Three Kingdoms: Ten Times Speed, Diao Chan Says I'm Too Fast

Hanyang Commandery, Ji County.

With the first snowfall of winter.

The entire Hanyang County was covered in snow, and the land was a pale white, draped in silver.

Two more braziers were added to the study in the prefect's mansion, but it was still not enough to completely ward off the severe cold outside.

Later generations all know that the Ming Dynasty fell during the Little Ice Age.

But few people know that the Eastern Han Dynasty was also caught in the gap of a Little Ice Age with chaotic seasons.

Winters are getting colder and colder, and sometimes it even snows in June.

Before arriving in Liangzhou, Duan Yu hadn't had this feeling.

But since arriving in Liangzhou, this feeling has become increasingly apparent.

Climate is one of the important factors in the rise and fall of a dynasty.

A dynasty with a mild climate throughout the year and no major natural disasters tends to decline more slowly.

However, a dynasty with erratic temperatures and frequent natural disasters will inevitably decline and collapse.

The most direct and impactful effects of natural disasters are famine and disease.

And coincidentally, the Eastern Han Dynasty was in such an environment.

This era also has a general name.

The Chaotic Era!

During this period, having nothing else to do, Duan Yu began to supplement the history of the beginning of the Eastern Han Dynasty and earlier in the prefect's mansion.

According to some historical materials that Duan Yu found.

Temperature and weather fluctuations in the Eastern Han Dynasty had already begun during the Xin Dynasty.

Before the establishment of the Eastern Han Dynasty, in the first year of the Tianfeng era of the Xin Dynasty, the weather had already begun to gradually worsen.

The Book of Han: Biography of Wang Mang records that in April, frost fell and killed the grass and trees.

In other words, in April, a sudden frost killed all the tender buds of grass and trees that had just sprouted in spring.

This weather is completely abnormal.

And just one year later, in the second month of the third year of Tianfeng.

The Kanto region, which should have been experiencing springtime with blooming flowers and the revival of all things, was instead hit by a strong earthquake and snowstorms.

The Book of Han: Biography of Wang Mang records that an earthquake occurred, followed by heavy rain and snow, which was especially severe in Guanzhong. The snow was so deep that it reached a depth of ten feet, and bamboo and cypress trees withered.

In February, when spring was in full bloom, the Guanzhong region was hit by a strong earthquake, as well as heavy rain and snow. In the deepest places, the snow accumulation could reach ten feet.

Just one more day passed, and by the fourth year of Tianfeng Si's reign, records show that in August, the cold weather was so severe that people could freeze to death.

Duan Yu was also surprised when he saw these records.

The Qiang people began their migration from Jiuquan and Zhangye towards Guandong in the early Eastern Han Dynasty.

The only reason the Qiang people migrated at that time was due to the pressure of their living environment.

From its establishment until the rise of the Red Eyebrow Army, the Xin Dynasty suffered from severe natural disasters almost every year.

In the early Eastern Han Dynasty, the harsh weather of the Xin Dynasty only lasted for a period of time. In the following decades, the temperature gradually improved.

This period was also the most stable period of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

However, this kind of weather hasn't completely subsided; it's only decreased.

When Yuan An, the ancestor of the Yuan family of Runan, arrived in Luoyang, he encountered a blizzard.

After the blizzard, the people of Luoyang came out to clear the snow from in front of their homes.

Yuan An had never seen anything like this before, so he did not go out to shovel snow.

The patrol soldiers passing by Yuan An's house assumed that Yuan An had frozen to death at home.

With the harsh climate, land yields decreased, newly sown seeds and seedlings froze to death, and people contracted diseases due to the drastic temperature fluctuations.

Typhoid fever.

Why did Zhang Jiao's talisman water spread so widely?

It's not because Zhang Jiao's talisman water is particularly effective.

Rather, it was the thirteen provinces of the Han Dynasty, where too many people suffered from illnesses such as typhoid fever.

Duan Yu remembered that the Treatise on Febrile Diseases was written by Zhang Zhongjing, the medical sage of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

It is evident how many people in the world today are suffering from illness and famine.

Duan Yu had read the Records of the Three Kingdoms and the Romance of the Three Kingdoms before.

But those only contain descriptions of heroes and beauties, heroes vying for supremacy, seizing territory, and fighting for power.

However, there is very little focus on the people's livelihood or descriptions of society as a whole.

But when Duan Yu was actually in this environment...

Only then can one understand why the people rebel.

Why do people all over the world say they can't go on living?

Even under such circumstances, powerful clans and gentry continued to annex land.

What appears to be a prosperous and flourishing era filled with aristocratic families, and a vast landscape teeming with heroes and beauties, is in reality a place where hunger and cold are rampant.

The fine jade and gold and silver that adorned the clothes of the gentry, and the fine clothes and delicacies in the homes of the powerful, were nothing more than steamed buns dipped in the blood of the common people, sucking the blood and bones of the common people.

Zhang Jiao's ability to command a hundred responses and gain widespread support was not due to the miraculous power of his talismanic water.

Before Duan Yu transmigrated, he had heard a saying.

That's what the saying goes.

'You knew perfectly well that Zhang Jiao's talismanic water was fake, so why did you still follow him in rebellion?'

The answer was: 'Of course I know whether Zhang Jiao's talisman water is fake or not, but at least he can give me food!'

Regardless of whether this statement is true or false.

But at least, that's what Duan Yu sees right now.

The people were impoverished, starving and freezing, and powerful families led beasts to devour them.

The world has deteriorated to this extent, yet those Confucian scholars who constantly preach "rule by rites," "rule by virtue," and "rule by man" only know how to fight for power and profit.

How did Liu Bei rise from a straw sandal seller to eventually divide the country into three kingdoms?

It wasn't because Liu Bei was a member of the Han imperial family.

The phrase "Han imperial relatives" is not a prestigious term in modern times.

The Han Dynasty lasted for four hundred years, and there were countless so-called members of the Han imperial family.

In fact, every village where Liu Bei lived was inhabited by members of the Han imperial family.

Why was Liu Bei able to achieve great things?

Because Liu Bei had his own set of methods for governing the people.

That is to love the people with benevolence.

Regardless of whether Liu Bei was a true benevolent and righteous gentleman, he consistently acted this way from the beginning after entering Sichuan.

It was probably because he witnessed Zhang Jiao's overwhelming popularity among the people during the Yellow Turban Rebellion that Liu Bei developed this idea and concept.

Duan Yu never considered himself a saint.

We live in a chaotic world.

He has no advantage whatsoever.

Although he now appears to be in a high position, in the eyes of the lords in Luoyang, taking it away would be as simple as issuing a document.

At least that was the case before Liu Hong died.

The world has not yet reached a point where ritual and music have completely collapsed.

If you rebel at this time, you'll be a traitor for life.

His gentry will be the first to break away from him and turn their backs on him.

He chose Liangzhou because it was far from the center of the gentry, so as to avoid ending up working for someone else's benefit in the future.

Even so, the lords in Luoyang City did not intend to let him go.

At this moment, three letters were placed in front of Duan Yu.

A letter from Yuan Shao.

A letter from He Lingsi.

One letter came from Zuo Feng, a minor eunuch.

The events that occurred in the Luoyang court, from beginning to end, have been explained in these three letters.

Yuan Shao expressed his apology and helplessness.

He Lingsi hoped that he could join the He family and become their tool as a relative of the mother-in-law.

The eunuch Zuo Feng then recounted everything that had happened in the imperial court that day.

Furthermore, Geng Bi, the newly appointed governor of Liangzhou who represents Yuan Wei's will, is also on his way to Liangzhou.

Unlike Liang Hu, who was a man of integrity, Geng Bi didn't really take Liang Hu seriously, even though Liang Hu was despicable.

But Geng Bi carried Yuan Wei's will.

Furthermore, the newly appointed Prefect of Beidi Commandery, Huangfu Song, represents the will of the Qingliu faction led by Yang Ci.

They wanted to check and balance him.

Five people.

Four kinds of will.

Zuo Feng represents the will of the palace eunuchs.

He Lingsi represents the will of the maternal relatives.

Geng Bi represents the will of Yuan Kui of the Yuan clan of Runan.

There's also Huangfu Song.

It's easy to imagine what would happen if he were just an ordinary person.

What would people like Liangzhou Sanming, Zhang Huan, Huangfu Gui, and Duan Jiong become when faced with these four kinds of wills?

It will probably be torn to shreds.

Fortunately, Duan Yu was neither Zhang Huan, nor Huangfu Gui, nor the desperate Duan Jiong.

Of course... he couldn't possibly be his father-in-law, Dong Zhuo.

Previously, Duan Yu only understood Dong Zhuo to a certain extent.

Now... he seems to be able to understand his father-in-law, Dong Zhuo.

He was clearly holding a knife.

But this knife can only obey orders from others.

If one doesn't comply, the knife in one's own hand might be used to cut oneself.

I want to avoid being controlled by these people who have knives in both hands.

How to do?

What can I do?

So, since you don't want to become Dong Zhuo.

Then we'll have to take another route.

If Yuan Shao followed the path of a true king, he used the prestige of the Yuan family, which had held high office for four generations, to attract talented individuals from all over the land.

Cao Cao followed the path of a ruthless and domineering warlord, taking a shortcut and bearing the infamy of the world to achieve his goals.

Liu Bei, on the other hand, followed the path of benevolence and righteousness, treating the people as water and himself as a boat, moving forward amidst the turbulent currents supported by the people.

However, none of the three ultimately succeeded.

Since that's the case, then he will combine all three paths into one.

The Way of the King, the Way of the Hegemon, and the Way of Benevolence.

Jia Xu knelt by the brazier, warming his hands.

Duan Yu then gathered up all the letters and intelligence from the Military Affairs Department in front of him.

"There are three issues at present: one is how to properly manage people's livelihood, another is how to deal with Geng Bi, and the third is how to deal with Huangfu Song."

"You've almost finished baking, it's time to come up with an idea." Duan Yu looked at Jia Xu.

Jia Xu tucked his warm hands into his sleeves to keep them warm, and also warmed his arms before sniffing.

He casually remarked, "The way of benevolence, the way of tyranny, the way of kingship."

Duan Yu's eyes lit up instantly.