Chapter 6 6. The combination of two swords

When everyone was staggering, Hua Xin, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, raised his glass to Han Song and asked, "I heard that Liu Biao is sitting in the eight counties of Jingzhou. Xibo Jichang boasted that he was a master in Yanwu and Xiuwen, isn't it ridiculous?" "Master Shangshu, Liu Biao is short-sighted and has no way to expand his career. It is true that he is not praised by the famous scholars and bureaucrats of the upper kingdom, but he is not without merit in Jingzhou Daxing Confucianism and good writing." Han Song now relies on his status as a servant, Then he called Liu Biao by his first name, "To tell you the truth, my lords, now I have seventy-two famous scholars and thirty-six high-ranking people in Jingzhou. They are like stars shining in the night. They are impressive and should not be underestimated!"

Cao Cao heard it clearly on the first square couch, and suddenly became interested, he couldn't help but interjected: "Oh? What's so special about your 'seventy-two famous scholars and thirty-six high-level people' in Jingzhou? Let me tell you the truth. Let's talk about it..." "Han doesn't dare to boast." Han Song took out a silk book from the sleeve of his robe, and held it respectfully in his palm, "This is a collection of "Government and Dao" written by famous scholars and experts in Bizhou. Advise and comment." The maidservant standing beside his table took the "Zhi Dao Ji" and presented it to Cao Cao.Cao Cao took the silk book in his hand, opened it to read a few pages, nodded slightly, and was about to speak.However, a clear voice suddenly sounded in the hall: "Master Prime Minister, may Yang please give me this book of "Zhi Dao Ji"?"

Everyone followed the prestige, and it turned out that the voice came from the young man in brocade at the bottom of the long mat on the left side of the hall.He was not afraid of being ridiculed by others as "unsteady", so he sat up straight on the seat, staring at Cao Cao, waiting for his answer. Cao Cao turned his head to look at him, smiled "haha", and ordered the maidservant standing beside him to send the book "Zhi Dao Ji" to the young man in brocade shirt.Then, he smiled and said to all the officials present: "Oh! I forgot to introduce the truth to you—but some adults should have recognized it before. This son is Yang Biao, the heir of Yang Taiwei. Xiu. Mr. Yang is brilliant and talented, and he was appointed as the deputy head of the prime minister's office by the prime minister two months ago."

When everyone heard this, they were very surprised: it turns out that this young man in brocade shirt is Yang Xiu, the famous son of Taiwei Yang Biao!It is rumored that his quick mind, keen eyes and ears, wonderful literary talent, and profound knowledge are unparalleled among young talents in the world. Even Dr. Kong Rong called him "Jia Yi reborn". But Yang Xiu smiled slightly, saluted and thanked everyone humbly, and his demeanor seemed graceful.After he finished the ceremony, he sat back in his seat and lowered his head, opened the "Zhi Dao Ji" and read it at a glance.

Cao Cao pointed at the black-robed young man sitting below Yang Xiu, and continued to introduce: "That young master is the second son of the former Jing Zhaoyin and Cavalry Captain Sima Fang, um, that's the truth. The second younger brother of Sima Lang in the Fuzhong——Sima Yi! The second son of Sima came from a family of Confucianism, and once served as the governor of Hanoi County. , he is taking up the post of Literary Officer in the Prime Minister's Mansion." Hearing Cao Cao's introduction, Xi Ji, Hua Xin, Zhong Yao and others were even more surprised: I have heard for a long time that Sima Lang has a second brother, Sima Yi, who is talented and strong. Suppressing corruption and eradicating traitors is our responsibility, eradicating Du Chuan, Yuan Xiong and other gangsters in one fell swoop is really an extraordinary tool and a pillar of talent!A few years ago, Cao Cao had sent people to conscript him time and again—only because he suffered from wind paralysis and failed to respond.Unexpectedly, this year, Cao Cao actually conscripted him into the government, which also shows that Cao Cao vowed not to stop recruiting talents if he failed to achieve his goal.

On the long seat on the right, Xun Yu and Yang Jun smiled and greeted the young man in black cordially.Yang Jun also turned his head and recommended to Han Song: "Master Han, this second son of Sima is the most outstanding one among the many young talents Yang has met in his life..." At this moment, I saw Sima Yi with a shy smile on his face, stood up with a humility that was almost stiff, bowed to all the adults present, and then sat down with lowered eyebrows. Han Song listened casually to Yang Jun's praise of Sima Yi, while looking at Sima Yi several times with critical eyes, he thought to himself: This kid looks a little dull, what's so special about him?But it's like a "nerd" who hasn't gotten started yet.

Not long after Sima Yi sat down, Yang Xiu stood up and returned the "Zhi Dao Ji" to the maid at the side of the table, and asked her to return it to Cao Cao.He raised his eyebrows, looked at Han Song squarely, and said proudly: "Yang previously thought that the "Government of the Way" brought by Mr. Han had some witty words, but it turned out to be nothing more than mediocre words!" "Mr. Yang, why did you say that? Even if I, the famous people in Jingzhou, say 'there is nothing high about being humble', I will not allow you to belittle me so lightly!" Han Song's face flushed immediately when he heard this.

"To be honest, Mr. Han, the chapters and sentences in your "Zhi Dao Ji" have been familiar to people from the Central Plains since I was a child. It is actually a popular book that teaches people to read and enlighten." Yang Xiu faced his aggressive questioning without retreating, slightly He said with a smile, "Although Yang is a young man, he used to read this book very well when he was a child - Your Excellency, you can take a few chapters from this book to test Yang, and Yang is confident that he can recite it well." come out." "You... what did you say?" Han Song was so angry that his beard almost turned up, and he pointed at Yang Xiu with his hand, but he stuttered and couldn't speak.

Cao Cao also looked surprised: If this "Zhi Dao Ji" is really a reading material for people to learn to read in the middle school, how could he have never read it when he was in the Central Plains?Yang Xiu was probably talking nonsense.After thinking for a while, he opened the booklet, picked out Chapter 3, and asked Yang Xiu to recite it on the spot. "Scholars die for those who know themselves, women are for those who please themselves, horses gallop for those who advise themselves, and gods are for those who understand themselves..." Yang Xiu raised his head and recited, "The rule of a wise king is not to worry about others. You know yourself, but you don’t know others when you worry about yourself; you don’t know what’s inside if you don’t worry about the outside, but you don’t know what’s outside if you worry about the inside; "

"Stop!" Cao Cao raised his right hand when he heard this, and said again, "Please recite Chapter 5 of this book for everyone to hear." "There is no one who is virtuous and foolish, there is no talent who is strange and clumsy, there is no depth of knowledge, and there is no limit to things. Those who make good use of people will make the most of their virtuousness and foolishness; those who make good use of talents must master their strangeness; those who lack far-sightedness, It is necessary to know the shallowness and depth in advance; those who are good at managing affairs can judge their exhaustion first. Therefore, it is the secret of employing people to use people to make use of them. The white fox, and those with pure white fur, all take all the whites and combine into one..." Yang Xiulue recalled it, and without hesitation, he recited it again.

Xi Ji, Hua Xin, Wang Lang and other erudite Confucians present here listened, and all of them were shocked: These passages are exquisite, meaningful, and brilliant. How can they be compared with ordinary books that teach people literacy and enlightenment?However, seeing Yang Xiu memorize it so well, it must be someone who is familiar with this book. Cao Cao even tested Yang Xiu's five or six chapters, and Yang Xiu recited them verbatim.He had no choice but to put down "Zhi Dao Ji", spread his hands to Han Song and smiled, and said, "Master Han, it seems that what Young Master Yang said is true." "Why...how did this happen? It's really weird...these articles are all written after our own deliberation..." Han Song suddenly felt lost, and sat down on the seat, muttering to himself, why not Ken believed what he saw. "Mr. Sima, tell me about it." Cao Cao suddenly called Sima Yi's name, "You are about the same age as Mr. Yang, the book he read when he was a child - you should have read it too, you should know Do you have some impressions?" "This..." Sima Yi stood up with his hands down very respectfully, and slowly replied, "It makes you laugh at me, my family is very strict, and my father has always only let me study "Mencius", "Xunzi" and other big books. Classics, I’m never allowed to read other miscellaneous books.” At this point, his voice paused, and he suddenly raised his eyes to look at Han Song who was sitting opposite him, and said slowly, “However, I heard Brother Yang recite that book just now. Chapter 5 of the book, "Everyone is virtuous and foolish... Fake people's strengths to make up for their weaknesses, and recognize people's talents to make use of them..." When I read this part of the content, I felt that there seemed to be some things that were not detailed enough. I would like to respectfully ask all the adults for advice with my humble opinion." "Mr. Sima thinks there are still deficiencies in the chapters and sentences in this "Zhi Dao Ji"?" Cao Cao looked at him with interest, "You can point it out and show us." "I obey. I personally think that the discussion of 'fake people's strengths to make up for their weaknesses, and recognize their talents to make use of them' is really incisive. However, what is most needed by those who use people is a concrete and feasible method. With Concrete and practical methods can only be regarded as meticulous if they are added to the theory." Sima Yi said in a low-pitched voice, "I once concluded that there are only eight observation methods for the selection of candidates: Xi observes the other As the saying goes, if you are idle, watch what you like; if you are rich, watch what you support; when you are rich, watch what you love; when you are cheap, watch what you don’t do; Watch what he holds on to. This is my sneak peek, which makes the prime minister and all the adults laugh!" "Where! Where!" Cao Cao raised his beard and said happily after hearing this, "Sure enough, the Sima clan in Hanoi has a profound family history and a well-deserved reputation! Sima Yi, you know everything about the 'Eight Views' method. The essence of talent selection - Cui Xicao, Mao Dongcao, what do you two think?" Cui Yan and Mao Jie are important bureaucrats in charge of personnel inside and outside the prime minister's mansion, and it is their duty to select talents.Hearing Cao Cao's question, Cui and Mao hurriedly got up and replied: "The method of 'Eight Views' taught by Mr. Sima is very precise. We should keep it in our hearts and follow it." When Sima Yi heard it, his expression was very panicked: "My lord, Mr. Cui, Mr. Mao...how can I live up to these remarks? I am ignorant and uneducated, please forgive me!" "Well...don't be so formal." Cao Cao stopped him with a big wave of his hand, "I am the most enlightened in the administration of the prime minister's mansion. Your idea is right. No matter how young you are, you should be rewarded." You must be rewarded; your ideas are wrong, no matter how senior and high you are, you must criticize those who should be criticized. The method of "Eight Views" you talked about today is worth advocating and promoting. Tosoh After the Department and the Xicao Department go down, we must draw up a report and send it down for implementation." After he finished his instructions, he smiled at Han Song, "Master Han, what do you think of the performance of Young Master Yang and Young Master Sima just now?" Han Song got up and bowed his hands in a salute with great interest: "There are indeed a lot of talents in the prime minister's mansion! The talents and knowledge of Mr. Yang and Mr. Sima alone have already let Mr. Han bow down! I am in the remote area of ​​Jingzhou. The talents born are comparable to those of the Central Plains. Comparing the romantic and famous people, it is really the fireflies competing with the sun and the moon, taking their own shame!" Cao Cao originally wanted to use the famous scholars and officials under his command to suppress Han Song's arrogance brought from Jingzhou, but now that he has been subdued on the surface, he laughed and stroked his beard and said: "Master Han Serious words! Serious words!..." While laughing, he glanced at Yang Xiu and Sima Yi with admiration in his eyes.