During the late Western Han Dynasty, in Donghai Commandery (present-day border of Jiangsu and Shandong provinces), there was a highly learned man named Kuang Heng. He had a particular expertise in the *Book of Songs* (*Shijing*), and listening to his explanations of the *Songs* could dispel worries, bring smiles, and refresh the spirit. This led to a popular rhyme among scholars of the time:
Don't Talk About the *Book of Songs*
Worried That Kuang Heng Would Come
Kuāng Héng’s arrival would put us all to shame.
Kuang Heng was a master at explaining the *Book of Songs*
Everyone's face lit up with smiles.
Kuang Heng's remarkable scholarship was the result of relentless hard work. Born into a poor farming family, he had to work for others from childhood just to survive, with no money for books or schooling. Yet this farmer's son was desperately eager to learn, which tormented him deeply.
Later, he heard that a nearby household, whose master was named Wen Bushi, had a large collection of books. He went to the house and asked for work. Seeing that he was honest and articulate, the master agreed and then asked, "How much wages do you want for a year?"
"I don't want any money." The master was puzzled and asked, "You came to work, isn't it to earn some money? Why don't you want any?" "I work to read books. If you're willing to lend me your collection to read, that will be my wages."
Wen Buzhi, moved by the young man's relentless dedication to learning, finally agreed to his request.
Kuang Heng was overjoyed to have books to read. After finishing his chores, he would throw himself into studying. But daytime free time was scarce; only evenings offered ample hours, yet reading at night required a lamp, and he had no money to buy oil, leaving him deeply frustrated.
Next door lived a wealthy family whose lamps blazed brilliantly every night. Kuang Heng longed to read by their light, but he knew he couldn't impose on them forever, so he abandoned that idea. How, then, could he borrow their light?
As he pondered, he noticed a sliver of light seeping through a crack in the wall and realized he could use it to read. So he chiseled a small hole to let more light into his room. From then on, every night he crouched by the hole, reading by the borrowed candlelight until the neighbor's flame was extinguished, and only then did he go to sleep.
In this way, he finished reading all the books in Wen Buzhi's collection, and later became a renowned scholar.
Later generations used the idiom "Chisel Wall to Steal Light" to describe diligent study.
Source: *Miscellaneous Records of the Western Capital*
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "凿壁偷光" came to describe diligent study.