A dog doesn't bark at its owner, but it
does bark at strangers.(狗吠非主)
There was a famous general in China's Tang
Dynasty named Li Jing, whose story is recorded in history books.
After the fall of the Sui Dynasty in 618 AD,
Li Yuan formally established the Tang Dynasty. At that time, many warlords and
bandits still existed throughout China, especially in border regions where
chaos reigned.
In 620 AD, Li Yuan said to Li Jing:
'In Sichuan Province, there is a warlord
named Xiao Xian. I am sending you as a secret envoy to visit him. I hope you
can persuade him to join the Tang Dynasty under my leadership.'
Upon receiving the order, Li Jing
immediately travelled to Sichuan Province with one or two trusted soldiers. In
621 AD, having observed and researched the situation on the front lines, Li
Jing presented Li Yuan with a comprehensive battle plan.
He stated that Xiao Xian was unwilling to
submit to the Tang Dynasty and that he would be difficult to persuade. We must
send troops to defeat Xiao Xian. Li Yuan adopted Li Jing's suggestion,
dispatching an elite force and entrusting its command to him.
By the time the army had assembled in
Kuizhou, it was already autumn of that year. Relying on his keen insight into
the enemy's actions and swift reaction, Li Jing then led his army to
successfully besiege Jiangling, the city where Xiao Xian resided, a few weeks
later.
A few days later, Xiao Xian surrendered. Li
Jing then led his army into Jiangling. He was very strict in managing his
soldiers, who were extremely disciplined. After entering Jiangling, not a
single soldier looted or harmed the local population.
Li Jing openly declared to all his military
commanders:
'Our army is a righteous army. We must
clearly remember this.
Xiao Xian's surrender is not our true
objective. Our true objective is to ensure that everyone on this land accepts
the rule of the Tang dynasty and lives safely and prosperously.
There's an ancient Chinese saying: A dog
doesn't bark at its master, but it barks at strangers.
The people of this city and the soldiers
who were originally under Xiao Xian's command resisted us because they were
loyal to him. However, if they pledge allegiance to the Tang Dynasty from this
day forward, we should treat them leniently. We guarantee that their property
will not be seized and that they can live in peace.
Only by doing this can we gain the trust of
the people of this land, enabling the Tang Dynasty to govern them sustainably
for a long time.
All the military commanders endorsed Li
Jing's statement.
Li Jing's actions brought him an unexpected
benefit: in the Sichuan province at the time, there were many relatively small
warlords. Upon hearing how Li Jing treated those who surrendered, these
warlords voluntarily declared their allegiance to the Tang Dynasty, accepting
its leadership and governance.
The idiom literally translates as follows:
A dog doesn't bark at its master, but it barks at strangers.
Dear friend, what inspiration or thoughts
have you gained from this story?
If you were Li Jing, would you order your
soldiers to plunder the people's property like most other generals?
Would you consider your true purpose before
doing something?
I
hope this story gives you some new insights.
狗吠非主(A dog doesn't bark at its owner, but
it does bark at strangers.)
中國的唐王朝有一個著名的將軍，他的名字叫做李靖，歷史書上記載了一個他的故事。
西元618年，隋王朝滅亡後，李淵正式成立唐王朝，當時的中國的各地仍然有很多的軍閥與土匪，尤其是一些邊疆地區仍然非常混亂。
西元620年，李淵對李靖說。
中國的四川省這個地方有著一個名字叫做蕭銑的軍閥，我要派你為密使去拜訪蕭銑，我希望你說服蕭銑加入我所領導的唐王朝的體系內。
李靖收到命令後，他立刻帶著一兩個自己所信任的士兵前一起前往現在中國的四川省。西元621年，李靖根據他在最前線的觀察與研究，他向李淵提出了一個完整的作戰計畫。
他在作戰計畫中表示，蕭銑的態度很強硬，他不願意臣服於唐王朝，我們必須派遣軍隊打敗蕭銑，李淵採納了李靖的建議，他派出了一支精銳的部隊，並且將這隻軍隊的指揮權交給了李靖。
當這支軍隊在夔州完成集結時，已經到了那一年的秋天。幾個禮拜後，李靖憑藉著他對敵人行為的洞察與快速的反應，他帶領著軍隊成功地包圍了蕭銑所住的一座名字叫做(江陵)的城市。
幾天後，蕭銑主動投降，李靖帶領著軍隊進入了江陵城，李靖對於士兵的管理非常的嚴格，士兵非常的有紀律，這支軍隊進入江陵城後，沒有任何一個士兵做出私自掠取百姓的財物的行為。
李靖更公開的對所有的軍事將領說。
我們這支軍隊是一隻正義的軍隊，我們必須要清楚的記得這一點。
蕭銑投降並不是我們真正的目標，我們真正的目標是要讓這塊土地上的所有人都能夠接受唐王朝的治理，讓這塊土地上的所有人都生活在安全與富裕之中。
中國的古代有一句名言，一隻狗不會對他的主人狂吠，一隻狗會向那些不是他的主人的人狂吠。
這座城市中的所有百姓和那些原本屬於蕭銑手下的軍隊的士兵，他們原先效忠於蕭銑，所以他們抵抗我們，但是如果他們從今天開始願意效忠於唐王朝，那麼我們就應該用寬厚的心態對待這些人，我們保障他們的財產不受侵占，我們要確保他們可以安心的生活。
我們只有這樣做，才能夠讓這塊土地上的人民信任唐王朝，也才能讓唐王朝能長久與持續地治理這塊土地上的百姓。
李靖的這個說法獲得了所有的軍事將領的認同。
李靖的這項行為更為他帶來的意想不到的收穫，當時的中國的四川省中還有很多勢力比較小的軍閥，這些軍閥聽到李靖用這種方式來對待投降的人後，這些軍閥們紛紛主動宣布要歸順於唐王朝，要接受唐王朝的領導與治理。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是一隻狗不會對他的主人狂吠，一隻狗會向那些不是他的主人的人狂吠。。
親愛的朋友，你聽完這個故事有怎樣的啟發或有怎樣的想法呢。
你如果是李靖，你會跟大部分的其他將軍一樣，讓你的士兵們搶奪百姓的財物嗎?你做一件事情之前，會考慮到你真正想要達到的目的為何嗎?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為舊唐書-卷67-李靖傳
https://zh.wikisource.org/zh-hant/%E8%88%8A%E5%94%90%E6%9B%B8/%E5%8D%B767