Lu Huaishen, prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, was honest and clean. He didn't rob money, and his house and furnishings were simple. After he became an official, his position was noble. His wife and children were always hungry and cold, but he was very generous to his relatives and friends.
He is responsible for selecting officials in Du Dong (Luoyang), but the luggage he carries with him is only a cloth bag. He was ill for a long time during his tenure as a supervisor and official of Huangmen. Song Jing and Lu Cong are willing to visit him often. Lu Huaishen was lying on a thin broken bamboo mat, and there was not even a curtain on the door. When it is windy and rainy, he has to cover it with a mat. Lu Huaishen has always attached great importance to Song Jing and Lu Congyuan. He was very happy to see them coming. He kept it for a long time and asked his family to prepare meals. Only two pots of steamed beans and a few vegetables were served, and nothing else. Lu Huaishen took Song Jing and Lu Congyuan by the hand and said, "You two will be officials and govern the country. The emperor's strategy of governing the country by seeking talents is urgent. However, if the rule is long, the ministers around the emperor will slack off. At this time, a villain will take the opportunity to approach and please the emperor. You two must remember. " A few days later, Lu Huaishen died. On his deathbed, he wrote a report recommending Song Jing, Lu Congyuan, Li Jie and Li to the emperor. The emperor read the report and felt more sympathy for him.
When Lu Huaishen was buried, because he didn't have any savings at ordinary times, he had to ask an old servant to cook a pot of porridge for those who helped with the funeral. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty went hunting in the south of the city and came to a shabby house. There is a simple family courtyard. There seemed to be some ceremony to be held, so he sent someone on horseback to ask. The man came back and reported: "There was a ceremony on the second anniversary of Lu Huaishen's death, and he was a vegetarian." Xuanzong rewarded fine silk and stopped hunting.
In addition, it is said that when Lu Huaishen died, his wife Cui Shi wouldn't let her daughter cry and said to him, "Your father is not dead, I know. Your father is honest and clean, does not strive for fame and fortune, gives in humbly, and refuses to accept anything given by the whole world. He and Zhang are both prime ministers. Now it is said that the money he collected is piling up and people are still alive. How can the reward of extravagance and diligence be false? " In the evening, Lu Huaishen came back to life, and people around him told him what his wife said. Lu Huaishen said, "The reason is different. There are thirty stoves in the underworld, and people with ill-gotten wealth barbecue day and night, and none of them are prepared for me. My sins in the underworld have been forgiven. " Then he died again.
Note: Lu Huaishen (? —7 16), born in Lingchang, Huazhou (now southwest of hua county, Henan Province), Wu Zetian was then the censor, later a counselor and an ancient scholar. Xuanzong became prime minister in the first year of Kaiyuan (7 13). Lu Huai knew that his talent was not as good as that of another prime minister, Yao Chong, so he avoided everything. During his tenure, his achievements were only in recommending and promoting talents. Three years later, he became prime minister and died. Lu Huaishen is an honest official. He has no savings at home, no curtains at the door, no meat in his diet, and his wife and children are hungry and poor. He was a relatively clean prime minister in the Tang Dynasty. When Lu Huai-shen's son, Lu Huan, was a satrap in Guangzhou, he was unmoved by the local treasures, honest and clean, and was also praised by people at that time. Xuanzong praised his beautiful politics and wrote a eulogy for him: "The emphasis is on the special city, and it is divided into Shaanxi heroes. It is also beneficial to things, is a national treasure, and does not fall into the family style. "
12 the story of ancient honesty
Public ceremonies are not influenced by fish.
Gong Yixiu was the prime minister of Lu in the early Warring States period. He insisted on convincing people by reasoning and governing the country by virtue, and remained unchanged, so that all the officials in the imperial court, large and small, were self-righteous, neither competing with the people for profits nor greedy for petty gains.
Gong Yixiu has a hobby, that is, he especially likes to eat fish. The Prime Minister loves to eat fish, so naturally someone offered to send him fish. One day, a fish delivery man brought Gong Yixiu a basket of first-class fresh fish. But he refused to accept it. The fish delivery man was puzzled and asked, "I heard that the Prime Minister likes to eat fish, so I brought it to you specially. I don't know why you don't accept it? " Gong Yixiu smiled and said to the person who sent the fish: "It is because I love fish very much that I will never accept fish from anyone. There is a simple reason. I am the prime minister, and the salary of the prime minister is enough for me to buy fish myself. If I get fired for taking someone else's fish today, who will send me fish? This is why I am not affected by fish! "
Zi Han regards greed as his wealth.
During the Spring and Autumn Period, a man in the State of Song got a beautiful jade and wanted to give it to Zi Han, the capital city. Zi Han refused to accept it. The jade giver thought that Zi Han suspected that the jade was fake, so he said, "I asked the jade craftsman to identify this beautiful jade, and he said it was Baoyu before he dared to give it to you." Zi Han replied, "You value jade, but I value not greed. If I accept the jade, you lose the treasure and I lose the treasure. Therefore, we'd better keep our treasure. "
Sheep continue to hang fish and refuse to give gifts.
In the Eastern Han Dynasty, Yang continued to be the prefect of Nanyang for a long time, but he always lived a simple life. Because this official was honest and clean, he was respected by people at that time, and everyone called him "the prefect of incorruptibility".
A subordinate saw that Taishou's life was too hard, so one day he took some fresh fish to Yang Xu and let him try it. Although Yang Xu accepted the fish, he didn't eat it, but hung it in court. A few days later, my subordinates sent fish to Yang Jian. Yang Jian pointed to the dried fish hanging on the field and said, "The fish you gave me is still hanging, so I don't need to send it again!" People originally wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to send fish to ask the satrap to do something private. In this case, they are embarrassed to speak. Never dare to send anything to the satrap again.
Yang Xu is so not only for his subordinates, but also for his closest relatives. He works in the state government, and his wife and children want to live with the sheep and take good care of their lives. The sheep continued to take his wife and son to his residence. The wife and children saw that all the property in the family was just a coarse quilt, an old coat, several barrels of wheat and a little salt. Yang Xu said to his son, "That's how I live. If you want to live here, how can I support your mother and son? " Let's go back to our hometown and live at home. "The son said inexplicably," When someone's father becomes an official, three relatives and six friends all benefit, but we can't borrow any light. "Or the wife knows Yang Xu and says to her son," You don't know your father yet. You have also read some books, and you have great admiration for honest officials. How can you be confused now that an upright official is in front of you? "
The son bowed his head in shame. So I happily went back to the country with my mother.
Liu Chong's self-denial and devotion to duty.
Liu Chong, the satrap of Huiji County (now Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province) in the Eastern Han Dynasty, was transferred to Beijing because of his integrity and outstanding achievements.
Before leaving, I saw several white-haired old men staggered in and walked together, saying that they were going to see the prefect off. Hearing this, Liu Chong quickly thanked him. The old people said, "In the past, people were greedy for money and things, which often made them restless and the people restless. Since you became a magistrate, officials have been self-denying and devoted to their duties, and the people have lived and worked in peace and contentment. Taishou is leaving today, and everyone really finds it difficult to leave. I have come to send it to show my heart. " Say, each took out one hundred pence, for Liu Chong to stay on the road.
Liu Chong was very moved after hearing this, and said, "It's really a shame for the elders to flatter me so much. I accepted everyone's wishes. I can't accept the money Please take it back! "
The old people are sincere and determined to give them away. Liu Chong had no choice but to take a penny from everyone, and the old people thanked them and said goodbye. Seeing the old man leaving, Liu Chong gently threw the pennies he received into the river.
The story spread quickly, and people praised Liu Chong in succession. Someone gave him a good name, called "a dollar is a satrap." It is said that Qianqing Town, north of Shaoxing, Zhejiang, is where Liu Chong throws money into the river now.
Sun Lian left a suicide note.
During the period of Ming Di in the Southern Song Dynasty, Sun Gan was promoted to Badong and Jianping as a magistrate of a county because of his integrity.
Tian Jian prison for fifteen years (5 16), Sun Gan was 92 years old. He had a premonition that he would soon die, and he was determined to keep clean after his death. He left a suicide note to his sons, saying, "I didn't want to pursue worldly wealth when I was young, so I didn't want to get ahead." Since then, I have been an official for three generations and two dynasties. With my qualifications and fame, I may be sealed by the court after my death. This is a national practice. When I die, you should tie up my towel at once and bury it bareheaded, so as to save money. "He also told me," When you bury me, you should hide the coffin foot and put it away. Ghosts and banners leading the way at the funeral can be omitted. The car I usually ride is a hearse, and the bed I usually lie on is a hearse. I put on rough bamboo mats and prepare the necessary etiquette. Everything else can be omitted. "After Sun Gan's death, his sons held a funeral for him according to this will, which kept him clean.
Zhao Gui is as clean as water.
In the Sui Dynasty, Zhao Gui worked as a coachman in Jizhou (now Jinan), and his neighbors in the east had mulberry trees. One year, mulberries were ripe, and big and red mulberries fell in his yard, all over the ground. He asked his family to pick up the mulberry and return it to his neighbors, and warned his son, "I don't want to become famous by this, but I don't think it's my own. I will feel uneasy when I enjoy it."
Zhao Gui has been an official in Jizhou for four years, and his annual assessment and achievements are the best. He was rewarded by the emperor and recruited to serve in North Korea. When they left, all the villagers said goodbye with tears. On behalf of the people, an elderly man held a glass of clear water and gave it to Zhao Gui trembling. He said, "Don't drive in this office. You never accept bribes or things, just like water and fire don't intersect. Since you are leaving, we dare not send you a pot of wine. If you are clean, I will respect you with a glass of water to bid farewell. " Zhao Gui was so grateful that he took a glass of water and gulped it down.
Later, Zhao Gui was appointed as Sima, the general manager of Yuanzhou (now Guyuan, Ningxia), paying attention to strictly restraining subordinates and doing no harm to the people in autumn. Once, Zhao Gui led a group of night walkers carelessly, and the horse stepped on the ground and trampled the seedling. He stopped at once. After dawn, I found the owner of the venue, compensated for the loss, and then led the team to set off. The people and officials in Yuanzhou were very moved when they heard about it. From then on, they followed Zhao Gui's example and paid attention to their own conduct.
Bao Zheng's "Refusal to Be Honest and Clean"
When I was in Song Renzong, there was a gift-giving wind in the government and the public.
Bao Zheng has always opposed this trend of giving and receiving gifts. He wrote to the emperor many times, demanding that the phenomenon of giving and receiving gifts between officials be prohibited in order to create a clean and honest atmosphere.
This year is Bao Zheng's 60th birthday. A few days before his birthday, he ordered his sons Gui Bao, Dynasty and Mahan to stand at the entrance of the yamen to refuse the ceremony. But who knows, the first birthday present was a gift from the emperor of the dynasty and the eunuch of Liu Gongsi. The old eunuch arrived at the door and insisted on seeing Bao Zheng, asking him to take orders and accept gifts. This time, Gui Bao was stumped, and the gift from Viva was not accepted. Isn't this disobedience? But his father ordered him not to disobey, so he had to ask the old eunuch to write the reason for the gift on a piece of red paper and forward it to his father. The old eunuch picked up a pen and wrote a poem on red paper.
"Dear Yipin Qing, I work day and night like Wei Zhi. Today, the emperor gave a gift, but he refused unreasonably. "
Gui Bao asked the dynasty to show this poem to his father in the inner town. After a while, the dynasty brought back the original red paper and gave it to the old eunuch. I saw four sentences added under the original poem.
"Impatience and selflessness, being an official is the most afraid of talking about work. Hard work is official business, and refusing gifts is a clean and honest style. "
After reading Liu Gong Sili, the eunuch was speechless for a long time, so he had to go back to the palace with a gift and red paper.
Wang Ao was an honest official in the Five Dynasties.
Wang Ao was an upright official during the period from Chengzu of Ming Dynasty to Jingdi Five Dynasties. He has lived in officialdom for decades, and despite his high position, he has always maintained the qualities of fairness and honesty.
He lives in the court, holding heavy power, but he is very strict with himself and often wears worn-out clothes. On one occasion, after Ming Yingzong summoned Wang Ao, when Wang Ao turned to leave, Yingzong saw that his clothes were broken and asked him to come back and ask why. Wang Ao had to say that he occasionally wore this dress that day, but he didn't have time to change his clothes after receiving the phone call.
Wang Ao is also very strict with his family. One of his grandchildren entered Imperial College because of his kindness. One autumn exam, this talented and mediocre grandson also wanted to take the imperial examination in an attempt to become the top scholar. So he took the test paper from the relevant departments and told Wang Ao. Wang Ao firmly opposed it and said, "If you are really talented, of course I won't stop you from trying your hand;" If you are selected from a mediocre generation, you will inevitably bury a truly talented person. But you can't do it, just to gain fame. " Then he tore up the paper and threw it into the stove.
In the face of principle, Wang Ao never gave in to his family. Wang Ao has a daughter who married Jia Jie, an official in the suburbs of Beijing. Mrs. Wang Aofu loves this daughter very much and often takes her home to visit relatives. Every time before his wife left, Jia Jie complained in front of her: "It's a piece of cake for my father-in-law to transfer me back to Kyoto. Where is there so much trouble?" The daughter told her mother about it, and her mother thought it made sense. Once, when Mrs. Wang Ao was drinking heartily, she tactfully requested that her son-in-law be transferred to Beijing. Who knows that Wang Ao was furious, picked up the objects on the case and injured his wife's face. When Wang Ao died, Jia Jie had not been transferred back to Beijing.
Father Qing Zi Lian maintained a good reputation.
During the Three Kingdoms period and the early Western Jin Dynasty, both Hu Zhi and Hu Wei were famous for their incorruptibility.
Influenced by his father's Hu nature, Hu Weiwei was interested in inheriting and carrying forward his father's virtue of incorruptibility when he was young. One year, Hu Weiwei went from Luoyang to visit his father who was a secretariat in Jingzhou. After a few days in Jingzhou, Hu Weiwei said goodbye to his father. Hu Zhi wants to take something to show his father's mind. After tossing and turning, Hu Zhi finally dug up a silk book from home. Looking at his departing son, Hu Zhishen said with deep feelings: "Son, although my father is a government official, I only eat bread all my life. Take these silks and consider them as my father's travelling expenses on the road. " Unexpectedly, instead of being ungrateful, Hu Wei questioned his father: "People say that you are honest and clean, and you are not a corrupt official. I wonder where this silk came from? " Hu paused for a moment, then explained, "This is the money I saved for you." Hu Wei was reassured.
After hearing the reputation of Hu's father and son as honest officials, Emperor Wu of Jin summoned Hu Weiwei, praised his father and son's honesty and integrity, and casually asked, "Who is more honest than your father?" Hu Weiwei replied, "I am not as good as my father." Emperor Wu of Song asked again, "Why?" Hu Weiwei replied, "My father is honest and doesn't want to be known. I am afraid that others will not know, so I am far behind my father! "
The landmark "Shi Lian" will last forever.
Lu Ji, the word, was born in Wuxian (now Suzhou) of the Three Kingdoms, and the official was the magistrate of Yulin (now Guangxi). During the Three Kingdoms period, Yulin had a vast territory. At that time, Yulin was a satrap, and when he left office, he was full of treasures and returned with a full load. However, officials' political achievements are clean, and ill-gotten gains are not taken at all. At the end of his term of office, when he left for his hometown, his luggage was bare and all his belongings were loaded on the boat, which did not take up much space. Seeing that the cargo was too light, the ferryman said, "Sail like this. What if something goes wrong? " Lu Ji asked, "What are you afraid of?" The ferryman said, "The boat is too light, and it is easy to capsize when encountering strong winds and waves. There are four people in your family, and the things they bring are not as good as a poor man. The boat is too light, so we have to find a way to increase the weight. "
Lu Ji discussed with Gong Li and his family, bought two cans of pickles and a car full of dried bamboo shoots and put them on the boat. However, the ship is still too shallow to sail Re-purchase, Lu Ji has little left. What shall we do? In desperation, we suddenly saw a big stone on the shore, weighing seven or eight hundred Jin. Lu Ji found that it was a stone without owner, so he asked someone to put it on the boat. Going home with a boulder became a beautiful talk. Several scholars collected this big stone that was shipped back with their achievements, and named it "Shi Lian". Today, they stay in Suzhou Confucian Temple Inscription Museum, which will always be remembered and admired by the world.
Tang Kan prepares coffin to refuse corrupt officials
Tang Kan, a native of Dantu, Jiangsu Province, studied hard since childhood and has a good character. In the eighth year of Zheng De in the Ming Dynasty (A.D. 15 14), Tang Kan was made the order of Yongfeng County after having obtained the rural examination. He went to his post without a wife and lived with extremely young people. He lives a simple life, eating vegetables and tofu. Over time, the local people are convinced that he is honest and clean.
After the death of Empress Zhang Mingsheng, she was buried far away. Wherever the funeral procession went, eunuchs and officials extorted money, saying that Zhang would not be executed. Local officials who have financial resources give money to save their lives, and officials who are good at flattery take the opportunity to search, while most state and county officials who have no money escape. Tang Kan prepared an empty coffin in advance. After the funeral, officials asked for urgent treatment. Tang Kan led the corrupt official to the coffin, pointed to the coffin and said, "I can't get the money when I die." The corrupt officials were dumbfounded, helpless and left angrily.
In the Ming dynasty, bribery became the norm and the climate was unclean. In the officialdom of "officials get money and politics get bribes", Tang Kan abides by morality and keeps moral integrity, which can be called "true celebrities have their own things".
Notes on Lin Zexu's refusal to accept bribes
1820, Lin zexu was appointed as Jiangnan suggestion and toured all parts of Jiangnan. No sooner had he stopped at his apartment in Penghu Island than a man who claimed to be a "flower farmer" sent a pot of flowers and said that he wanted to ask Mr. Lin to change a large pot of flowers. Lin Zexu knew something was different. He kicked over the flowerpot and a red envelope appeared inside. In the bag is a golden mouse weighing half a catty and a piece of stationery, which reads: "Lord Lin accepts it himself and Zhang Baojing presents it." Lin Zexu confiscated Zhang Bao's golden mouse on the spot and turned it over to the state treasury.
From 65438 to 0839, Lin Zexu went to Guangzhou to ban smoking. In May, Yi Law, a British business representative, gave Lin Zexu a set of opium smoking sets: platinum pipe, autumn fishbone cigarette holder and diamond pipe, next to which was a clever and elegant Kongming lantern and a golden hairpin, which was dazzling and worth at least 6,543,800 pounds. Lin Zexu said, "Mr. Yi Law, on the orders of the Emperor, our headquarters has gone to Guangzhou to get rid of tobacco poison. This smoking set is contraband and should have been confiscated, but the exchanges between the two countries are of great significance. Please take them back to your country and store them in the Royal Museum as exhibits! " Ashamed of the irony of righteousness and law, I had to take back the gift.