逢人说项 — “To praise someone to everyone”

During the Tang Dynasty, there was a young man from Jiangdong named Xiang Si, whose courtesy name was Ziqian. When he first took the imperial examination, he was not well-known.

Someone showed his examination papers to Yang Jingzhi, who was greatly impressed. Yang then composed a poem for him, which included the lines: 'I've seen your poems many times, all are good; but upon seeing your character, it surpasses your poetry. I've never known how to hide others' merits, so wherever I meet people, I speak of Xiang Si.'

Not long after, Xiang Si was successfully admitted by the imperial court in Chang'an.