Hou Lan 侯覽

Chapter 1 of the Romance relates that when ill omens followed one after another in the reign of Emperor Ling, the Gentleman-Consultant Cai Yong submitted a memorial saying that 'the falling rainbow and the hen turning into a cock are caused by women and eunuchs meddling in government', but Cao Jie, who had been secretly reading it from behind, made its contents known to everyone around, and Cai Yong was in the end charged with a crime over another matter and driven back to his home village. After that, ten men, Zhang Rang, Zhao Zhong, Feng Xu, Duan Gui, Cao Jie, Hou Lan, Jian Shuo, Cheng Kuang, Xia Yun and Guo Sheng, banded together and committed every kind of wrong, so that people called them the 'Ten Regular Attendants'; the emperor revered Zhang Rang so much that he even called him 'Father', the government of the state went from bad to worse day by day, the hearts of the people of the realm longed for upheaval, and bandits rose like swarms of bees. Romance, Ch. 1 §5–6

In Chapter 3, after Zhang Rang and the others have killed He Jin and thrown his head over the wall, Yuan Shao cries out that the eunuchs have murdered a high minister, and He Jin's subordinate general Wu Kuang sets fire outside the Qingsuo Gate. When Yuan Shu leads his troops into the palace and kills every eunuch in sight regardless of rank, the four men Zhao Zhong, Cheng Kuang, Xia Yun and Guo Sheng are chased to the front of the Cuihua Tower and hacked to pieces. At this point Zhang Rang, Duan Gui, Cao Jie and Hou Lan seize the empress dowager, the crown prince and the Prince of Chenliu, drag them into the inner palace and flee by the back way toward the Northern Palace. Romance, Ch. 3 §13–14

When Lu Zhi rebukes Duan Gui, who is dragging the empress dowager away, Duan Gui flees, and the empress dowager jumps from a window and escapes harm. Yuan Shao sends soldiers in separate groups to kill the families of the Ten Regular Attendants, old and young alike, and Cao Cao sends troops in pursuit of Zhang Rang and the others. Zhang Rang, who has fled as far as Mount Beimang holding the young emperor and the Prince of Chenliu, sees that matters have become urgent when Min Gong, coming in pursuit, gives a great shout, and throws himself into the river and dies, and Duan Gui is caught and killed by Min Gong. The Romance does not mention Hou Lan's name again in this passage. Romance, Ch. 3 §15–17 · 21