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

The night was like a huge black curtain, obscuring a corner of the sky and covering the earth where the incident occurred.

My footsteps tread on the bluestone slabs, my black robe blending almost seamlessly with the inky night scene.

In the backyard of Yuan Ji's mansion, Yuan Wu, with a furrowed brow and a hideous scar on his face, was escorting a person whose eyes were covered by a black cloth into the inner hall, accompanied by four guards.

The candlelight, illuminated by lanterns, flickered dimly in the corridors between the mansions.

The maid standing under the lantern kept her head down, letting the guards walk past her without ever looking up curiously.

Having served as a maid in the mansions of powerful families for many years, she understood that the more she knew, the faster she might die.

After arriving in Ye County, Yuan Ji kept a very low profile in everything he did.

It doesn't even fit the identity of the future head of the Yuan clan.

Even the mansion where they currently reside is the same.

The mansion, which did not occupy a large area, only had two courtyards, front and back.

In addition to the main house and the east and west wing rooms, there is also a side room on each side of the main house.

Inside the west wing, Yuan Ji, dressed in a white robe and wearing a jade crown, sat behind his desk.

He held a calligraphy brush in one hand, and a sheet of white paper was spread on the desk in front of him.

A dim oil lamp is lit next to the character "白".

The black ink stains reflected a faint sheen under the candlelight.

After the final stroke, the three characters "风雷益" (Feng Lei Yi) appeared on the square piece of white paper.

The Mengshi Yi, passed down by the Yuan family of Runan, is a school of thought founded by Meng Xi, a man from the Western Han Dynasty.

Meng Xi, courtesy name Changqing, was a native of Lanling in Donghai during the Western Han Dynasty. His ancestry can be traced back to Mencius.

Yuan Liang, the ancestor of the Yuan family, was a disciple of the Meng family.

By the time of Yuan An, he had thoroughly understood and mastered the "Meng Shi Yi" (孟氏易), and rose to prominence in the imperial court, thus marking the rise of the Yuan family.

The phrase "Wind and Thunder Benefit" is taken from the Dui hexagram in the Book of Changes, which means that thunder must precede wind for all things to benefit.

"The wind is formless, the thunder is loud, and it brings blessings."

Yuan Ji placed the brush in his hand on the brush holder beside him and looked down at the three characters on the paper.

He arrived in Yecheng swiftly and discreetly, which was not a sign of despondency.

Rather, it is for the day when thunder roars across the heavens.

dong dong dong.

There was a knock on the study door.

Yuan Ji put down his brush, looked up at the door, and then softly said, "Come in."

The black study door opened, and a cold breeze from outside quietly blew in, causing the oil lamp inside to flicker.

Yuan Wu led the blindfolded man into the study, then turned and closed the door behind him.

The flame of the oil lamp stood straight, and wisps of blue smoke curled upwards.

Yuan Ji glanced at the blindfolded man, and Yuan Wu nodded beside him.

"Are you Zhen Jian's son?" Yuan Ji asked slowly.

The person trembled slightly upon hearing the voice.

"Answer whatever they ask you, and if you tell even a single lie..."

Yuan An, standing behind Zhen Jianzhi's son, slightly drew his sword from its sheath.

The sound of a long sword scraping against its scabbard pierced the ears of Zhen Jian's son, Zhen Ji.

"Yes, it is," Zhen Ji replied, his voice trembling.

Yuan Ji gestured to Yuan An and then continued, "Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you. If I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't have let you come here."

"I just want to ask you a few questions. You just need to answer truthfully and your life will be safe. I also guarantee that I will send you to a safe place."

Yuan Ji's voice is very approachable.

He served as an official in Luoyang for many years and was the head of the next generation of the Yuan family.

How to treat others, how to gain someone's trust, and how to win over those who need them seem to be instinctively etched in one's memory, requiring no conscious effort.

Sure enough, after Yuan Ji finished speaking, Zhen Ji, whose legs had gone weak with fear and who needed Yuan Wu's support, straightened up.

"Tell me why Yuan Shao is pursuing you and your son, and why he is determined to exterminate your Yuan family."

"Don't rush, speak slowly."

Yuan Ji took out another piece of paper from the side, then picked up the brush tip from the brush holder and placed it on the paper.

“I said…”

“That day, my father went to pay a visit to Governor Yuan’s residence, saying that he had important matters to discuss with Governor Yuan. After returning, my father found me and told me to prepare to take over the Liangzhou shops in Ye County.”

“I…I didn’t understand, so I asked my father why. My father said that Jia Dong’s good days were over. My father said that Jia Dong must have been hiding the Empress He sisters who had fled from Luoyang. It was witnessed by the servants in the mansion.”

Yuan Ji's expression remained unchanged as he wrote down every word Zhen Ji said on the paper.

"Afterwards, my father sent people to observe Governor Yuan. When Governor Yuan led his troops out of the city, my father was extremely happy and even drank some wine."

"But......."

"But not long after Governor Yuan left, and after returning sometime later, he ordered the closure of his residence. At that time, I was in the city preparing to take over the shops in Liangzhou when my servants suddenly told me that something was wrong, so I fled..."

"From then on, I never knew my father's whereabouts..."

After Zhen Ji recounted everything.

Yuan An has finished recording.

And he wrote down the names of several people on a piece of white paper.

Duan Yu, Yuan Shao, He Lingsi, Jia Dong, Zhen Jian.

Looking at the names on the paper, Yuan Ji was deep in thought.

He was still in Hedong County when all this happened.

After Duan Yu defeated Guo Tai's Baibo Army at Baibo Valley, he headed towards Taiyuan County in Bingzhou and then disappeared.

After Duan Yu returned to Chang'an, he issued a proclamation to punish the traitors. Clearly, He Lingsi had already gone to Chang'an by then.

So, Duan Yu came to Jizhou to welcome He Lingsi.

The ones Zhen Jian discovered in Ye County were definitely the He Lingsi sisters.

As for who Yuan Shao met after leaving the city, the answer is already obvious.

It must be Duan Yu himself who came from Bingzhou.

The extermination of the Zhen family branch was merely to silence them.

Yuan Ji raised his head, waved to Yuan Wu, and said, "Take him away first and settle everything properly."

"only!"

After Yuan Wu agreed, he led Zhen Ji out of the study.

Yuan Ji put down his brush, slowly stood up, put one hand behind his back, and stood in front of the study window, looking at the starry night sky.

"Uncle, you say everything is for the Yuan family, but it seems some people haven't done that..."

"If the court finds out that Yuan Shao is colluding with Duan Yu, how will the Yuan family face themselves?"

"Is it possible for you to retain your position as Grand Tutor?"

“Uncle, it’s not that I want to fight for it. You’ve said it yourself: the Yuan family doesn’t belong to anyone. If anyone harms the interests of the Yuan family, then he or she is an enemy of the Yuan family and must be eradicated, removed, or replaced.”

"You won't be angry if I do this, will you?"

"This is what you personally taught me, all for the sake of the Yuan family, so..."

"For the Yuan family, no one is immune to sacrifice, right...?"