Typical examples of diligence and thrift in ancient China

1. Zhu Yuanzhang

In Fengyang, Zhu Yuanzhang’s hometown, there is also a folk song about four dishes and one soup: “The emperor’s treat is four dishes and one soup, radish and leeks, really sweet and fragrant; green onions. Tofu has a profound meaning, and it makes corrupt officials panic. "

When Zhu Yuanzhang celebrated the queen's birthday, he only used carrots, leeks, two bowls of green vegetables, and scallion tofu soup to entertain all the officials. And there are three chapters of the agreement: no matter who holds the banquet from now on, only four dishes and one soup are allowed. Anyone who violates it will be severely punished.

2. Ji Wenzi

Ji Wenzi was born in a family that had been prime minister for three generations. He was an aristocrat and famous diplomat of the Lu State in the Spring and Autumn Period. He had been an official for more than 30 years. He lived a frugal life, taking frugality as the foundation of his life, and asked his family to live a frugal life. He only wanted to dress simply and neatly. He didn't have many decent clothes except court clothes. Every time he went out, he used extremely simple carriages and horses.

Seeing that he was so frugal, a man named Zhongsunzi advised Ji Wenzi: As a minister, you are highly virtuous and respected, but I heard that you do not allow your wives and concubines to wear silk clothes at home, and you do not use food. Feed the horses.

You yourself don’t pay attention to your appearance and clothing. Wouldn’t this look too shabby and make people from other countries laugh at you? Doing so will also harm the dignity of our country. People will say that the Shangqing of Lu State has lived a poor life. What kind of day is it. Why don't you change this way of life? It will be beneficial to you and the country, why not do it?

After hearing this, Ji Wenzi smiled lightly and said seriously to the man: I also hope I decorate my home luxuriously and elegantly, but look at the people in our country, there are still many people who eat food that is too rough to swallow, wear shabby clothes, and some are freezing and starving; how can I bear the thought of this? How about buying property for yourself? If the common people are poor and poor.

And I pretend to be a wife and concubine, raise grain and horses intensively, how can I have the conscience to be an official! Moreover, I heard that the strength and glory of a country can only be expressed through the noble conduct of its subjects. , it is not judged by the fact that they have beautiful wives and concubines and good horses.

In this case, how can I accept your suggestion? Guang's words made Zhongsun look ashamed, and at the same time, it made him respect Ji Wenzi even more.

After that, he also followed Ji Wenzi and paid great attention to the simplicity of life. His wives and concubines only wore clothes made of ordinary cloth, and the horses at home were only fed with chaff and weeds.

3. Su Shi’s money hanging on the beams

Su Shi, one of the Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties, became a Jinshi at the age of 21 and served as an official for 40 years. Always pay attention to frugality and always live on a budget. In 1080 AD, Su Shi was demoted and demoted and came to Huangzhou. As his salary was reduced a lot, he was too poor to survive. Later, with the help of friends, he got a piece of land and started farming by himself.

In order not to spend a penny indiscriminately, he also implemented a planned expenditure: first calculate all the money, then divide it into 12 equal parts, and use one part every month; each part is divided into 30 small parts equally, Use only a small portion each day.

After all the money is divided, it is hung on the beams according to portions, and one bag is taken out every morning to be used as living expenses for the whole day. After getting a small amount of money, he has to weigh it carefully and resolutely not buy anything that he can afford. He is only allowed to have leftovers and is not allowed to overspend. Su Shi kept the money he saved in a bamboo tube to prepare for unexpected needs.

4. Zhao Kuangyin

Zhao Kuangyin’s goddaughter is frugal and simple. “The palace of gods in heaven is the home of emperors on earth.” As the head of a country, the emperor should be said to be the richest in the world, with gold and silver treasures at his disposal. However, Zhao Kuangyin, the founding emperor of the Song Dynasty, not only lived a frugal life and opposed luxury and waste, but also strictly educated his children to be frugal in life.

5. Folk tales of diligence and thrift

There is such a folk tale: Once upon a time, at the foot of Funiu Mountain in the Central Plains, there lived a farmer named Wu Cheng. He was diligent and frugal in managing his family throughout his life. The days passed without worries and were very happy. It is said that before his death, he handed a horizontal plaque with the words "diligence and thrift" written on it to his two sons and warned them: "If you want to avoid hunger in your life, you must follow these two words. ”

Later, when the two brothers separated, they saw the plaque in half. The eldest brother got the word “diligence” and the second brother got the word “frugality”. The boss hangs the word "diligence" respectfully in his home, and "works at sunrise and rests at sunrise" every day, and has a bumper harvest every year.

However, his wife lived a lavish life, and the children often threw away the white steamed buns after taking two bites. As time went by, there was no food left at home.

Since the second child got half of the plaque, he also regarded the word "thrift" as an "oracle" and placed it in the middle hall, but forgot the word "qin". He neglected farming and refused to cultivate intensively, so he did not harvest much food every year.

Although the family is frugal and frugal, it will not last long. There was a severe drought this year, and both the eldest and second eldest children's homes were already empty. In desperation, they tore off the plaque and trampled the words "diligence" and "thrift" to the ground.

At this time, a note suddenly flew into the house from the window. The two brothers quickly picked it up and looked at it. It said: "Being diligent but not thrifty is like carrying a bottomless bowl that will never be full." !" "If you are frugal but not diligent, you will live in poverty and starve!"

The brothers suddenly realized that the two words "diligence" and "thrift" cannot be separated. They complement each other and are indispensable. After learning the lesson, they posted the four words "Be diligent and thrifty" on the door of their house to remind themselves and their wives and children. If they practice it, their lives will get better day by day.