes of the talent, Xun You."
"Search successful.
Talent Name: Xun You
Attributes:
Strength: 45, Leadership: 52, Intelligence: 95, Politics: 91, Charm: 65, Luck: 69"
"Xun You's Skills:
Strategic Planning (Awakened): Xun You's strategic skills are exceptional but require a wise lord to implement them. When assisting an enlightened ruler, his intelligence increases by 2 points; when assisting a mediocre ruler, his intelligence decreases by 2 points.
Brilliant Tactics (Awakened): Xun You excels in flexible and unpredictable enemy-countering strategies. When executing a cunning plan, his intelligence increases by 3 points."