A man of Song named Cao Shang was sent by the King of Song on a mission to Qin. When he set out, he obtained several carriages. The King of Qin was pleased with him and added a hundred more carriages. Returning to Song, he went to see Zhuangzi and said:
“To live in a poor lane and a narrow alley, to be hard pressed and to weave sandals, to have a withered neck and a sallow face – this is Cao Shang’s shortcoming. To awaken a ruler of ten thousand chariots with a single word and to be followed by a hundred carriages – this is Cao Shang’s strong point.”
Zhuangzi said:
“The King of Qin was sick and summoned physicians. One who broke open boils and drained sores got one carriage. One who licked hemorrhoids got five carriages. The lower the treatment, the more carriages he got. Did you, perhaps, treat his hemorrhoids? Why did you get so many carriages? Go away!”
Interpretation
This short passage, from the Chapter 32 – Lie Yukou, is one of Zhuangzi’s sharpest satires on wealth, status, and flattery.
Cao Shang is a man who has gained a hundred carriages from the King of Qin. He returns home proud and tries to humiliate Zhuangzi. He contrasts his own “success” with Zhuangzi’s poverty: Zhuangzi lives in a poor alley, weaves sandals, and looks starved; Cao Shang, by contrast, can “awaken a ruler of ten thousand chariots” with one word.
But Zhuangzi turns the boast upside down.
He tells a mock-medical parable: when the King of Qin is sick, doctors are rewarded according to the lowliness of the treatment they perform. Breaking boils gets one carriage; licking hemorrhoids gets five. The lower and more degrading the service, the greater the reward.
Then he asks Cao Shang: “Did you treat his hemorrhoids? Why else would you get so many carriages?”
The point is devastating:
- Cao Shang thinks his hundred carriages prove his worth.
- Zhuangzi says they prove the opposite: he has gained them by degrading himself, by flattering and serving a powerful man in the most servile way.
- What the world calls “success” may be spiritual prostitution.
The passage also reflects a core Daoist theme: external wealth and honor are not true value. The one who gains the world’s rewards often loses his own integrity. Zhuangzi would rather live in poverty and keep his true nature than gain a hundred carriages by selling himself.
There is also a contrast between inner freedom and outer reward. Cao Shang is owned by his carriages – he needs the king’s favor, he needs to boast, he needs others’ envy. Zhuangzi, though poor, is free.
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