Zeng Guofan was an important official in the late Qing Dynasty, and was named as the first-class righteous Hou Yong, known as "the first official in the late Qing Dynasty" and "the model of officialdom". He saved the late Qing dynasty from death and played a mainstay role in the "rejuvenation of the same light"; He learned from others, and his articles were eclectic, reaching the ideal state of "Three Immortals" of Confucianism, and was praised as "China's first perfect person since ancient times". The Zeng family is a prominent family in history, and there has been no "black sheep" for more than 100 years. Zeng Guofan has achieved great success in inheriting and carrying forward Confucian educational thought.

The draft of Qing history? Zeng Guofan preached, "A state minister is better than learning and good at etiquette." He studied hard all his life, respected Confucianism and attached importance to practicality. He became a "master" who revived Confucianism after Confucius, Mencius and Zhu, and achieved great success in his career.

Liang Qichao said Zeng Guofan in the preface to "Zeng Zheng Wengong Jia Yan Banknotes": "Is it only in modern times, and it has been built by adults who have never seen it before; Not only in China, but also in the world. However, Wen is not an unparalleled genius. He is called the slowest of all sages. His suffering will also be the middle of his life; Those who are immortal in virtue, make contributions, keep their word, make a name for themselves, and stay in Beijing, are determined to extricate themselves from vulgarity, but they are trapped in prison, knowing what they have done, but they are unwilling to go through all difficulties without being frustrated, not seeking short-term success, being tireless, accepting with an open mind, diligent, persevering in training, sincere, handsome and brave.

A visit to Shihai shows that "no three generations" is an insurmountable spell for most official families. The Zeng family is outstanding, such as, Zeng, Zeng Guangquan and Zeng Zhaolun. Zeng Guofan's "four wills" left to future generations played a decisive role in exploring the mystery of Zeng's family's longevity.

On March 12th, 11th year of Tongzhi, 62-year-old Zeng Guofan walked with the help of his son Ceng Jize. He said: "I have fought many wars in my life, and fighting is the most harmful thing." I have done evil, and there will never be a single soldier in my family to fight again. " Suddenly, he let out a cry, "My feet are numb" and fell on his son, unable to speak in an instant. In a crisis, he raised his hand and pointed to the will that had been written on the table, with the following effect:

I have been an official for more than 30 years, and I am the best official, but I have accomplished nothing in my studies and have no virtue. The old man was injured and was very scared and ashamed. Today, I want to say goodbye forever. I want to teach your brother four things.

First, caution and independence lead to peace of mind. Nothing is more difficult than cultivating one's heart. Since we know that there are good and evil in our hearts, it is impossible to do our best to do good and eliminate evil. This is your own performance. Whether you cheated yourself or not, no one knows. Mencius said that there is no sin in the world, and there is no sin in the heart. The so-called cultivation of the mind must be pure. Therefore, people who can be cautious and independent will not feel guilty when they reflect on themselves. They can face heaven and earth, face ghosts and gods, and there will never be a time when they have no regrets and retreat. If people have nothing to feel guilty about, they will be calm in the face of heaven and earth. This mood is happy and peaceful. This is the first road to self-improvement in life, the best prescription, and the first major event of self-cultivation.

Second, the Lord is strong. It is a respectful effort to be single-minded and pure in heart and neat and serious in appearance; When going out, it is respectful to see the distinguished guests and treat the people with reverence as a big sacrifice. Cultivation makes people safe, loyalty and obedience make the world peaceful, which is the effect of respect. Wisdom and cleverness all come from these aspects. Dignity and tranquility are getting stronger every day, and leisure and respect are getting lazier and lazier. These are all signs of nature. If we are honest with each other and dare not slack off, no matter how many people and small things are, what is there to doubt about our physical strength?

Third, the pursuit of benevolence makes people happy. When people are born, they have to be conscious of the principle of heaven and earth, and the spirit of heaven and earth is shaped. I and all folk things are basically the same source. If you only know how to seek personal gain, but you don't know how to be kind to the people and care about everything, it is against the same principle. As for those senior officials, they are above the people and have the responsibility to save the people from fire, water and hunger. After reading and studying, it is your responsibility to wake up those who realize what is important. Confucius' education is nothing more than seeking benevolence, the most important of which is the words "to cultivate people and to be talented" Who doesn't want to be self-reliant? If people can strengthen themselves, they can compete with everything. Is anyone unwilling to join?

Fourth, ghosts and gods respect you when you take part in labor. If the clothes a person wears and the food he eats every day are equal to the intensity of what he does every day, everyone who sees him will agree with him, and ghosts and gods will praise him and think that he is a self-improving person. If farmers and weavers work hard all the year round, they can reap a few loads of grain and feet of cloth, while rich children are at ease and enjoy themselves all day long, but every meal must be delicious, wearing brocade embroidered robes, sleeping with pillows and coping with everything. This is the most unfortunate thing in the world, and ghosts and gods don't agree. How long can this last? Ancient sages always tried to encourage themselves and think for themselves. Therefore, it is necessary to train their skills, hone their bones and muscles, strive for progress in difficulties and work hard to increase their wisdom and knowledge. For the sake of the whole world, we must starve ourselves and sink into the mire, and take it as our fault that thieves and robbers are not caught. Dayu was in charge of water conservancy for thirteen years and refused to enter the house. Mozi refused to budge for the benefit of the world. These are all examples of extreme frugality, self-cultivation and hard work to save the country. Therefore, hard work can make people live longer, and ease can make people die young; Diligence makes people try their best, and comfort is incompetence and abandonment; Diligence can help the people, but the gods envy, comfort is not conducive to people, ghosts and gods do not envy.

These four articles are the fruits of your brother's ten years' life. Record them and pass them on to future generations. Then Yu Zeng's family can live forever and have talents.

Zeng Guofan's will has a far-reaching influence on his descendants. His son Ceng Jize became an official and engaged in diplomatic work after Zeng Guofan's death. Zeng Ji Hong studied mathematics all his life; Grandson was a scholar and died in Hanlin; Most of the great-grandchildren and great-grandchildren went abroad to study, and none of the descendants of the Zeng family joined the ranks of the ranks, and few even became officials. The descendants of the Zeng family followed the last words of their ancestors, stayed away from the political and military circles, lived in seclusion, and realized their last wish of "eternal prosperity and talented people". If Zeng Guofan had knowledge in the grave, he would have a moment's smile.