Make a wish, make a fortune, enjoy a blessing and choose a high place to stand.

This couplet is a poem written by Zuo, a Confucian general in Qing Dynasty, in Meiyuan, Wuxi, Jiangsu. It hangs in the office of Li Ka-shing, a Hong Kong tycoon.

Before you explain, break the sentence so that you can understand it better.

"Make a good wish, make a medium fortune and enjoy the next blessing; Choose a high place to stand, find a flat place to live, and go to a wide place. "

These 24 words condensed the philosophy of life of ancient sages in China, which was "extremely bright and moderate". The so-called "give high wishes, moderate wealth, and enjoy low happiness" means having lofty aspirations, seeking only moderate wealth and living an ordinary life; "Stand tall, sit flat and wide" means to be far-sighted, keep a low profile and leave room.

Let me explain the whole sentence to you one by one: to have a first-class wish is to have a first-class (lofty) ambition and a first-class feeling. This means taking a carefree attitude towards fate, not making friends indiscriminately and not finding fault. Enjoy the next class, that is to say, don't expect too much from material life. Life should be simple and not extravagant.

Bottom line: To stand tall and live means to live. In other words, when looking at the problem, the angle should be high. Being equal means being calm and not extreme. To be tolerant of others is to be tolerant and not to be harsh on others.