Yu Yan, a man of Chenliu Commandery during the Han Dynasty, stood eight feet six inches tall with immense strength, able to lift a massive tripod single-handedly. Known for his honest and simple character, he focused on the big picture and never bothered with trivial details.
During the usurpation of Wang Mang, the emperor doted on Noble Consort Wei, whose relatives and friends ran rampant in the countryside, bullying locals with impunity. Local officials dared not provoke them, and the people suffered in silence. Yu Yan, then serving as a minor warden at Huyou Station, was outraged by the Wei clan's lawlessness. He led his men straight to the Wei residence and arrested the offenders. The Wei family harbored deep resentment, and Yu Yan was long denied promotion as a result.
Some time after Emperor Guangwu ascended the throne, Yu Yan was promoted to magistrate of Luoyang. The empress's younger brother, Yin Jiu, had a residence in the city, and one of his retainers, a man named Ma Cheng, used the family's influence to commit crimes—raping women, robbing goods, and terrorizing the locals, who seethed with hatred. Yu Yan immediately ordered Ma Cheng's arrest, had him dragged to the county office, and interrogated him under torture.
When the magistrate arrested one of his retainers, Yin Jiu felt humiliated and repeatedly wrote to Yu Yan demanding Ma Cheng's release. Yu Yan, however, refused to show any deference to the emperor's brother-in-law; with each letter, he ordered two hundred more lashes for Ma Cheng. Furious and embarrassed, Yin Jiu falsely accused Yu Yan to the emperor, claiming many of the prisoners were innocent. The emperor decided to personally review the cases. Yu Yan commanded the prisoners, "If you have a grievance, stand on the east side; all others, stand on the west." Believing his powerful patron would protect him, Ma Cheng moved east. Seeing this, Yu Yan flew into a rage. Ignoring the emperor's presence, he strode forward, grabbed Ma Cheng, and shouted, "You are a great worm! You rely on your connections and defy the law. Your trial is not yet over—you deserve punishment!" Ma Cheng cried out in protest. The emperor's guards, shocked by Yu Yan's audacity, raised their halberds to strike him down.
The emperor observed Yu Yan's demeanor, saw that he was not acting out of personal vendetta and had not wronged Ma Cheng, so he dismissed the guards and said to Ma Cheng, "You have violated the king's law and brought this upon yourself!" A few days later, Ma Cheng was beheaded.
After this incident, the once arrogant and domineering imperial relatives were so terrified that they dared not violate the law again.
Later, the idiom "Not Bound by Trifles" came to describe someone who acts with ease and is not constrained by trivial matters.
Source: *Book of the Later Han*, "Biography of Yu Yan"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "不拘小节" came to describe how someone acts with ease and is not constrained by trivial matters.