Xiao He - Legacy

Legacy

Some Chinese idioms and sayings originated from the events in Xiao He's life and are listed as follows:

• Xiao He chases Han Xin under the moonlight (蕭何月下追韓信): originated from the event where Xiao trailed Han Xin for a few days, even at night, in order to catch up with the latter and bring him back to Liu Bang. It is used to describe an urgent situation in which action has to be taken immediately without notification.

• Success is due to Xiao He, downfall is also due to Xiao He (成也蕭何 敗也蕭何): Xiao He helped Han Xin become a general, which enabled Han to put his talent to good use. However, Xiao also played an important role in Han's death. It is used to describe a situation where one's success and failure are both due to the same factor.

• Cao following Xiao's rules (萧规曹随): Cao Shen, Xiao He's successor as chancellor, inherited the system of governance left behind by Xiao and maintained it well but did not implement any new changes. It is used to describe the continuation of the work of one's predecessor.