Which business is the most profitable of all industries?
The answer varies from different perspectives. More than 2,000 years ago, Lü Buwei at the end of the Warring States period gave a view that was highly respected by later generations: the future of investors.
He was not engaged in the business of buying and selling slaves, but invested in Yiren, the son of Qin. In the end, Yiren ascended the throne and became the monarch of Qin, and Lü Buwei gradually became the prime minister of Qin because of his help to Yiren in his early years.
During the Tang Dynasty, there was a merchant warrior Tong, who was well versed in the way of dealing with the world, and did the business of "being a man" to the fullest. In the end, he not only became the founding hero of the Tang Dynasty, but even became the emperor.
If you are not very familiar with the history of the Tang Dynasty and see the name Wushi Tong, you may be confused by the character "彟" in his surname. The pronunciation of the word may be unfamiliar, and it can be pronounced as "about" or "invite".
In daily life, we often habitually say "yao" two catties of cucumbers, and the word "yao" is another pronunciation of the word "彟". Although the character "彟" was already considered a rare character in ancient times, it did not affect its practical application in the Tang Dynasty.
The family background of the samurai is also very interesting, his parents were merchants, and the family was very business-oriented. If Samurai Tong had lived today, he would definitely be considered a rich second generation.
Although he was born into a family of merchants, in ancient China, merchants had a low status and were discriminated against. No matter how rich the wealth of the merchants, their social status was always at the lowest level, and in some dynasties it was even forbidden to wear silk clothes, carry **, and ride in horse-drawn carriages.
However, in the father's generation of Samurai Tong, the situation improved.
The power of money should not be underestimated, and businessmen can use it to change their fate. For example, Wu Hua, from a timber merchant to the eastern capital of the Sui Dynasty, ascended to the sky in one step. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty built a lot of construction and needed a lot of wood, so Wu Hua became the first court by virtue of his wealth.
However, the sudden change made him a little lost and offended the head of the company, Yang Su.
Yang Su was a powerful minister of the Sui Dynasty, and even the emperor was in awe. Wu Hua offended him, if it weren't for Yang Xiong and Niu Hong's protection, I'm afraid that the chapter of history would be rewritten. This incident was a blow to the samurai, and after careful consideration, the samurai Tong abandoned the merchant army and participated in the Goryeo expedition of Emperor Yang of Sui.
Money is important, but there are things that transcend material value.
Relying on his personal talents and family financial resources, he gradually rose through the ranks. During this period, Li Yuan was appointed as the assassin of the state and was responsible for suppressing the peasant army uprising. The samurai family was the most famous rich man in the state, and he had a relationship with Li Yuan, so Li Yuan visited the samurai family.
The history books do not record whether it was Li Yuan's expedition or the invitation of the warrior Tong, but according to the character of the warrior Tong, the latter is more likely. Therefore, after Li Yuan served as the Taiyuan guard, he appointed Wu Shi Tong as the marching division to join the army and be in charge of military equipment.
In this context, Wu Shi Tong was not Li Yuan's real trusted subordinate, but a close confidant of Wang Wei, the deputy of Taiyuan. The reason for this is Samurai's background as a merchant, and his home education taught him how to do business.
After joining the army, he found that there were many similarities between being an official and doing business, both of which involved selling at a price. Merchants want to sell goods for a profit, while officials have to find the right people for greater benefits.
The merchant-turned-samurai is a typical wall-rider when he is not in line, and is unlikely to be anyone's henchman. However, this situation was soon broken.
Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was close to collapse in the last years of the Great Cause, and the heroes everywhere wanted to establish their own merits in the troubled times. At that time, Li Yuan, who was left behind in Taiyuan, also had this idea, and Wu Shi Tong saw his thoughts.
At this time, there are only two ways left in front of Wu Shi Tong: one is to completely break off relations with Li Yuan, if Li Yuan's rebellion fails, Wu Shi Tong will not be too implicated; The second is to rebel with Li Yuan, if Li Yuan succeeds, the warrior will get unprecedented benefits.
After careful consideration, Wu Shi Tong decisively abandoned Gao Junya, Wang Wei, and others, who were in line with the Sui Dynasty, because he believed that Li Yuan would be able to succeed. History proves that his choice was wise.
In July of the thirteenth year of the Great Cause, Li Yuan launched an uprising in Taiyuan, which opened the process of the Tang Dynasty's unification of the world, and at this time, Wu Shi Tong was appointed as the Great General's Mansion to join the army and continue to be responsible for the management of ordnance and equipment.
After Li Yuan ascended the throne, Wu Shi Tong was rated as one of the "Taiyuan Yuanmou Heroes", ranking third. Among these 17 heroes, Li Shimin ranked first, while Wu Shitong ranked thirteenth.
This decision of his was undoubtedly the most accomplished decision of his life. Before Li Yuan's uprising, he invested a great deal of his private wealth to support his cause. Later, after the founding of the Tang Dynasty, Li Yuan's reward to him can be said to be a high return.
From the gorgeous turn of a businessman, to the glory of the founding heroes of the Tang Dynasty, and then to the heavy responsibility of the feudal officials, the life of Wu Shi Tong is undoubtedly a brilliant interpretation of life.
The story of Samurai Tong is not over, his legend has just begun. His original wife, Xiang Li, died early, but under the guidance of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan, he married another woman surnamed Yang.
The family background of this woman surnamed Yang is not simple, her father is the younger brother of Yang Xiong, who sheltered the martial arts family back then. To put it simply, she is Yang Xiong's niece. Although Wu Shitong was in his forties when he married her, this did not affect the fact that they gave birth to a daughter, Wu Zetian, who later became a generation of empresses.
In the ninth year of Zhenguan, Wu Zetian was twelve years old, and his father, Wu Shitong, passed away. Two years later, in the eleventh year of Zhenguan, fourteen-year-old Wu Zetian entered the palace and began a lifelong legend.
Because of her status as a daughter, after the death of the samurai, the various honors he received also increased year by year. In the fifth year of Yonghui, he was posthumously awarded the title of governor of the state; In the first year of Xianqing, he was posthumously presented to Situ and Zhou Guogong; In the fourth year of Xianqing, his deeds were written into the temple court of Tang Gaozu and changed to loyalty and filial piety; In the first year of Xianheng, he was posthumously awarded the title of Lieutenant, Prince and Prince, and King of Taiyuan County; In the first year of Guangzhai, he was posthumously presented as the Taishi and the King of Wei.
After Wu Zetian ascended the throne, she established Wu Zhou, and directly respected Wu Shi Tong as Zhou Taizu, nicknamed Emperor Xiaoming Gao. From a businessman, step by step to Emperor Taizu, looking at the entire ancient Chinese history, I am afraid he is the only one.