The famous Ching-dynasty scholar and general, Tseng Kuo-fan, once wrote that keeping fish and pigs and growing vegetables and bamboo are essential activities for the maintenance of a well-ordered home and indicators of a family's fortunes.
清代名人曾國藩在他的家書中，以養魚、養豬、種蔬、種竹為內政四要，並強調「此四者可以覘人家興衰氣象」，因此要恪守祖訓、示範兒孫，時時留意。為什麼魚池、豬舍、菜圃、竹林，竟能成為一個家族興衰的指標？