The Old Smith Smashed His Purple Clay Teapot And Regained His Peaceful Life

This is a real-life story. A poor ironsmith was unexpectedly offered 25,000 US dollars for his small purple clay teapot! But in the end he made a ‘crazy’ decision. Is he crazy or something? Can we ever understand what he really wanted?

This story is about an old blacksmith who lives in his shop on an old street. As no one needs the iron ware he forged in the old days, he’s turned to selling iron pans, axes, and dog chains. The way he does his business is very old and traditional: He sits behind the door, the goods sitting outside, he neither hawks nor bargains, and he never closes up his shop for the night.

Everyone who passes by his shop sees him waiting on his bamboo chair, a small radio in his hand, and a Yixing purple clay teapot at his side. His income is just enough for his food and tea. He is getting so old that he does not need any extra things, so he is very content with his simple life.

One afternoon, a curio dealer happened to go by the blacksmith’s shop. All of a sudden, he took note of the old-fashioned purple clay teapot sitting by the old smith. It was as jet black, and appeared so elegant and quaint! “Could it be made by Dai Zhengong?” the dealer asked himself with surprise.

Dai Zhenggong was one of the most prominent purple clay potters of the Qing dynasty. The dealer could not help but walk up to the smith, and hold the teapot up. Gazing at it for a minute, he ultimately discovered a small seal print on the pot. It read “Dai Zhengong.” The dealer tried hard to hide his excitement.

And reputedly, only three of Dai’s purple clay teapots were still around: one was in New York, the second in Taiwan, and the third in the hands of a private collector.

The dealer offered 100,000 RMB (about USD $14,700) to buy this pot. The old blacksmith got a big surprise when he heard the amount, but in the end he declined. For the pot was passed down in his family, three generations had brewed tea in this pot.

The pot was not sold, but the old blacksmith could not fall asleep after the dealer left. He had been using the teapot for nearly sixty years, seeing it as an ordinary one all the time. He couldn’t imagine a man actually wanted to buy it for such an extraordinary price! He tried hard to understand why, but he couldn’t get the answer.

Previously, he constantly enjoyed tea without a thought to his pot. But now he sits up to take a look at it now and then. This makes him very uncomfortable. The most unendurable thing to him is that people start pouring in to ask whether or not he has other treasures, and some even want to borrow money from him. And what is more, some push in his door at night. His life is utterly disarranged. He doesn’t know how to deal with this teapot.

The dealer paid a second visit to his shop offering 200,000 RMB, and the old blacksmith could not take it anymore. He called in some people from his neighborhood, and in their presence he broke his pot into pieces.

At present, the old black smith is 102 years old. He is still selling iron pans, axes, and dog chains.

A wise philosophy of life: The old smith seems stupid, but actually he is a man of great wisdom. At least, he knows that having enough is as good as having a feast. All he has been doing is enjoying his life, rather than being burdened with dispensable things.