一诺千金

Yī Nuò Qiān Jīn

一句承诺,重过千金。形容说话算数,非常守信用。

A single promise is worth a thousand gold — a person whose word can always be trusted.

qíncháoniányǒujiàoderénshǒuxìnyòngwénmíngtiānxiàyìngbiéréndeshìzàinándìngzuòdào

dāngshírénmenzhōngjiānliúchuánzhehuà:“huángjīnbǎijīnnuò。”sishìshuōdàobǎijīnhuángjīnshàngdàodechéngnuò

hòuláichǔhànxiāngzhēngzàixiàngshǒuxiàzuòjiāngjūnduōbàiliúbāngliúbāngdānglehuánghòuxiàlìngxuánshǎngzhuōshìméiyǒurényuànjiāochū——yīnwèixiàngláishǒuxìnjiùguòduōrénjiādōujìngzhòng

zuìhòuwèijiàozhūjiāderénxiàngliúbāngqiúqíngshuōshìyǒuxìnderénshāleshízàiliúbāngtīnghòudànshèmiǎnleháiràngzuòleguān

cóng,“nuòqiānjīnjiùchénglezhōngguórénxīnzhōngzuìbǎoguìdepǐnzhī

At the end of the Qin dynasty, there lived a man named Ji Bu, famous across the land for keeping his word. Whatever he promised, he would do — no matter how hard.

There was a saying going around in those days: “A hundred pounds of gold is worth less than a single promise from Ji Bu.”

Later, during the wars between Chu and Han, Ji Bu served as a general under Xiang Yu and defeated Liu Bang many times. When Liu Bang became emperor, he put a bounty on Ji Bu's head. But no one was willing to turn him in — because Ji Bu had always kept his word, had helped many people, and everyone respected him.

In the end, a man named Zhu Jia pleaded with Liu Bang on Ji Bu's behalf, saying it would be a shame to kill a man of such integrity. Liu Bang not only pardoned him but gave him a government post.

Ever since, “a promise worth a thousand gold” has stood in Chinese hearts as one of the most precious qualities a person can have.