Comparison between standing up a tree for faith and playing beacon fire to the princes
During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Shang Yang of the Qin State presided over the reform with the support of Qin Xiaogong. At that time, when wars were frequent and people were in panic, in order to establish prestige and promote reforms, Shang Yang ordered a three-foot-long log to be erected outside the south gate of the capital, and made a promise in public: Who can move this log to the north gate? The bounty is ten taels. The onlookers didn't believe that such an easy thing could get such a high reward, so no one was willing to give it a try. So Shang Yang increased the reward to 50 gold. There must be a brave man under the heavy reward, and finally someone stood up and carried the wood to the north gate. Shang Yang immediately rewarded him with fifty gold coins. Shang Yang's move established prestige in the hearts of the people, and Shang Yang's subsequent reforms soon spread in the Qin State. The new law made Qin gradually stronger and stronger, and finally unified China.
In the same place where Shang Yang "erected a tree as a sign of trust", 400 years ago, a ridiculous farce of "playing with princes by beacon fire" took place.
King You of Zhou had a favorite concubine named Bao Si. In order to win her smile, King You of Zhou ordered beacon fires to be lit on more than 20 beacon towers near the capital - beacon fires were a signal to alert the border, and were only used by foreign enemies. Invasion can only be ignited when the princes are summoned to rescue. As a result, when the princes saw the beacon fire, they hurried over with their soldiers and generals. They understood that this was the king's trick to win over his wife and left angrily. Bao Si finally smiled happily when she saw the helpless appearance of the usually dignified princes. Five years later, Youyi Tairong launched a large-scale attack on the Zhou Dynasty. King You's war was reignited but the princes did not arrive - no one wanted to be fooled a second time. As a result, King You was forced to commit suicide and Bao Si was captured.
An emperor who "stands tall to gain trust" can make promises worth a thousand dollars; an emperor who has no faith plays the game of "crying wolf". As a result, the former's reform was successful and the country became strong; the latter brought humiliation to himself and the country perished. It can be seen that "faith" plays a very important role in the rise and fall of a country.
"Yu Ion" records a story about a man who lost his life due to breach of trust.
A businessman in Jiyang was crossing a river when his boat sank. He grabbed a hemp stalk and shouted for help. A fisherman heard the sound and went there. The businessman hurriedly shouted: "I am the richest man in Jiyang. If you can save me, I will give you 100 taels of gold." After being rescued ashore, the businessman turned his back on him. He only gave the fisherman 10 taels of gold. The fisherman blamed him for not keeping his word and going back on his word. The rich man said, "As a fisherman, you have never made much money in your life. Aren't you satisfied with suddenly getting ten taels of gold?" Ganfu had no choice but to leave in dismay. Unexpectedly, the rich man's boat capsized again. Someone wanted to save him, but Ganfu, who had been deceived by him, said: "He is the one who doesn't keep his words!" So the businessman drowned. It was accidental that the businessman capsized and met the same man twice, but the bad news for the businessman was to be expected. Because if a person does not keep his word, he will lose the trust of others. Therefore, once he is in trouble, no one is willing to come to his rescue. Those who break their trust will have no choice but to sit back and wait for death if they are in trouble.
Ji Bu's "a promise of a thousand gold" saved him from disaster
In the late Qin Dynasty, there was a man named Ji Bu who always kept his word and had a very high reputation. Many people established relationships with him. Strong camaraderie. There was even a proverb circulating at that time: "It is better to get Jibu Yinuo than to get a hundred catties of gold." (This is the origin of the idiom "A promise of a thousand catties") Later, he offended Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, and was offered a reward for his capture. As a result, his old friend not only was not deceived by the huge sum of money, but also risked the destruction of the nine tribes to protect him and save him from disaster. A person who is honest and trustworthy will naturally get a lot of help and can gain everyone's respect and friendship. On the other hand, if you are greedy for temporary comfort or small gains and break your trust with your friends, you will get "benefits" on the surface. But for this benefit, he ruined his reputation, and reputation is much more important than material things. Therefore, breaking trust with a friend is like losing a watermelon and picking up sesame seeds. The gain outweighs the loss.
Li Mian was buried with silver
Li Mian was from the Tang Dynasty. He liked reading since he was a child and paid attention to following the requirements in the book. Over time, it becomes a habit and a gentleman's demeanor of integrity and elegance is developed.
Although his family was poor, he never took ill-gotten gains.
Once, he went out to study and stayed in a hotel. I happened to meet a scholar who was going to Beijing to take the exam and he also lived there. The two hit it off, so they often talked about ancient and modern times together, discussed knowledge, and became good friends.
One day, the scholar suddenly fell ill and was bedridden.
Li Mian quickly invited a doctor for him, and helped him boil medicine according to the doctor's instructions, and watched him take the medicine on time. For many days, Li Mian carefully took care of the patient's daily life, including his diet. However, the scholar's illness not only did not improve, but worsened day by day. Seeing his friend who was getting weaker day by day, Li Mian was very anxious. He often went to nearby people's homes to look for folk prescriptions, and often went to the mountains alone to dig up herbs that could not be bought in pharmacies.
One evening, when Li Mian came back from collecting medicine, he first went to his friend's room and saw that the book seemed to look better. There was a burst of joy in his heart, and he approached the bed with concern and asked: "Brother, do you feel better?"
The scholar said: "I think I don't have much time left. This may be a moment of reflection. Brother, I have one more thing to ask for before I die."
Li Mian quickly comforted him: "Brother, don't think too much. You look better today, don't you? As long as you rest quietly, you will be fine soon. "Please tell me something."
The scholar said: "Take out the small wooden box under my bed and open it for me."
Li Mian did as he was told.
The scholar pointed to a baggage inside and said: "Thanks to your meticulous care these days. This is one hundred taels of silver. It was originally used to pay for the exam, but it is no longer needed now. I will trouble you after I die. Use part of the money to prepare a coffin for me and bury me, and the rest will be given to you. As a token of my gratitude, please accept it, otherwise, brother, I will not be at peace even under the Nine Springs."
In order to reassure the scholar, Li Mian had no choice but to agree to accept the money.
The scholar really died the next morning. Li Mian complied with his last wish, bought a coffin, and took care of his funeral carefully. There was a lot of money left, but Li Mian didn't use it at all. Instead, he carefully wrapped it and put it quietly under the coffin.
Soon after receiving Li Mian’s funeral letter, the scholar’s ??family rushed to the inn. After they removed the coffin, they found the buried silver. They were all surprised. After learning about the origin of the money, everyone was moved by Li Mian's noble character of being honest and trustworthy and not greedy for money.
Later Li Mian became a senior official in the imperial court. He was still honest, self-disciplined, honest and self-respecting, deeply loved by the people, and highly respected among civil and military officials.
Liang Guozhi taught his son
Liang Guozhi was born during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. He was smart and studious since he was a child. But his family was very poor, and his father wanted him to give up his studies and start a small business to support the family. Liang Guozhi begged his father to let him study for a few more years. When the neighbors met, they also felt that it was a pity that Liang Guozhi did not study, so they helped to intercede, and some were even willing to help him pay for his tuition. The father also hopes that his son will be able to make some achievements in the future, and the family's life will be better. So I agreed to let him continue studying.
The folks in the village are all loyal and honest people with good hearts. Although they are not rich, they often help the poor Liang family. The whole village looked forward to Liang Guozhi's future success so that he could bring glory to their village. Xiao Guozhi knew that he would not be able to live up to the expectations of his fellow villagers, so he studied harder.
Because Liang Guozhi grew up in such a harmonious and friendly environment, he developed a character of kindness, honesty and integrity from an early age.
In 1741 AD, Liang Guozhi won the imperial examination at the age of seventeen; at the age of twenty-four, he won the first place in the imperial examination. After Liang Guozhi became an official in the imperial court, he never forgot his elders in his hometown and often used his salary to do things for the villagers. No matter where he was involved in a lawsuit, he always considered the people and was well received by the people.
Liang Guozhi was not only highly knowledgeable and of good character, he was also good at calligraphy and painting. Anyone who got his calligraphy and painting works would collect them as treasures. Influenced by him, his son became interested in calligraphy and painting at a very young age and clamored to ask Liang Guozhi to teach him painting.
One day, the son came to his father again with a paintbrush, and his face was covered with ink. Liang Guozhi wanted to laugh when he saw it, wiped his son's face, and then said to his son earnestly: "Before learning to paint, you must first learn to be a human being. Those without personality will never become good calligraphers and painters."
The son raised his childish little face and asked his father in confusion: "Just paint, what does it have to do with being a human being?"
Liang Guozhi said: "A true painter , you paint with your heart, not with a pen. If you are an honest and upright gentleman, your paintings will be full of righteousness and make people feel full of aura at first sight.
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The son blinked, as if he still didn't understand it very well, so Liang Guozhi told the example of Qin Hui, a traitor in the Song Dynasty. He said: "Qin Hui is actually a very talented person. His calligraphy Quite good, but he is a famous traitor in history and has very bad conduct. After his death, people gnashed their teeth and cursed him when they heard his name. No one wanted to collect the calligraphy works he left at that time. They all believed that keeping his handwriting would bring disaster. His works could not remain intact after being torn up. If you go to the cesspit, you will be burned with fire. There are very few of his words left. People hate his words because they actually hate him as a person.
The son nodded, as if he understood. Liang Guozhi added: "Integrity is the first step in being a human being. Only those who do not lie and are trustworthy will hold their chests high and behave openly." ”
The son listened, kept his father’s teachings in mind, and adhered to the character of integrity throughout his life. Later, he really became a famous and well-respected painter at that time.