Love Affairs in Chang’an

Chapter 39: Like father and teacher

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When Qin Mubai entered the imperial study to meet the driver, he heard the sporadic sound of pipa, and Li Shimin was actually playing with it.

"Mu Bai, you came just in time." Li Shimin waved to him with a pleasant smile, "Come here, give me some pointers. I have been thinking about it for a long time, but I still can't figure it out. What is the secret of playing the pipa with fingers? "

"This... I don't dare." Qin Mubai bowed his hands and did not move.

"It's okay, come sit next to me." Li Shimin ordered the eunuch to bring it to sit in the group, and then placed a seat on the emperor's throne.

It is a great honor and favor to allow ministers to ascend the throne with the king. Any ministers who meet the emperor can only look at the imperial staircase and are not allowed to look directly at the king to show awe. Hence the word "Your Majesty".

Qin Mubai hesitated for a moment, then walked up to the emperor and sat down. Li Shimin handed the pipa to him and said with a smile: "Relax a little. We are not discussing matters in the Jinluan Palace now, and there are no other people around. My usual practice is to treat you as a monarch and minister in the palace, and as a relative in the lower chamber. I invite you here today because I specially want to invite you. Please give me some advice on pipa skills."

"How dare I give you some advice, Your Majesty?" Qin Mubai bowed his hands.

"There is no age in learning, and those who are capable come first!" Li Shimin said with a smile, "Actually, this is the case with everything in the world. No one dares to say that he is good at everything. No matter how great the sages throughout the ages are, they are by no means Almighty. For example, most of the sages are men. No matter how sages they are, they still have to rely on women to continue their relationship and have children."

"Haha, what your Majesty said is absolutely true." The emperor deliberately created a relaxed atmosphere, so Qin Mubai laughed. He thought to himself: The emperor would definitely not ask me to teach him something about pipa. There's a mystery behind what he just said - does that mean he's advising me that as a leader, I should unite my subordinates closely and give full play to the strengths and specialties of each subordinate

"Well, you'd better play me a piece of lute first. When I said goodbye to the Qin Mansion that day, I missed your pipa music very much! Although Tai Leling learned the art from your teacher, the music he played was still I can't compare with you." Li Shimin said with a relaxed smile, "It's rare that I have free time today, but I really want to listen to this wonderful pipa song."

"Your Majesty has an order, and I should obey it." Qin Mubai took the pipa and played with the strings, and said, "That day, your Majesty listened to "The King Disarms", and today I will play you a song " How about "House of Flying Daggers"

"Okay!" Li Shimin nodded, "The Overlord disarms bravely and tragically. House of Flying Daggers should refer to the scene when Han Xin laid out a plan to defeat Xiang Yu in Wujiang, right?"

"That's right. In comparison, "House of Flying Daggers" is more impassioned and high-spirited. It is a song of victory." After Qin Mubai finished speaking, he immediately started playing.

An impassioned pipa martial arts song burst out, and Li Shimin listened to it like crazy. When the music ended, he couldn't help but clapped his hands and praised: "Wonderful! Wonderful! It's really the sound of nature that lingers around for three days without stopping!"

"Your Majesty, you are so complimentary. Some trivial skills are not enough to reach the level of elegance. I am ashamed of myself."

"Well... Mu Bai, you are versatile in both civil and military skills. You are a rare talent." Li Shimin smiled and nodded, and said meaningfully, "Let's just say that this pipa, although it is a low-level skill, can still reveal a person's character and talent. You are very smart and have excellent understanding. I have also seen your calligraphy, and your regular script has a unique style. It can be seen that you are a young person who is passionate and good at creating and studying. Having such quality at the time will lay an excellent foundation for success.”

"The humble minister has little virtue and talent, and there are too many things to learn." Qin Mubai knew that the emperor was about to enter a formal topic, so he followed his words, "As far as commanding the army is concerned, the humble minister has nothing." As you know, you are always walking on thin ice for fear of making a mistake.”

"Haha, do you think that I announced your arrival just to reprimand you?" Li Shimin smiled, stopped playing side-by-side, and said directly, "You did nothing wrong about Yuchi Baoyun. If it were me, you wouldn't have done anything wrong. You know how to do that. A general should have "strongness". If he can't even punish his subordinates and can't even enforce military discipline, then he is a mediocre person. I joined the army at the age of sixteen and fought in the world for more than ten years. I still know a little about the army. The army is where bloody men gather. Every soldier should be born for the battlefield and be prepared for bloody battles. Such people have their own temperament and bloody nature. Like a wolf that chooses people and eats them without fear, otherwise it would be different from an eunuch, so why bother to be a soldier? Therefore, not everyone can be a general and can control these people to the greatest extent. To inspire the power of these people is a profound knowledge. "

"Wei Chen will remember your Majesty's teachings." Qin Mubai bowed his hands and said, "Wei Chen has been leading Baiqi for seven days. I feel that I have to do a lot of things every moment, especially to learn a lot of things and fill in a lot of gaps. So I feel like I don’t have enough time.”

"That's right. Only positive people will feel like this." Li Shimin nodded and smiled, "Although I have never set foot in the Baiqi Army Camp, I know that you still did a good job. The training plan you formulated , It’s very creative, and it’s very impressive to me. You have a good way to improve your military morale, and you have some methods to build your prestige, but you still have some shortcomings.”

"Your Majesty, please punish me clearly!"

"There's no need for punishment. You didn't make a mistake, you just did something wrong." Li Shimin still smiled and said in a relaxed tone, "Mu Bai, let me ask you. What do you think a general should do in front of his subordinates? What kind of image should we do?”

"This..." Qin Mubai thought for a while and said, "In my humble opinion, I think that as a general, you should let your subordinates admire, be grateful, fear, and respect you. All matters in the army, big or small, are for the general. You must be proficient, otherwise you will not be able to correct and direct others. In addition, you should love your soldiers like your own son, be responsible for your actions, be true to your word, and be faithful to your words, and establish your grace and authority."

"That's right." Li Shimin nodded and smiled, "If you can do this, you will be a rare good general. There are many such people in our Tang Dynasty, and your father Qin Shubao is one of them. I Let me ask you again, how does your father Qin Shubao compare with Duke Wei Li Jing and Medicine Master Li?"

"This... I don't know." Qin Mubai was naturally embarrassed to talk nonsense. One is the totem of the Tang Dynasty army, the undefeated myth Li Jing, and the other is his own father, how can he dare to discuss it

"Then let me tell you. The difference between them is the difference between a general and a commander." Li Shimin said, "As a general, if you do what you just said, it is already very good. But if you want to be an independent The handsomeness is not enough. If you know Li Jing, you will naturally understand. "

"This... Wei Chen naturally doesn't know."

"I can tell you something." Li Shimin said, "Your father is a man of unparalleled loyalty and bravery. Bo Yuntian is a general who loves his soldiers like his own son and leads the way. He is unanimously supported and respected by the soldiers. Countless people are willing to live and die with him." Go through fire and water. Qin Shubao should be regarded as a good general and a minister of the country. But Li Jing is different from him. He has a good strategy and a good plan. He is wise and courageous and has unparalleled benevolence and righteousness. What is even more rare is that he is a commander. , I basically don’t have to worry about anything about the war situation, and I can trust him completely. Even if the safety of the Tang Dynasty depends on his thoughts, I can rest assured.”

"I don't know, your majesty, please make it clear."

"Look at the overall situation." Li Shimin stroked his beard and smiled, "Li Jing's overall perspective is unparalleled. When commanding a war, the first thing he thinks about is the country and the king of the court. Strategy and tactics are comprehensive, not just for fighting. And fighting. At the same time, he also has one of the most commendable advantages-the troops under his command must be united and united. Everyone has their own private thoughts, and there are more reckless, impulsive and unruly people in the army. It is impossible that there will be no conflicts and frictions between people. However, under the influence of Li Jing, his ministers also have a sense of the overall situation. . Even those who have personal grudges will put them aside for the time being and work together to fight for the good of the country. "

"Wei Chen understands..." Qin Mubai bowed his hands and sighed secretly in his heart: After talking for a long time, the emperor was actually teaching me the 'art of war' and 'the way of being an official'! He was undoubtedly alluding to my beating up Yuchi Baoyun. If you form a personal feud with your subordinates in your own group, it will definitely be difficult to lead the army in the future. But now that the personal feud has been forged, you must be broad-minded and have an overall view, and don't dwell on this point. At the same time, we must also work hard to make our subordinates forget their personal grudges and work together with one heart and one mind.

Li Shimin really has the art of leadership and the ability to control people. He actually wanted to criticize me, but he used praise and metaphors to enlighten me and encourage me to improve my character and think and deal with it from a higher level. Question... It seems that I am really young compared to wily politicians like Li Shimin.

Learn slowly!

"Mu Bai, I know that you have an excellent understanding and are a material that can be made. That's why I tell you so much. I hope you can understand my good intentions." Li Shimin chuckled.

"Your Majesty... you are like a master and a father, and I am worried and uneasy. From now on, I will pay attention to improving myself and perfecting myself, so as not to disappoint Your Majesty." Qin Mubai was worshiping.

"Very good. I hope I didn't make a mistake." Li Shimin stroked his beard and patted Qin Mubai on the shoulder like a kind elder, "You haven't left Baiqi Camp in the past seven days, right? Take this opportunity Please go home and visit your father before the palace closes at night. He is ill. Please go home and visit him when you have time."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, I will take my leave!"

Walking out of the imperial study room, Qin Mubai took a long breath and thought to himself: No matter in the past life or in this life, I have repeatedly heard that Li Shimin's personality charm, talent, morality, intelligence and skills are unparalleled. Among them, it is rare to see in the ages... I experienced it personally today, and it really is so!