More than 2,000 years ago, Mencius said: “A family that passes down virtue will last for more than ten generations, one that passes down farming and study will last a little less, one that passes down poetry and literature even less, and one that passes down wealth will not last beyond three generations.”
Recent statistics show that the average lifespan of family businesses in China is less than 24 years, with less than 30 percent making it to the second generation, 10 percent to the third, and only 4 percent to the fourth. Thus, “wealth does not last beyond three generations” is validated.
From the end of the Yuan Dynasty in 1368 to the 21st century, the Pei Lantang family from Suzhou has broken this curse through the moral education embodied in their family motto. Their lineage overseas has remained prosperous for 17 generations, creating a centuries-long miracle of wealth and prosperity. However, the branch that stayed in mainland China was utterly decimated by the 13th generation under the rule of the Communist Party.
According to the biography of the famous architect I.M. Pei, during the tumultuous end of the Yuan Dynasty, the Pei Lantang family fled from Zhejiang Jinhua to Suzhou to escape the chaos. Using ancestral medical recipes, Pei Lantang opened a small pharmacy. By the Ming Dynasty, the Pei family had become one of the four wealthiest families in Suzhou, known as one of the “Four Richest in Jiangsu.”
Breaking the curse of ‘Wealth Does Not Last Beyond Three Generations’
In the Qing Dynasty, Pei Muting, a 7th-generation heir, inherited the family pharmacy and expanded it into the largest medicinal herb business in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions. This achievement marked the peak of the family’s prosperity up to that point, making Pei Muting the wealthiest person in Suzhou then.
By the 13th generation, brothers Pei Runsheng and Pei Zai’an elevated the family business to unprecedented heights. Starting as an apprentice in a paint shop, Pei Runsheng became Shanghai’s famous “Paint King.” He also invested in real estate and eventually bought nearly 1,000 properties in Shanghai. His brother, Pei Zai’an, chose to become an official and entered Suzhou Prefecture as a specially recommended scholar.
After their father’s death, he managed the family business and co-founded the Shanghai Bank. This lineage became known as the “Financial Family,” with most descendants engaged in the finance industry.
All five of Pei Zai’an’s sons entered the banking and finance industry. The third son, Pei Tsuyee, was a banker who served as the Vice General Manager and Executive Director of the Bank of China, the President of the Central Bank of the Republic of China, and the Chairman of the Shanghai Commercial Bank in Hong Kong.
Born on April 26, 1917, I.M. Pei, of the 15th generation, was the eldest son of Pei Tsuyee. In 1935, I.M. Pei came to the U.S. and studied architecture at the University of Pennsylvania, MIT, and Harvard, earning awards from the American Institute of Architects upon graduation.
His notable works include the glass pyramid at the Louvre in Paris, the John F. Kennedy Library, the Suzhou Museum, the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong, the MIHO Museum in Japan, the National Gallery of Art’s East Building in Washington, DC, the Dallas City Hall in Texas, the Luce Memorial Chapel in Taiwan, and many others, making him a global architectural master that won almost every architectural award.
Prosperity meets oppression
After the Communist Party took over mainland China in 1949, the Pei family remained in China and was forced to surrender nearly all their assets, including their banking and other businesses and their family’s estate homes. I.M. Pei’s cousin, Pei Zhongwei, was labeled a rightist and sentenced to 22 years of labor reform in Heilongjiang. His sister’s banker-husband was also persecuted, and his ninth aunt was expelled from her home after her husband’s persecution and subsequent suicide during the Cultural Revolution.
In 1974, after studying in the United States, I. M. Pei returned to his hometown of Suzhou for the first time. Facing over 100 relatives dressed in shabby blue and black clothes, he was at a loss for words. Later, I. M. Pei told his colleagues, “I did not feel the slightest bit of superiority in front of them. Any of them could have been me, and I could have been any of them.”
I.M. Pei told his father that he intended to return to China to contribute, but was dissuaded by his father. This decision allowed him to prosper abroad and spared his children from misfortune, laying the foundation for his rise to a world-class architect.
Moral virtue and family traditions create a centuries-long miracle
Influenced by family tradition, I.M. Pei’s three sons graduated from Harvard and entered the architectural field, while his daughter graduated from Columbia University in law. Their descendants have also found success in various fields.
So what is the Pei family motto that sustained their prosperity over hundreds of years? It consists of 30 Chinese characters and translates to: “Leaving material wealth to descendants is not as valuable as leaving them a legacy of virtue; passing down exclusive personal assets is less meaningful than passing down shared communal wealth.”
From the start, with their small pharmacy, the Pei family was known for their charity, free medical treatment for the poor, and teaching their children to be grateful and give back to society. Their emphasis on virtue and family values ensured the family’s enduring success.
The Pei family’s story is a testament to the power of integrity, moral education, compassion, and strong family traditions in creating lasting prosperity. However, the evils of the Communist Party’s rule tragically disrupted their lineage in mainland China, stripping away their assets and persecuting family members.
This interference with the natural blessings of hard work and virtue not only destroyed many families, including the Peis, but also serves as a stark reminder of how the oppressive regime of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has devastated lives and legacies. Despite these hardships, the Pei family’s overseas success is a shining example of resilience and the enduring strength of kindness, goodness, and integrity.
Translated by Katy Liu and edited by Tatiana Denning
Follow us on X, Facebook, or Pinterest
