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Abstract:: The story of Zaobi touguang凿壁偷光(drilling a hole in the wall to steal light)about how Kuang Heng, a poor but diligent lad in the Han Dynasty, worked hard to make academic achievement despite great difficulties is widely spread among Chinese people. However, this story is neither recorded in the official history nor actually took place in the era when the imperial examination was popular. A careful textual examination of the relevant documents shows that this story has gone through multiple circulations through different types of text such as commentary notes, encyclopedia, and poems. And it was finally established as a historical fact, which was further shaped and reinforced by the factors like the principle of early education in ancient China and the rise of the imperial examination system. Behind this story is actually the parents’ expectations on their children and people’s yearning for a bright future.