During the Eastern Han Dynasty, a poor scholar named Liang Hong worked his way into the Imperial Academy, the highest institution of learning at the time, through sheer diligence.
After completing his studies, Liang Hong returned to his hometown
A local wealthy man named Meng had a daughter who refused to marry. Meng asked her, "You're thirty now, will you never marry?" His daughter replied, "I'll only marry someone like Liang Hong. I won't marry anyone else!"
Wealthy Mr. Meng had heard of Liang Hong's reputation and sent a matchmaker to propose. Liang Hong felt the Meng daughter was a perfect match and sent someone to ask for her hand. The Meng family naturally agreed, and soon Liang Hong and Miss Meng were married.
However, seven days after the wedding, Liang Hong did not speak a single word to Miss Meng. Miss Meng found this strange and asked Liang Hong why. Liang Hong said, "The wife I want to marry is someone who can share hardships with me. Now you are dressed in gold and silver, acting like a young lady—this is not what I hoped for."
Miss Meng immediately removed her jewelry and changed into coarse clothes. Liang Hong said happily, "Now this is my true wife!"
After that, he gave his wife the name Meng Guang.
After living at home for several months, they moved to the Ba Mountains, surviving by farming and weaving cloth. Soon, they changed their names again and settled for a time in the regions of Qi and Lu.
Finally, they moved to Wuzhong and deliberately sought refuge with the wealthy Gao Botong, renting a room in his home. Liang Hong worked as a laborer every day, while Meng Guang spun yarn and wove cloth at home. Whenever Liang Hong returned, Meng Guang would raise the tray of food to the level of her eyebrows, and Liang Hong would politely thank her, accepting the tray with both hands.
When Bo Tong saw them, he realized they were no ordinary farmers and took them into his home to support them, allowing Liang Hong to focus on his reading and writing in peace. After Liang Hong died of illness, Meng Guang finally returned to her hometown with their son.
Later, the idiom "Lifting the Tray Level with the Eyebrows" came to describe a wife's respect for her husband, or mutual respect and love between spouses.
Source: *Records of the Eastern Han*, "Biography of Liang Hong"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "举案齐眉" came to describe a wife's respect for her husband, or mutual respect and love between spouses.