OFFICE OF THE RECORDS

The Sample Cards

Vol I: The Warring States — sixty-four filed patterns. Three are open here as samples; the full archive, with every field report and evidence plate, opens in the Six Lines app.

Click a sample card to flip it to its file.

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ENTRY001 / 64RECORD
兵12FORCE
計91CUNNING
時78TIMING
勢85SWAY
名88LEGACY
The Fox Borrows the Tiger
CHU STATION · REIGN OF KING XUAN OF CHU (369-340 BC)
錄
乾
→
大壯
OFFICE OF THE RECORDSENTRY 001 / 64
The Fox Borrows the Tiger
CHU STATION · REIGN OF KING XUAN OF CHU (369-340 BC)
Still said today
狐假虎威hú jiǎ hǔ wēi
“The fox borrows the tiger's majesty.” Anyone acting big on borrowed power: the aide who wields the boss's name.
Pattern
Before you fear anyone, check who is standing behind them.
Field report
Subject, a fox, was observed walking one pace ahead of a tiger through the hunting grounds. All beasts fled. The tiger, following, concluded the fear was of the fox and released it. The fox had promised nothing it owned.
the tiger never checked. they never check. -R
ALSO ON FILE Zhao Gao — the official who governed through a borrowed emperor (Qin, 207 BC) · 207 BCReading CREATIVE resolving to GREAT POWERXref entries 004 · 008
STILL RUNNING
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ENTRY004 / 64GLITCH
兵08FORCE
計74CUNNING
時42TIMING
勢95SWAY
名82LEGACY
Three Men, One Tiger
WEI STATION · REIGN OF KING HUI (370-319 BC)
錄
坤
→
夬
OFFICE OF THE RECORDSENTRY 004 / 64 · GLITCH
Three Men, One Tiger
WEI STATION · REIGN OF KING HUI (370-319 BC)
Still said today
三人成虎sān rén chéng hǔ
“Three men make a tiger.” A lie repeated enough becomes fact.
Pattern
Count the mouths, not the tigers — three reports of nothing is still nothing.
Field report
Subject, a minister of Wei, ran the test on King Hui before departing for Handan: one report of a tiger in the market — disbelieved; two — doubt; three — believed. Subject noted there was plainly no tiger and asked the king to remember it. Upon return the king declined to receive him. The gate stayed closed until the king's death.
Index entry — flagged: the omen predates the incident
一簧兩舌，妄言謬語。三姸成虎，曾母投杼。
“One reed, two tongues, wild words and lies: three made the tiger, and Zeng's mother dropped her shuttle.”
who counted the mouths? the Index already had. -R
PRIOR OCCURRENCE Zeng Shen's mother — the third report, the dropped shuttle, the wall · c. 480 BCReading RECEPTIVE resolving to BREAKTHROUGHXref entries 008 · 012 · [WITHHELD]Echoes 1938 · 1954 · 2003 · [ACTIVE]
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ENTRY011 / 64GLITCH
兵25FORCE
計55CUNNING
時18TIMING
勢35SWAY
名76LEGACY
Legs on a Snake
CHU STATION · c. 323 BC
錄
蠱
→
姤
OFFICE OF THE RECORDSENTRY 011 / 64 · GLITCH
Legs on a Snake
CHU STATION · c. 323 BC
Still said today
畫蛇添足huà shé tiān zú
“Drawing legs on a snake.” Ruining finished work by adding to it.
Pattern
Finished means stop — every addition after done is a way to lose.
Field report
Retainers of a Chu temple steward drew snakes in the dust for a single jug of wine. The first to finish, unchallenged, added feet to his. The second to finish drank the jug, on the grounds that no snake has feet. The first finisher's name does not survive; the feet do.
Index entry — flagged: the omen predates the incident
心多恨悔，出門見怪；有虵三足，醜聲可惡。嫫母為媒，請求不得。
“A heart full of regret steps out and meets the omen: a snake with three feet, ugly of name and hateful.”
he finished first. that was the whole prize. -R
PRIOR OCCURRENCE the three-footed serpent — excess was already an omen with a catalogue number · UNDATED OMENReading DECAY resolving to COMING TO MEETXref entries 019 · [WITHHELD]Echoes 1958 · 2000 · [ACTIVE]
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