I heard this line repeated four times throughout the drama and while it may come across as dark humor, to me, it felt like a window into the ancient Chinese understanding of the soul and destiny.
In Episode 1, Fan Changyu is invited to slaughter the New Year’s pig of one of the neighbors. As she prepares, she says to the pig, “Be a good pig in this life and be a good person in the next.” Even at that moment, I had a feeling this line would become more than just a passing remark.
At the feast, everyone is impressed by her skill in catching and butchering the pig. But behind the admiration, there are whispers. The ladies talk about her in hushed tones, saying things about how she is trying to hold her household together after being left orphaned by her parents. Now it is just her and her younger sister.
Later, we hear this line again in the same episode when she stumbles upon Xie Zheng buried half-dead in the snow. It signalled to me that this is probably a remark they say when someone is about to die like a parting reminder.
We hear this line again in Episode 2, this time in a dream Yan Zheng has about Fan Changyu. It felt like his mind was trying to make sense of her. He can hardly believe that the woman who took him in is a butcher.
And finally, in the last episode, it is repeated once more as a parting line from Grand Tutor Tao to Wei Yan in prison. By then, it no longer feels like a joke or a passing remark, it felt like a reflection on fate itself.
As someone who believes in karma, reincarnation, and the laws of nature, this quote stayed with me.
The Concept of Karmic Justice
To me, what this line “Be a good pig. Be a good person in the next” comes to mean in the drama is simple. Every action has an echo and no deed truly ends in the moment it is done.
At first, the villains seem to triumph, but that victory is only temporary. What they are really doing is accumulating a kind of debt that will follow them into the next life. Justice, in this world, is not always immediate, but it is inevitable and we see this unfold slowly as the story progresses.
This is where it deeply resonated with me. I’ve always believed in the law of nature, that what we do, think, and choose eventually returns to us in some form. Watching this unfold in the story felt like a reminder that living intentionally is not just about the present moment.
It is about understanding that every action is a seed, and whether we realize it or not, we are shaping our own future harvest.
In the case of Xie Zheng and Fan Changyu, their decision to seek justice for their fathers carries a quiet certainty. Wrongdoing may go unpunished for a time, but it does not disappear. Those who have caused harm will eventually face the consequences of their actions.
And for those who were wronged, justice may not arrive within their lifetime, but the truth has a way of surfacing, of being told, and of restoring what was once silenced.
If the concepts of karmic justice and living with virtue have sparked a “snippet of wonder” for you, there is so much more to uncover within this story. I wrote another blog post What Pursuit of Jade Taught Me About Strength, Love, and Rising. Check it out!
The Value of Acceptance
“Be a good pig.“
I started to feel that every time this line was stated, it carries a quiet reminder. Even if you find yourself at your lowest point in life, or in a place that feels small or insignificant, you still have a role to fulfill.
Be a “good pig,” metaphorically. Do your work well, serve your purpose, and carry out your responsibilities with integrity.
And perhaps, in the next life, you get to be a “good person.”
That’s what the Chinese seems to suggest here, not as something distant or mystical, but as a gentle reminder that how we live now matters. Even in the most ordinary or difficult circumstances, there is meaning in choosing to do what is right.
Back in high school, in social studies and Asian history, I was introduced to the idea that in Chinese cosmology, the cycle of rebirth is more than abstraction. It functions like a cosmic system of justice. Every act, whether cruel or kind, leaves a trace that must eventually be accounted for. The question is never if, but when and how.
In Pursuit of Jade, I saw this principle come alive. Even after 17 years, karmic debts were not erased. They were simply waiting to be settled.
There is nothing wrong with being a “pig” in this life time. What I understand when Fan Changyu says this reminder to the pig is that the pig should not resist and must accept the wheel of life. It must understand its place on it right now. It will not compound his debt with bitterness or grasping and it will be exactly what it is as well as what it can be.
A minister who governs well is virtuous, but so is a farmer who farms with integrity. The question is never “are you at the top?” but “are you being true to what you are, right now, in this place?”
There is nothing shameful in being a pig if the pig roots honestly, harms no one, and fulfills its pigness with good faith.
I think that this kind of acceptance if so profound.
Reincarnation as the Hope in the Next Life
I believe in reincarnation because it allows me to view my current struggles through a lens of grace. I know that every act of kindness I perform today even if it goes unrewarded is a deposit into the soul bank of my next existence.
In this drama, we can see that Fan Changyu still treats her pigs with dignity. By wishing the pig a better next life, she is acknowledging that we are all part of the same cosmic fabric. It reminds us that our current status is temporary, our character is eternal and hope is renewable.
This is one of those series that reinforced to me that being a “good person” is not really the destination. It’s the choice I make every single day to do things the right way.
For me, reincarnation isn’t merely a promise of second chances. It is acknowledging the cycle. It is the realization that I will remain in a loop of suffering if I do not choose the ‘right way’ to live. However, if I commit to a life of integrity, the reward is the ability to taste the fruits of being a good person here and now.
I may not achieve Nirvana or escape the cycles I find myself in, but I can choose to live with quiet grace and virtue in this current lifetime.
A Final Thought
As I look back on the recurring phrase in Pursuit of Jade, the humble hope to be a “good pig” in one life so that I may be “good person” in the next, I am reminded that my life is rarely about the grand, sweeping destinies we see on screen. Instead, it is composed of the tiny, intentional choices we make when no one is watching.
If we do not live with integrity, we find ourselves trapped in a loop of our own suffering. But when we choose virtue, the reward is immediate. We get to enjoy the fruits of being a person of character right here, right now.
Whether we are “Marquises” or “Butchers,” our character is the only thing we truly carry with us into whatever comes next.
Have you watched this Chinese drama? Aside from this theme, you will also enjoy the love story between Xie Zheng and Fan Changyu. I wrote my thoughts on what makes this relationship so beautiful. Here’s Why the Romance in Pursuit of Jade is Unforgettable.
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