How Su Shi skillfully rejected his friend’s request for mercy with just one move

It is said that the two brothers Su Dongpo and Su Ziyou became high officials. A friend who had a close relationship with the brothers came to visit and wanted to ask their help to find a job in the Yamen. This man first went to see Su Ziyou, but after being unsatisfied, he came to see Su Dongpo again. Su Dongpo knew the purpose of his visit and told him a joke before he could get to the point.

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Su Dongpo said: Once upon a time, there was a man who, because his family was poor and could not make a living, actually started digging and robbing graves. When he dug a grave, he saw a naked man. The naked man said to the gravedigger: "I am Yang Wangsun of the Han Dynasty. I am famous for being buried naked. Haven't you heard of it? What can be found in the tomb of a person buried naked to satisfy you?" The gravedigger had no choice but to dig out another tomb with all his strength. When he entered the tomb, he saw that the owner of the tomb was a king.

The king said to the grave digger: "I am Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty and I left an edict before my death, stipulating that no gold or silverware should be used in my tomb items, only earthenware and pottery. There is nothing valuable here. , cannot satisfy your request." After the grave digger came out of the tomb of Emperor Han Wen, he was very happy to see two tombs connected together, and immediately started to dig through the left one first.

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When I entered the tomb, I saw a man saying: "I am Boyi. I was so hungry that I died at the foot of Shouyang Mountain. There is nothing here. I can't satisfy your request." The gravedigger sighed and said, "I have spent so much effort digging the grave, but I can't get anything. I might as well dig the grave on the right, or maybe I can dig it from there. Come up with something." Boyi said to him, "I advise you not to dig that grave. You see, I am so thin and ugly. My brother Shuqi also died of hunger. His condition is worse than mine. Yeah."

When Su Dongpo's old friend heard this, he understood in his heart, so he said goodbye to Su Dongpo according to etiquette without mentioning the matter of job hunting.

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Obviously, this so-called story about tomb robbers digging up graves to find treasures was deliberately compiled by Su Dongpo. He was actually persuading you tactfully: Don't come to trouble me. I, Su Dongpo, really don't have the ability to help you find a job at the Yamen. He also hinted that he should not go to Su Ziyou as he couldn't help him.

Su Dongpo used this trick to cleverly get rid of a troublesome matter that might cause trouble, achieving his goal without causing trouble with his old friend in terms of face.