By the banks of Slender West Lake in Yangzhou, a spacious waterside pavilion held a table laden with wine and dishes, where four young friends raised their cups in cheerful toasts, their laughter echoing across the water.
It was the second or third month of spring, with a gentle breeze blowing, peach blossoms blushing red, willows turning green, and clear ripples spreading across the water.
"Brother Zhao," the fat man said with a look of regret, "you're leaving Yangzhou this time, but who knows when you'll return?"
“Brother Qian,” the thin man called Zhao stood up, “Gentlemen, I’ve been staying in Yangzhou for a few days to make friends through poetry, utterly enchanted by its enchanting scenery. If I achieve success in the future, I hope to become the Governor of Yangzhou—that would make this life worthwhile.”
Everyone stood up, raised their cups, and toasted: "Brother Zhao, your mind is full of knowledge and your thoughts are sharp—may your great ambitions be fulfilled, may your great ambitions be fulfilled!"
Once everyone was seated, the portly man stuffed a large piece of meat into his mouth and said slowly, "Being an official sounds nice, but you have to boss others around and be bossed around yourself—too much trouble! I'm used to taking it easy, so I'd rather have plenty of wealth, never worry about food or clothes, and live a carefree life." He then glanced at the tall man beside him and added, "Brother Sun, please share your aspirations!"
"I," the tall man said with a faint smile, "in scholarship, I am no match for you gentlemen; in social graces, I am but a wooden statue. I think I shall ride a red-crowned, white-feathered crane and drift away—though the heights are cold, the jade towers are enough for me to spend my life in peace."
The tall man sighed, and the air grew heavy. The fat man burst into laughter, then pointed at the short man and asked, "Brother Li, what about you?" The short man took a big gulp of wine and replied, his face glowing with excitement, "I want to carry a hundred thousand strings of cash and ride a crane to Yangzhou!" "Great ambition for a short man—you want all three of our wishes combined! But haven't you heard, 'Haste makes waste'? Watch out, or you'll burn yourself!" A chorus of teasing laughter rippled across Slender West Lake. Later, the idiom "carrying a hundred thousand strings of cash" came to describe immense wealth.
Source: *Tang Dynasty Shangyun Xiaoshuo*
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "腰缠万贯" came to describe immense wealth.