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This idiom came from the historical book Biography of Huo Guang in the Book of Han.
Huo Guang was a famous general in the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC – 9 AD). He served an important decision-maker for Emperor Wu of Han for 30 years. Emperor Wu appointed Huo Guang as the chief assistant to his successor Emperor Xuan before his death. Then, Huo Guang took control of the court of Han Dynasty for additional 20 years with unlimited power.
Xu Fu, a scholar from Maoling saw the solitary authority of Huo Guang and his families’misbehavior. He forecasted the doom of this family though he did not hope to see that. He wrote three letters to Emperor Xuan, hoping to persuade the king to take measures to prevent the future disaster. However, Emperor Xuan turned a deaf ear on his proposal.
After Huo Guang’s death, his family planned on a rebellion, which was reported to the emperor by the others. Emperor Xuan was outrageous and killed all Huo Guang’s family before they can carry out their plot. Then, Emperor Xuan heavily awarded people who disclosed the rebellion plan of the Huo family but he completely forgot Xu Fu, who warned him about Huo’s betrayal before.
Someone thought it unfair for Xu Fu, so they wrote to the emperor and said: “In the Warring Period, a man named Tunyu Kun in the State of Qi once went to the home of his friend for a banquet. There he saw the chimney of the host’s house was too straight and a pile of firewood was placed just next to it. He told the host: ‘You should bend your chimney and move the firewood far away from the fireplace. Otherwise it may catch fire and burn your house one day.’ However, the host just ignored his warning. Later, this man’s house really caught fire. Fortunately, his neighbors helped him to put out the fire. Then, he held a banquet at home in order to thank his neighbors for their assistance. Those who got injured during the firefighting process took the important seats. But he forgot Tunyu Kun who gave him the warning. One person told him: ‘if you listened to Tunyu Kun earlier, you did not need to spend a lot of money in hosting this banquet and those people would not get injured. Now you invited those helping you to dinner, but how could you forget the one who gave you the most practical advice?’ These words awakened the host, who immediately invited Tunyu Kun as well. As you can see, Xu Fu from Maoling had submitted proposals to you several times about the possible betrayal of the Huo family, but he did not get your reward. We hope that Your Majesty could be wise enough to see these contributions and rewarded them properly.”
Then Emperor Xuan awarded Xu Fu with ten pieces of best silk scrolls, unlimited gold and silver ingots and granted him a position in the government.
Huo Guang was a famous general in the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC – 9 AD). He served an important decision-maker for Emperor Wu of Han for 30 years. Emperor Wu appointed Huo Guang as the chief assistant to his successor Emperor Xuan before his death. Then, Huo Guang took control of the court of Han Dynasty for additional 20 years with unlimited power.
Xu Fu, a scholar from Maoling saw the solitary authority of Huo Guang and his families’misbehavior. He forecasted the doom of this family though he did not hope to see that. He wrote three letters to Emperor Xuan, hoping to persuade the king to take measures to prevent the future disaster. However, Emperor Xuan turned a deaf ear on his proposal.
After Huo Guang’s death, his family planned on a rebellion, which was reported to the emperor by the others. Emperor Xuan was outrageous and killed all Huo Guang’s family before they can carry out their plot. Then, Emperor Xuan heavily awarded people who disclosed the rebellion plan of the Huo family but he completely forgot Xu Fu, who warned him about Huo’s betrayal before.
Someone thought it unfair for Xu Fu, so they wrote to the emperor and said: “In the Warring Period, a man named Tunyu Kun in the State of Qi once went to the home of his friend for a banquet. There he saw the chimney of the host’s house was too straight and a pile of firewood was placed just next to it. He told the host: ‘You should bend your chimney and move the firewood far away from the fireplace. Otherwise it may catch fire and burn your house one day.’ However, the host just ignored his warning. Later, this man’s house really caught fire. Fortunately, his neighbors helped him to put out the fire. Then, he held a banquet at home in order to thank his neighbors for their assistance. Those who got injured during the firefighting process took the important seats. But he forgot Tunyu Kun who gave him the warning. One person told him: ‘if you listened to Tunyu Kun earlier, you did not need to spend a lot of money in hosting this banquet and those people would not get injured. Now you invited those helping you to dinner, but how could you forget the one who gave you the most practical advice?’ These words awakened the host, who immediately invited Tunyu Kun as well. As you can see, Xu Fu from Maoling had submitted proposals to you several times about the possible betrayal of the Huo family, but he did not get your reward. We hope that Your Majesty could be wise enough to see these contributions and rewarded them properly.”
Then Emperor Xuan awarded Xu Fu with ten pieces of best silk scrolls, unlimited gold and silver ingots and granted him a position in the government.