Throughout the past five thousand years, in Chinese history, there are only "two and a half" saints.
One is Confucius, the other is Wang Yangming, and the "half" is Zeng Guofan.
Zeng Guofan's life was full of controversies, but there is no doubt about his attainments in human conduct and personality cultivation.
"Those who speak slowly are rich, those who are soft-hearted are rich, and those who are virtuous are prosperous." These are the enlightening words he left to future generations, and they are also the condensation of his wisdom throughout his life.
01
Those who speak slowly are valued
Confucius said: A gentleman is slow in words but quick in deeds.
A truly wise person knows how to think twice before speaking. Words are faster than brains, and speaking without thinking will only bring disaster.
When Zeng Guofan was young, he fell into a mouth several times.
He is often outspoken, mocking his classmates and friends for not being as good as him, and taunting his colleagues whenever he gets the chance, showing off his power at every turn.
As a result, I offended people over and over again without even realizing it.
Until one day, in the court, facing the newly enthroned Emperor Xianfeng, he blurted out: "Smart in small things, confused in big things, just a pretentious person, not practical."
Xianfeng When the emperor heard this, he was furious and wanted to punish him. Fortunately, other great scholars begged for mercy and was able to avoid being punished.
After this tribulation, he suddenly came to his senses and established the saying "Don't do things according to your heart, and don't speak according to your mouth". He reminded himself to always remember to behave steadily and speak slowly.
Since then, Zeng Guofan has been particularly cautious in speaking.
According to historical records, when Zeng Guofan spoke later, he must speak after others had finished speaking, and when he said one sentence, you must prepare ten sentences, otherwise you will be left in the cold.
Because of this, he was able to become one of the very few people in history who achieved great success and died a good death.
Plato said: "A wise man speaks because he has something to say; a foolish man speaks because he wants to say something."
A wise man speaks with his brain; a fool, Use your mouth to speak.
Before speaking, speak slowly, keep your mind clear, and smooth out your thoughts, so as to avoid saying things that are irrational and that you will regret.
The Langya Wang family, "the most prominent family in China", has gone through dynasty changes and lasted for thousands of years, creating a miracle of three saints and thirty-five prime ministers.
Among his family mottos that have been handed down to the world, the first one is: Speak slowly.
If the water is deep, the flow will be slow, and if you speak slowly, people will be valuable.
To guard your mouth is to guard your blessings.
02
The soft man is rich
There is a story in "Aesop's Fables":
The sun and the wind argued about who was the most powerful.
But no one could convince the other. In the end, they agreed that whoever took off the clothes of a passerby first would be the most powerful.
Next, the strong wind blew hard, but the more it blew, the tighter the passers-by wrapped their clothes.
The sun was shining gently on the passers-by, getting warmer and warmer. Slowly, the passers-by took the initiative to take off their coats.
It turns out that being gentle and kind is more powerful than coercion and coercion. Being too tough is often counterproductive.
Strong pressure will only yield submission; gentleness will lead to conviction.
Zeng Guofan, who had just entered the officialdom, showed his sharp edge and liked to be tough when it came to problems. On the surface, things seemed to be settled, but in fact, he hurt the harmony and lost the hearts of the people.
In the end, he was deprived of military power and returned home in embarrassment.
While he was at home, he repeatedly reflected on himself and realized: if it is too strong, it will break easily, but if it is soft, it will last forever.
When dealing with people, one must be firm but not soft, able to be square but not round, able to advance but not retreat, and one is doomed to failure.
After his comeback, he was low-key, humble, gentle and polite, taking the word "soft" to the extreme.
In order to ease the relationship with Zuo Zongtang, as the coach, he chose to go to Zuo Mansion on foot to show his sincerity.
When he walked up to the door, facing the deliberate difficulty of Zuofu opening only the side door, he entered calmly and reviewed himself as soon as he entered.
It is precisely because of this that he later became a popular person, popular among people, and his official career was successful.
There is an old saying: Water is soft yet strong. Water benefits all things without competing. Water is the king of all grains, so it is good to live under it.
Rouness is never cowardice, but a power that penetrates people's hearts, a kind of mind, and a pattern.
If you treat people and things with gentleness, you can move a thousand pounds with four ounces, and defeat a strong force with a small force.
03
Those who are virtuous will prosper
In his life, Zeng Guofan advocated the "three taboos" the most: the way of heaven is to avoid cleverness, the way of heaven is to avoid excess, and the way of heaven is to avoid mistakes.
"Avoid cleverness" is the first one, that is, you must be kind and avoid opportunism.
He did not accept bribes. Although he served as the governor of Liangjiang and controlled the richest provinces, his life was very poor.
For his family members, Zeng Guofan often beat them, warning them not to make ill-gotten gains and to focus on accumulating virtue and doing good deeds.
He gave generously to his disciples or colleagues, never caring about gains and losses, and doing his best to help.
Even after Zuo Zongtang impeached him, he still actively planned military supplies for him so that he could successfully regain Xinjiang. In the end, Zuo Zongtang, a stubborn old man, could not help but admire his kindness and magnanimity.
So during his lifetime, he was deeply supported and loyally followed by those around him. Even after his death, the Zeng family continued to prosper, producing more than 240 famous talents in the past 200 years.
As he once said: The most sincerity in the world can beat the most false in the world, but the most clumsy in the world can beat the most skillful in the world.
Honesty is better than hypocrisy, and clumsiness is better than skill. What can make a person or a family go a long way is never shrewd calculation, but honesty and simplicity.
Loyalty lasts for a long time, and virtue can go a long way.
In 2009, Cao Dewang faced the risk of bankruptcy and closed the factory in which he had invested 800 million yuan.
The person in charge jumped in distress and asked him in confusion: "The government has clearly approved us to use landfill to dispose of waste, so why is it still closed?"
Cao Dewang said: "Although there is no problem with this method in the short term, the amount of waste we produce every day is too large. If it is piled up for a long time, it will still become a source of harm to future generations. We cannot ignore the surrounding villagers for the sake of immediate benefits. It’s safe and must be closed!”
It was precisely because of his kindness and kindness that he became the Glass King and his business became more and more prosperous.
As the saying goes: Those who are mean will have less blessings, and those who are generous will have greater blessings.
Life in this world is like a long river flowing into the sea. What determines victory or defeat is never the gains and losses of a pass or a place, but the flood from hundreds of rivers.
Kindness is a person’s best fortune and greatest blessing.
Zeng Guofan said: Be an official for a while and be a man for a lifetime.
The outcome of a person's life is ultimately contained in this practice.
If you speak carefully, you will have fewer disasters; if you are gentle, you will succeed; if you are virtuous, you will be blessed.