This is a story from Strange Tales from Make-Do Strdio. As a child， Xiliu was smart and liked to read biographies of ancient sages. She decided to follow the examples of previous worthies and leave behind a reputation that would be noted for generations to come. At the age of nineteen she married Gao Sheng， who had just olst his wife and had a son named Changfu. Ayear later Xiliu gave birth to a boy and named him Changhu. Before long， Gao Sheng， still young， died of an illness， leaving Xiliu to care for her sons. Seeing Changfu was often truant in his studies， Xiliu sent him to work with the shepherd boys as punishment. Changfu could not his knees and asked his mother to allow him to return to school. Xiliu refused， and Changfu， like a beggar， huddled himself up with cold. A grandmother in the village inter ceded and took care of the boy. Xiliu told her，"If Changfu is ready to take a beating of 100 strokes， I'll take him back."Changfu decided that he would take the beating. Aware of Changfu's genuine repentance for his errors， Xiliu did not beat him and asked him to continue his studies. Changhu was a slow-minded child， so Xiliu asked him to quit school and work in the fields. But Changhu was so lazy that he often neglected work. Xiliu then asked him to engage in trade， but he used up all his money in gambling. At last， Xiliu sent him to Luoyang to sell goods， where he was put into jail for using fake silver in a whorehouse. In jail he suffered a lot. One day Xiliu called Changfu in and said："I gave the fake silver to your brother on purpose， intending to make him suffer. Now you go and get him out."Back home， Changhu knelt before his mother， bitterly remorseful. He finally gave up evil and returned to good. Fellow villagers then began to understand Xiliu. She loved her children by tempering them in sufferings. 《聊齋志異》中的故事。細柳從小聰明，喜讀聖人烈傳，立志長大後效仿前賢，流芳百世。她十九歲嫁給喪偶不久的高生，前妻留一子名長福。一年後，細柳又生一子名長怙。高生命短，不久病故，細柳和兩個兒子相依爲命。大兒長福不用功讀書，經常逃學，細柳讓他和牧童一塊幹活。沒幾天，長福熬不住，跪求母親讓他再讀書，細柳不允。鄉親鄰居都責備細柳。冬天到了，長福凍得縮頭縮腦如同乞丐，村中一老婦爲孩子說情，細柳說：“如果長福肯挨一百棍就來見我。”長福情願捱打。細柳見他悔過，沒打他，讓長福繼續讀書。長怙大腦遲鈍，細柳讓他棄文務農，但長怙懶惰經常逃工；細柳讓他經商，長怙把本錢賭光。後來，細柳讓長怙去洛陽販貨，他因用假銀逛妓院而入獄，受盡磨難，一天，細柳把長福叫來說：“你弟弟這次出去，是我有意給他假銀，讓他吃盡苦頭，你現在救他吧！”長怙回來後跪在母親面前，悔恨交加，從此改邪歸正。這時鄉親們才明白，細柳讓孩子在磨難中鍛鍊，纔是真正愛孩子。
