Gu Jingzhou was in no way inferior to those scholarly peers who were well-versed in classical literature. He spoke many times about his "three hearts" philosophy regarding study, life, and work: > A person's knowledge is limited and not inherent; it requires continuous learning and constant practice. As the saying goes, one learns until old age but never finishes learning. A person must have three hearts: love, humility, and confidence. Love means loving one's profession, rather than complaining about whatever one does—if one does that, nothing will be accomplished. Humility means learning, learning from others' strengths and enriching one's own knowledge base, which is the only way to improve oneself. Confidence means having faith in everything one does; with confidence, there is nothing that cannot be accomplished well.[1] Gu Jingzhou also once explained to Xu Yuanqiang, a visiting reporter from *Wuxi Daily*, the relationship between artistic cultivation and cultural cultivation, as well as his understanding of "craftsman" (*jiang*) versus "master" (*shi*): > Artistic quality cannot be separated from cultural quality. To achieve something in art, one must certainly elevate one's cultural cultivation. Without profound cultural quality, one can only become a "craftsman," not a "master."[2] In 1932, at only 17 years of age, Gu Jingzhou inherited the family business at home, learning the craft of pottery-making from his grandmother, Lady Shao. From that point forward, Gu Jingzhou began his legendary life devoted entirely to Yixing pottery, never abandoning it. In 1979, at a symposium welcoming Hong Kong's Luo Guixiang's visit to the Yixing Purple Clay Factory, the 64-year-old Gu Jingzhou recalled: "Our ancestors all worked with purple clay; my grandmother was my first teacher."[3] During his apprenticeship, Gu Jingzhou received special attention from Chu Ming, a fellow townsman and pottery artisan. It is said that Chu Ming was invited to the family home by Gu Bingrong in the capacity of a "guest teacher" to instruct Gu Jingzhou in the art of teapot-making. Therefore, the pottery world today generally regards Chu Ming as Gu Jingzhou's master. However, when Gu Jingzhou was asked about this experience during his lifetime, the response received --- [1] Bao Dazhi, "Master and Kindred Spirit: Remembering Two or Three Matters about Mr. Gu Jingzhou," *Tiandi Fangyuan*, Issue 15 (1996), p. 48. [2] Xu Yuanqiang, "The First Interview with Gu Jingzhou," *Zisha Hui*, Issue 1 (2014), p. 21. [3] Shi Jundang, ed., *Yixing Pottery Research (Volume 2)* (Shanghai: Shanghai Guji Publishing House, December 2007), p. 182.