Original text:
Ban Chao, courtesy name Zhongsheng, was born in Pingling, Fufeng, and was the youngest son of Xu Lingbiao. A man who has great ambitions and doesn't pay attention to details. However, he is filial and conscientious, always works hard at home, and is not ashamed of the humiliation of hard work. There is oral defense, but he dabbles in writing and biography.
In the fifth year of Yongping, my brother Gu was called to be the school secretary, and Chao and his mother went to Luoyang. His family was poor, so he often wrote letters to official servants to support him. After working hard for a long time, he quit his job and put down his pen. He sighed and said: "A man with no other ambitions should just imitate Fu Jiezi and Zhang Qian and make contributions to foreign lands in order to win the title of marquis. How can he be able to spend a long time between pen and inkstone?" Everyone laughed at it. Chao said: "You know what a strong man's ambition is!" Later, Chao Chao envoyed the Western Regions and was granted the title of Marquis for his meritorious service.
Vernacular translation:
Ban Chao, courtesy name Zhongsheng, was born in Pingling County, Fufeng County, and was the youngest son of Ban Biao, the magistrate of Xu County. He has great ambitions and does not stick to trivial matters. However, he is filial to his parents and respectful. He works hard at home for a long time and does not feel the shame of hard work at all. Ban Chao is eloquent and eloquent, but he has read a lot but is not specialized.
In the fifth year of Emperor Yongping of the Han Ming Dynasty (AD 62), Ban Chao's elder brother Ban Gu was recruited to serve as the school secretary. Ban Chao and his mother followed his brother to Luoyang. His family was poor and he often worked hard as a scribe employed by the government to make a living.
He once stopped working and gave up his pen and said: "A real man has no other ambitions and strategies. He should always imitate Fu Jiezi and Zhang Qian and perform meritorious service in foreign lands to obtain a title. How can he deal with pen, ink, paper and inkstone for a long time?" "The colleagues around him laughed at him after hearing this. Ban Chao said: "How can ordinary people understand the ambitions of people with lofty ideals and benevolent people?"
Source: From "Book of the Later Han·Biography of Ban Chao" by Fan Ye of the Southern Song Dynasty.
Extended information:
Idiom allusions:
Throw a pen and join the army
When Ban Chao was copying documents for the government, he would write at his desk every day and often stop. He put down his pen and sighed and said: "As a man, even though I don't have any outstanding strategic talents, I should learn from Fu Jiezi and Zhang Qian who have made great achievements abroad. How can I always make a living doing this business?" Others laughed at me. But Ban Chao said: "How can ordinary people understand the ambition of a man with lofty ideals!"
After he stopped copying documents, he followed Dou Gu to attack the Northern Xiongnu because of an opportunity, and was ordered to go to the Western Regions as an envoy. In eleven years, more than fifty countries in the Western Region were recovered and made great contributions to the return of the Western Region. He was promoted to the Protector of the Western Regions and was granted the title of Marquis of Dingyuan, known as "Ban Dingyuan" in the world.
In the twelfth year of Yongyuan (100 years), Ban Chao asked to return to China because of his old age. In the fourteenth year of Yongyuan (102), he arrived in Luoyang and was worshiped as the captain of Shesheng. He died of illness soon after, at the age of seventy-one. After his death, he was buried on Mang Mountain in Luoyang.
Later, "throwing pen to join the army" refers to literati joining the army.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Ban Chao