This is a golden opportunity that cannot be
missed.(機不可失)
During the Tang Dynasty in China, there was
a famous general 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, warlords and
bandits still existed throughout China, particularly in border regions where
chaos reigned.
In 620 AD, Li Yuan told 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 set off for Sichuan Province with one or two trusted soldiers.
Li Jing's mission was fraught with
difficulties. Xiao Xian had stationed many troops on the border between Sichuan
and Hubei provinces, so Li Jing was unable to cross the border or contact Xiao
Xian for several weeks. To accomplish his mission, Li Jing later changed his
strategy, deciding to enter Sichuan Province via a less travelled route. He
arrived at a place called Kuizhou (present-day Chongqing, China).
Based on his observations and research at
the front lines, in 621 AD Li Jing presented Li Yuan with a comprehensive
battle plan.
In the plan, he stated that Xiao Xian was
unwilling to submit to the Tang Dynasty and was very tough. Troops must be sent
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.
After assembling his troops, Li Jing
addressed them:
'According to my intelligence, Xiao Xian is
unaware that we have assembled an army to attack him, so his defences are
likely to be lax.
To enter Sichuan Province from Guizhou, it
is necessary to cross the Yangtze River. At this time of year, the water level
of the Yangtze is extremely high, which makes navigation very dangerous — a
fact that is well known to everyone living in the region.
I believe now is the best time to launch an
attack. This opportunity must not be missed. We must launch our attack
immediately — This is a golden opportunity that cannot be missed.
After Li Jing led his army in the attack,
they won a great victory in their first battle, capturing the strategically
important city of Jingmen.
This victory greatly boosted the morale of
all the soldiers in Li Jing's army. However, Li Jing remained calm and did not
become overconfident. He knew that they had won the first victory easily
because the enemy had not anticipated their attack. From now on, however, the
enemy would be highly vigilant. To achieve victory, they would have to be
patient.
One of Li Jing's officers, of royal blood,
disagreed with his assessment and secretly led an army to attack Xiao Xian's,
resulting in defeat.
Just as the enemy were basking in their
victory and lowering their guard, Li Jing seized the opportunity. He ordered
all his troops to mobilise immediately and led them in another attack. This attack
resulted in the deaths of nearly ten thousand enemy soldiers and the capture of
over four hundred ships.
The idiom literally means 'This is a golden
opportunity that cannot be missed.'
Dear friend, what inspiration or thoughts
have you gained from this story?
After a great victory, do you calmly assess
the current situation? After defining your goals, do you formulate a
comprehensive plan?
I hope this story offers you some new
insights.
機不可失(This is a golden opportunity that
cannot be missed.)
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。
李靖這次的行動很不順利，他遇到了麻煩，由於蕭銑在四川省與湖北省的邊界派駐很多的軍隊，李靖花了好幾周的時間仍然無法越過這個邊界，他也無法聯絡到蕭銑。他花了好幾周的時間他也無法聯絡到蕭銑。
李靖為了達成任務，後來他改變策略，他決定要從另外一條比較冷門的路線進入四川省，所以他到了現在的中國的重慶市一個名字叫做(夔州)的地方。
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。
當李靖完成軍隊集結之後，他對全體的士兵說。
根據我的情報顯示，蕭銑尚不知道我們已經集結了軍隊要發動對他的攻擊，因此他的防備仍舊很鬆懈。
從夔州進入四川省要經由長江，這個季節的長江的水量非常的豐沛，所以行船會非常的危險，這一點是所有生活在這個區域的人們的共識。
我認為現在就是發動攻擊的最好時機，這個好機會不可以失去，我們立刻發動攻擊，我相信我們的行動一定會成功。
李靖帶領著軍隊發動攻擊後，第一戰就贏得了巨大的勝利，他們佔領了一做極具戰略重要性的名叫(荊門)的城市。
這場勝利讓李靖所領導的軍隊中的所有的士兵的士氣都很振奮，但是李靖保持冷靜，他沒有被勝利沖昏了頭，他知道因為敵人沒有意料到，所以他們順利贏得了第一場勝利，但是接下來，敵人一定會保持著極高的警戒，如果要勝利，必須要耐心的等待。
李靖手下的一個具有皇室血統的軍官不認同李靖的看法，所以私自帶了一支軍隊對蕭銑的軍隊發動攻擊，結果遭遇挫敗。
就在敵人因為勝利而感到開心並且放鬆警戒的時候，李靖又很敏銳的掌握了這個時機，他下令所有的軍隊立刻全部動員，李靖率領軍隊再次發動對敵人的攻擊，這次攻擊的結果，殺死了敵人將近一萬個人，並且繳獲船艦四百多艘。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是不可以失去這個好機會。
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。
你在巨大的勝利之後是否會冷靜的判斷當下的情勢呢?你在確定你的目標後你會制定完整的計畫嗎?
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