Chapter 2 2. Zeng Guofan savored the "Tao Te Ching" and "Nan Hua Jing" carefully, and finally realized it

Zeng Guofan returned to the lotus leaf pond, closed the door, and read over and over again what the ugly Taoist had given him.Sure enough, as the Taoist said, when I reread it at this time, I seem to feel that every word is in my heart and every sentence makes sense, which is quite different from what I read in the past. Zeng Guofan had already studied under the hands of Yanmen master.He was able to memorize this Taoist classic with only 5,000 words back and forth since he was a child.After entering the Hanlin Academy, under the guidance of Master Jing Hai, he worked hard to study it again.This is a book full of philosophical wisdom, which has taught Zeng Guofan a lot.Similar to the maxims such as "a tree that embraces one's arms is born at the end of a hair, ninety percent of a platform starts from piles of soil, and a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step". He believes in it and respects it. Hong Hanlin, who had a smooth official career, could not accept the main purpose.At that time, Zeng Guofan believed in Confucianism and Mencius with all his heart, and wanted to use Confucianism to enter the world and save the world.For self-cultivation, he obeys "Heaven's movement is healthy, and a gentleman strives for self-improvement", and for society, he obeys "take the world as his own responsibility".It is precisely this kind of self-discipline, self-improvement, concern for state affairs, and attention to people's sentiments that made him win the trust of the king and his colleagues, and he was proud of himself in the officialdom and skyrocketed.In the second year of Xianfeng, the minister of the Ministry of Rites, who was climbing smoothly, firmly believed in the ancient motto "Governing troubled times must use heavy scriptures" and the necessity of strictly governing the army, so he changed from a disciple of Confucius, Mencius and Confucianism to a disciple of Shenhan Legalism.He thought that he was ordered by the emperor to run a group training, and his name was justified. As long as he was upright, he could suppress evil and do everything well.Who would have thought it would be so wrong!This talented man in the Golden Horse Gate and an official in the six halls of officials, encountered obstacles everywhere in the harsh reality, and everything went wrong.

For more than a year, he has painfully recalled the past five years since he left the mountain countless times.He still can't understand: Why can't he be tolerated in Hunan and Jiangxi official circles when he is upright and has a breeze in his sleeves?Why is he so loyal to the emperor, yet he attracts the hatred of the elders and ministers, and even the emperor himself can't be completely relieved?Why do we always follow the laws of the country and handle everything impartially, but in practice it often doesn't work?His heart was full of grievances, and he was depressed and puzzled. Over time, he finally became seriously ill.

During this year, he read "Zuo Zhuan", "Historical Records" and "Hanshu" from the beginning to the end, hoping to get a glimpse of the secrets of the predecessors from these historical masterpieces and learn from them.But these previous histories did not give him the key to untie his stagnation, but made him more miserable: the predecessors followed the law and achieved brilliance, but I, Zeng Guofan, could not succeed! He also thought of Lao Zhuang, and even thought of Zen Buddhism.But he, an important official of the court whose mission is to defend the famous teachings of Confucius and Mencius, and a commander-in-chief whose goal is to suppress the rebellion and rejuvenate himself, can he find relief from Lao Zhuang's passive reclusive theory?No, this is absolutely impossible for him.

These days, in the real civilian army, the assistant regiment training minister who has experienced many successes and failures personally, after savoring carefully and chewing slowly, he finally discovered the mystery of this Taoist classic.This seemingly out-of-the-world book is actually all about the principles of entering the world.It’s just that Confucius and Mencius are direct, while Lao Tzu advocates to achieve the goal in a roundabout way; Shen Han advocates the use of coercion to be strong, while Lao Tzu believes that "softness overcomes rigidity, and weakness overcomes strong", "the softest in the world is the most firm in the world." ". "The reason why Jianghe is the king of all valleys is because of his goodness." How profound is this sentence!Lao Tzu is really a wise man who understands the art of competition in the world most deeply.

Zeng Guofan thought of the discord with the green camp in Changsha, the disagreement with the official circles in Hunan, and the struggle with Chen Qimai and Yun Guangchen in Nanchang.The results of it?On the surface, it has won, but in fact it has planted even greater hidden dangers.Another example is Shen Qingde and Chen Qimai, Yuezu acts as a substitute and arranges to intervene in various situations. Although they are happy and straightforward when handling them, they do not expect to show their sharpness and staunchness, which hurts Qingde and Chen Qimai's up and down, left and right, invisible I set up many obstacles for myself.These hidden dangers and obstacles, if I hadn't experienced it myself, I would never have imagined in the study or in the six signing rooms. Their damage to the career greatly exceeded the temporary prosperity and pleasure!Since the direct, strong-to-strong approach sometimes does not work, but the roundabout, indirect, and weak methods can also achieve the goal and defeat the strong without leaving hidden dangers, why not use it?Words that I remembered from my youth, such as "Greatness without corners", "Great sound with few voices", "Great elephants have no shape", "Great ingenuity as clumsy", used to be half-understood, but now they suddenly become clear.Over the years, the struggles with the inside of the officialdom and with the green camp are actually a kind of corner, with a sound, a tangible image, seemingly clever but clumsy. The real generosity, elephant, and great art are not like this. It has to do There is no suspicion of being invisible, and there is no work of chiseling.

"People are weak in life, but strong in death. Plants are fragile in life, but withered in death."Can overcome the softness of rigidity, isn't it more rigid?My grandfather's family motto "a man should be ashamed of being cowardly and ungrateful" was one-sidedly understood by himself.Thinking of this, Zeng Guofan excitedly wrote eight words on the title page: "The softest is the softest, the hardest is the hardest." He felt that the knot in his chest had been relieved a lot. After reading, he picked it up to review again.This book, also known as the "Southern China Classic", is his favorite book; since he was a child, he doesn't remember how many times he has read it.The unrestrained writing style and the strange and magnificent artistic conception have impressed and fascinated him countless times.In the past, he read it as a model for articles and learned composition skills from it. In terms of thought, he did not agree with Zhuangzi's view that he was born in the world, and he wholeheartedly followed the Tao of Confucius and Mencius. .Strange to say, Zeng Guofan rereads it now that he has been through the storm, and he has a lot of sympathy for this masterpiece that has never been seen before or since.He even realized that Zhuangzi and Confucius are not diametrically opposed to each other. They can and should complement each other and complement each other.Only in this way can we not only make a heroic and progressive career, but also maintain a peaceful and modest state of mind.Zeng Guofan was happy for his harvest, and took up a pen, and wrote it down solemnly: think quietly, there is no end to hundreds of years, and there are dozens of cold and heat in life.The earth is tens of thousands of miles away, and it is immeasurable. People travel and rest in the sleeping places. There is only one room during the day, and only one couch at night. They should be cherished.The books of the ancients and the writings of modern people are vast, and those that can be seen in life are just a drop in the ear, so you should think about it.There are many things to change, a good name to go all the way, and those who can reach their talents in life are just the ears of Taicang, and they should strive for it.However, knowing that the sky is long, but what I have experienced is short, we should be less patient and wait for it to be settled when we are worried about the adversity. Guard its female.

Lao Zhuang's profound philosophy, like a ladder, made Zeng Guofan step out of the abyss of grievances and distress, and his body and mind improved day by day. That night, Zeng Guofan received a letter from Hu Linyi from Wuchang.The letter said that Zhejiang was in danger, and the imperial court had a motion to transfer Xiangyong to Zhejiang.He has made a statement to the emperor, and asked Zeng Guofan to come out of the mountain again and lead Hunan to aid Zhejiang.In order to strengthen the weight of this performance, he persuaded the official text to be released. Zeng Guofan was grateful to Hu Linyi for his concern and care for him from the bottom of his heart. At such a time, he could be generous and ask for an imperial edict to come back.What is especially rare is that he can say that the official papers of the Manchurian dignitaries who are supposed to support Xiangyong but are actually jealous of the Han people will be awarded the title together, which is really well-intentioned and thoughtful.Hubei can have today's situation, and Xiangyong can get out of the trough in Jiangxi, all because of the harmonious cooperation of officials and Hu in Wuchang.At this moment, in Zeng Guofan's mind, the past of Hu Linyi stooping to serve as an official document floated up.

Guan Wen is a man from Zhengbai Banner in Manchuria. He was born in a military family. At a young age, he became a guard of Lan Ling in front of the palace. Albatron straight up.After Yang Pei was dismissed, he was promoted from General Jingzhou to Governor of Huguang.This man Yu Youye is proficient in everything he enjoys, but he is not good at fighting wars and governing the people. He occupies the high position of Governor of Huguang and does nothing. Hu was in trouble everywhere.Angrily, Hu asked his staff to draft a memorial and sue the emperor.Advice from the aides: How can the imperial court rest assured that the Han people in the south of the Yangtze River hold heavy soldiers?The official name is the governor, but it is actually the eyes and ears sent by the imperial court to Huguang to monitor the Han people. The appearance of suing the official will only increase the emperor's resentment.The best way is to obtain the support of the official documents, and the governors and governors will work together to achieve a great cause.After Hu Linyi was instructed by this, he immediately came to his senses.Soon, Guanwen's 30-year-old Aunt Liu's birthday, the Governor's Yamen issued invitations to Wuchang official circles, wanting to make some fun for Aunt Liu.Unexpectedly, most officials in Sidaofu County, Hubei Province usually don't like official documents, and are ashamed to celebrate a young concubine's birthday.On his birthday, the sun was high and the governor's office was still deserted.Guan Wen was anxious, and Aunt Six was so angry that she wept.It was almost noon, and none of the important officials in Wuchang City came to the door.The official document was unacceptable, so I had to lower my dignity and send people around to invite again.At this moment, a large green tweed sedan chair was lifted up, with a guard of honor in front, followed by several tweed embroidered sedan chairs.A servant rushed over and handed him a famous badge.The housekeeper took a look and saw the name of Hubei Governor Hu Linyi impressively written on it.The butler was overjoyed, and hurried into the mansion to report the official document.Guan Wen was very happy, and greeted him personally outside the gate.Hu Linyi not only came by himself, but also brought his mother and wife Mrs. Jingjuan, and gave the sixth aunt a generous gift as a wife.Sixth Aunt laughed through tears, and greeted Mrs. Hu Jiatai and Mrs. Hu outside the second gate.I heard that the governor celebrated Guan Wen's sixth aunt's birthday with such a grand ceremony. Within an hour, all the governors of Hubei Province, Standard Division, Liangdao, Yandao, the prefect of Hanyang, and the prefect of Wuchang had arrived.Sixth Aunt got a whole lot of face.At the banquet, Mrs. Hu and Mrs. Jingjuan chose some nice words to compliment the sixth aunt, making the sixth aunt too happy to keep her mouth shut.When parting, Mrs. Hu solemnly invited the sixth aunt to visit the governor's yamen, and the sixth aunt happily accepted.

Early the next morning, Aunt Six was carried into the governor's office in a large tweed sedan chair. Mrs. Hu and Mrs. Jingjuan hosted a feast, played cards, listened to music, and chatted with each other.The sixth aunt lost her mother when she was young. Seeing that Mrs. Hu liked her so much, she recognized Mrs. Hu as her mother. Mrs. Hu happily accepted the adoptive daughter, and asked her to pay homage to her elder brother Hu Linyi.Mrs. Hu gave Aunt Six a pair of gold bracelets, earrings and rings as a gift for her adopted daughter.After the Sixth Aunt returned home, she talked about the Hu family's mother and son to the official document on the pillow.He also said that from now on, if the two families recognize their relatives, they will become one family, so don't embarrass Hu Linyi anymore.Guan Wen has always been obedient to this charming and intelligent sixth aunt, and sure enough, he will never make trouble for Hu Linyi again.Military and civil affairs were all handled by Hu Linyi, and he only made a promise on it; and Hu Linyi also respected and obeyed him on the surface.The close relationship between governors and governors in Wuchang is the highest in the whole country.

Earlier, Zeng Guofan laughed when he heard the story of Guan Hu.He laughed at Hu Linyi for being too weak, to use the means of pleasing a concubine in exchange for the cooperation of the official document, wouldn't it be a shame to be a dignified man!Now, he understood that this was exactly where Hu Linyi was brilliant, and where Hu Linyi surpassed him. "Weakness is better than strength", Hu Linyi has long understood the meaning of this, and has used it quite skillfully. "Run Zhi, you actually attained the Tao earlier than me!" Zeng Guofan was so happy that he patted a few cases and shouted unconsciously.The slap did not matter, and a burning candle was knocked over and fell onto the spread out.Zeng Guofan touched it distressedly, but unexpectedly found a thin piece of white silk in a burnt interlayer.He carefully pulled out the white silk, and saw a few lines written on it:

Under the command of the Minister of Disheng: Shanren was lucky to meet his lord again, but his face was destroyed by the mountain fire. Did he scare the old man?Trying to meet and talk with strangers, or less prejudiced and obstructed, so we can't recognize each other, it is fortunate to beg for forgiveness. For this interview, Shanren has planned for a long time and thought deeply. Every sentence he talks about is about healing the disease, and every sentence is about establishing himself.The Manchus have dominated the Central Plains for two hundred years, so how can they lightly grant military power to the Han people?Although the lord has a great talent and general strategy, he can even conquer famous cities, but his luck has shifted, and he can take advantage of the time.Xiangyong was created by the adults, listened to the orders of the adults, made meritorious service for the adults, and also attracted the envy of the adults. Therefore, Minqiao and Runzhi are among the feudal borders, and the adults still have vacancies.At this time, trembling and trembling, I am afraid that I can't do it, how can I open sinners everywhere? A book that can be summed up in five words: the soft beats the strong.It was not very satisfactory before, and it was because of Shen Han.The Shanren would like to ask my lord: From ancient times to the present, how many people have achieved success with pure use of Shen Han?My lord will soon be ordered out of the mountain again.The mountain man watched the sky at night, and saw that Jingchu doubled the splendor of the stars, and knew that his lord's fortune had come.It is hoped that from now on, Cheng Zhu's name will be used, Shen Han's law will be secretly used, and Huang Lao's weakness will be mixed. If this is the case, the wish that the mountain people made for the adults six years ago will be realized soon.Hope to do it myself. Jiangyou Chen Fu bowed his head and bowed, "No wonder I feel familiar. It turned out to be Mr. Guangfu. It is hard for him to enlighten me with such good intentions!" Zeng Guofan murmured and laughed out loud.During this period of time, he seemed to be like what Tao Yuanming said, "If you understand the past, you will not remonstrate, but if you know the future, you can pursue it." He has greatly regretted and realized everything in the past, and his mental state has entered a new realm. . As Chen Fu expected, a few days later, the order to aid Zhejiang was handed over to the lotus leaf pond by the Hunan governor's yamen.Zeng Guofan, who has undergone such painful training, believes that he will be able to perform a wonderful drama that is completely different from the past on the political stage in the southeast, which is full of blood and fire, with more mature skills and seasoned workmanship.