Confucian scholar

  • Late Spring [Tang Poems]

    — Han Yu The trees and grass know that soon spring will go away; Of red blooms and green leaves they make gorgeous display. But willow catkins and elm pods are so unwise, They wish to be flying snow darkening the skies.

  • Spring Snow [Tang Poems]

    — Han Yu On vernal day no flowers were in bloom, alas! In second moon I’m glad to see the budding grass. But white snow dislikes the late coming vernal breeze, It plays the parting flowers flying through the trees.

  • Mencius – Chapter 7.17 Saving the world with Dao, Not just hands

    Chunyu Kun asked Mencius: “Is it true that, according to ritual propriety, men and women should not directly hand things to each other?”

  • The quiet strategist: Kan Ze [Three Kingdoms]

    Kan Ze (courtesy name De Run) was born in Shanyin, Kuaiji Commandery – modern-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang – into a family of modest means. Unlike many elite officials of his time, he had no inherited privilege. To pursue learning, he copied borrowed books by hand, demonstrating extraordinary diligence. This early discipline laid the foundation for…

  • Liu Bei and Zheng Xuan [Three Kingdoms]

    When asked who the wisest man in Romance of the Three Kingdoms is, most would instantly answer Zhuge Liang. Yet there exists a figure—mentioned only briefly in the original text—who was not merely a scholar, but a mastermind whose influence shaped the course of history, despite never wielding a sword or commanding an army.

  • Awakening from Illusion in “The Painted Wall”

    There is a scene in The Painted Wall(The Mural), from Strange Tales from Liaozhai Studio, sounds ridiculous yet conveys profound meaning.