New York Times bestselling author Adeline Yen Mah combines fascinating historical insights with personal stories from her own life to show the enduring relevance and influence of proverbs in Chinese life, even to the present day. Yen Mah recreates a lost world in which warlords, scholars, and courtiers plot and counter-plot to create some of the world's greatest dramas. Her unique perspective creates a window into the Chinese mind, enabling Western readers to better comprehend Chinese thought and culture, while being mesmerized by stories first told by the legendary historian Sima Qian, China's Herodotus. Combining probing historical analysis with stories of tremendous personal insight, A Thousand Pieces of Gold is a work of heartfelt intimacy and a singularly authentic portrait of Chinese culture.

NOTE ON PRONUNCIATION-

PREFACE

1 Loss of One Hair from Nine Oxen

2 Precious Treasure Worth Cherishing

3 One Written Word is Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold

4 Binding your Feet to Prevent your own Progress

5 Clapping with One Hand Produces No Sound

6 When the Map is Unrolled, the Dagger is Revealed

7 Burning Books and Burying Scholars

8 Words that Would Cause a Nation to Perish

9 Pointing to a Deer and Calling it a Horse

10 Little Sparrows with Dreams of Swans

11 Destroy the Cooking Cauldrons and Sink the Boats

12 This Young Man is Worth Educating

13 Banquet at Wild Goose Gate

14 Dressed in the Finest Brocades to Parade in the Dark of Night

15 Plot to Sow Discord and Create Enmity

16 The Heart of the People Belongs to Han

17 The Human Heart is Difficult to Fathom

18 Devising Strategies in a Command Tent.

LIST OF PROVERBS

INDEX