Why does socrates has never received a fee for his teaching? What was his teaching really about?

There is so much to be said and analyzed about Socrates. He never took payments from his students, and distanced himself from the "sophists" who did. He viewed them to be empty in their teachings and they manipulated the thinking of others.

Socrates is credited with laying out the fundamentals of modern philosophy. He taught and advocated self-understanding. He created the Socratic method (simply answering a question with a question). He wanted to teach the true meaning of words and ideas, unlike the sophists.