《元史·列传·卷七十七》
二十岁读宋儒真德秀遗书，认识到要研习修身养性之学，须刻苦磨练，日长月进，他曾向同郡的许谦请教静心养性的问题。至治元年考中进士，授予高邮县丞，因他通晓文理和法律，所以县吏不敢欺骗他，后调任宁国路录事，该年适逢大旱，灾民靠官府救济者有三十三万人。师道募集粟子三万七千六百石，以赈饥民，又从朝廷获得四万石、银钞三万八千四百锭，使灾民得以活命。
再调宁国路录事。会岁大旱，饥民仰食于官者三十三万口，师道劝大家得粟三万七千六百石，以赈饥民；又言于部使者，转闻于朝，得粟四万石、钞三万八千四百锭赈之，三十余万人赖以存活。
At the age of twenty, he read the collected works of the Song Confucian Zhen Dexiu and understood that to study the learning of self-cultivation and the nourishment of one’s nature, one had to suffer hardship and make gradual progress over time. He once asked the regional magistrate, Xu Qian, for instruction on the problem of cultivating a quiet mind and nourishing one’s nature. In the first year of the Zhizhi era, he passed the jinshi examination and was appointed a subprefect in Gaoyou county. As he was familiar with literature, canonical texts, and law, county officials dared not deceive him. Later, he was transferred to the Ningguo circuit of roads to become a recording secretary. That year there was a terrible drought, and the number of people who relied on government relief reached 330,000. Shidao raised 37,600 shi of rice to distribute among the starving population and received an additional 40,000 shi and 38,400 ingots of silver and banknotes from the court, which saved some of the people from starvation.