Text | Laugh at Shi Yunyan
Edit | Laugh at Shi Yunyan
In the long history of the mainland, there is an outstanding figure, although history does not record much about him, his life is as perfect and successful as legendary.
He is Fan Li, a legendary figure who is both a politician, an economist, a businessman, a military strategist and a thinker, and later generations respected him as a business saint.
01
In ancient Chinese history, few figures can be compared with Fan Li, who was born in 536 BC in the poor village of Chu in Sanhu, and grew up in a poor family.
However, Fan Li has a strong thirst for knowledge, and when he was young, he was already knowledgeable and talented, and he could understand the essence of things.
Despite his poor family, Fan Li's life is full of legends, he was known for his strange behavior and unconventional behavior in his youth, in the eyes of the world, he was a crazy person, but behind this seemingly crazy behavior, his keen wisdom is hidden.
When Wen Chong came to visit, Fan Li actually barked at Wen Chong in an unkempt appearance under the hole in his home.
This unusual behavior laid the foundation for their deep friendship, and the two vowed to achieve great things together.
The reason why Fan Li can become a legendary figure in history is not only because of his extraordinary wisdom, but also because he has made a significant contribution to the reversal of the fate of the Yue Kingdom.
He devised a series of elaborate schemes for Gou Jian, which ultimately led to the victory of the Yue state in the struggle against the Wu state.
If it weren't for Fan Li's resourcefulness, Gou Jian might have been in trouble, and it would be difficult for Yue Guo to achieve a great reversal of national fortunes.
At that time, although the state of Chu was the overlord among the nations, the arrogance and arrogance of the monarch and the power struggle between the nobles made Fan Li and Wen Chong feel disappointed.
Therefore, they devoted themselves to the country of Vietnam, hoping to display their talents there.
At first, Goujian, the king of Yue, did not reuse them, until the Yue Kingdom was defeated in the battle of Huiji Mountain, and many ministers turned away, only Fan Li and Wen Chong stuck to Goujian's side, and finally won the trust of the king of Yue.
Fan Li's loyalty and resourcefulness are particularly outstanding, in the most difficult moment of the Yue Kingdom, he took the initiative to follow Gou Jian to Wu as a slave, and Gou Jian and his wife worked together, strictly abiding by the courtesy of the monarch and ministers.
This kind of loyal performance won the respect and envy of Wu Wangfucha.
Once, King Wu deliberately dropped a piece of gold on Fan Li's way, but Fan Li calmly stepped over and never looked back, completely eliminating King Wu's idea of shaking his loyalty.
02
His wisdom is not only reflected in governing the country and the people, but also in conforming to the favorable time, place and people, guiding the Yue country to turn defeat into victory when the catastrophe is no longer recovered, and has achieved a good story that has been passed down through the ages.
In the Spring and Autumn Period, although Confucianism dominated the mainstream and advocated benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom, and faithfulness, in the actual political scene, there were only a handful of politicians who could perfectly combine Confucian ethics with Taoist conformity to nature, thus creating miracles.
Fan Li not only absorbed the essence of Confucianism, but also gained insight into the profound connotation of Taoism "Taoism is natural, and nothing is done".
His thinking transcended the times, not limited to a single school, but widely embraced the doctrines of Legalism, Moism, Yin-Yang and other schools, and formed his own philosophy of governance.
Fan Li's strategy can be summarized as "Ten Years of Life and Gathering", "Ten Years of Lessons" and "Nine Techniques of Exterminating Wu".
The formulation and implementation of these strategies fully reflect Fan Li's outstanding leadership skills and foresight.
After the release of Gou Jian, the national strength of the Yue country weakened, and internal and external troubles were intertwined, and Fan Li was soberly aware that there must be a set of long-term plans to restore the national strength.
His wisdom lies in the fact that he not only took into account the stability and development of Vietnam internally, but also carefully laid out the balance of foreign relations.
He proposed a series of countermeasures, such as building open city walls, secretly forming a "militia", and secretly refining weapons in the mountains, which skillfully circumvented the agreement with Wu and laid a solid foundation for the revival of the Yue state.
It is worth noting that Fan Li is not only a visionary planner, but also a practitioner with great patience and strategic vision.
He stopped Gou Jian's impatient actions three times, rationally assessed the right time, place and people, and insisted on acting at the best time.
When Wu's national strength was empty, Yue's national strength was restored, and the external environment was favorable, Fan Licai told Gou Jian that it was time to send troops.
All this is based on his deep understanding of Sun Tzu's strategic thinking in the Art of War, "first to be invincible, then to wait for the enemy to be victorious".
In the end, under the careful planning of Fan Li, the Yue Kingdom took advantage of Wu's domestic and foreign troubles 10 years later to destroy Wu and successfully restore the country in one fell swoop.
This battle is not only a great revival of the Yue Kingdom, but also the best proof of Fan Li's wisdom.
03
In the face of defeat, Fucha would rather die than give in, and chose to commit suicide, ending his hegemony, and Gou Jian, although he had the grace of not killing Fucha, could not redeem the iron backbone of this King Wu.
After the destruction of the state of Wu, Gou Jian held a grand celebration banquet to reward the generals and strategists who had made great contributions in the war.
In this celebration, Fan Li was named a general, and his power was second only to Gou Jian.
However, it was such a high position that made Fan Li feel an unspeakable worry.
He clearly realized that in this seemingly peaceful era, powerful ministers often avoided disasters, especially those who made high achievements.
Fan Li is well aware of the lessons of history: "The birds are exhausted, the good bow is hidden, the cunning rabbit is dead, and the lackeys are cooked", this old saying warns of the crisis after the peak of power.
Therefore, at the peak of his career, he chose a different path: resigned and left the center of power.
His decision surprised Gou Jian, and the king of Yue even proposed to use half of the country's land as a condition for retaining people, but Fan Li still firmly refused, and decided to take his lover Xi Shi to retire to the rivers and lakes and escape into a free and easy life.
On the eve of bidding farewell to the Yue Kingdom, Fan Li wrote a letter to Wen Chong, warning this colleague to pay attention to the changing political situation and not to be confused by the glory in front of him.
However, Wen Chong failed to recognize the sinister nature of the current situation and insisted on the Confucian idea of "eating the king's fortune and repaying the king's kindness" that he firmly believed, and failed to leave the scene in time.
As a result, he was killed by Gou Jian soon after, becoming a victim of a game of thrones.
With a cool head and keen observation, Fan Li has insight into the complexity of human nature and politics.
His departure was at the most dangerous moment, breaking free from the tiger's mouth, leaving behind a legend that countless people talked about in later generations.
The tragedy of the literary genre sounded the alarm for future generations: in the whirlpool of power, only by always being vigilant and judging the situation can we control our own destiny.
04
However, he did not retreat to the mountains and forests, but chose to go into business, and was known for his profitable and ethical business philosophy, which stood out in his era of war and economic turmoil.
Different from ordinary businessmen who pursue huge profits, Fan Li advocates "gentlemen make money, take it in the right way" in business activities, and insist on taking only 10% of the cost.
This was undoubtedly an extremely rare business practice at that time, because at that time, merchants were exposed to enormous business risks, from war to banditry to inaccessibility, which made the cost of business activities high.
Even so, Fan Li was able to quickly accumulate wealth and became a giant many times.
His success is partly due to his business strategy, buying large quantities when there is a surplus and selling when they are scarce.
This strategy of buying low and selling high has enabled him to have a rapid turnover of funds, never idle, and his wealth has continued to grow.
And his attitude towards the people reflects his true character of "chivalrous businessman".
In special periods such as disaster years, Fan Li will reduce or even cancel profits, and provide relief to disaster victims by losing money, showing deep gratitude and return to the people.
Although Fan Li's business activities are highly credible and conscientious, he does not desire fame and fortune.
In fact, he moved three times in his life to avoid the entanglement of fame and fortune.
As Sima Qian said in "Historical Records", "Fan Li migrated three times and became famous in the world", and fame and fortune followed him even more.
Fan Li's two official to the best, whether it is an official in the court or a businessman in the city, he embodies loyalty and conscience.
His philosophy of life and business strategy are still known today, and he had a lot of money in his later years, but throughout his life, he gave to the world, and each time he accumulated wealth was used to give back to society.
At the age of 88, Fan Li passed away, his family's wealth is enough to compete with the country, and his life is perfect.
05
Fan Li's life is legendary, he began his political career in a country on the verge of collapse, and with his extraordinary talent and wisdom, he helped the country rise and become one of the five hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period.
However, at the height of his political career, he chose an unexpected path and retired to business.
In the business world, Fan Li's talent was once again on display.
In the 19 years he has been in business, he has become a wealthy businessman three times, and his wealth has accumulated to an unimaginable level.
However, when the country was in crisis and the people were displaced, he did not indulge in the accumulation of personal wealth, but gave generously to the relief of the common people.
His move made people in later generations respect him, and even respected him as the god of literature and wealth.
Fan Li's life is the perfect combination of politics and business, he not only made remarkable achievements in politics and business, but also in his personal life has also been fulfilled, it is said that he finally got a happy love, and retired in a peaceful and prosperous world.
In traditional Chinese culture, Fan Li is revered as the god of wealth on the south road, and is worshiped and worshiped by people along with other gods of wealth.
They are Bigan, the god of literature and wealth on the east road, Guan Gong, the god of martial arts and wealth on the west road, Zhao Gongming on the north road, Duanmu ci on the southwest road, Li Yizu on the northeast road, Guan Zhong on the southeast road, and Bai Gui on the northwest road.
Each God of Wealth has its own characteristics and legends, and Fan Li is admired by future generations for his business ethics and personality charm.
His story is not only a legend of a businessman, but also a microcosm of an era, showing us that integrity and ethics are the keys to success in any era.