Stick #47: Let Frugality Be Your Foundation (Neutral)
俭以养德奢招祸，细水长流富可求。浪费从来败家道，俭朴持家福自留。
Plain reading
This lot says thrift nourishes virtue; waste invites ruin. Long stream can enrich — extravagance drains house. Save where waste is, spend where need is.
Interpretation
"Let Frugality Be Your Foundation" is a neutral stick. Thrift breeds character; luxury breeds trouble. Waste breaks household — simple keeping leaves blessing.
Advice
Track spending — cut one waste. Thrift is not stinginess on need — it is guard on excess.
Drawn from Records — Emperor Wen valued hundred coins — and Sima Guang's letter on thrift — simple living, long family.