Xiao He, Zhang Liang and Han Xin are known as the “three heroes of the early Han Dynasty”. In the process of creating the Han Dynasty, the three made great contributions. What makes people sigh is that the fate of the three of them is very different. Han Xin was killed and Zhang Liang retired. Only Xiao He was Liu Bang’s deputy. He lived peacefully with Liu Bang for decades. Although there were some twists and turns, he finally had a beginning and an end and lived forever.
Looking through the twenty-five histories, most of the deputies who fight together are busy in vain. In the end, not only is it not good, but also their lives can not be guaranteed. Xiao He can be Liu Bang’s deputy. He has been famous in officialdom for decades. He can’t help but say that he is an expert as a deputy.
Xiao He is a talented person. In current words, he is a judicial expert, civil affairs expert and logistics expert. When Liu Bang was a civilian and a scoundrel, Xiao He was already a petty official in Peixian county. He once ranked first in the political performance evaluation, which shows that he is a very competent and capable official. But Xiao He has no official airs. He looks up to Liu Bang, a civilian, and treats him as a friend. At this time, Liu Bang often flattered others Xiao He. Xiao He was honest and sincere, and helped Liu Bang everywhere, which played an important role in his future prosperity. Later, Liu Bang rebelled and thought of Xiao He and asked him to be the county mayor. This is the beginning of Xiao He as a deputy.
Xiao He is a civil servant. He is responsible for handling finance and taxation, pacifying the people, issuing decrees, supplying food and grass for the army and other logistical work, and has done extremely well. In many battles, when Liu Bang was in the most critical moment, thanks to Xiao He’s support, Liu Bang was saved from danger. Especially after the capture of Xianyang, the capital of Qin Dynasty, all the generals were fighting for gold and silver treasures. Only Xiao He protected the documents, archives, laws and books of Qin Dynasty, so Liu Bang could know the military fortress, landform, population and economic status of the country like the palm of his hand.
Xiao He won the first place in the evaluation of martial arts after winning the battle. For this reason, Liu Bang gave him the gift of wearing a shoelace sword when he went to the court, and he did not have to follow the usual etiquette. However, Xiao He abides by etiquette everywhere. He knows that the emperor can make you unrestrained. That’s a gift for you, and you just keep it in mind. If you are really presumptuous, you are disrespectful to the emperor. That will be unlucky. Therefore, he had a very proper sense of proportion and did not cause trouble for himself because of details. This is the wisdom of Xiao He.
Xiao He can safely become Liu Bang’s deputy. The most important thing is not that he is capable, but that he is gentle and obedient. He listens to Liu Bang in everything, and gives all good things to Liu Bang, so he can compromise.
Therefore, after Liu Bang calmed down the world, he gave Xiao He a wide berth. According to the records of the historian, Xiao He was good at asking for instructions. He always reported to Liu Bang as soon as possible whether he was formulating laws and regulations, or building ancestral temples, States, palaces, and counties. Only after he got the consent did he begin to implement it, and never made his own decisions. This is what we often call “asking for instructions and reporting frequently”. It seems that you don’t have your own opinion according to the above instructions. In fact, this is the most brilliant opinion.
Liu Bang is a big old man, born as a ruffian, and knows nothing about the way of governing the country. What does Xiao he want to do? He generally agrees. Xiao He waited for Liu Bang’s consent to do everything. In this way, the efficiency may be lower, but it is indeed safe. His action made Liu Bang very happy. Finally, when he rewarded him for his merits, he gave Xiao He the first place for his merits.
In Liu Bang’s view, this deputy is capable and has no ambition, and is reliable. Therefore, Liu Bang made an exception and did not eradicate Xiao He, and the monarch and his ministers were able to live in peace for decades.
Xiao He is resourceful, and knowing how to restrain himself is to protect himself. He and empress Lu killed Han Xin together, received a reward, and was worshipped as prime minister. Liu Bang also equipped him with a guard of 500 soldiers. Xiao He knew that on the surface, this was a reward for him. In fact, Liu Bang had doubts. He had received too many benefits, and Liu Bang felt very uncomfortable.
He is well aware of the truth that when the moon is full, it will lose, and when the water is full, it will overflow. So he decisively donated all his family property as military expenditure. In this way, Liu Bang was naturally very happy and accepted it without any excuse.
It can be seen that Xiao He’s family property has long been missed by Liu Bang. If Xiao He doesn’t take the initiative to hand it in, maybe one day Liu Bang will find an excuse to copy Xiao He’s home. In that case, everyone will have to tear their faces, and it will definitely not be happy.
However, no matter how sophisticated Xiao He is, he has something unexpected. Xiao He’s idea is to be loyal to Liu Bang wholeheartedly, do his best to appease the people and be loyal to his duties. But in this way, he will win the hearts of the people, get more love from the people, and make the emperor afraid and worried.
At this time, a doorman warned Xiao He: “you are not far from exterminating the family. The people love you more and more because of your tireless work. The emperor has sent people to ask you what you are doing many times. In fact, he is afraid that you occupy the central Shaanxi plain. Why don’t you buy more fields and borrow at low prices on credit to discredit yourself? Only by doing so can the emperor be at ease.” Xiao he followed the advice of his doorman. For this reason, Liu Bang was very happy. Think about it. If Xiao He doesn’t do this, can he be spared by Liu Bang’s ruthless and suspicious character?
Xiao He spent most of his life as deputy to Liu Bang, without ups and downs, but he had a very hard time. He endured humiliation and shouldered heavy responsibilities, worked tirelessly, worked hard and thrifty, and comforted the world. Few people have the same good intentions as him. He spent all his life trying to “find the right place” and became a lucky man in the feudal officialdom.