During the reign of Emperor Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty, the family of Zhang Ying, a renowned scholar from Tong Cheng, Anhui, had a dispute with their neighbour, the Wu family, over a courtyard wall. Zhang Ying’s family wrote to him, who was then an official in the capital, requesting that he persuade the local government to support his family. Upon receiving the letter, Zhang Ying replied with a poem:
“Sending a letter across a thousand miles, only for a wall,
What harm is there in yielding three feet?
The Great Wall still stands,
But Qin Shi Huang * is nowhere to be seen.”
After reading this poem, Zhang Ying’s family decided to yield three feet, moving the wall back. The neighbours, moved by Zhang Ying’s magnanimity, also decided to yield three feet. Thus, a six-foot-wide alley was created between the two properties.
Six-Foot-Wide Alley is now a famous tourist attraction in Tong Cheng, Anhui, with the words “Courtesy and Yielding” inscribed on the archway.
* Qin Shi Huang was the emperor who ordered to build the vast part of the Great Wall.
#5 六尺巷的故事
清朝康熙年间，安徽桐城大学士张英(1637年-1708年)的家人与邻居吴家因院墙发生争执，所以写信给当时在京城作官的张英，要求他让当地官府帮其家人撑腰。张英收到信之后，随即回诗一首：
“千里家书只为墙，
让他三尺又何妨。
万里长城今犹在，
不见当年秦始皇。”
意思是说，不远千里寄来家书，只是为了争这堵墙。退让三尺又有什么关系呢？万里长城还在，但当年的秦始皇已经不见了。
张英的家人读了这首诗后，决定退让三尺，把墙往后移。邻居看到张英家如此大度，也很感动，他们也决定退让三尺。这样，两家之间就有了一个六尺宽的小巷，这就是“六尺巷”的由来。
六尺巷在安徽桐城，现在是一个著名景点，牌坊上题有“礼让”二字。