When I was cold, I knew that pines and cypresses were dying in the middle of the year.

Cold year: cold year, that is, cold year and cold time;

Fade: wither.

From The Analects of Confucius Zi Han: "Confucius said: I was cold, and then I knew that pine and cypress declined." Carve and wither; Pine and cypress, jade column. Zhu quoted Shangcai as saying: "A poor scholar sees justice, but a loyal minister knows the chaos in the world." (Notes on the Analects of Confucius) Xunzi compared pine and cypress to a gentleman: "I don't know pine and cypress when I am cold; It is not difficult to see gentlemen everywhere. " ("Xunzi Outline") "Zhuangzi Jean Wang" quoted Confucius as saying: "Those who know it are known, and those who are not good are poor; Today, Qiu sticks to the principle of benevolence and righteousness in order to suffer from troubled times. Why are you poor? Therefore, introspection is not poor in Tao, but difficult without losing its virtue. "

It means that when the years are cold, we know that the pine and cypress will eventually wither. Metaphor still has to go through a severe test to identify the quality of a piece of furniture.