Since ancient times, there has been a great deal of success, but the chef who has been born as a minister, throughout the ancient and modern times, I am afraid that only Yi Yin is alone. How did he successfully attract the attention of Shanghou without any political background, and how to arouse Shanghou's appetite and allow him to take charge of state affairs.
Pitch yourself out
Whether it is modern society or ancient times when information is not developed, it is a difficult thing to sell yourself, and people who do this often succeed, such as Zhuge Liang, who made Liu Beisan take care of Maolu, and Jiang Ziya, who let King Wen of Zhou carry him out of the mountains. There is another one, earlier than them, who can be called the ancestor who successfully sold himself out - Yi Yin.
Who is Yi Yin? He was originally his surname, from one of the eight surnames of the ancients, Yi shi, the name of Zhi, Yin is a later feudal official, similar to the future prime minister, posterity called habitual, so it is called Yi Yin. He lived in the xia period, the imperial court was dim, and the princes rose up together, which had become an irreversible trend. The sober Yi Yin saw that the building was about to fall, and he knew that there would inevitably be a figure who would turn the tide of the tide against the fallen, and only by following such a person could he have a day of emergence and get rid of his slave's untouchability. He looked at the world, and only Shanghou Tang in the East had such courage and strength. But he was from a lowly origin, and it was difficult for him to ascend to the heavens if he wanted to see Shang Hou, so how could he make it work for himself? This is indeed a conundrum.
How hard is it? In terms of identity, Yi Yin and Shang Tang are the difference between heaven and earth. In the Mozi Shangxian, it is recorded that "Yi Yin was a female servant of the Youxin clan". What is the position of master and servant? Teacher, of course, refers to the teacher, so why add the word "servant"? This is related to the social system of the time. The Xia Dynasty practiced slavery, the main body of society was slaves, and the personal freedom and economic rights and interests of slaves belonged to slave owners; only a small number of large craftsmen had civilian status, that is, free bodies. But slavery is only an identity, and the slave class also has literacy and hyphenation. Yi Yin was a slave class, and he was a tutor to the daughter of the king of the Xin kingdom at that time, because of his status as a slave, he was called "master servant", which is the origin of the word servant.
So, what is the origin of this country? How did this experience help Yi Yin sell himself in the future? Youxinguo was a princely state in the East at that time, and although it could not be compared with a big country like the Shang, it was also established for a long time and had its own personal roots. It just so happened that the king of the State of Xin married his daughter to Shang Tang as a concubine, so Yi Yin accompanied him to the State of Shang as a concubine. Since then, there has been an opportunity to show his ambitions in Shangguo.
But it is not easy for a courtier to see the monarch, and he can only keep his duty and wait for the opportunity. From the blossom to the flower, Yi Yin spent years and years in the harem, but Shanghou was getting farther and farther away from him. But he was not discouraged, observing the timing at all times while preparing his governing strategy. Finally, the opportunity has come!
That said, soup has a hobby, is hungry, and likes to enjoy good food. However, the cooks in the Hou Mansion always do those few things, and when the mountain treasures and seafood are tired of eating, they naturally can't eat it, which can upset the housekeepers in the house, and it is also difficult for the cooks, and they always fail to meet the satisfaction of the soup.
Yi Yin thought, "Isn't this right, my adoptive father is the cook!" He immediately issued a military order to the little master, and he wanted to try it himself. It turns out that Yi Yin not only did a good job in the article, but also liked to study food, meat, vegetarian food, pasta, all kinds of practice, and also created a cooking experience of "taking the soup with the top" and "reconciling the five flavors".
After the little princess of Xinguo married into Shangguo, she was cautious everywhere, and in order to protect herself, she only introduced herself to Shangtang and said that she had brought a chef with her dowry, who had a unique cooking skill, hoping that Shangtang could taste it, but did not say that it was Yi Yin who was in charge. Unexpectedly, after Tang's picky tongue touched the delicacies made by Yi Yin, his eyes lit up and he excitedly sent someone to find a chef to come and talk.
Yi Yin knew that the opportunity had come, he had successfully sold himself out with a meal, and all that remained was to seize the opportunity. It seems that the profession of chef still has many opportunities! Therefore, the future generations honored Yi Yin as the ancestor of the cook.
Lift the appetite of the leader
According to the logic of ordinary people, the leader finally received it, and it was not happy to climb the pole. But Yi Yin is not an ordinary person. Only to see that his face was relaxed, and he was not half flustered, although he was a courtier, he was not humble or profane.
As the king of a country, Tang had seen all kinds of characters, but he had never seen such an arrogant slave, and he couldn't help but be a little curious, so he wanted to test this "character". Unexpectedly, Yi Yin took the dish as a guide, and even integrated the governing strategy he studied in his daily life, and explained it in a simple and vivid and interesting way.
To say that Tang has learned the way of governing the country since childhood, it is nothing more than these truths, but no one has ever compared the way of governing the country to cooking, and it is so grounded and so lifelike that people can listen to it; for the first time, he knows that the road of governance is hidden in the bits and pieces of life. Shang Tang was suddenly attracted by this thin and dry old man.
In fact, Tang did not know that this statement that seemed to be handy was something that Yi Yin had long been familiar with. For this meeting, Yi Yin did not know how many times he had rehearsed behind his back. The collation and writing of these governing strategies is not a matter of whimsy, but the result of several nights of careful planning and preparation. Of course, the result was also expected by Yi Yin, and Shang Tang immediately decided to give the official appointment. The 60th chapter of the Tao Te Ching says that "if you rule a big country, if you cook a small fresh", it is precisely this story that is told, which is later called "Yi Yin said soup".
As the saying goes, the world fishes, And Lu Gong fishes for the heart. Yi Yin, as the predecessor of Lü Gong, is also a master of fishing for hearts. To fish for the heart, it is natural to take heavy bait - Yi Yin did not immediately agree. Therefore, Shang Tang sent someone to meet him five more times, and he agreed to go. Why bother? First, in order to make Shang Tang realize that talents are difficult to find and cherish in the future; second, it also shows its own value, and if it is not moved by fame and fortune, Shang Tang can take a high look at it and seek a higher position; third, it can test Shang Tang's determination to oppose Xia, understand the wishes of the boss, and then offer advice in the future. Still, it's worth the wait. This meeting can be called the Shang Dynasty's version of "Longzhong pair".
In the "Records of History", it is recorded that "Tang Yue 'sees the water as the form, and sees the people as knowing whether to govern', and Yi Yin yue 'can hear words, and the Tao is advanced.'" The people of the nation, the good, are all in the royal official. Mian Zhao, Mian Zhao! Shang Tang told Yi Yin that people can see their own shadow in the water and see how well a country is governed, just look at his people. As soon as these words came out, they were exactly what happened to Yi Yin's heart. He did not expect that Tang, as the king of a country, could actually think of this, indicating that he was a person who could listen to advice, and such a monarch could think of the people and appoint sages. Of course, such a monarch is also the lord of Yi Yin's imagination.
Therefore, Yi Yin poured out his money and contributed all the inventory at the bottom of his box - telling the way of governing the country of King Su and the Nine Lords. Su Wang refers to the ancient King of TaiSu, because of the quality of its way of governing the country, so it is called Su Wang. The Nine Lords refer to the nine ways of governing the country of the Nine Emperors, the Emperors, the Emperors, the Lords, the Lords, the Lords, the Lords, the Three-Year-Old Monarchs, the Nine Lords, the Emperors, the Emperors, the Three-Year-Old Monarchs. Shang Tang listened triumphantly and immediately granted Yi Yin the power to hold the power of state politics, called "Yin", and since then there has been Yi Yin in the history books.
It can be seen that Yi Yin's operation of hanging the appetite of the leader has really worked. Yi Yin passed the test of Shang Tang with a strategy of governing the country, and Shang Tang also passed the test of Yi Yin with his patience and sincerity, and since then the two monarchs and subjects have worked together, and the majestic territory of the Shang Dynasty seems to have been laid out in front of his eyes.
Become a partner of leadership
Shang Tang gave Yi Yin such a high status, Yi Yin always had to repay the favor and do a good job in serving Shang Tang before the war. What is pre-war service? It's about gathering intelligence. Before Yi Yin decided to follow Shang Tang, Shang Tang had already begun to plot against the Xia Dynasty. The addition of Yi Yin has made his legion more powerful. However, the plot is in the people, the success is in the sky, and the merchants at this time do not understand the internal situation of the Xia Dynasty, so it is difficult to judge the timing of the unveiling, which requires someone to inquire about the news. Who to send? Yi Yin stepped forward.
Although Shang Tang nominally sent Yi Yin to the Xia Dynasty to help, at this time Shang Tang's rebellious intentions had been revealed, and Yi Yin's identity was irrefutable. Xia Wangjie naturally could see clearly, so he did not reuse Yi Yin. Both sides are face-saving and polite.
However, once when Xia Jie feasted on the courtiers, Yi Yin was also invited as a guest secretary. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. After three rounds of wine and five flavors of dishes, all the courtiers were a little smoked, and a few of them were overwhelmed and even held hands and sang songs. That song was a popular song in the capital to the effect that my king would be deposed.
When Yi Yin first heard it, he was scared out of a cold sweat. These courtiers were really bold, and no matter how drunk King Xia was, he would not fail to hear the courtiers insulting himself in person. But he looked at the Summer King again, and drank and enjoyed himself as usual, completely ignoring it. Immediately after that, another courtier sang, this time to persuade the King of Xia to go to the unwholesome and follow the good. Although it was a painstaking heart, but looking at the eyes of the Xia King, it was not worth leaving the sister for a moment, where there was a heart to listen to the advice, only afraid that the courtier was also in vain.
Yi Yin thought that King Xia's heart was really big enough. He couldn't help but test the Xia King again, "The situation is very unfavorable to you now, once there is a war, are you not afraid of destroying the country?" ”
I thought that as soon as these words came out, the Xia King would be immediately angry, but he did not expect that he would laugh dumbly, and even in turn advised Yi Yin not to disturb himself, "It is impossible for the heavens to be without the sun, and I cannot be without the people." Will the sun be gone? If the sun is gone, then I will really perish! ”
The words of the Xia King completely reassured Yi Yin - the Xia Dynasty was indeed not saved! The defeat of Xia was defeated by the blind arrogance of the King of Xia. So Yi Yin ended his career and returned to Shangdu to talk to Shanghou about what he had seen and heard in Xiadu. Together, the time has come to start the grand plan for the summer generation. At this time, Yi Yin, because he had the first-hand information of the Xia Dynasty, became a partner on the road of Shang Tang to destroy Xia.
The revelation of Yi Yin's success
From the chef to the prime minister, this turn is too gorgeous, too shining, Yi Yin created the myth of changing his life against the sky, and created the miracle of the workplace Xiaobai counterattacking the peak of his career. His success, throughout the ancient and modern times, has given countless workplace whites inspiration:
There are no absolutes in the world, don't prematurely put a coffin on yourself. If Yi Yin had confessed his fate since childhood, perhaps he would have been a slave for the rest of his life, and even if he had the opportunity to be a tutor for the daughter of the king of the Xin kingdom, he might not have tried to marry to the Shang kingdom; and even if he married to the Shang kingdom, if he hesitated a little when signing up to cook for the Shang Hou, even if it was only for a short time, he might have missed the opportunity to meet the Shang Hou from then on, and there would be one less sage in the world.
Yiduo does not press the body, and the work is natural. No one can predict the future, do not dwell on what knowledge is useful and what knowledge is useless, as long as knowledge is useful, as long as it is skill, it will always shine. There is no suffering under the sky, and your efforts will be returned to you one day. If Yi Yin had not studied cooking with his adoptive father as a teenager, perhaps in our opinion, he would have just become a student who could not cook, which was no big deal; but when the opportunity really came, the skill of cooking would be on display, not only helping him get rid of his slave status, but also helping him meet with Shang Tang, opening the door for him to reach the peak of his career in the future.
Opportunities are indeed reserved for those who are prepared, but blindly preparing will only miss the opportunity. Sometimes the chances that don't seem like an opportunity are higher. Yi Yin did not give up when there was no way to see him, but waited for the opportunity. When he learned that Tang was not satisfied with every meal, he felt that his opportunity had come. As it turned out, he grasped this opportunity quite accurately, and simply found a road to heaven for himself.
Gold will always shine, but be prepared to shine at all times. If Yi Yin had not been ready for a soaring sky, when Shang Tang met with him, he would not have acted calmly, put forward detailed and comprehensive views on governing the country, and persuaded Shang Tang. Even if Shang Tang hired him, it would give him a corresponding official position according to his ability, and would not easily give him the power of the country. Therefore, we must always be prepared to shine, otherwise the opportunity will come, and it will be difficult to fly against the wind.
Be a partner of leadership, not just a subordinate. To be a subordinate of the leader is always a subordinate; only by becoming a partner of the leader can you become the true core of the team. If Yi Yin had not gone deep into the Xia Dynasty to collect information, it would have been difficult to provide important advice when Shang Tang made decisions, and it would have been difficult to become an indispensable partner on the road of Shang Tang to destroy Xia. Only when people in the workplace do this step can they get the real reliance of leaders.
Therefore, the workplace xiaobai should learn from Yi Yin and tap some potential to change his life against the sky in himself!
Special note: The above pictures are from the Internet, and the copyright belongs to the original author.
Reference: Sima Qian. History[M].Beijing:Zhonghua Bookstore,1985.]