In the State of Song lived a wealthy merchant named Jianzhizi (Jian Zhizi). He competed with another buyer for an unpolished jade worth a hundred pieces of gold. He pretended to drop and ruin the jade, paying one hundred gold as compensation. Later he trimmed away the flawed parts of the broken jade and resold it for a thousand yi of gold.
Some ventures look like failures at first but turn out profitable, so we should not reject an undertaking merely for its temporary loss.
Note
Judgment should transcend immediate gains and losses. Temporary losses may serve as the foundation for enormous future profit.
Late Warring States Legalist thinker, uses the merchant’s story to explain the philosophy of long-term investment and temporary sacrifice.
Jianzhizi (Jian Zhizi)
A shrewd rich merchant from Song adept at long-run business planning.
Raw jade trade
Unpolished rough jade needed cutting and polishing to reveal inner gem value, a common ancient luxury trade.
Business wisdom of short-term loss
Ancient merchants knew occasional upfront cost could eliminate competitors and bring huge subsequent profit.
Political analogy
Han Fei extends the business logic to state administration: temporary expenditure or setbacks may secure great long-term benefits for the nation.
宋之富贾有监止子者，与人争买百金之璞玉，因佯失而毁之，负其百金，而理其毁瑕，得千溢焉。事有举之而有败，而贤其毋举之者，负之时也。
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