Don’t bow to the powerful, have the character of being proud, willing to die rather than surrender, and stick to your beliefs.
From "Book of Jin·Biography of Tao Qian". "The Biography of Tao Qian" is a biography recording Tao Yuanming's life and deeds. "Book of Jin", one of the Twenty-Four Histories of China, co-authored by Tang Fangxuanling and others, with twenty-one authors.
Both "Book of Jin" and "Book of Song" have "Biography of Tao Qian", both of which introduce Tao Qian's life, main activities and literary works, with slightly different contents.
The full text (excerpt) is as follows:
When the deacon heard about it, he thought Peng Zeling. In the county, the public fields were ordered to grow rice and rice, and he said: "It is enough to make me drunk with wine." The wife insisted on planting japonica. So one hectare and fifty acres are used for rice cultivation and fifty acres for japonica. He is simple and noble, and he does not engage in personal affairs to get to the official position. When the county governor arrived, the county official Bai Ying tied his belt and saw him. He sighed and said, "I can't bend my waist for five buckets of rice. My fists will harm the villains in the village!" In the second year of Yixi, he went to the county from his seal seal and wrote the poem "Return to Come". "Ci".
The translation is as follows:
The person in charge of these things heard about it and appointed him as Peng Zeling. In the county, all public fields were ordered to be planted with rice (which can be used to make wine), saying: "It's enough to keep me drunk." His wife and children insisted on planting japonica rice. So he ordered that fifty acres of one hectare be planted with rice seedlings and fifty acres of japonica rice.
I have always been simple and self-respecting, and never flattered my superiors. The county sent the governor to his county. His subordinates said that he should put on his belt (wear formal clothes) to see the governor. Tao Qian sighed and said: "I can't bend down (lose my dignity) for five bushels of rice (these salary). I am cautious." Do things for the little people in the countryside!" In the second year of Yixi, he returned the seal and ribbon and left Pengze County, so he wrote "Return and Lai Xi Ci".
Extended information:
Tao Yuanming could have lived a comfortable, prosperous and wealthy life, at least having enough food and clothing, but that would have come at the expense of his personality and integrity, so he chose a hard but quiet and peaceful life. Free pastoral life. Every loss must be rewarded. Tao Yuanming gained spiritual freedom, gained personal dignity, and wrote poems with a unique style that have been passed down for generations. He left behind precious literary wealth and precious spiritual wealth for future generations.
His life was full of desire and pursuit of the true meaning of life. His poems, such as "Drinking", "Miscellaneous Poems", etc., are simple and unpretentious, beautiful and natural, full of brilliance and meaningful charm. They either chant history, express concern for the current situation, or are full of life aspirations of "nature loves hills and mountains". His poems such as "Returning and Coming" express his determination not to fall in line with the secular world.
His prose, such as "The Peach Blossom Spring" and "The Biography of Mr. Wuliu", express the artistic conception of returning to simplicity, lofty and refined, and full of yearning for a better future. Later generations have the reputation of "one word is natural and new forever, and the luxury is pure and pure".
His integrity of not bowing down for "five buckets of rice" encourages future generations to put the common people of the world first, to take integrity and chastity as the most important thing, to feel guilty when bowing down, not to follow the crowd, and to remain kind and innocent Your true nature will not be changed by any fame, wealth or glitz in the world. A pine-like character, persevering and unyielding, facing all hardships and hardships.
Baidu Encyclopedia - Book of Jin Tao Qian Biography