黄粱美梦 — “An illusory dream of grandeur or prosperity”

Young scholar Lu Sheng, while traveling, stopped at an high inn in Handan. A Daoist priest, Master Lü Weng, was also staying there. During their conversation, Lu Sheng repeatedly lamented his impoverished circumstances.

Master Lü took a pillow from his luggage and told Lu Sheng, 'If you rest your head on this pillow, you will attain glory and wealth.' At that moment, the innkeeper was cooking millet rice, and it was still a while before it would be ready. Lu Sheng, taking the pillow, decided to nap for a bit. Unexpectedly, as soon as he lay down, he fell into a dream.

In his dream, he married a noble and beautiful young woman from the Cui family of Qinghe and lived a life of great luxury and prestige. The following year, he passed the imperial examination to become a 'Jinshi'. He then steadily rose through official ranks, eventually becoming a military governor and censor-in-chief, and even served as Prime Minister for ten years. Later, he was enfeoffed as the 'Duke of Yan'. His five sons all married into prominent families and also became high officials. He had more than a dozen grandchildren, each intelligent and exceptional. His family was prosperous, and his life was filled with fortune and blessings. He lived to be over eighty years old before passing away peacefully.

As the dream concluded, he awoke. Only then did he realize it had all been a dream, and the innkeeper's millet rice had not yet finished cooking.

Lu Sheng was astonished that decades of wealth and glory had been nothing but a fleeting dream. Master Lü smiled and said, 'Life is just like this! To genuinely enjoy prosperity and status, one must strive and create with their own efforts.'