(Clearwisdom.net) Around the Qin and the Han dynasties, there was a
general named Han Xin, who was very good at leading his soldiers. Initially, Han
Xin served as a low ranking official under Xiang Yu, the most powerful general
in the war of resistance against the Qin Dynasty. Xiang Yu reckoned that Han Xin
didn't have great physical strength, so he didn't put him in an important
position. Actually, Han Xin was very good at military strategy. Since his talent
was not recognized, Han Xin left Xiang Yu and joined the army led by Liu Bang,
the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty. But Liu Bang did not think much of Han
Xin either. Han Xin left Liu Bang's army too. Liu Bang's Prime Minister, Xiao
He, heard the news that Han Xin had left, and he left in a hurry and chased
after Han Xin, without having time to report to Liu Bang.
Three days later, Xiao He brought Han Xin back. Liu Bang asked Xiao He, "Where
were you in the last several days? Why didn't you let me know?" Xiao He replied,
"I left to take care of a very important matter that I didn't have time to
report to you." Liu Bang asked, "What important matter?" Xiao He told him that
Han Xin left, and he went after Han Xin to encourage him to stay. Liu Bang was
very angry, "So many generals have left, and you didn't chase after any of them.
Why did you chase after a little soldier?"
Xiao He replied, "Other people are easy to get, but not Han Xin. His talent is
far beyond others. He is the person that you can rely on to lead your army and
to conquer the nation."
Liu Bang asked, "In your opinion, should I make him the commander in chief?"
Xiao He replied, "Absolutely. Han Xin is sensitive about his reputation. If you
just order him to be your commander in chief, he may not accept it. You should
set up an altar and hold a ceremony to ask him to be the commander in chief." So
Liu Bang set up a grand altar and Han Xin indeed accepted the position and
became the commander in chief. Later, Han Xin helped Liu Bang defeat his biggest
enemy, Xiang Yu. Thus Liu Bang was named Han Gaozu, the founding emperor of the
Han Dynasty.
Once Liu Bang asked Han Xin, "If I were a general, how many soldiers can I
lead?" Han Xin said, "Your Majesty can lead 100,000 soldiers." Liu Bang then
asked, "How many soldiers can you lead?" Han Xin smiled and replied, "Me?
Duo-duo Yi-shan." Literally translated, this meant "the more, the better",
essentially boasting that no army is too big for him to lead.
Liu Bang was not too happy with this answer. Han Xin smiled and then said, "Your
Majesty, you are not as good in leading soldiers, but you are very good in
leading generals. That is why you are the emperor."Later on, people grew to use
the saying "Duo-duo Yi-Shan" to mean "the more, the better."