During the Later Tang Dynasty of the Five Dynasties period, Zhang Quanyi, a native of Linpu in Puzhou, served as the governor of Henan.
Zhang Quanyi was a man of diligence and frugality, skilled at leading troops and comforting the people. Amid the chaos of war, with bandits and thieves rampant, he still encouraged farmers to tend their fields and raise silkworms. Whenever a family harvested abundant wheat or produced fine silk, Zhang Quanyi would summon the entire household, reward them with wine, food, and tea, present the men with cloth trousers, and the women with skirts and shirts.
Every autumn, Zhang Quanyi would ride out to inspect the crops in the fields. If he saw lush, weed-free crops, he would dismount and order his men to summon the farmer, rewarding him generously. If he spotted weeds or poorly tended soil, he would immediately call the farmer over and publicly criticize him. But if he found barren, overgrown land and heard from the locals that the farmer lacked oxen or labor, Zhang Quanyi would dismount by the field and summon the neighbors, saying, "This man lacks oxen and hands—why haven't you helped him?" The neighbors would then comply. Thanks to Zhang Quanyi's emphasis on farming and his skillful leadership, the granaries were always abundantly stocked.
Another garrison commander, Li Hanzhi, was a corrupt and brutal official who plundered the people without restraint. His army often ran out of food, and he constantly demanded supplies from Zhang Quanyi. At first, the two got along well, but over time, Li Hanzhi's insatiable demands and frequent insults and bullying left Zhang Quanyi suffering in silent bitterness.
Li Hanzhi often sneered, "What's so great about farmers?" Zhang Quanyi despised him for saying such things. Yet whenever Li Hanzhi sent a letter demanding grain and cloth for his troops, Zhang Quanyi would say, "Lord Li requests it—I must give it to him." His aides argued, "You don't have to," but Zhang Quanyi insisted, his face even showing a hint of fear toward Li Hanzhi. His men were baffled by this contradiction.
Li Hanzhi, quite pleased with himself, assumed Zhang Quanyi feared him and thus never guarded against him. When Li Hanzhi led his troops to attack and reclaim Huai and Ze, Zhang Quanyi quietly gathered his forces, launched a night raid on Li Hanzhi, and by dawn had breached the three cities Li Hanzhi had occupied.
Later, the idiom "Delighted in Each Other's Company" came to describe two people who greatly enjoy each other's company.
Source: *Old History of the Five Dynasties*, "Biography of Zhang Quanyi"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "相得甚欢" came to describe how two people greatly enjoy each other's company.