Keeping the Box, Returning the Pearl
楚人鬻珠于郑，为木兰之柜而饰之；郑人买其椟而还其珠——爱其装而失其核。
A Chu seller cases a pearl in ornate wood; a Zheng buyer keeps the case and returns the pearl—loving the package, losing the core.
买椟还珠：被包装说服而丢了内核——审美与营销可以压过判断。真正的买是认珠，不是只认盒。可与叶公好龙并读：一个迷外饰，一个迷名相。今日：下单前问：你要的是椟，还是珠？
Keeping the box, returning the pearl: packaging persuades you past the core—aesthetics and marketing can outrank judgment. Real buying recognizes the pearl, not only the case. Today: before checkout, ask—box or pearl?
After the moral, ask one question: if a similar choice showed up today, where does the story snag? Name that tension first—then take your own step. You need not copy the ancients, only borrow their clarity.