This sentence sounds puzzling. How could a poor crew member reach the pinnacle of life by relying on a convenient opportunity to get off the ship? What the hell is going on?
In a small fishing village in the last years of the Qing Dynasty, there lived a poor crew member named Zhang Shouyi. He came from a poor background and worked fishing boats since he was a child, living a precarious life. However, fate is often so wonderful, and a chance chance changed Zhang Shouyi's life.
It was a cold winter morning, and Zhang Shouyi was working on the ship as usual. Suddenly, he felt a sharp stomach ache and had to ask the captain to come ashore to make it easier for him to come ashore. As he ran into the bushes, he unexpectedly found a cloth bag filled with gold and silver jewelry. This windfall was enough to completely change the poor life of him and his mother. But should Zhang Shouyi possess it forever? Or should it be honestly returned to the owner? What choice will he make at this turning point? This choice will completely change his fate and lead him to the pinnacle of life.
In his childhood, his mother taught him morality
In the middle of the fishing village, an old thatched hut stands on the shore of the fishing port. This is Zhang Shouyi's hometown. The interior is simple and simple, with a wooden dining table, a few chairs, and a bed made of old wooden planks.
Zhang Shouyi has lived in this humble hut since he was a child. His father, Zhang Yiwen, was an ordinary fisherman, hardworking and tenacious, but the income from fishing was only enough to support the family. And the mother Li is the pillar of the family, taking care of the housework and supporting the whole family.
The impoverished living environment did not stifle Zhang Shouyi's enthusiasm for knowledge. Although her mother, Li, is not highly educated, she attaches great importance to the moral cultivation of her children. She often exhorted Shouyi to be honest and diligent, and set an example by showing Shouyi what honesty and integrity are with her own behavior.
"Shouyi, although our family is hovering on the poverty line, our moral integrity should never be destroyed. Mother used to teach righteousness in this way. Shouyi accepted his mother's teachings since he was a child, and his qualities of honesty and trustworthiness, diligence and studious gradually became his common sense.
Shouyi has been working on his father's fishing boat since he was a child. That small wooden fishing boat is the lifeblood of the whole family. Shouyi began to help his father fish every day from dawn, and he could not get a short rest until dusk. He was young, with thin arms, but he did the work of an adult on a fishing boat. The rough nets were streaked on his arms, and the sun had made his skin dark and rough. But even so, Shouyi never cried out that he was tired, because he knew that his work was to maintain the food and clothing of the whole family.
In addition to work, Shouyi will also delve into the knowledge of fishing. He longed for the day when he would no longer be living in such poverty. Therefore, he took to heart the experience of his father and captains, and worked hard to learn various fishing skills. Shouyi hopes to use his diligence and wisdom to change the family's situation so that his mother will no longer suffer.
Naturally, his diligence and thirst for knowledge were appreciated by the captain and the rest of the crew. The captain always encouraged him that if he persisted, he would make a difference. Shouyi is also full of confidence in this, but it is inevitable that there will be helplessness and anxiety in his heart. The weight of a life of poverty was like a mountain, and he could not see the way forward. But he knew he had to work hard until he could one day escape poverty and live a life of well-being and prosperity.
Make a choice when you stumble upon a treasure
It was a cold winter morning, and the fog covered the entire sea, and visibility was extremely low. Zhang Shouyi and the rest of the crew went out to sea to fish as usual, under the captain's leadership. They sailed bravely into the depths of the sea in a small wooden fishing boat.
The salvage was particularly difficult on this day, as the fog obscured their vision, and they had to rely on their vast sailing experience to determine their direction. They found nothing all morning, and it was not until late afternoon that the fog gradually lifted. At this moment, Zhang Shouyi suddenly felt a sharp abdominal pain, and the pain was unbearable.
"Captain, I... I can't help it, please let me dock easily. Zhang Shouyi endured the pain and asked the captain for help.
The captain saw his pain and hurriedly ordered the crew to sail the fishing boat to the nearest land. "Go and keep right, don't bear it. Health is the most important thing. The captain said with concern.
With the permission of the captain, Zhang Shouyi hurriedly jumped off the boat and ran wildly to the bushes on the shore. When he finished solving his personal problem and was about to return, a huge rag bag appeared in front of him.
A strange premonition arose, and Zhang Shouyi tiptoed close to the cloth bag. He held his breath and carefully opened the sack, his eyes widening in disbelief - it was stuffed with gold, silver and jewelry, and it was priceless!
Zhang Shouyi held up a handful of gold coins in disbelief, and the texture and weight proved that they were indeed genuine. With trembling hands, he re-fastened the bag, and after looking around to make sure no one else was there, he carefully carried the bag behind him and quickly returned to the ship.
Along the way, Zhang Shouyi's heart was full of contradictions. This huge amount of money is enough to change the impoverished life of him and his mother, but it does not belong to him, and it is already a violation of integrity. My mother's teachings seemed to echo in our minds: "No matter what temptations we encounter, we must uphold the moral integrity of honesty and integrity." ＂
After returning to the ship, Zhang Shouyi truthfully reported what he found to the captain. The captain immediately understood that this was a major case, and hurriedly handed over the cloth bag to the local government, and testified that Zhang Shouyi accidentally discovered it when it was convenient to dock.
News spread quickly through the town that a wealthy local merchant had just had a shipment of gold and silver stolen from him. All indications are that what Zhang Shouyi found was the stolen property. Soon, Zhang Shouyi became the focus of the government's investigation.
However, at this moment of crisis, the captain testified in time and confirmed that Zhang Shouyi was indeed convenient to get off the ship at that time and was not suspected of theft, so the government gave up. After much twisting and turning, the treasure was finally recovered and returned to its owner.
The government did not commend Zhang Shouyi's honest behavior, but handed over the treasure directly to the owner. However, this does not matter to the impoverished children of fishermen. The most important thing is that he adhered to the integrity and morality and did not lose the principle of being a man by temptation.
After this incident, Zhang Shouyi's life does not seem to have changed substantially, and he still lives a life of poverty. But deep down in his heart, there was a great sense of satisfaction. Despite the hardships of life, as long as you have an honest character, you will never lose your way. The mother's teachings were finally perfectly interpreted in this poor fisherman's child.
遭受冤屈,受害遭监禁
After Zhang Shouyi's honest return of the treasures spread in the town, it was not appreciated by the government and wealthy households, but instead caused him unexpected grievances.
It all started with the rich merchant who had recovered his treasure. This wealthy businessman surnamed Li is financially difficult, and has been living a luxurious and erosive life since he became rich through illegal means. His favorite thing is to collect all kinds of precious gold and silver jewelry, and trade them secretly on the black market all year round. The stolen treasures are his latest private collection.
After the loss was recovered, Li Fushang was naturally extremely happy. But at the same time, he also realizes that this incident exposes the secret of his illegal profit. In order to cover up the crime, he began to plot to frame Zhang Shouyi, making it all look like Zhang Shouyi had stolen his belongings.
One night, Li Fushang bribed several poor people, waiting for an opportunity to infiltrate the ranks of the government Praetorian Guard, and waited for an opportunity to attack Zhang Shouyi's house. Sure enough, they quickly found the handle - the old cloth bag that Zhang Shouyi returned that day.
In the early hours of the morning, a team of government guards suddenly broke into Zhang Shouyi's home, took him away and imprisoned him on charges of theft. In the face of sudden changes, Zhang Shouyi and his mother had no choice but to be sent to prison.
In prison, Zhang Shouyi was tortured and humiliated. He cried out but no one paid attention to him, and he was even beaten by the jailers. Every day is to eat a rudimentary prison meal, be tortured, and life is worse than death. But he was never defeated, and always insisted on shouting for justice.
Just when Zhang Shouyi was most desperate, the original captain came to visit and learned the whole story. The captain testified that Zhang Shouyi honestly returned the gold, silver and jewelry, and reported the fact of bribery to the government.
Soon, everything fell into place. It turned out that in order to cover up the fact that he was making illegal profits, Li Fushang took the opportunity to frame Zhang Shouyi. The government, which knew the truth, was furious and immediately acquitted Zhang Shouyi and brought Li Fushang and his cronies to justice.
Zhang Shouyi, who regained his freedom, looked at his mother's tearful face, and his heart was mixed. He was once again tricked by fate and suffered an unjustified disaster, but in the end he was avenged by virtue of his integrity. This grievance will undoubtedly become a good story in his future life for the rest of his life.
In the days after regaining his freedom, Zhang Shouyi did not stop there. Instead, he began to turn over and start a small business, and became angry. After all, the income as a crew member is too meagre to make a decent living. Moreover, Zhang Shouyi gradually realized that it was difficult to change his family's background by fishing alone.
So, he used the experience and capital he had accumulated in the past fishing to start a fish business. At first, it mainly focused on home-caught fish and shrimp, but gradually expanded the scale of the business. When he runs out of fish, he dries it and sells processed products such as dried fish fillets. Although these are small businesses, Zhang Shouyi has done his best to run them, and he has gradually made a name for himself in the town by relying on his diligence.
This arduous experience has undoubtedly greatly improved Zhang Shouyi's prudence and wisdom. And these two are an important foundation for his future career success.
Turn over to do business, be diligent, intelligent and promising
After being imprisoned, Zhang Shouyi gradually realized that in order to completely change his family's situation, it was not enough to be a fisherman. So, he began to use the experience and meager capital accumulated in the past fishing to change his career and start a fish business.
Initially, Zhang Shouyi's business was small, focusing on the fish and shrimp he caught. Whenever he came back from the hunt, he would sell fresh seafood at street stalls. Due to the high quality, his small business as a street vendor soon became famous in the town.
With the gradual prosperity of business, Zhang Shouyi began to expand the scope of business. He not only sells his own catch, but also buys other people's catch in other villages and towns, and sells it wholesale and retail. As a result, Zhang Shouyi's fish were sold all over the surrounding villages and towns.
Although the scale of the business has expanded, Zhang Shouyi still maintains the diligent style of the past. Early every morning, he would drive a cartload of fish goods and call for merchants along the way. It wasn't until late afternoon that he unloaded his burden and returned home with the leftovers.
When the catch is not sold, Zhang Shouyi will dry and process the surplus seafood and sell dried fish fillets and other products. This set of "fresh + processing" two-handed business model has ensured the continuity of his business and laid a good foundation for the future.
It is worth mentioning that Zhang Shouyi is not only diligent and studious, but also extremely intelligent. He attaches great importance to business skills and management, constantly learns new knowledge, and is diligent in thinking and summarizing. For example, when it comes to processing dried fish, he has developed a new drying process that greatly improves the taste of dried fish. For another example, in order to save costs, he also developed a cheap but environmentally friendly packaging technology for dried fish.
It can be said that it is Zhang Shouyi's diligence and brilliant mind that make his small business stand tall in the fierce market competition, and even be able to compete with large merchants.
Gradually, Zhang Shouyi's fish business became famous in the town. His products are not only very popular in the local area, but also in neighboring counties and even further afield. Suddenly, Zhang Shouyi changed from an obscure poor fisherman to a well-known "fish merchant".
This has undoubtedly earned him a high reputation in the local area. Some discerning officials have also begun to attach importance to and value this promising young man. In the face of Zhang Shouyi's increasingly prosperous business, they are also willing to lend a hand and provide him with various preferential policies and support.
At the same time, Zhang Shouyi's honest and simple personal character also won him the hearts of the people. The experience of being unjustly imprisoned in the past has long been passed on by word of mouth, and people sincerely praise his honesty and integrity. It is this traditional virtue that has won the trust and popularity of countless customers when doing business.
With his personal qualities of diligence, honesty and integrity, Zhang Shouyi's fish business has become successful step by step. In just a few years, he has gone from an obscure poor fisherman to one of the most famous "richest men" in the region. And then, a more brilliant life is still waiting for him...
Officials appreciate and reuse, and serve as the county treasurer of taxation
With his honesty, integrity, diligence and studiousness, coupled with his flexible and intelligent management skills, Zhang Shouyi soon achieved the largest fish business in the local area. His goods not only sell well in this county, but even people from other counties frequently come to him. This undoubtedly made local officials look at the upstart "richest man" with admiration.
There was an official who served as the magistrate of the county, and he was very appreciative of Zhang Shouyi's personality and deeds. He clearly remembered that many years ago, Zhang Shouyi was unjustly imprisoned, and at that time, it was only by honesty and morality that he was able to wash away his grievances. Today, Zhang Shouyi, who has risen from a poor fisherman to a famous businessman, is undoubtedly a model of honesty.
As a result, the magistrate made up his mind to reuse Zhang Shouyi's talents, and finally recommended him to be the county governor in charge of taxation. After all, having such an honest and capable person as Zhang Shouyi and good governance to participate in the management will definitely be conducive to the development and prosperity of the county.
As soon as the news came out, it immediately caused a lot of shock in the county. It was unprecedented at the time for a former fisherman from a poor background to be recommended by a county magistrate for an important tax position.
In the face of such a heavy responsibility, although Zhang Shouyi was a little uneasy, he finally accepted it gladly. In his view, being able to share the country's worries and solve problems and benefit the people is the greatest honor and shame of being a civilian. Therefore, he made up his mind to do his best and serve his official duties diligently.
Soon, Zhang Shouyi was transferred out of his hometown and went to the county seat to take up the post of county leader. At first, due to his lack of administrative experience, he felt that everything was so strange and new. Soon, however, he applied the same business skills he had used to enact a series of practical reforms.
First of all, Zhang Shouyi began to be strict and strict, changing the erosive, mediocre and incompetent style of the previous tax system. He personally set up a law enforcement contingent with strict discipline and a strong work style, and established a scientific and standardized tax collection and collection system.
Second, in order to reduce the tax burden on the people, Zhang Shouyi ordered a significant reduction in agricultural taxes and other surcharges, and tried to balance the interests of merchants and craftsmen. At the same time, in order to ensure the state's fiscal revenue, he also drastically eliminated a large number of corrupt privileges, and directly received special funds from the central government, which was sufficient to make up for the fiscal gap caused by tax cuts.
Third, in order to promote the economic development of the county, Zhang Shouyi actively built bridges, dredged rivers, and paved roads in various villages and towns, which greatly improved the local water and land transportation conditions. At the same time, he developed new farmland and encouraged the population to increase the production of agricultural products to ensure food security and surplus.
Fourth, in order to strengthen the county's military defense, Zhang Shouyi reshaped and trained the local militia to ensure that there was sufficient strength to deal with the invasion of foreign enemies. He also built a number of military fortresses and fortifications, equipped with advanced munitions and equipment at that time, and effectively guaranteed the safety of the county.
With many effective measures, Zhang Shouyi quickly won the praise of officials and the support of the people. Under his leadership, the county was indeed transformed by a drastic reduction in taxes, an ample supply of agricultural products, improved roads and water facilities, and a more robust and reliable military defense.
It can be said that Zhang Shouyi, with his extraordinary wisdom and diligence, developed this obscure small county into a well-known "rich county", which became a good story at that time. At the end of his term, many other counties came to invite him to important positions.
However, what is suffocating is that at such a glorious moment, Zhang Shouyi resigned from his official position and returned to his hometown to live in seclusion because of his advanced age and physical strength. But his short but extremely outstanding career as an official will eventually go down in history and forever be engraved in people's memories.