BEIJING -- "An act of kindness, no matter how trivial, is worth performing." President Xi Jinping on Wednesday used this Chinese adage to encourage youngsters to work hard step by step to become the talent needed by the Party and the people.

Participating in a tree planting activity in Beijing, Xi told children nearby to cultivate the awareness of work, environmental protection and thriftiness from childhood, and "not to shy away from good deeds no matter how small they seem."

The quote was taken from an annotation to ancient historian Chen Shou's book "San Guo Zhi," or "Records of the Three Kingdoms."

According to the annotation's account, Liu Bei, founder of the Shu state during the Three Kingdom Period (220-280), told his son and successor Liu Shan that "an act of evil, no matter how small, must be shunned, while an act of kindness, no matter how trivial, is worth performing."

The adage has been quoted for centuries to warn that plenty of small good deeds may add up to great deeds while multiple small evils can pile up to grave evils.