1. Source:

"Zhu Xi's Family Instructions" by Zhu Bailu in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties.

2. Excerpt from the original text:

Rise at dawn to sweep the court and make sure it is tidy both inside and outside.

As soon as you feel faint, you will rest. If you lock the door, you must check it yourself.

A porridge and a meal, when you think about the difficulty of getting there; half a thread, half a thread, always think about the difficulty of material resources.

It is better to be prepared before it rains and not to dig a well when thirsty.

You must be frugal in serving yourself, and do not linger when entertaining guests.

3. Interpretation:

Get up at dawn, clean the courtyard, and keep the inside and outside clean.

Take a rest when the sun goes down, close the doors and windows, and be sure to check it yourself.

A bowl of porridge and a bowl of rice should be remembered as hard-won. Half silk, half thread (on clothes, cloth), you must think that they are hard-earned.

Be prepared for a rainy day and don’t think of digging a well only when you are thirsty.

Be diligent and frugal in your own life, but don’t be stingy when inviting friends to banquets.

Extended information:

In August 2020, the General Secretary issued important instructions on curbing food waste. The General Secretary pointed out, "Who knows that every grain of food is hard work." Although China's grain production has had bumper harvests year after year, we still need to be aware of the crisis when it comes to food security. The impact of the global COVID-19 epidemic has sounded the alarm for us. .

"One porridge and one meal, when you think about the hard work; half a thread, half a thread, always remember the material difficulties." The general secretary has always attached great importance to food security and advocated the social trend of "strict economy and opposition to waste" , repeatedly emphasized the need to stop food waste.