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Yuan Shang (177 – 207 AD) was the third son of Yuan Shao, an influential warlord and noble who rose to power during late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of China.
It is documented that Yuan Shao favoured Yuan Shang due to his abilities and good looks, and was believed to be his father's preferred choice for succession of his throne and inheritance of the majority of the Yuan family's resources and territories. However, Yuan Shao was never able to finalise details regarding these matters and, following his death in 202, many within the Yuan camp believed that Yuan Shao's eldest son, Yuan Tan, should assume control of the Yuan Family's assets, as tradition dictated. The relationship between Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang quickly erroded, with a power struggle forming between the two brothers.
Yuan Shao's former advisors and officers, once colleagues and friends, took their respective sides, and the political conflict escalated into war. Yuan Tan, however, soon allied himself with his father's rival and enemy, Cao Cao, who had withdrawn his armies from Yuan territory after correctly predicting that the Yuan brothers would destroy each other if no other enemy was present. Yuan Shang was subsequently defeated by the combined strength of Yuan Tan and Cao Cao, and forced to seek refuge alongside his second brother, Yuan Xi, who at that time was the protector of Youzhou. The two brothers were then forced to flee to Liaodong, where they were betrayed by Liaodong's governor, Gongsun Kang, who executed them to appease Cao Cao.
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