Li Mi was a man of the Jin Dynasty. Emperor Wu of Jin, Sima Yan, repeatedly summoned him to take up official posts, but he declined each time, citing the need to care for his elderly and ailing grandmother. He wrote a memorial titled "Chen Qing Biao" to the emperor, explaining his difficult circumstances. He wrote:
"My fate has been harsh—my father died when I was just six months old. At four, my uncle forced my mother to remarry. My grandmother took pity and raised me. Now she is old and frail, bedridden, and I alone tend to her, bringing soup and medicine. She is like the sun setting behind the western hills, her breath faint, her life hanging by a thread."
Li Mi explained, 'Without my grandmother, I would not be alive today; without me, she cannot live out her remaining years. We two, grandmother and grandson, depend on each other for survival, so I truly cannot bear to abandon her care and take a distant post as an official. I am now forty-four years old, and my grandmother Liu is already ninety-six. In this light, the days I can serve Your Majesty are long, but the time I have left to repay my grandmother is very limited. Even the crow feeds its parents in return—I beg to be allowed to care for my grandmother until her passing.'
Li Mi's "Petition for Compassion" meticulously and tactfully explained his repeated refusals of imperial summons, detailing the deep bond between himself and his grandmother. He expressed gratitude to the Jin emperor while firmly declaring his resolve to care for his grandmother until her final days, fulfilling his filial duty.
Emperor Wu of Jin was deeply moved and said, "Li Mi is truly the most filial person in the world!" He not only granted his request but also bestowed two servants and ordered the local authorities to provide for his grandmother's care.
It was only after his grandmother's death that Li Mi finally accepted the position of magistrate in Wen County, Henei.
Later, the idiom "relying on each other for survival" came to describe two people depending on one another to sustain their lives.
Source: *Li Mi*, "Chen Qing Biao"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "相依为命" came to describe how two people depending on one another to sustain their lives.