Chapter 30 Talented people

In terms of human resources development, besides "employing people like tools" and being good at "assessing the aptitude" of subordinates, Li Shimin also has another very important method, that is--eclectic and talent-based. When Li Shimin selects talents, he never cares about his family status, new history, Huayi, or common people, but whether he has outstanding conduct, talent and learning, and whether he has a skill. Be humble and not use, not humiliate and not respect" ("Emperor Fan"). In terms of "family status", Li Shimin treats them all equally, whether they are from high-ranking families like Changsun Wuji, Gao Shilian, Du Ruhui, etc., or those from poor families like Fang Xuanling, Zhang Liang, and Hou Junji.In addition, during the reign of Wude, Emperor Gaozu Li Yuan paid more attention to the appointment of descendants of the Guanlong Group, and during the Zhenguan period, a large number of Shandong (east of Xiaoshan) gentry also entered the political high-level.For example, Cui Dunli, born in the Cui family of Boling, "surnamed in Shandong", served successively as General Zuoweilang, Zhongshu Sheren, etc., and finally served as Minister of the Ministry of War; Lu Chengqing, who originated from the Lu family of Fanyang, was also an official to the people Minister of the Ministry, Minister of the Ministry of War.

In terms of "new stories", Wei Zheng, Wang Gui, Wei Ting and others were originally a typical prince group. They were regarded as Li Shimin's number one political opponent, but later became his important officials; , The ability is limited, so Li Shimin did not reuse them after he came to the throne.These old people from the Qin family once complained to Fang Xuanling, and Fang Xuanling reported it to Li Shimin, but Li Shimin's attitude was very clear: "I take the world as my home, and I can't be private to one thing. Only talents can do what they want. How can we take the old and the new as our own?" Poor!" (Volume 5)

In terms of dealing with aliens, Li Shimin did not have the narrow concept of "defending Hua and barbarians" at all. Instead, he boldly promoted a group of brave and good-for-nothing generals with the broad mind of "the world is one family, and the barbarians are not cheap".For example, the Turkic prince Ashina Sheer, who "heard bravely with wisdom", returned to the Tang Dynasty in the ninth year of Zhenguan, was named the General of Zuoqiwei, and married Li Shimin's sister, Princess Hengyang; in the 14th year of Zhenguan, Ashina Sheer, Hou Junji and others attacked Gaochang together, and then made great achievements in Tang Dynasty's wars against Goryeo, Xue Yantuo and the Western Regions.In addition, such as the Turkic chief Zhi Sisili, and the chief of the Tiele tribe Qima Heli were also entrusted with important tasks successively, and made great military exploits for the expansion of the territory of the Tang Dynasty.

In terms of exceptionally promoting folk talents, the most typical example is the promotion of Ma Zhou. In the third year of Zhenguan (629 A.D.), Li Shimin ordered all officials to speak out about the gains and losses of the government.This is a good thing for most people, because once the advice is adopted by the emperor, it is possible to go straight to the sky.But one person was helpless when he picked up the pen, scratching his head in anxiety. This person is Chang He who played an important role in the Xuanwu Gate Change. He is a martial artist, so it is easy to talk about leading troops to fight, but it is really difficult for him to write and write.Just when Chang He was in a hurry, a doorman volunteered to draft a memorial for him.Chang He was overjoyed, and immediately ordered someone to serve him with pen and ink.I saw this disciple flicking his brush, and in a short while he wrote more than 20 advices eloquently.He submitted the memorial to him the next day, originally he just wanted to deal with it and get things done. Unexpectedly, after reading the memorial, Taizong Li Shimin was very appreciative. He immediately called Chang He into the palace and asked him why he had made such great progress. The article is so beautifully written.

Chang He didn't dare to hide it, so he had to tell the truth, saying that he had no such ability at all, and that the memorial was written by a disciple named Ma Zhou. Li Shimin became interested as soon as he heard it, and asked him about Ma Zhou's situation. Chang He said that Ma Zhou was from Chiping, Bozhou. His parents died when he was young, and his family was poor. People in the village looked down on him, but he was diligent and studious.During Wude's reign, he found a job as a teaching assistant in Bozhou, but he didn't care about teaching, and was repeatedly reprimanded by the local governor. Ma Zhou left his hometown in anger, wandered around, and then came to Chang'an and lived in Chang He's home.

After listening to this, Li Shimin realized that although Ma Zhou appeared to be unrestrained, he was a man with poetry and books and great ambitions, so he immediately sent an envoy to summon Ma Zhou. I don't know whether it was Ma Zhou's intentional delay, or Li Shimin's mood was too urgent. In short, Li Shimin sent four groups of envoys that day to invite this commoner Ma Zhou into the palace.Volume 3: "Taizong summoned him immediately, but before he arrived, Fan sent envoys four times to urge him." After the two sides had a chat, Li Shimin found that Ma Zhou was indeed full of economics and profound knowledge, and he suddenly felt that he hated seeing each other late, so he immediately let him go. Report to Menxia Province on the same day.

Overnight, Ma Zhou changed from a commoner to a court official, and directly entered the political center of the empire from the bottom of society. This is a typical "carp jumping over the dragon's gate" story. From then on, Ma Zhou entered the imperial political arena, and was soon awarded the post of supervisory censor. Later, he successively served as Chaosan doctor, Zhongshu servant, official secretary, and Zhongshu Ling.It is said in history that he "arguments organically, can play, understands things deeply, and moves everything", so he "won the reputation at that time". (Volume 3) Even Li Shimin said: "I am in Ma Zhou. If I don't see you for a while, I will think about it." ("Old Tang Book·Ma Zhou Biography") shows the degree of appreciation and reliance on him.

Although Ma Zhou did have relatively outstanding abilities, if he hadn't met Li Shimin, an eclectic and talented emperor, Ma Zhou would have been unable to escape the fate of being underappreciated and dying of depression. The age-old story of "commoner changing appearance" is even less likely to become one of the famous ministers of Zhenguan who are well-known in later generations.