利心不动道心存Unmoved by Greed, a Heart of Virtue is Kept
林积，字善甫，唐朝南剑州人，广览诗书，九经三史无不通晓。林积在京师大学读书时，曾请假回家侍奉生病的母亲。待母亲病愈后，林积便踏上了返京的路途。在途中，林积投宿在一家旅店，睡觉时在床上捡到了一个布囊，打开一看，里面有数百颗宝珠。
第二天一大早，林积就问店主：“昨夜什么人在这间房中住宿呢？”店主说：“昨夜住在这里的是一个巨商。”林积说：“这是我的一个老朋友啊，在这里等我，我却耽误了。”并对店主说：“这人如果回来找我，你就让他到京师贯道斋，找林上舍，名积，字善甫。千万不要忘了啊！”林积付了房钱后便上路了，但在路上他仍放心不下，生怕店主忘了，于是就沿路贴手写的文告，上写：“某年月某日有剑浦林积夜宿旅店，有故人‘元珠’，请到贯道斋寻访。”
其实这些宝珠是富商张客丢在旅店的，他到集市上准备卖珠子时，才发现丢失了，吓得魂不附体。他在外苦心经营多年，总共才积攒了这包珠子，现在丢失了，回家后妻儿哪会相信呢？再三思量后，只得原路返回寻找。一直找到了原来住宿的那家旅店，店主把那天林积的嘱托告诉了他，富商自己也看到了沿路贴的文告，于是就前往贯道斋拜访林积。
富商来到贯道斋后，跪拜林积，流泪诉说了事情的原委。林积问他囊中有什么，富商如数回答了他。林积知道真是他丢的，便将珠子还给了他。富商感激林积的恩德，只想拿回一半的珠子回家赡养老小。林积说：“我如果真想要你的一半珠子，就不会沿路贴文告让你来寻找了。”富商坚持只拿一半，林积坚持不接受。数次推让后，富商见林积心意已决，只得拿着珠子拜谢而去。富商到集市后，将一半的珠子卖掉，把卖的钱全部捐给了寺院，为林积建生祠供养，报答他的还珠之恩。
古人云：“积善有善报，积恶有恶报。积善之家必有余庆，作恶之家必有余殃。”林积后来一举及第，位至三公，二子历任显宦。
Lin Ji was a well-read scholar from Nanjianzhou of the Tang Dynasty. When Lin Ji was studying in Beijing, he took time off to go home to visit his mother who was sick. After his mother recovered, Lin Ji went back to Beijing right away. On the way, he stayed in a hotel. When he was about to sleep, he found a fabric pouch. Upon opening it, he found hundreds of valuable pearls in it.
Lin Ji asked the hotel owner the next morning, "Who stayed in this room the night before last?" The owner said, "He is an extremely wealthy businessman." Lin Ji said, "He is one of my best friends. He was waiting for me here, but I was too late. If he comes back to look for me, please ask him to go and look for me at Beijing Guandao School. Please don't forget!" Lin Ji went on his journey after he paid the owner. On his way to Beijing, concerned that the owner might forget, he left hand-written posters along the way that read, "Lin Ji stayed in the hotel on xx date, xx year. The person who stayed in the room the previous night left without taking his pearls. Please come to Beijing Guandao School to look for Lin Ji."
The pearls were left at the hotel by a businessman named Mr. Zhang. He did not realize he had left the pearls until he was about to sell them at a market. He was devastated. The pearls were what he had accumulated after many years of effort. Now he had lost them. How would his wife react? After thinking it over a lot, he decided to go back and look for them. He backtracked all they way back to the hotel where he had stayed. The hotel owner told him what Lin Ji asked him to tell the businessman, who also saw the posters put up by Lin Ji along the road. So he decided to go to Beijing Guandao School to find Lin Ji.
The businessman thanked Lin Ji on his knees after he went to Beijing Guandao School, and told Lin Ji the whole story in tears. Lin Ji asked him to tell exactly how many pearls were in the fabric pouch. Mr. Zhang answered correctly. Lin Ji then knew that it was his and gave it back to him. Mr. Zhang was so grateful that he offered to take only half of the pearls back for his family. Lin Ji said, "If I truly wanted to have half of your pearls, I would not have put up posters along the road asking you to look for me." Mr. Zhang insisted on giving him half, but Lin Ji firmly refused. After many rounds of back and forth, Mr. Zhang saw that Lin Ji had made up his mind. So he thanked Lin Ji and left with his pearls. He sold half of them and donated all the money to a temple to show his appreciation for the return of his pearls.
The ancients said, "When you do good deeds, you will be rewarded with good. When you do bad deeds, you will meet with karmic retribution. Those who do good deeds will certainly have good fortune and those who do bad deeds will certainly have misfortune." Lin Ji later passed the exam and became a high-ranking official. His two sons also became outstanding officials.