Confucian literati, shunning manual labor, grew their fingernails long, but they never displayed antipathy towards the world of affairs. The Chinese myth of success was the bright peasant boy whose village clubbed together to educate him and whose subsequent success resulted in the elevation of all who had helped him on his way into the civil service.
实用的知识是后儒教国家成功的关键。儒家的文人避免体力劳动，留着长指甲，但他们却并从不对世事表示憎恶。中国人成功的秘诀在于，一个聪明的农家少年所在的村庄不遗余力地为他提供教育，而在他成功踏上仕途的过程中，所有帮助过他的人的地位都得以提升。