During the Warring States period (475 BC-221 BC) in ancient China, a peasant in the Wei State by accidentally came across a piece of unusual stone in the field he was farming. Though grotesque in shape, the stone was sparkling and crystal-clear and seemed to him very beautiful. He brought it home.
He went to his neighbor who was a jade artisan and asked him what kind of stone it was. His neighbor saw immediately that it was a piece of rare and precious jade, and wanted to keep it for himself. He then lied to the peasant, “This stone is very strange. Anyone who keeps it will have terrible things happen to him. You’d better put it back where you found it.” The peasant didn’t quite believe what his neighbor had told him. He did not throw it away immediately and took the stone home.
That night, after the lamp was put out, the stone emitted a bright beam of light all of a sudden, which scared the whole family. The peasant went to his neighbor and told him about it. His neighbor lied to him again, “This is a very bad sign. To avoid tragedy in your family, you must put it back where you found it.” This time the peasant believed his neighbor completely and threw the stone away. The neighbor was very happy that the peasant had done as he said, and later snuck out to the field and picked up the jade, after which he went to the palace and presented it to the King.
At first, the King felt it did not amount to much. However, the jade artisan insisted that it was a piece of very precious jade. The King told an experienced jade carver to give his opinion. The old jade carver examined it and said to the King, “Congratulations, Your Majesty, this is a rare treasure indeed. I’ve never before seen jade as valuable.” The king was very pleased to hear this. He asked the jade carver just how much the jade was worth. The jade carver answered, “It is a priceless treasure. Merely taking a look at it should cost the price of five cities.” The king was very happy, and gave the peasant’s neighbor a huge reward.
ThisChineseidiomisfromYinWenzi:Da DaoShang. It is used to describe something very precious.
