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Worth weight in gold (yi1 nuo4 qian1 jin1)
By Zhang Ciyun |
January 17, 2010, Sunday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
A trustworthy person must be one who is true to his word. The Chinese show great respect for such people and have preserved in their language the idiom "(yi1 nuo4 qian1 jin1)" to describe anyone whose "promise is weightier than one thousand taels of gold."
This idiom originates from a story about Ji Bu, a well-known chief officer of the imperial bodyguard in the court of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24).
Ji was born and brought up in the Chu area in eastern China. Known as a master of martial arts and advocate of personal honor and loyalty, Ji joined the rebel army fighting against the rule of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) when he was only in his early 20s.
After the collapse of the Qin regime, Ji became a chief officer of the imperial bodyguard of the newly established Western Han Dynasty after narrowly surviving some political persecution acts against him.
However, despite the change in his position and personal experience of career setbacks, Ji remained an outspoken critic of things he disliked.
One day, he openly advised his friends to distance themselves from Cao Qiusheng, a smooth-tongued aide in the court who Ji despised.
After learning about Ji's comments, Cao went to see the chief officer of the imperial bodyguard and asked to have a talk with him.
Cao said: "You are widely reputed as a trustworthy person. This is largely due to the fact that in the Chu area, everyone says that 'A promise made by Ji Bu is weightier than one thousand taels of gold.'
"I am from the Chu area, too. But, I cannot understand what makes me such a loathsome person in your eyes."
Cao's flattery gradually melted away the mistrust between the two imperial aides. Later, they became good friends.
Since then, the silver-tongued Cao tried his best to enhance the image and reputation of Ji.
Obviously, Cao's efforts proved to be very successful. And even today, many Chinese have learnt about the name of Ji through the popular expression "(yi1 nuo4 qian1 jin1)," which was coined by Cao more than 2,000 years ago.
This idiom originates from a story about Ji Bu, a well-known chief officer of the imperial bodyguard in the court of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24).
Ji was born and brought up in the Chu area in eastern China. Known as a master of martial arts and advocate of personal honor and loyalty, Ji joined the rebel army fighting against the rule of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) when he was only in his early 20s.
After the collapse of the Qin regime, Ji became a chief officer of the imperial bodyguard of the newly established Western Han Dynasty after narrowly surviving some political persecution acts against him.
However, despite the change in his position and personal experience of career setbacks, Ji remained an outspoken critic of things he disliked.
One day, he openly advised his friends to distance themselves from Cao Qiusheng, a smooth-tongued aide in the court who Ji despised.
After learning about Ji's comments, Cao went to see the chief officer of the imperial bodyguard and asked to have a talk with him.
Cao said: "You are widely reputed as a trustworthy person. This is largely due to the fact that in the Chu area, everyone says that 'A promise made by Ji Bu is weightier than one thousand taels of gold.'
"I am from the Chu area, too. But, I cannot understand what makes me such a loathsome person in your eyes."
Cao's flattery gradually melted away the mistrust between the two imperial aides. Later, they became good friends.
Since then, the silver-tongued Cao tried his best to enhance the image and reputation of Ji.
Obviously, Cao's efforts proved to be very successful. And even today, many Chinese have learnt about the name of Ji through the popular expression "(yi1 nuo4 qian1 jin1)," which was coined by Cao more than 2,000 years ago.
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