Once upon a time, there was a scholar named Su Qin. He was utterly destitute from a young age and had no money for education. To make a living and study, he often sold his hair or worked for others, eventually traveling far from home to the State of Qi to learn.
After a year of study, he decided he had mastered his teacher's skills. He hastily left his teacher and classmates and wandered from place to place to earn a living. However, a year later, he owned nothing and was completely penniless. He returned home in rags and straw sandals.
When he arrived, he was lean as a rake, ragged, and dirty. His wife sighed at the sight of him and continued weaving; his sister-in-law turned and walked away, unwilling to cook for him; his parents, brothers, and sisters all ignored and laughed at him.
Heartbroken by his family's treatment, Su Qin closed his door for profound self-reflection. He recognized his shortcomings and resolved to change. He took out all his books and devoted all his energy to study.
Every day, he studied late into the night. Sometimes he fell asleep at his desk. He would regret it deeply upon waking but had no good way to prevent it. One day, he was so sleepy he involuntarily fell asleep at the desk but suddenly woke when his arm was pierced by something—an awl left on the desk. He found a way to avoid dozing off: piercing his own thighs! From then on, whenever he felt drowsy, he would stab his thighs to jolt himself awake with pain. His thighs were often bloody and horrible to see.
Seeing this, his family could not stand by idly. They pleaded with him, "We understand your desire to succeed, but you must not maltreat yourself like this!"
Su Qin replied, "If I do not do this, I will forget my past shame." After this "bloody" year of relentless study, Su Qin became a man of great learning. He set out to wander again, and this time he succeeded, embarking on a glorious political career and becoming a famous political strategist during the Warring States Period.