Ma Zhou, a Tang dynasty man with the character Binwang, was very poor when his parents died as a teenager. Ma Zhou knew the Poem and the Biography well. He could not govern the family business, so he was not valued by the people in the state. After he was appointed as assistant teacher in Bozhou, he still drank wine every day. The assassin Da Xi was very angry and scolded him repeatedly.
In his anger, he traveled south to Caozhou and Bianzhou. However, he was chastised again for offending Cui Xian, the magistrate of Junyi County, after drinking. When Ma Zhou traveled west to Xinfeng, he stayed at an inn, but the owner only served wine and food to the merchants, but ignored Ma Zhou. So he ordered the innkeeper to serve a bucket of wine and drank it alone. After drinking, he took off his boots and washed his feet with the leftover wine, and the innkeeper was secretly surprised.
When he arrived in the capital, he stayed overnight at the store of a woman who sold pies. After a few days, he wanted to find a place to be a doorman, and the pie seller introduced him to the home of Chang He, a general. When this shopkeeper first sold pies, Li Chunfeng, Yuan Tiangang and other famous magicians of the time had met her and were amazed, saying privately, “This woman is a rich and powerful person, why is she selling pies here?” Soon after, Ma Zhou married the pie-seller as his wife.
Later, the emperor issued an imperial edict that all civil and military officials, above the fifth rank, must each submit a letter to present their affairs. Ma Zhou did not stick to the stereotypes and stated twenty suggestions that were beneficial to the country and appropriate for the time, so that Chang He could submit them to the emperor. The request to set up street drums in the streets, and let the civil and military officials all wear their respective colors of scarlet, purple, blue, green, etc., …… these suggestions are exactly the same as the idea of the king.
Tang Taizong was surprised and asked Chang He how he came up with these things. Chang He replied, “These were all suggested by my protégé Ma Zhou.” Emperor Taizong of Tang summoned Ma Zhou for questioning and sent him directly to the Menxia Province, where he had Fang Xuanling quiz him on the Ming scriptures and policy pairs. After that, Ma Zhou was granted the title of Confucian Linlang, which handled the work of the imperial court. Chang He was rewarded by Emperor Taizong of Tang with one hundred silk fabrics for his meritorious recommendation of Ma Zhou. Later, Ma Zhou was appointed to the post of minister and secretary. He was witty, eloquent, good at making statements, and knew what was going on, and every action did not fail to achieve the goal.
After meeting Ma Zhou, Cen Wenwen said, “When I met Ma Zhou, I felt that he could make people forget their fatigue. However, Ma Zhou’s shoulders shrugged like an eagle and his face was fiery red. This kind of person will definitely get rich soon, but I am afraid it will not last long!” Within just a few years, Ma Zhou was promoted to the post of Chancellor, and the pie seller became the wife of the Chancellor. Later, Ma Zhou became the minister of the Ministry of Justice, but he suffered from diabetes and died at the age of forty-eight after years of illness. After his death, he was posthumously awarded the title of Tang Gong, the Right Servant Archer.
(From “The Book of Destiny”)
Recent Comments