Fan Li was a famous figure in ancient China, and after helping the low-paid Yue King to destroy the State of Wu, he retreated bravely and took the beautiful woman Xi Shi to the State of Qi and other places to do business, and soon became a rich man.
Fan Li and Xi Shi had three sons, all of whom were clever and clever. One day, he was told that his second son had committed a capital crime by killing someone in the Chu kingdom and had now been thrown into prison and would soon be executed. After hearing this, Fan Li hurriedly prepared ten thousand taels of gold, and then asked his younger son to go to the Chu Kingdom to find his old friend Zhuang Sheng to help.
The younger son was preparing to leave under his father's arrangement, but was unexpectedly blocked by the eldest son. Excitedly, he said to his father, "Of all the brothers, I am the oldest. Now that the second brother has an accident, my father will not let me go, but let the third brother go, does not this clearly say that I can't do it? ”
After saying this, the eldest son was so sad and indignant that he wanted to commit suicide. Fan Li's wife Xi Shi stopped the eldest son and then persuaded Fan Li: "The matter is over, you let him go." If you let the third elder go, the second elder has not been saved, but he has lost the boss first, how can this work! In desperation, Fan Li had no choice but to let his eldest son go to the Chu Kingdom instead. Before leaving, he wrote a handwritten letter to Zhuang Sheng, ordered his eldest son to bring it, and instructed: "After you arrive in the Chu Kingdom, immediately send this letter and gold to Zhuang Sheng, and then everything will be done according to Zhuang Sheng's words." Remember not to argue with Johnson under any circumstances. ”
After the eldest son came to the Chu kingdom, he went directly to Visit Zhuang Sheng's home and gave zhuang Sheng both the letter and the wan liang gold. After reading the letter, Zhuang Sheng said solemnly to the eldest son, "Well, you should leave the Chu Kingdom now, and don't stay here." Listening to Zhuang Sheng's words, Fan Li's eldest son nodded, then turned his head and left.
On the way back, the more he thought about it, the more suspicious he felt: although his father and Zhuang Sheng had a good friendship, after all, he had not been in contact for a long time. If Johnson takes the gold but doesn't help, how is that good? Thinking about it, the eldest son felt that now was not the time to leave. In order to help the second brother be rescued, he continued to stay in the Chu state and run around, using the gold he brought extra to dot other officials of the Chu state.
After Fan Li's eldest son left, Zhuang Sheng said to his wife, "This gold is not mine, it is my friend's, and we can't move it." After I get things done, we will return the gold to Fan Li. After saying that, Zhuang Sheng immediately went to meet the King of Chu. Zhuang Sheng had a high reputation in the Chu Kingdom, and everyone in the government and the public knew that he was a famous scholar who emphasized benevolence and righteousness and advocated honesty. Hearing that Zhuang Sheng had come, the King of Chu hurriedly ordered someone to greet him.
Seeing the King of Chu, Zhuang Sheng said solemnly, "Great King, yesterday I looked at the stars at night and found that there would be a great catastrophe in the Chu Kingdom. If you want to resolve it, you must practice benevolent government. The King of Chu had always trusted Zhuang Sheng, and after listening to Zhuang Sheng's words, he immediately decided to grant amnesty to the world as a way to show his benevolence. Fan Li's second son, naturally, was among the pardoned prisoners.
Pardoning prisoners is a big deal, and the imperial court has to prepare many things in advance. Therefore, before the King of Chu formally issued the order to pardon the world, Fan Li's eldest son heard the news. While he was excited, he couldn't help but think of the ten thousand taels of gold. In his opinion, the rescue of the second brother was entirely the result of the Chu King's amnesty, and Zhuang Sheng did not help much.
If that's the case, isn't the gold in vain? Thinking of this, he came to Johnson's house again.
When Zhuang Sheng saw him, he said in surprise, "Didn't I let you leave the Chu Kingdom long ago, why are you still staying here?" Fan Li's eldest son said lightly: "Yes, I should go, but I still can't rest assured that my second brother, so I have found some other ways." Fortunately, King Rende was ready to grant amnesty to the world. Now my second brother is about to come out of prison, so I have come to bid you farewell. ”
Zhuang Sheng seemed to understand something, and in order to determine his thoughts, he said to Fan Li's eldest son, "Since this is the case, you should take back the ten thousand taels of gold." The eldest son was overjoyed when he heard this, and he hurriedly picked up the gold and then said goodbye to Zhuang Sheng.
After Fan Li's eldest son left, Zhuang Sheng was very angry. In his view, the other party's move is undoubtedly a great insult to himself.
The next day, he entered the palace of the Chu kingdom with a calm face, came to the king of Chu, and said to the king of Chu: "After the subject said about the stars a few days ago, the king wanted to pardon the world, so as to cultivate virtue. However, in the past few days, the minister has often heard people say that the reason why the king amnesty the world is most likely because Fan Li has made money. Fan Li's second son had committed a crime on the mainland and was about to be beheaded. Fan Li wanted to save his son and bribed the court officials with money, which led to the king's decision. ”
After hearing this, the King of Chu was furious: "Although the widow is not a benevolent prince, but who is Fan Li, and how can the widow do this for him?" "As the king of a country in the State of Chu, the King of Chu is not just angry. Soon after, the King of Chu first issued an order to execute Fan Li's second son, and then pardoned the world.
After learning the news, Fan Li's eldest son was struck by lightning. He took the body of his second brother and returned home in despair. Looking at her son's corpse, Fan Li's wife Xi Shi burst into tears, and the others also cried out in sorrow.
In a state of grief, only Fan Li sneered and said, "I have long expected such an ending." The eldest has been wandering with me since he was a child and has suffered a lot, so he cherishes money. However, the third is different, he was born to be a golden food, and he did not know that money was not easy to come by. Different views on money make their way of doing things very different. This time to go to the Chu country to save people, it is to break the wealth and avoid disaster. I first let the third elder go, precisely because he was more suitable than the boss. The boss valued money too much, and turned back to Zhuang Sheng to get the gold back, which killed the second brother.