One year during the Spring and Autumn Period (chūn qiū 春秋时期,770-476 BC),
there was a the Qi State (qí guó 齐国) was severely strickend by a famine.

Qian Ao (qián ào 黔敖), a very rich but arrogant man took the occasion to
showcase his generosity through preparing food by the roadside and giving it to
the passing rufugees in charity. A man with shabby clothes happened to walk by
with his shoes trailing along, he was so hungry as not to open his eyes. Seeing
the poor man, Qian Ao held the food by left hand and the drink by right hand,
and shouted at him,"Hi, come to eat !” Hearing the word, the man glared his eyes
and said, “It is because I am not willing to eat the food handed out in contempt
that I have been famished to such a degree. Though Qian Ao made an apology to
him for that, the man still resolutely refused to eat the food and thus he died
of hunger in the end.

This set phrase now extensively denotes the disrespectful aims. This story
means that a person who has a strong sense of self-respect would rather die of
hunger than be despised.

春秋时代，有一年齐国发生大饥荒，黔敖准备了食物，放在路旁，救济逃荒过路的饥民。

有一个饥民，用衣袖蒙着脸，拖着鞋，饿得眼睛都睁不开的样子，慢慢地走过来。黔敖见了，就左手拿着吃的，右手捧着喝的，向他喊道：“喂，来吃吧!”

那人一听这话，立即瞪着眼睛，说道：“我就是因为不吃‘嗟来之食，’才饿到这般地步的。”尽管黔敖向他道歉，那人仍然坚决不吃，终于饿死了。

此故事讲的是一个怀有强烈自尊心的人，宁可饿死也不肯接受人轻视。现在这个成语泛指带有侮辱性的施舍。

嗟来之食　　【翻译】Food Handed out in Contempt.