During the Three Kingdoms period, Sun Quan, ruler of Eastern Wu, had a brilliant advisor named Zhao Zi, styled Dude, from Nanyang. Known for his vast knowledge and sharp wit, Zhao Zi was a master of debate, responding to any question with ease. After Sun Quan declared himself King of Wu, he promoted Zhao Zi to imperial advisor and sent him as an envoy to the Kingdom of Wei. Wei's Emperor Cao Pi outwardly treated him with courtesy but slyly sought to belittle him and insult Eastern Wu.
One day, Emperor Wen of Wei asked mockingly, "Does your King of Wu know a bit of learning?"
Zhao Zi boasted proudly, "Our King of Wu commands a million troops, with ten thousand warships anchored on the river. He promotes the worthy and fully unleashes their talents. His ambitions are lofty and his strategies grand; in his spare time, he devours books, mastering the Five Classics, the Six Arts, and all historical records. When he reads, he always studies, reflects on, and adopts the essence of historical experience—unlike some who merely pick out fragments of phrases."
Emperor Wen of Wei, surprised by Sun Quan's high standing among his own officers, pressed further: "In your view, can we launch an attack on Eastern Wu?" Zhao Zi replied, "A great state has the might to wage war, but a small state also has the strength to fortify and defend." The emperor then asked, "Does Eastern Wu fear Wei?" Zhao Zi answered, "We command a million troops and are shielded by the natural moats of the Yangtze and Han Rivers—what is there to fear?"
Emperor Wen of Wei secretly admired Zhao Zi's talent and asked, "How many talented people like you are there in Eastern Wu?" Zhao Zi replied cleverly, "There are eighty or ninety exceptionally brilliant and gifted individuals, but people like me are so numerous they would fill carts and be measured by the bushel—truly countless."
Thereafter, Zhao Zi was sent on multiple diplomatic missions to the Kingdom of Wei, where his eloquence and composure earned him nothing but admiration and wonder from the Wei court.
When Sun Quan heard these reports, he was overjoyed and rewarded Zhao Zhi by promoting him to the rank of Cavalry Commandant.
Later, the idiom "seeking passages and picking phrases" came to refer to reading that only focuses on searching and extracting text without deep study of meaning, or writing that lacks creativity and merely copies predecessors' words and structures.
Source: *Records of the Three Kingdoms*, "Biography of the Lord of Wu" Commentary on *Book of Wu*
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "寻章摘句" came to describe reading that only focuses on searching and extracting text without deep study of meaning, or writing that lacks creativity and merely copies predecessors' words and structures.