During the Western Han Dynasty, a boy named Wang Zun from Gaoyang (in present-day Hebei) lost his father and was raised by his uncle, spending his days herding sheep in the wild.
Wang Zun was an avid reader who even brought books along while herding. Gradually, he developed great admiration for the upright officials in those books. One day, he asked his uncle to find him a job in the county prison. His uncle was surprised and asked, "You're still young and don't understand criminal law—how could you possibly do that job?"
"The child has already read a lot in books; can't they just learn from the warden later?"
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Later, Wang Zun was appointed Grand Administrator of Anding. At the time, Anding's officialdom was in utter chaos—some officials abused their power, bullying the people like fish and meat. Upon taking office, Wang Zun immediately rectified the administration, instructing all subordinate county officials to be loyal to their duties.
A county official, ruthless and corrupt, had amassed a fortune by bleeding the people dry, sparking widespread outrage. Even after Wang Zun posted a warning notice, the official remained unrepentant, daring to test the law. Wang Zun promptly arrested him, then proceeded to punish a string of other stubborn tyrants, bringing peace and order to the region at last.
Later, people used the idiom "to defy the law" to refer to knowingly breaking the law despite its prohibition, hoping to get away with it.
Source: *Book of Han*, "Biography of Wang Zun"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "以身试法" came to describe knowingly breaking the law despite its prohibition, hoping to get away with it.