In folklore, Cheng Biting Jin is a lucky general, the ability is not the biggest, but he can always make the right choice, he is luckier than most people, can get a good death, this is also reflected in the real history of Cheng Biting Jin. The name Cheng Biting Jin is mostly a folk name, in fact, Cheng Biting Jin is only his childhood name, he later changed his name to Cheng Zhijie.
Cheng Zhijie had three key choices in his life, and it was these choices that made him a hero of the early Tang Dynasty, and the portrait entered the Ling Yan Pavilion, and although he himself made mistakes in his later years, it did not prevent him from dying well. In a way, being able to make the right choice is a very important kind of wisdom, which is much more important than mere effort. So when did Cheng Zhijie's three choices occur?
His first crucial choice took place in the second year of Tang Wude, in 619. Cheng Zhijie was originally a member of the Wagang army, very heavy for Li Mi, and was one of the horsemen of the internal army, but after the Battle of Luoyang in 618, the Wagang army collapsed, and Cheng Zhijie, Qin Qiong, and others were captured by Wang Shichong to Luoyang, and Li Mi also defected to Li Yuan of the Tang Dynasty.
Cheng Zhijie and other Wagang generals were initially valued by Wang Shichong, of which Cheng Zhijie became a general, but Wang Shichong still relied heavily on the People of Jianghuai Chu, and gradually he no longer attached so much importance to the Wagang generals, and Wang Shichong himself was indeed not the Lord, Cheng Zhijie felt more and more that he should leave Wang Shichong, and he said to Qin Qiong:
"The world is shallow and narrow, and there are many false words, so that they can be cursed, but they are the ears of the old woman of the wizard, is it a distraction?"
Cheng Zhijie expressed his intentions to Qin Qiong, and Qin Qiong and others were unwilling to continue to follow Wang Shichong, so in 619, when Wang Shichong and Tang Jun were engaged in battle in Jiuqu, Cheng Zhijie, Qin Qiong, and dozens of other people bid farewell to Wang Shichong in front of the battle, and the Prancing Horse left and threw themselves to the side of the Tang Dynasty, Wang Shichong watched these people leave without any way.
Li Yuan placed them all by Li Shimin's side, and Cheng Zhijie became the third unified army of the left, and began to follow Li Shimin in the southern expedition to the northern war, and later became the Duke of Suguo because of his official title. Within a few years, the whole world returned to the Tang Dynasty, and Li Shimin also became a general of Tiance, and with the power comparable to Li Jiancheng, he naturally had the ambition to fight for that position.
Li Shimin had such a thought, and Li Jiancheng could naturally see that he wanted to do everything he could to get away all the people around Li Shimin, send them home, bribe them, and release them. As a capable general around Li Shimin, Cheng Zhijie was naturally also within Li Jiancheng's calculations. In the seventh year of WuDe, in 624, Li Jiancheng said a few "kind words" to Li Yuan, and then Li Yuan would let Cheng Zhijie do the History of Kangzhou Assassination. Cheng Zhijie then persuaded Li Shimin:
"The king's arm is now removed, and his body will soon be gone." Knowing the festival to die, may it be quick and self-sufficient. ”
This was Cheng Zhijie's second choice, choosing to side with Li Shimin and advising him to act as soon as possible in case of an accident, and cheng Zhijie was naturally one of the participants in the later change of Xuanwu Gate. After Li Shimin ascended the throne, Cheng Zhijie became a great general of the Right Wu Wei and was given 700 households.
During the Zhenguan period, Cheng Zhijie was mainly an official in other places, and in 643, his portrait entered the Ling yan Pavilion and then began to stay in Chang'an as an official. Later, Li Shimin died, Li Zhi ascended the throne, that is, Emperor Gaozong of Tang, and in 656, Li Zhi appointed Cheng Zhijie as the grand commander of the March of onion Mountain Road to lead an army against Ashina Helu. Li Zhi also assigned Cheng Zhijie a deputy, Wang Wendu, and Su Dingfang, the former commander of the army.
Perhaps because he had not been on the battlefield for several years, or perhaps because he was older, in short, Cheng Zhijie's performance in this battle was very bad, as the grand master, but he was at the mercy of Wang Wendu. Wang Wendu said that the poor Kou Mo chased, and Cheng Zhijie disregarded Su Dingfang's suggestion and delayed the fighter plane, which led to the death of many soldiers and horses.
Moreover, Wang Wendu corrected himself to be able to restrain Cheng Zhijie, and Cheng Zhijie believed Wang Wendu and turned a blind eye to Su Dingfang's request to arrest Wang Wendu. After the battle was won, Cheng Zhijie once again followed Wang Wendu's advice, and the result was
"There are thousands of Hu people who open their doors and go out, and they slaughter the city and go away."
In order to be able to get their possessions.
Cheng Zhijie, who had been clever all his life, could be described as late in this battle, and when the army returned to the division, Cheng Zhijie was dismissed, and this experience let Cheng Zhijie know that he was old and could not perform any official positions, so his punishment for Li Zhi did not have any meaning.
But not long after, Li Zhi started to use Cheng Zhijie again, let Cheng Zhijie do the Qizhou Assassination History, but Cheng Zhijie had already figured it out, knowing that he had reached the time of retirement, he did not linger, simply begged for bones, Li Zhi did not force retention, just like this, Cheng Zhijie made the last key choice in life, that is, to go home for the elderly.
After retirement, Cheng Zhijie still lived in his home in Chang'an, but no longer went out, he stayed at home quietly and enjoyed the joys of heaven, in 665, the 77-year-old Cheng Zhijie came to the end of his life and buried Zhaoling after his death.
It can be said that it is precisely because Cheng Zhijie had these three key choices that he was able to make meritorious achievements in the early Tang Dynasty and enjoy his old age in peace, these choices are easy to say, but it is really difficult to do, and it is not something that ordinary people can make. At what time should we make choices, and strive to occupy the active rather than passive, this is the great wisdom of Cheng Zhijie.
Compared with Qin Qiong, who had been ill during the Zhenguan years, Wei Chi Jingde who had only beged for his bones after several beatings, and Hou Junji's dissatisfaction in his heart and had embarked on the wrong path, Cheng Zhijie was much more intelligent.