Businessmen are said always to prioritize profit and ignore morality to make money. However, there are still many businessmen with high morals and good conduct. They are not tempted by huge profits and are honest, trustworthy, and righteous.
Righteous businessmen with great loyalty
During the Qing Dynasty, a businessman named Tao from the Chu clan was in the Jinling area. He traveled north and south to sell groceries. While passing through Gusu in Suzhou, he met Jia from the Wu clan; they instantly connected and got along very well. Over the next 10 years, they became inseparable and very close friends since they lived and did business in the Wu and Chu regions.
While Jia was selling safflower and other things for one year, he unexpectedly received an urgent request to return home. Before departing, he handed over his goods to Tao.
He said: “I have traveled extensively throughout Jiangsu and Zhejiang and made many contacts, but none measured up to you who can keep his promise and be consistently reliable. Now, I will entrust these goods to you. The combined value of the goods comes to 50,000 taels of silver. If you can get a buyer for this price, you can sell them. Since we have known each other for so long, signing a contract is unnecessary.” He then proceeded on his return journey home.
After returning home, Jia fell ill, but before his death, he confided to his wife, “I have goods and property worth 50,000 taels of silver, which I have deposited with Tao in Suzhou. He is a trustworthy man. After I die and when our son grows up, he can go to him to retrieve this money.” After revealing all this, Jia passed away.
Jia’s wife waited for 10 years as her son grew up and then took him to Suzhou in search of the person to whom her late husband entrusted the goods. However, Jia’s wife mistakenly heard Tao’s name as Rao. After searching the entire business line, she found no one with Rao’s surname. An elderly shopkeeper said, “When Jia was here, he was Tao’s best friend from Jinling. Tao may know the person you are searching for.” She found out Tao’s address and took her son to visit him.
Tao met them and asked them about their rural address, surname, and Jia’s last words. Knowing they were correct, he found a place to stay and fed them.
Then he told the mother and son: “Your husband was unclear about what he said. The capital of 50,000 taels of silver is actually with me. Ten years have passed since we separated. I haven’t seen him come back for a long time. I wrote to him many times, but there was no reply. I was very confused and scared. I managed the funds he left behind on his behalf. The principal plus interest totaled 260,000 taels of silver.” Then he took out the record book and handed it to them along with the silver.
The widow of Jia replied: “My late husband’s will was to take back the original amount. We have already felt your noble character and longing for the deceased. How dare we go against his will and take more?” Tao then returned the original amount to them, gave half of the interest to her son, and used the other half to buy fertile land for them in the Wu region. Tao also signed and sealed a contract and then personally sent them home.
After Tao returned, one of his clansmen wanted to sell more than 300 old houses left by their ancestors because they were located in remote areas. The broker told Tao: “The original value of these houses is 3,000 taels of silver. I am happy to sign a private contract for 500 taels so you can own all these houses.”
Tao nodded and agreed. He then said to his clansman: “You are in a hurry to sell your ancestors’ property because of your poverty! How can I bear to cheat you of the property’s true value? I will still sign a contract with you, but for the true value of 3,000 taels of silver.” The clansman was so moved that he cried.
So the two recruited craftsmen prepared materials and started renovating the old properties with great fanfare. One day, as they were digging, they found more than 200,000 taels of silver hidden in the cellar. Tao told his clansman: “This silver is what your ancestors left behind.”
So Tao gave him half, and the clansman happily accepted it. However, when he went to take the silver, it immediately turned into water. He knew the silver was not meant for him, so he returned the silver to Tao. In this way, Tao got a large amount of silver. He said: “This is easy to handle.” He used all the silver for charity to help his clansmen.
Fate
The following story highlights an unspoken truth: Whether a person is rich or poor, how much money he can earn, how much he can consume, and how much he can spend are all pre-determined. If businessmen understand this principle, they will not deliberately use forceful means to make money. If it is not destined for you, you will eventually lose it even if you earn money with all your efforts.
When you use all means to make money, you will hurt others. In the end, not only will you not get the money, but you will have to repay the karmic debt of hurting others in your second half of life or your next life. The result is a double loss. When businessmen understand this principle, then 9 out of 10 dishonest businessmen may turn into 9 out of 10 honest businessmen.
Once upon a time, there was a scholar named Li in Liangzhou (currently southeast of Jinping County, Guizhou Province). His family was very poor. He taught 10 children in a private school daily, and the food supplies in the morning and evening were often insufficient. One day, he fell ill and suddenly died. Two days later, he woke up unexpectedly.
He told his wife: “After I died, I met scholar Yao in the underworld. He was in charge of food and clothing in this world. He and I used to be classmates. He helped me check the books for food and clothing worldwide and said I had been poor all my life. This is not a place to stay for a long time, and I should return early. He also said that although it is his job to be in charge of food and clothing in the world, he dared not increase the number of students for me privately. He can only add 10 students for me and give me a silver tablet, which is the surplus of his living expenses.”
Later, someone suddenly sent their children to Li’s school, and indeed, there were 10 more children than before, just as his friend had said. When Li was repairing his house, he found a silver bar. The above story shows that the number of students who can be admitted is also determined by the underworld, not to mention a person’s official position, lifespan, and salary. Who says there is no fixed number?
Translated by Chua BC and edited by Maria
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