[ Admired by Zhang Chao and Cao Cao. Defeated by Yuan Shu and killed by his own men.
Officer Details
Wade-Giles: Yüan I (Po-yeh)
Simplified Chinese: 袁遗 (伯业)
Pronunciation: Yuan2 Yi2 (Bo2ye4)
Birthplace: Runan
Rank and Titles
Prefect of Chang An; Administrator of Shanyang; Inspector of Yangzhou
Family and Relationships
Literary Appearances
Romance of the Three Kingdoms: 5
Sanguozhi: Wei 1, Wei 6
Hou Han shu: 74
Zizhi tongjian: 59
Biography
Yuan Yi was styled Boye and was an elder clansman of Yuan Shao. Zhang Chao of Hejian had earlier recommended Yi to the Grand Commandant Zhu Jun and praised him, saying, “Through his virtue he is a leader of the age, and he has the talent to seize upon opportunity. His loyalty leads him to aid in fighting injustice and to support the Son of Heaven where there is disorder; for this reason he has collected the local records, sorted according to all of the family names, to be presented to the emperor so that they may be taxed. By this one can see the reason for his good reputation and why his services should now be requested, for in a far-off location his talents are wasted in comparison (to what he can do for us here).” His work led to an increase in tax collections. The Record of Heroes states: Shao later employed Yi in the position of Inspector of Yangzhou but he lost the place to Yuan Shu. The Great Ancestor commented, “Of those who have matured and are still able to be industrious learners there are only myself and Yuan Boye.” This statement was discovered in Dian Lun by Emperor Wen. (1)
1) From Cao Cao’s SGZ