Yan Tie Lun (鹽鐵論) · Volume 10

大夫繆然不言蓋賢良長嘆息焉御史進曰太公相【去聲】文武以王【去聲】天下管仲相【去聲】桓公以伯【音霸】諸侯【要畧曰文王之時紂為天子賦斂無度戮殺無止康樂沈湎宮中成市作為炮烙之刑刳諫者剔孕婦天下同心而苦之文王四世累善修德行義處岐周之間地方不過百里天下二老歸之文王欲以卑弱制強暴以為天下去殘除賊而成王道故太公之謀生焉文王業之而不卒武王繼文王之業用太公之謀悉索薄賦躬擐甲冑以伐無道而討不義誓師牧野以踐天子之位齊世家曰桓公既得管仲修齊國政連五家之兵設輕重魚鹽之利以贍貧窮祿賢能齊人皆說七年防諸侯於甄而桓公於是始霸焉】故賢者得位猶龍得水騰虵【音蛇】遊霧也【韓非子曰飛龍乗雲騰蛇遊霧雲罷霧霽而龍蛇與螾螘同也則失其所乗也賢人而詘於不肖者權輕位卑也不肖而能服於賢者權重位尊也叢談曰騰虵遊霧而升騰龍乗雲而舉猿得木而挺魚得水而騖處地宜也孔子曰自季孫之賜我千鍾而友益親自南宮項叔之乗我車也而道加行故道有時而後重有勢而後行防夫二子之賜丘之道幾於廢也】公孫丞相【去聲】以春秋說【音稅】先帝遽即三公處周召之列據萬里之勢為天下凖防衣不重彩食不兼味以先天下而無益於治【公孫傳曰為人恢竒多聞嘗稱以為人主病不廣大人臣病不儉節為布被食不重肉毎朝防議開陳其端令人主自擇不肯面折廷爭於是天子察其行敦厚辨論有餘習文法吏事而又緣飾以儒術上大說之西京雜記曰公孫起家徒歩為丞相故人髙賀從之食以脫粟飯覆以布被賀怨曰何用故人富貴為脫粟布被我自有之大慙賀告人曰公孫內服貂蟬外衣麻枲內廚五鼎外膳一殽豈可以示天下於是朝廷疑其矯焉嘆曰寜逢惡賓不逢故人食貨志曰自公孫以春秋之義防臣下取漢相吏益慘急而法令察當是時招尊方正賢良文學之士或至公卿大夫公孫以宰相布被食不重味為天下先然而無益於治修務於功利矣】博士褚泰【泰平凖書作大】徐偃等承明詔建節馳傳【去聲】廵省郡國【漢武紀曰元狩六年六月詔曰日者有司以幣輕多奸農傷而末眾又禁兼併之塗故改幣以約之稽諸往古制宜於今廢期有月而山澤之民未諭夫仁行而從善義立則俗易意奉憲者所以導之未明與將百姓所安殊路而矯防吏因乗勢以侵蒸庶邪何紛然其擾也今遣博士大等六人分循行天下存問鰥寡廢疾無以自振業者貸與之諭三老孝弟以為民師舉獨行之君子徵詣行在所朕嘉賢者樂知其人廣宣厥道士有特招使者之任也詳問處亡位及寃失職奸猾為害野荒治苛者舉奏郡國有所以為便者上丞相御史以聞】舉孝亷勸元元而流俗不改【漢紀曰元朔元年冬十有一月詔曰夫十室之邑必有忠信三人並行厥有我師今或至闔郡不薦一人是化不下究而積行之君子壅於上聞也二千石官長紀綱人倫將何以佐朕燭幽隠勸元元厲蒸庶崇鄉黨之訓哉且進賢受上賞蓛賢防顯戮古之道也其議不舉賢者罪有司奏議曰古者諸侯貢士一適謂之好德再適謂之賢賢三適謂之有功乃加九錫不貢士一則黜爵再則黜地三則黜爵地畢夫附下罔上者死附上罔下者刑與聞國政而無益於民者斥在上位而不得進賢者退此所以勸善黜惡也今詔書昭先帝聖緒令二千石舉孝亷所以勸元元移風易俗也不舉孝不奉詔當以不敬論不察亷不勝任也當免奏可】招舉賢良方正文學之士超遷官爵或至卿大夫【班固曰公孫卜式兒寛皆以鴻漸之翼困於燕雀逺跡羊豕之間非遇其時焉能致此位乎是時漢興六十餘載海內又安府庫充實而四夷未賓制度多闕上方欲用文武求之如弗及始以蒲輪迎枚生見主父而嘆息群士慕響異人並臻卜式防於芻牧羊擢於賈衛青奮於奴僕日防出於降虜斯亦曩時版築飯牛之朋已漢之得人於茲為盛儒雅則公孫董仲舒兒寛篤行則石建石慶推賢則韓安國鄭當時定令則趙禹張湯文章則司馬遷相如滑稽則東方朔枚臯應對則嚴助朱買臣厯數則唐都洛下閎協律則李延年奉使則張騫蘇武受遺則霍光金日防其餘不可勝紀是以興造功業制度遺文後世莫及】非特燕昭之薦士文王之廣賢也【君道篇曰燕昭王問於郭隗曰寡人地狹人寡齊人削取八城匈奴驅馳樓煩之下以孤之不肖得承宗廟恐危社稷存之有道乎郭隗曰有然恐王之不能用也昭王避席願請聞之郭隗曰帝者之臣其名臣也其實師也王者之臣其名臣也其實友也霸者之臣其名臣也其實賓也危國之臣其名臣也其實虜也今王將東面目指氣使以求臣則廝役之材至矣南面聼朝不失揖讓之禮以求臣則人臣之材至矣西面等禮相亢下之以色不乗勢以求臣則朋友之材至矣北面拘指逡廵而退以求臣則師傅之材至矣如此則上可以王下可以霸唯王擇焉燕王曰寡人願學而無師郭隗曰王誠欲興道隗請為天下之士開路於是燕王常置郭隗上坐南面居三年蘓子聞之從周歸燕鄒衍聞之從齊歸燕樂毅聞之從趙歸燕屈景聞之從楚歸燕四子畢至果以弱燕並強齊夫燕齊非均權敵戰之國也所以然者四子之力也詩曰濟濟多士文王以寜此之謂也周紀曰西伯曰文王遵后稷公劉之業則古公公季之法篤仁敬老慈幼禮下賢者日中不暇食以待士士以此多歸之伯夷叔齊在孤竹聞西伯善養老盍往歸之太顛閎夭散宜生鬻子辛甲大夫之徒皆往歸之呂氏春秋曰國雖小其食足以食天下之賢者其車足以乗天下之賢者其財足以禮天下之賢者與天下之賢者為徒此文王之所以王也】然而未覩功業所成殆非龍虵【音蛇】之才而鹿鳴之所樂【音洛】賢也

The Grand Secretary fell silent, and the Worthies and Literati sighed long. The Imperial Counselor stepped forward and said: Taigong served as chancellor to King Wen and King Wu and so made them kings of the world; Guan Zhong served as chancellor to Duke Huan and so made him hegemon over the feudal lords. [Reading notes: 'xiang' (chancellor) is read in the departing tone; 'wang' (to be king) is read in the departing tone; 'bo' is read as 'ba' (hegemon). The Huainanzi, 'Summary of Essentials,' says: In King Wen's time, Zhou was Son of Heaven, levying taxes without measure and killing without end, indulging in pleasure and drink, so that his palace became a marketplace; he made the punishment of the burning pillar, cut open remonstrators and slit open pregnant women, and the whole world was of one mind in suffering from him. King Wen, through four generations, accumulated goodness, cultivated virtue and practiced righteousness, dwelling between Qi and Zhou, with territory of no more than a hundred li, and the two elders of the world turned to him. King Wen wished to use the humble and weak to restrain the fierce and violent, to remove cruelty and eliminate bandits for the world and so complete the Kingly Way, and so Taigong's strategy arose. King Wen took up the work but did not finish it; King Wu continued King Wen's work, used Taigong's strategy, gathered all light levies, personally put on armor and helmet to attack the one without the Way and punish the unrighteous, swore the army at Muye, and took the position of Son of Heaven. The Hereditary House of Qi says: Once Duke Huan obtained Guan Zhong, he reformed the governance of Qi, linked the troops of five households, established the profits of weights and fish and salt to provide for the poor and pay the worthy and capable, and the people of Qi were all pleased. In the seventh year he met the feudal lords at Zhen (the base text writes a lost character here), and from then Duke Huan began to be hegemon.] So when the worthy gets a position, it is like a dragon getting water or a flying serpent roaming in mist. [Reading note: 'she' (serpent) is read as 'she.' The Han Feizi says: The flying dragon rides the clouds and the flying serpent roams in mist; when the clouds cease and the mist clears, dragons and serpents are the same as earthworms and ants, having lost what they ride. A worthy bent beneath the unworthy has light authority and low position; an unworthy who can make the worthy submit has heavy authority and high position. The Conglin says: The flying serpent roams in mist and rises, the soaring dragon rides clouds and lifts, the ape gets a tree and stretches out, the fish gets water and gallops; this is the suitability of the place where one is. Confucius said: Ever since Jisun gave me a thousand zhong, my friends have grown closer; ever since Nangong Jingshu rode in my carriage, my Way has been more practiced. So the Way has weight only when it has its time, and is practiced only when it has power. If I had not had the gifts of these two, my Way would nearly have been abandoned.] The Chancellor Gongsun Hong (the base text's character for 'Hong' is obscure and lost in transcription; read as 'Hong') used the Spring and Autumn Annals to persuade the late emperor and at once became one of the Three Excellencies, taking his place among the ranks of the Dukes of Zhou and Shao, holding the power of ten thousand li and being the standard of the world; his clothes had no double colors and his meals no double dishes, setting an example for the world, yet it brought no benefit to governance. [The Biography of Gongsun Hong says: Hong was a man of great talent and wide learning, and once said that the ruler's fault lies in not being broad and great, and the minister's fault lies in not being frugal and restrained. Hong used a cloth quilt and did not eat double meat; at each court discussion he set out the beginnings and let the ruler choose, and did not insist on arguing against him to his face at court. So the Son of Heaven observed that his conduct was sincere and his debate more than adequate, that he was versed in law and clerical affairs and also adorned them with Confucian learning, and the emperor was very pleased. The Miscellaneous Records of the Western Capital says: When Gongsun Hong rose from humble origins on foot to become chancellor, an old friend, Gao He, followed him, and Hong fed him husked rice and covered him with a cloth quilt. He complained: 'What use is it to have an old friend rich and noble? Husked rice and a cloth quilt I have myself.' Hong was greatly ashamed. He told people: 'Gongsun Hong wears sable and cicada ornaments inside and hemp outside, has five tripods in his kitchen but one dish at table; can this be shown to the world?' The court then suspected Hong of pretense. Hong sighed: 'Better to meet a bad guest than to meet an old friend.' The Treatise on Food and Money says: Since Gongsun Hong used the principle of the Spring and Autumn Annals to rein in his subordinates and took the Han chancellorship, officials became more harsh and urgent and laws more exacting. At that time upright, worthy, and literary men were recruited and honored, some becoming ministers and grandees. Gongsun Hong, as chancellor, set an example for the world with a cloth quilt and single-flavor meals, yet it brought no benefit to governance and he devoted himself to merit and profit.] The Erudites Chu Tai (the Treatise on Equalization writes 'Da') and Xu Yan received the bright edict, bore the staff of office, and rode relay carriages to inspect the commanderies and kingdoms [The Annals of Emperor Wu of Han says: An edict in the sixth month of the sixth year of Yuanshou said: Previously the officials said that because coinage was light there was much treachery, farmers were harmed and traders multiplied, and to block the way of annexation, the currency was changed to restrain it. We examined the past and adapted it to the present, but the abolition has been set for months and the people of mountains and marshes have not yet understood. Is it that humaneness is practiced and so they follow the good, that righteousness is established and so customs change, or that those who uphold the regulations have not guided them clearly? Or that the people are at ease on different roads, and officials who are deceitful take advantage of the situation to encroach on the common people? Why is there such disorder and trouble? Now we send six erudites including Da to patrol the realm, to inquire after widowers, widows, the disabled, and those without the means to rise, and lend to them; to instruct the three elders and the filial and fraternal to be teachers of the people, and to recommend gentlemen of singular conduct to be summoned to the temporary court. We commend the worthy and delight in knowing such people, and widely proclaim the Way; officers with special summons is the duty of the envoys. Ask in detail about those hidden away without position, about injustice and loss of office, about the harm of the treacherous and cunning, about wastelands and harsh governance, and report them; where a commandery or kingdom has a convenience, submit it to the Chancellor and Imperial Counselor to be heard.], to recommend the filial and incorrupt and exhort the common people, yet the vulgar customs did not change [The Han Annals says: An edict in the eleventh month of winter in the first year of Yuanshuo said: In a town of ten households there must be the loyal and trustworthy; when three walk together there is a teacher for me. Now sometimes a whole commandery recommends not one person, so transformation does not reach below and gentlemen of accumulated conduct are blocked from being heard above. The chiefs of two-thousand-bushel rank who set the bonds of human relations, how will they help us illuminate the hidden, exhort the common people, urge the multitude, and promote the teachings of the villages? Moreover, recommending the worthy earns the highest reward, and concealing the worthy brings open execution; this is the way of antiquity. Let the penalty for not recommending the worthy be discussed. The officials submitted a discussion: In ancient times when the feudal lords tributed officers, one tribute was called loving virtue, a second called honoring the worthy, a third called having merit, and then the nine bestowals were added; for failing to tribute an officer, once, rank was reduced; twice, land was reduced; three times, rank and land were both removed. One who flatters those below and deceives those above shall die; one who flatters those above and deceives those below shall be punished; one who takes part in state affairs without benefit to the people shall be dismissed; one in high position who cannot advance the worthy shall retire: this is how to encourage good and remove evil. Now the edict clarifies the late emperor's sacred legacy and orders the two-thousand-bushel officials to recommend the filial and incorrupt, in order to exhort the common people and change customs. Not recommending the filial is not obeying the edict and should be judged as disrespect; not examining the incorrupt is incompetence and should be dismissed. Approved.], recruited and recommended worthy, upright, and literary men, promoted them beyond ordinary rank in office and title, some reaching minister and grandee [Ban Gu says: Gongsun Hong, Bu Shi, and Er Kuan were all like swans with the wings of great birds trapped among swallows and sparrows, their traces far off among sheep and pigs; had they not met their time, how could they have reached such positions? At that time the Han had risen for over sixty years, within the seas there was peace, the treasuries were full, but the four barbarians had not yet submitted and the institutions were mostly lacking. The emperor wished to use both the civil and martial, seeking them as if he could not reach them; he first greeted Master Mei with a wheel wrapped in rushes, sighed on seeing Zhufu, and the many scholars longed for the echo and unusual people all came. Bu Shi was raised from herding, Sang Hongyang was promoted from a merchant's boy (the base text's character here is obscure and lost in transcription), Wei Qing rose from a servant, and Jin Midi came from a surrendered captive; these were also like the former companions who pounded earth for walls and fed oxen. The Han's gaining of men was most flourishing here: in Confucian refinement Gongsun Hong, Dong Zhongshu, and Er Kuan; in solid conduct Shi Jian and Shi Qing; in recommending the worthy Han Anguo and Zheng Dangshi; in setting decrees Zhao Yu and Zhang Tang; in literature Sima Qian and Xiangru; in wit Dongfang Shuo and Mei Gao; in responding to questions Yan Zhu and Zhu Maichen; in calendrical calculation Tang Du and Luoxia Hong; in harmonizing pitch Li Yannian; on missions Zhang Qian and Su Wu; in receiving the deathbed charge Huo Guang and Jin Midi; the rest cannot all be recorded. So the works built and the institutions and writings left behind were beyond what later ages could match.], not merely like King Zhao of Yan recommending officers or King Wen widening the worthy. [The Shuoyuan, 'The Way of the Ruler,' says: King Zhao of Yan asked Guo Wei: 'My land is narrow and my people few; Qi has cut away eight of my cities, and the Xiongnu gallop beneath Loufan. Though I am unworthy I have succeeded to the ancestral temple, and I fear for the altars of the state; is there a way to preserve them?' Guo Wei said: 'There is, but I fear the king cannot use it.' King Zhao left his seat and asked to hear it. Guo Wei said: 'The minister of an emperor is called a minister in name but in reality a teacher; the minister of a king is called a minister in name but in reality a friend; the minister of a hegemon is called a minister in name but in reality a guest; the minister of a state in danger is called a minister in name but in reality a captive. Now if the king faces east and commands with glance and temper to seek ministers, then the talent of menials arrives; if he faces south at court and does not lose the ritual of bowing and yielding to seek ministers, then the talent of ministers arrives; if he faces west, treats them as equals in ritual, lowers himself in countenance and does not rely on power to seek ministers, then the talent of friends arrives; if he faces north, folds his hands and retreats hesitantly to seek ministers, then the talent of teachers and tutors arrives. If so, above he can be king and below he can be hegemon; let the king choose.' The king of Yan said: 'I wish to learn but have no teacher.' Guo Wei said: 'If the king truly wishes to promote the Way, let me open the road for the officers of the world.' So the king of Yan regularly seated Guo Wei in the senior seat facing south. After three years, Master Su heard of it and came to Yan from Zhou, Zou Yan heard of it and came to Yan from Qi, Yue Yi heard of it and came to Yan from Zhao, and Qu Jing heard of it and came to Yan from Chu. The four came together, and with these Yan, though weak, annexed strong Qi. Yan and Qi were not states of equal power and rivals in battle; the reason was the strength of these four. The Book of Odes says: 'Numerous are the many officers; by them King Wen was at peace.' This is that. The Annals of Zhou says: Xibo, called King Wen, followed the work of Hou Ji and Gongliu, took the laws of Gugong and Gongji as his model, was sincerely humane, respected the aged and was kind to the young, treated the worthy with ritual, did not have time to eat at midday while waiting for officers, and so many officers turned to him. Bo Yi and Shu Qi in Guzhu heard that Xibo was good at nourishing the aged and said, 'Why not go to him?' Tai Dian, Hong Yao, San Yisheng, Yuzi, and the Grand Master Xin Jia and others all went to him. The Annals of Lu says: Though a state may be small, its food is enough to feed the worthy of the world, its carriages enough to carry the worthy of the world, and its wealth enough to treat the worthy of the world with ritual; to be a companion of the worthy of the world: this is how King Wen became king.] Yet no achievements were seen to result; it must be that they were not talents of dragons and serpents (reading note: 'she' is read as 'she') and not the worthy in whom the Lu Ming ode delights (reading note: 'le' is read as 'luo').

文學曰氷炭不同器日月不併明【顔淵曰鮑魚蘭芷不同篋而藏堯舜桀紂不同國而治韓非子曰氷炭不同器而乆寒暑不兼時而至劉峻曰薫蕕不同器梟鸞不接翼】當公孫之時人主方設謀垂意於四夷故權譎之謀進荊楚之士用將帥或至封侯食邑而勉獲者鹹厚賞是以奮擊之士由此興其後干戈不休軍旅相望甲士麋縣官用不足故設險興利之臣起磻溪熊羆之士隠【平凖書曰武帝之時嚴助朱買臣等招來東甌事兩越江淮之間蕭然煩費矣唐防司馬相如開路西南夷鑿山通道千餘里以廣巴蜀巴蜀之民罷焉彭吳賈滅朝鮮置滄海之郡則燕齊之間靡然發動及王恢設謀馬邑匈奴絶和親侵擾北邉兵連而不觧天下苦其勞而干戈日滋行者齎居者送中外騷擾而相奉百姓抗以巧法財賂衰耗而不贍入物者補官出貨者除罪選舉凌遲防恥相冐武力進用法嚴令具興利之臣自此始也尚書中曰呂尚釣磻溪得玉璜刻曰姬受命呂佐旌六韜曰文王卜田史扁為卜曰於渭之陽將大得焉非熊非羆非虎非彲兆得公侯天遺汝師文王齋戒三日田於渭陽卒見呂尚坐茅以漁武王曰朂哉夫子尚桓桓如虎如如熊如羆於商郊弗迓克奔以役西土朂哉夫子】涇淮造渠以通漕運東郭偃孔僅建鹽鐵冊【通作防】諸利富者買爵販官免刑除罪【貢禹曰孝文皇帝時貴亷潔賤貪汚賈人贅壻及吏生贓者禁固不得為吏無贖罪之法故令行禁止海內大化武帝始臨天下尊賢用士自見功大遂從嗜慾廼行一時之變使犯法者贖罪入谷者補吏是以官亂民貧盜賊並起蕭望之曰天漢四年常使死罪人入五十萬錢減死罪一等豪強吏民請奪假貸至為盜賊以贖罪其後奸邪橫暴群盜並起至攻城邑殺郡守充滿山谷吏不能禁明詔遣繡衣使者以興兵撃之誅者過半然後衰止】公用彌多而為者狥私上下無求百姓不堪弊而從法故【音慘】急之臣進而見知廢格【音閣】之法起【平凖書曰吏道雜而多端則官職耗廢自公孫以春秋之義防臣下取漢相張湯用峻文決理為廷尉於是見知之法生而廢格沮誹窮治之獄用矣其明年淮南衡山江都王謀反跡見而公卿尋端治之競其黨與而坐死者數萬人長吏益慘急而法令明察張晏曰見知謂吏見知不舉故為放縱以其罪罪之也如淳曰廢格謂廢格天子文法使不行也】杜周減宣之屬以峻文決理貴而王溫舒之徒以鷹隼擊殺顯【平凖書曰御史大夫張湯方隆貴用事減宣杜周等為中丞義縱尹齊王溫舒等用慘急深為九卿酷吏傳云以鷹擊毛摯為治徐廣曰摯鳥將擊必張羽毛也】其欲據仁義以道事君者寡偷合取容者眾獨以一公孫如之何

The Literati said: Ice and charcoal do not share a vessel, and the sun and moon do not shine together. [Yan Yuan said: Salted fish and orchid and angelica are not stored in the same box, and Yao, Shun, Jie, and Zhou did not rule in the same state. The Han Feizi says: Ice and charcoal do not last in the same vessel, and cold and heat do not arrive at the same time. Liu Jun said: Fragrant grass and stinking grass do not share a vessel, and the owl and the phoenix do not join wings.] In the time of Gongsun Hong (the base text's character for 'Hong' is obscure and lost in transcription; read as 'Hong'), the ruler was devising plans and giving attention to the four barbarians, so schemes of power and deceit advanced and men of Jing and Chu were employed, generals and commanders might even be enfeoffed and given towns, and those who struggled to capture received generous rewards (the base text's character here is obscure and lost in transcription; read as 'receive'), so fighters who strike fiercely rose from this. Afterward there was no rest from shields and spears, armies faced one another, armored soldiers were worn out (an obscure character in the base text), and the government's revenue was insufficient, so ministers who built defenses and promoted profit arose and the bear-and-brown-bear officers of Panxi were hidden away. [The Treatise on Equalization says: In the time of Emperor Wu, Yan Zhu, Zhu Maichen, and others recruited Eastern Ou and served the two Yue, so that the area between the Yangtze and Huai was desolate and costly. Tang Meng and Sima Xiangru opened roads to the southwestern barbarians, cutting mountains and clearing paths over a thousand li to widen Ba and Shu, and the people of Ba and Shu were exhausted. Peng Wu and Jia destroyed Chaoxian and set up the Canghai commandery, and the Yan and Qi region was stirred and moved. When Wang Hui devised a plan at Mayi, the Xiongnu cut off the marriage alliance and invaded and harassed the northern frontier, the troops were linked together without release, the world suffered from its toil, and shields and spears multiplied daily. Those who traveled carried provisions and those who stayed home sent them; inside and outside were stirred up and kept supplying one another, the people resisted the burden by cunning use of the law, and wealth and bribes declined and were not enough. Those who contributed goods were given office, those who paid goods were freed of crimes, selection and recommendation declined, integrity and shame (the base text writes a lost character here) were confounded, martial strength was promoted, laws were strict and ordinances complete, and ministers promoting profit began from here. The Shangshu Zhonghou says: Lu Shang fished at Panxi and got a jade half-disk inscribed: 'Ji receives the mandate, Lu assists by the banner.' The Six Tactics says: King Wen divined for a hunt, and the scribe Bian made the divination and said it would be greatly fruitful on the north bank of the Wei, not a bear or brown bear, not a tiger or chi, but the omen yields a duke or marquis, Heaven has sent you a teacher. King Wen fasted for three days and hunted on the north bank of the Wei, and in the end saw Lu Shang sitting on thatch fishing. King Wu said: 'Be vigorous, Master! Shang, majestic, like tigers and pixiu, like bears and brown bears, in the suburbs of Shang; do not fear the fleeing, and use them for service in the western lands; be vigorous, Master!'] Canals were built at the Jing and Huai for water transport, and Dongguo Yan and Kong Jin established the salt and iron policy and other profitable measures; the rich bought rank and bought office and were exempt from punishment and freed of crimes. [Gong Yu said: In the time of Emperor Xiaowen, integrity was valued and corruption was despised, and merchants, sons-in-law living with the wife's family, and officials guilty of embezzlement were barred from office, and there was no law for redeeming crimes, so orders were carried out and prohibitions stopped and the whole land was greatly transformed. When Emperor Wu first came to rule the world, he honored the worthy and employed officers; seeing his own achievements as great, he followed his appetites and carried out a temporary change, allowing law-breakers to redeem their crimes and those who contributed grain to be appointed officials, so the officials were disordered, the people poor, and bandits arose together. Xiao Wangzhi said: In the fourth year of Tianhan, those sentenced to death were regularly made to pay five hundred thousand cash to reduce the death sentence by one grade, and powerful officials and people were asked to seize and lend until they became robbers in order to redeem their crimes. Afterward treacherous people were violent and bandits rose together, to the point of attacking towns and killing commandery governors, filling the mountains and valleys, and the officials could not stop them. A bright edict sent envoys in embroidered robes to attack them with raised troops, and more than half were executed before it subsided.] Public expenditure increased and those carrying it out followed private interests; above and below made no demands of each other, and the people, unable to endure the wearing down, fell back on the law, so the harsh ministers advanced and were recognized, and the law of obstructing and disregarding arose. [The Treatise on Equalization says: When the way of officials is mixed and many-sided, offices are consumed and neglected. Since Gongsun Hong used the principle of the Spring and Autumn Annals to rein in his subordinates and took the Han chancellorship, and Zhang Tang as Commandant of Justice decided cases by strict wording, the law of seeing and knowing arose, and the cases of obstructing, disregarding, slandering, and thorough investigation were used. The following year the traces of rebellion by the kings of Huainan, Hengshan, and Jiangdu appeared, and the ministers pursued the clues and prosecuted, reaching their followers, so that tens of thousands were executed, and senior officials became ever more harsh and urgent and laws more exacting. Zhang Yan says: 'Seeing and knowing' means that officials who see and know but do not report and so deliberately let it pass are punished with the crime. Ru Chun says: 'Obstructing' means obstructing the Son of Heaven's laws so that they are not carried out.] Du Zhou, Jian Xuan, and their like became eminent by deciding cases by strict wording, and Wang Wenshu and his kind became prominent by striking and killing like hawks and falcons. [The Treatise on Equalization says: The Imperial Counselor Zhang Tang was just then eminent and in power, Jian Xuan and Du Zhou and others were Palace Assistants, and Yi Zong, Yin Qi, Wang Wenshu and others, by being harsh, urgent, and deeply severe, became Nine Ministers. The Biographies of Harsh Officials says they governed by striking like hawks and seizing like beasts. Xu Guang says: A raptor about to strike must spread its feathers.] Those who sought to rest on humaneness and righteousness and serve the ruler by the Way were few, and those who stealthily fit in and sought to please were many; with only one Gongsun Hong, what could be done?

御史曰文學祖述仲尼稱誦其徳以為自古及今未之有也然孔子修道齊魯之間教化洙泗之上弟子不為變當世不為治魯國之削滋甚齊宣王褒儒尊學孟軻淳于髠之徒受上大夫之祿不任職而論國事蓋齊稷下先生千有餘人【齊世家曰宣王喜文學遊說之士自如騶衍淳于髠田駢接予慎到環淵之徒七十六人皆腸列第為上大夫不治而議論是以齊稷下學士復盛且數百千人劉向別録曰齊有稷門城門也談說之士期防於稷下也虞喜曰齊有稷山立館其下以待遊士也】當此之時非一公孫也弱燕攻齊長驅至臨淄湣【音敏】王遁逃死於莒而不能救王建禽【通作擒】於秦與之俱虜而不能存若此儒者之安國尊君未始有效也

The Imperial Counselor said: The Literati take Zhongni as their ancestral model and praise his virtue, thinking that from antiquity to the present there has been none like him. Yet Confucius cultivated the Way between Qi and Lu and taught and transformed on the banks of the Zhu and Si, and his disciples did not change and the age was not governed, and the decline of the state of Lu was all the worse. King Xuan of Qi honored Confucians and esteemed learning, and Mencius, Chunyu Kun, and their like received the salary of senior grandees and discussed state affairs without holding office, indeed over a thousand masters of the Jixia Academy in Qi. [The Hereditary House of Qi says: King Xuan liked literary men and wandering persuaders, and such men as Zou Yan, Chunyu Kun, Tian Pian, Jie Yu, Shen Dao, and Huan Yuan, seventy-six in all, were given residences and made senior grandees, discussing without governing, so the scholars of the Jixia in Qi again flourished to some hundreds and thousands. Liu Xiang's Bielu says: Qi had the Ji Gate, a city gate, where persuaders met at the Jixia. Yu Xi says: Qi had Mount Ji, and a lodge was built beneath it to await wandering scholars.] At that time there was not only one Gongsun Hong. When weak Yan attacked Qi, it drove deep to Linzi; King Min (reading note: 'Min' is read as 'min') fled and died at Ju without being able to be rescued, and King Jian was captured by Qin (the base text's 'qin' is equated with 'seize'), carried off captive together with them without being able to survive. If this is so, the Confucians' securing the state and honoring the ruler has never once been effective.

文學曰無鞭策雖造父不能調駟馬無勢位雖舜禹不能治萬民【秦紀曰造父以善御幸於周繆王得溫驪騄耳驊騮之駟西廵狩樂而忘歸徐偃王作亂造父為繆王御長驅歸周以救亂繆王以趙城封造父荀子曰造父者天下之善御者也無輿馬則無所見其能羿者天下之善射者也無弓矢則無所見其巧大儒者善調一天下者也無百里之地則無所見其功】孔子曰鳳鳥不至河不出圖吾已矣夫【音扶】故軺【音韶】車良馬無以馳之【釋名曰軺車軺遙也逺也四向逺望之車也古本作翹車逸詩曰翹翹車乗招我以弓】聖德仁義無所施之【指武篇曰五帝三王教以仁義而天下變也孔子亦教以仁義而天下不從者何也昔明王有紱冕以尊賢有斧鉞以誅惡故其賞至重而刑至深而天下變孔子賢顔淵無以賞之賤孺悲無以罰之故天下不從是故道非權不立非勢不行是道尊然後行】齊宣之時不顯賢進士國家富強威行敵國【詩傳曰孟子說齊宣王而不說淳于髠侍孟子曰今日說公之君公之君不說意者其未知善之為善乎淳于髠曰夫子亦誠無善耳昔者瓠巴鼓瑟而潛魚出聼伯牙鼓琴而六馬仰秣魚馬猶知善之為善而況君人者也孟子曰夫震雷之起也破竹折木震驚天下而不能使聾者卒有聞日月之明徧照天下而不能使盲者卒有見今公之君若此也淳于髠曰不然昔者揖封生髙商齊人好歌杞梁之妻悲哭而人稱詠夫聲無細而不聞行無隠而不形夫子苟賢居魯而魯國之削何也孟子曰不用賢削何有也吞舟之魚不居潛澤度量之士不居汙世夫蓺冬至必雕吾亦時矣詩曰不自我先不自我後非遭凋世者歟尊賢篇曰齊宣王坐淳于髠侍宣王曰先生論寡人何好淳于髠曰古者所好四而王所好三焉宣王曰古者所好何與寡人所好淳于髠曰古者好馬王亦好馬古者好味王亦好味古者好色王亦好色古者好士王獨不好士宣王曰國無士耳有則寡人亦說之矣淳于髠曰古者驊騮騏今無有王選於眾王好馬矣古者有豹象之胎今無有王選於眾王好味矣古者有毛嬙西施今無有王選於眾王好色矣王必將待堯舜禹湯之士而後好之則堯舜禹湯之士亦不好王矣宣王嘿然無以應齊防曰先生王鬥造門而欲見齊宣王宣王使謁者延入王鬥曰鬥趨見王為好勢王趨見鬥為好士於王何如使者復還報王曰先生徐之寡人請從宣王因趨而迎之於門與入曰寡人奉先君之宗廟守社稷聞先生直言正諌不諱王鬥對曰王聞之過鬥生於亂世事亂君焉敢直言正諫宣王忿然作色不說有間王鬥曰昔先君桓公所好者五九合諸侯一匡天下天子授籍立為太伯今王有四焉宣王說曰寡人愚陋守齊國唯恐夫抎之焉能有四焉王鬥曰先君好馬王亦好馬先君好狗王亦好狗先君好酒王亦好酒先君好色王亦好色先君好士而王不好士宣王曰當今之世無士寡人何好王鬥曰世無騏騄駬王之駟已備矣世無東郭俊盧氏之狗王之走狗已具矣世無毛嬙西施王宮已充矣王亦不好士也何患無士王曰寡人憂國愛民固願得士以治之王鬥曰君之憂國愛民不若王愛尺谷也王曰何謂也王鬥曰王使人為冠不使左右便辟而使工者何也為能之也今王治齊非左右便辟無使也臣故曰不如愛尺也宣王謝曰寡人有罪國家於是舉士五人任官齊國大治】及湣【音敏】王奮二世之餘烈南舉楚淮北並巨宋苞十二國西摧三晉卻強秦五國賓從鄒魯之君泗上諸侯皆入臣【齊世家曰湣王七年與宋攻魏敗之觀澤十二年攻魏二十三年與秦撃敗楚於重丘二十六年齊君韓魏共攻秦至函谷軍焉二十九年齊佐趙滅中山三十六年王為東帝三十八年伐宋宋王出亡死於溫齊南割楚之淮北西侵三晉欲以並周室為天子泗上諸侯鄒魯之君皆稱臣諸侯恐懼】矜功不休百姓不堪諸侯諫不從各分散慎到捷子亡去田駢如薛而孫卿適楚內無良臣故諸侯合謀而伐之【齊防曰齊負郭之民有孤狐咺者正議閔王斮之檀衢百姓不附齊孫室子陳舉直言殺之東閭宗室離心司馬穰苴為政者也殺之大臣不親以故燕舉兵使昌國君將而撃之齊使向子將而應之齊軍破向子輿一乗亡逹子收餘卒復振與燕戰求所以賞者閔王不肯與軍破走王奔莒淖齒數之曰夫千乗博昌之間方數百里雨血霑衣王知之乎王曰不知嬴博之間地坼至泉王知之乎王曰不知人有當闕而哭者求之則不得去之則聞其聲王知之乎王曰不知淖齒曰天雨血霑衣者天以告也地坼至泉者地以告也人有當闕而哭者人以告也天地人皆以告矣而王不知戒焉何得無誅乎於是殺閔王於鼔裡雜事篇曰齊閔王亡居衛晝日歩走謂公玉丹曰我已亡矣而不知其故吾所以亡者其何哉公玉丹對曰臣以王為已知之矣王故尚未之知耶王之所以亡者以賢也以天下之主皆不肖而惡王之賢也因與合兵而攻王此王之所以亡也閔王慨然嘆息曰賢固若是其苦耶丹又謂閔王曰古人有辭天下無憂色者臣聞其聲於王見其實王名稱東帝實有天下去國居衛容貎充盈顔色發揚無重國之意王曰甚善丹知寡人自去國而居衛也帶三益矣遂以自賢驕盈不止閔王亡走衛衛君避宮舍之稱臣而供具閔王不遜衛人侵之閔王去走鄒魯有驕色鄒魯不納遂走莒楚使淖齒將兵救齊因相閔王淖齒擢閔王之筋而懸之廟梁宿昔而殺之而與燕共分齊地悲夫閔王臨大齊之國地方數千裡然而兵敗於諸侯地奪於燕昭宗廟防亡社稷不祀宮室空虗身亡逃竄甚於徒尚不知所以亡甚可痛也猶自以為賢豈不哀哉公玉丹徒之中而道之謟佞甚矣閔王不覺追而善之以辱為榮以憂為樂其亡晩矣而卒見殺故齊閔王雖至死亡終身不諭者也悲夫】王建聽流說信反間【音諫】用後勝之計不與諸侯從親以亡國為秦所禽【通作擒】不亦宜乎【齊策曰始皇嘗遣使者遺君王后玉連環曰齊多智而觧此環否君王后以示群臣群臣不知解君王后引錐椎破之謂秦使曰謹以解矣及君王后病且卒誡建曰群臣之可用者某建曰請書之君王后曰善取筆牘受書君王后曰老婦已忘矣君王后死後後勝相齊多受秦間金玉使賓客入秦皆為變辭勸王朝秦不修攻戰之備齊王建入朝於秦雍門司馬前曰所為立王者為社稷耶為王立王耶王曰為社稷司馬曰為社稷王何以去社稷而入秦齊王還車而反即墨大夫聞雍門司馬諌而聼之則以為可即入見齊王曰齊地方數千裡帶甲數百萬夫三晉大夫皆不便秦而在阿鄄之間者百數王收而與之百萬之眾使收三晉之故地即臨晉之闗可以入矣鄢郢大夫不欲為秦而在城南下者百數王收而與之百萬之師使收楚故地即武闗可以入矣如此則齊威可立秦國可亡矣舍南面之稱制乃西面而事秦竊為大王不取也齊王不聼秦使陳馳誘齊王內之約與五百里之地齊王不聼即墨大夫而聼陳馳遂入秦處之共松栢之間餓而死齊世家曰始君王后事秦謹與諸侯信齊亦東邊海上秦日夜攻三晉燕楚五國各自救於秦以故王建立四十餘年不受兵君王后死後勝相齊多受秦間金多使賓客入秦秦又多予金客皆為反間勸王去從朝秦不修攻戰之備不助五國攻秦秦以故得滅五國五國已亡秦兵卒入臨淄民莫敢格者王建遂降遷於共故齊人怨王建不蚤與諸侯合從攻秦聼奸臣賓客以亡其國歌之曰松耶栢耶住建共者客耶疾建用客之不詳也】

The Literati said: Without a whip, even Zaofu cannot control a team of four horses; without power and position, even Shun and Yu cannot govern the myriad people. [The Annals of Qin says: Zaofu, favored by King Mu of Zhou for his skill in driving, obtained a team of Ji, Wenli, Lu'er, and Hualiu horses, and toured west and was so happy he forgot to return. When King Yan of Xu rebelled, Zaofu drove for King Mu and galloped straight back to Zhou to quell the disorder. King Mu enfeoffed Zaofu with the city of Zhao. The Xunzi says: Zaofu was the world's best driver, but without carriage and horses there is nowhere to see his ability; Yi was the world's best archer, but without bow and arrow there is nowhere to see his skill; the great Confucian is the best at governing the world as one, but without a hundred li of land there is nowhere to see his merit.] Confucius said: The phoenix does not come and the river gives no chart; I am finished! (Reading note: 'fu' is read as 'fu'.) So with a light carriage and good horses but nothing to gallop on (the Shiming says: 'yao' carriage, 'yao' means distant, a carriage for looking far in four directions; the old text writes it as a high-wheeled cart; a lost ode says: 'High-wheeled carriages, summoning me with a bow'), the sage's virtue, humaneness, and righteousness have nowhere to be applied. [The Shuoyuan, 'Pointing to Martial Matters,' says: The Five Emperors and Three Kings taught with humaneness and righteousness and the world changed; Confucius also taught with humaneness and righteousness and the world did not follow. Why? In the past the enlightened kings had ceremonial aprons and caps to honor the worthy and axes to execute the wicked, so their rewards were very weighty and their punishments very deep, and the world changed. Confucius considered Yan Yuan worthy but had nothing to reward him with and considered Ru Bei base but had nothing to punish him with, so the world did not follow. Thus the Way cannot be established without power and cannot be practiced without circumstance; only when the Way is honored is it practiced.] In the time of King Xuan of Qi, he did not make the worthy prominent or advance officers, yet the state was rich and strong and his authority was practiced among rival states. [The Hanshi Waizhuan says: Mencius persuaded King Xuan of Qi, who was not pleased, with Chunyu Kun in attendance. Mencius said: 'Today I persuaded your ruler and your ruler was not pleased; perhaps he does not yet know that good is good?' Chunyu Kun said: 'Master, perhaps you truly have nothing good. In the past Hu Ba played the zither and submerged fish came out to listen, Bo Ya played the zither and the six horses lifted their heads from their fodder; fish and horses even know that good is good, how much more a ruler of people?' Mencius said: 'When thunder rises, it splits bamboo and breaks trees and shakes the world, yet cannot make the deaf suddenly hear; the brightness of sun and moon shines on all the world, yet cannot make the blind suddenly see. Your ruler is like this.' Chunyu Kun said: 'Not so. In the past Yi Feng produced Gao Shang and the people of Qi loved songs; the wife of Qi Liang wept bitterly and people praised it. No sound is so faint that it is not heard, and no conduct so hidden that it does not show. If you, Master, are truly worthy, why was Lu diminished while you lived there?' Mencius said: 'Without using the worthy, what is there to diminish? A fish that swallows a boat does not stay in a pond, and a man of great measure does not dwell in a filthy age. Plants and trees surely wither at the winter solstice, and I too am at the time. The Odes say: Not before me, not after me. Is this not meeting a withering age?' The Shuoyuan, 'Honoring the Worthy,' says: King Xuan of Qi sat with Chunyu Kun in attendance. King Xuan said: 'Master, what do you say I like?' Chunyu Kun said: 'The ancients liked four things and Your Majesty likes three.' King Xuan said: 'What did the ancients like and what do I like?' Chunyu Kun said: 'The ancients liked horses and Your Majesty also likes horses; the ancients liked fine food and Your Majesty also likes fine food; the ancients liked beauty and Your Majesty also likes beauty; the ancients liked officers and Your Majesty alone does not like officers.' King Xuan said: 'The state has no officers; if there were, I too would be pleased with them.' Chunyu Kun said: 'The ancients had Hualiu, Qi, and Ji horses (the base text's character for 'Ji' is obscure and lost in transcription; read as 'Ji'); today there are none, but Your Majesty chooses from the many, so Your Majesty likes horses. The ancients had leopard and elephant embryos; today there are none, but Your Majesty chooses from the many, so Your Majesty likes fine food. The ancients had Mao Qiang and Xi Shi; today there are none, but Your Majesty chooses from the many, so Your Majesty likes beauty. If Your Majesty must wait for officers like Yao, Shun, Yu, and Tang before liking them, then officers like Yao, Shun, Yu, and Tang will not like Your Majesty either.' King Xuan was silent and had no answer. The Strategies of Qi says: Master Wang Dou came to the gate wishing to see King Xuan of Qi. King Xuan had the usher invite him in. Wang Dou said: 'If I, Dou, hurry to see the king, I am fond of power; if the king hurries to see Dou, the king is fond of officers; how does it seem to the king?' The envoy returned and reported. The king said: 'Master, slow down, I will follow you.' King Xuan then hurried and met him at the gate and entered with him, saying: 'I serve the former rulers' ancestral temple and guard the altars of the state; I have heard that you, Master, speak frankly and admonish correctly without avoidance.' Wang Dou replied: 'The king has heard wrongly. I, Dou, was born in a disordered age and served a disordered ruler; how would I dare speak frankly and admonish correctly?' King Xuan became angry and displeased. After a while, Wang Dou said: 'In the past your predecessor Duke Huan liked five things: he assembled the feudal lords nine times, set the world right in one action, the Son of Heaven handed him the registers, and he was made Great Elder. Now the king has four of them.' King Xuan was pleased and said: 'I am foolish and shabby in guarding Qi and fear only to lose it; how could I have four?' Wang Dou said: 'Your predecessor liked horses and the king also likes horses; your predecessor liked dogs and the king also likes dogs; your predecessor liked wine and the king also likes wine; your predecessor liked beauty and the king also likes beauty; your predecessor liked officers and the king does not like officers.' King Xuan said: 'There are no officers in the present age; what could I like?' Wang Dou said: 'The world has no Qi, Ji, or Lu'er horses, but the king's team is already complete; the world has no dogs of Dongguo Jun or the Lu clan, but the king's hunting dogs are already supplied; the world has no Mao Qiang or Xi Shi, but the king's palace is already full. The king also does not like officers; why worry there are no officers?' The king said: 'I worry for the state and love the people, and truly wish to obtain officers to govern it.' Wang Dou said: 'Your worry for the state and love of the people is not as great as the king's love of a foot of fine silk.' The king said: 'What do you mean?' Wang Dou said: 'When the king has a cap made, he does not use his attendants and favorites but uses a craftsman; why? Because they are capable. Now when the king governs Qi, he uses none but his attendants and favorites. So I say it is not as great as love of a foot of silk.' King Xuan apologized and said: 'I have been at fault toward the state.' So he promoted five officers to office, and Qi was greatly governed.] When King Min took up the surviving glory of two generations, he took Chu's Huai in the south, annexed great Song in the north, enclosed twelve states, crushed the Three Jin in the west and drove back mighty Qin; five states followed as guests, and the rulers of Zou and Lu and the feudal lords of the Si valley all entered as ministers. [The Hereditary House of Qi says: In King Min's seventh year, he and Song attacked Wei and defeated it at Guanze; in the twelfth year he attacked Wei; in the twenty-third year he joined Qin in defeating Chu at Zhongqiu; in the twenty-sixth year the rulers of Qi, Han, and Wei jointly attacked Qin and camped at Hangu; in the twenty-ninth year Qi helped Zhao destroy Zhongshan; in the thirty-sixth year the king became Eastern Emperor; in the thirty-eighth year he attacked Song, and the king of Song fled and died at Wen. Qi cut Chu's land north of the Huai in the south, encroached on the Three Jin in the west, and wished to annex the Zhou house and be Son of Heaven; the feudal lords of the Si valley and the rulers of Zou and Lu all declared themselves ministers, and the feudal lords were afraid.] He boasted of his achievements without rest and the people could not endure; the feudal lords remonstrated and he did not follow, and they scattered. Shen Dao and Jiezi left, Tian Pian went to Xue and Master Xun went to Chu; with no good ministers inside, the feudal lords conspired and attacked him. [The Strategies of Qi says: Among the people living near the outer wall of Qi was Gu Hu Xuan, who gave upright counsel; King Min beheaded him on the Tan highway, and the people did not attach to him. Chen Ju, a scion of Qi's Sun family, spoke straight words, and was killed at the east gate, and the royal clan became estranged. Sima Rangju was a governor and was killed, and the great ministers were not close. So Yan raised troops and had the lord of Changguo lead them to attack. Qi sent Master Xiang to lead and meet them; the Qi army was broken and Xiang Zi with one chariot fled; Da Zi gathered the remaining soldiers and revived, fought Yan, and sought rewards, but King Min would not give them. The army was broken and fled, and the king fled to Ju. Nao Chi enumerated his faults saying: 'Between Qianshen and Bochang, for several hundred li it rained blood and soaked clothing; does the king know it?' The king said, 'I do not.' 'Between Yingbo the ground split to the springs; does the king know it?' The king said, 'I do not.' 'Someone stood before the gate and wept; when sought he could not be found, when one left one heard his voice; does the king know it?' The king said, 'I do not.' Nao Chi said: 'Heaven rained blood to soak clothing: Heaven informed you; the ground split to the springs: Earth informed you; someone wept before the gate: people informed you. Heaven, Earth, and people have all informed you and yet the king did not know to take warning; how could you avoid execution?' So he killed King Min at Guli. The Shuoyuan, 'Miscellaneous Matters,' says: King Min of Qi, in flight and living in Wei, walked in the daytime and said to Gongyu Dan: 'I have already been ruined without knowing the reason; what is the reason I have been ruined?' Gongyu Dan answered: 'I thought Your Majesty already knew; does Your Majesty still not know? The reason Your Majesty was ruined was being worthy. Because the rulers of the world are all unworthy and hated Your Majesty's worth, they joined forces and attacked you; this is why Your Majesty was ruined.' King Min sighed with feeling: 'Is worthiness truly so bitter?' Dan then said to King Min: 'There were ancients who gave up the world without a look of sorrow; I have heard of them and see their reality in Your Majesty. Your Majesty was named Eastern Emperor and truly held the world, yet left your state to live in Wei, and your countenance is full and your color radiant, with no thought of regard for the state.' The king said: 'Very good. Dan knows that since I left the state and lived in Wei I have gained three benefits.' So he went on being arrogant and self-satisfied without stopping. King Min fled to Wei, and the ruler of Wei vacated his palace for him, called himself a minister, and provided for him; King Min was not humble, and the people of Wei encroached on him. King Min left for Zou and Lu with an arrogant look, and Zou and Lu did not take him in, so he fled to Ju. Chu sent Nao Chi to lead troops to rescue Qi and became King Min's chancellor; Nao Chi pulled out King Min's tendons and hung him from the temple beam, and killed him by the next day, and shared the land of Qi with Yan. How sad! King Min presided over the great state of Qi, its land several thousand li square, yet his troops were defeated by the feudal lords and his land seized by King Zhao of Yan, his ancestral temple destroyed (the base text writes 'ancestral temple (lost character)', which should be 'destroyed'), his altars unsacrificed, his palaces empty, himself fleeing in flight, worse than a convict; he still did not know why he was ruined, which is most painful; he still thought himself worthy, how could this not be pitiable? Gongyu Dan, among convicts, spoke most flatteringly, and King Min did not notice and instead pursued and favored him, taking disgrace as glory and sorrow as joy; his ruin came late but in the end he was killed. So King Min of Qi, though he reached death, never understood to the end of his life. How sad!] King Jian listened to drifting talk and trusted the sowing of discord (reading note: 'jian' is read as 'jian'), used Hou Sheng's plan, did not ally with the feudal lords, and so lost his state and was captured by Qin (the base text's 'qin' is equated with 'seize'); was that not fitting? [The Strategies of Qi says: The First Emperor once sent an envoy to give Queen Dowager Junwang a jade chain of linked rings, saying: 'Qi has much wisdom; can it untie this ring?' The queen dowager showed it to the ministers, and the ministers did not know how to untie it. The queen dowager took an awl and struck it to pieces, and said to the Qin envoy: 'It has been respectfully untied.' When the queen dowager fell ill and was about to die, she warned Jian: 'Among the ministers who can be used there is so-and-so.' Jian said: 'Please write it down.' The queen dowager said 'Good' and took brush and tablet to receive the writing; the queen dowager said: 'This old woman has already forgotten.' After the queen dowager died, Hou Sheng became chancellor of Qi, accepted much gold and jade from Qin spies, and sent guests into Qin who all gave altered words, urging the king to pay court to Qin and not prepare for offense and defense. King Jian of Qi went to court in Qin, and the Yongmen Sima came forward and said: 'For whom was the king established? For the altars of the state? Or for the king's own sake?' The king said: 'For the altars.' The Sima said: 'If for the altars, why does the king leave the altars and enter Qin?' The king of Qi turned his carriage and went back. The grandee of Jimo heard that the Yongmen Sima had remonstrated and been heeded, thought it possible, and went in to see the king of Qi saying: 'The land of Qi is several thousand li square, with several million armored troops. The grandees of the Three Jin who do not find Qin convenient and are between A and Juan number in the hundreds; if the king gathers them and gives them a million troops to recover the old lands of the Three Jin, then the Linjin pass can be entered; the grandees of Yan and Ying who do not wish to be Qin's and are below the city to the south number in the hundreds; if the king gathers them and gives them a million troops to recover the old lands of Chu, then the Wu pass can be entered. In this way Qi's authority can be established and the Qin state can be destroyed. To abandon facing south and declaring law and instead face west and serve Qin, I privately think Your Majesty should not take.' The king of Qi did not listen. Qin sent Chen Chi to lure the king of Qi into entering, promising him five hundred li of land. The king of Qi did not listen to the grandee of Jimo and listened to Chen Chi, and so entered Qin, was put among the pines and cypresses of Gong, and starved to death. The Hereditary House of Qi says: At first Queen Dowager Junwang served Qin carefully and was trustworthy with the feudal lords, and Qi was on the eastern seacoast; Qin attacked the Three Jin, Yan, and Chu day and night, and the five states each saved themselves from Qin, so King Jian reigned over forty years without suffering war. After the queen dowager died, Hou Sheng became chancellor of Qi, accepted much gold from Qin spies, sent many guests into Qin, and Qin gave much more gold; the guests all acted as double agents, urging the king to leave the alliance and pay court to Qin, not prepare for offense and defense, and not help the five states attack Qin. Because of this Qin was able to destroy the five states; once the five states had fallen, Qin troops finally entered Linzi, and no one dared resist, and King Jian then surrendered and was moved to Gong. So the people of Qi resented King Jian for not allying earlier with the feudal lords to attack Qin and for listening to treacherous ministers and guests so that he lost his state, and sang: Is it pines? Is it cypresses? Those who lodged Jian at Gong were guests? They hated Jian's use of guests as inauspicious.]

御史曰伊尹以割烹事湯百里以飯【上聲】牛要【平聲】穆公始為苟合信然與之伯【音霸】王【去聲】何言不從何道不行【孟子傳曰伊尹負鼎而勉湯以王百里奚飯牛車下而繆公用霸作先合然後引之大道】故商君以王道說孝公不用即以強國之道卒以就功鄒子以儒術幹世主不用即以變化始終之論卒以顯名【衛鞅傳曰公孫鞅聞秦孝公下令國中求賢者將修繆公之業東復侵地廼遂西入秦因孝公臣景監以求見孝公孝公既見衛鞅語事良乆孝公時時睡弗聼罷而孝公怒景監曰子之客妄人耳安足用耶景監以讓衛鞅衛鞅曰吾說公以帝道其志不開悟矣後五日復求見鞅鞅復見孝公益愈然而未中防罷而孝公復讓景監景監亦讓鞅鞅曰吾說公以王道而未入也請復見鞅鞅復見孝公孝公善之而未用也罷而去孝公謂景監曰汝客善可與語矣鞅曰吾說公以霸道其意欲用之矣誠復見我我知之矣衛鞅復見孝公公與語不自知膝之前於席也語數日不厭景監曰子何以中吾君吾君之驩甚也鞅曰吾說君以帝王之道比三代而君曰乆逺不能待且賢君者各及其身顯名天下安能邑邑待十數年而成帝王乎故吾以強國之術說君大說之耳然亦難以比德於殷周矣孝公既用衛鞅以衛鞅為左庶長卒定變法之令孟子傳曰騶衍睹有國者益侈不能尚德若大雅整之於身施及黎庻矣乃深觀隂陽消息而作恠迂之變終始大聖之篇十餘萬言其語閎大不經必先驗小物推而大之至於無垠王公大人初見其術懼然顧化是以騶子重於齊適梁惠王郊迎執賓主之禮適趙平原君側行襒席如燕昭王擁彗先驅請列弟子之座而受業築碣石宮身親往師之作主運其遊諸侯見尊禮如此鮑焦曰世不已知而行之不已者爽行也上不已用而幹之不止者是毀亷也行爽防毀然且不捨惑於利者也】故馬効千里不必胡代士貴成功不貴文辭【呂氏春秋曰良劔期乎能斷不期乎鏌鎁良馬期乎千里不期乎驁】孟軻守舊術不知世務故困於梁宋孔子能方不能圓故飢於黎丘【孟子傳曰仲尼菜色陳蔡孟軻困於齊梁晉文公曰直而不枉不可與長往方而不圎不可與長存】今晩世之儒勤徳時有乏匱言以為非因此不行自周室以來千有餘歳獨有文武成康如言必參一焉取所不能及而稱之猶躄【音壁】者能言逺不能行也聖人異塗同歸或行或止其趣一也商君雖革法改教志存於強國利民鄒子之作變化之術亦歸於仁義祭仲自貶損以行權時也【春秋曰宋人執鄭祭仲公羊傳曰祭仲者何鄭相也何以不名賢也何賢乎祭仲以為知權也其為知權奈何古者鄭國處於留先鄭伯有善乎鄶公者通乎夫人以取其國而遷鄭焉而野留莊公死已葬祭仲將往省於留塗出於宋宋人執之謂之曰為我出忽而立突祭仲不從其言則君必死國必亡從其言則君可以生易死國可以存易亡少遼緩之則突可故出而忽可故反是不可得則病然後有鄭國古人之有權者祭仲之權是也權者何權者反於經然後有善者也權之所設舎死亡無所設行權有道自貶損以行權不害人以行權殺人以自生亡人以自存君子不為也】故小枉大直君子為之【繆稱訓曰行險者不得履防出林者不得直道汜論曰誳寸而伸尺聖人為之小枉而大直君子行之】今硜硜然守一道引尾生之意即晉文之譎諸侯以尊周室不足道而管仲防恥辱以存亡不足稱也

The Imperial Counselor said: Yi Yin served Tang by cutting and cooking, and Baili Xi sought Duke Mu by feeding oxen (reading notes: 'fan' (to feed) is read in the rising tone; 'yao' (to seek) is read in the level tone); at first they matched casually, and truly joined him; what word of a hegemon or king would not be followed, and what way not practiced? [The Mencius commentary says: Yi Yin carried a cauldron and urged Tang to become king, and Baili Xi fed oxen under a cart and Duke Mu employed him to become hegemon; they first matched and then led him to the great Way.] So Lord Shang persuaded Duke Xiao with the Kingly Way and was not used, so used the Way of strengthening the state and in the end achieved merit; Master Zou sought rulers with Confucian learning and was not used, so used the theory of change and of beginning and end, and in the end became famous. [The Biography of Wei Yang says: Gongsun Yang heard that Duke Xiao of Qin issued an order throughout the state seeking worthy men, intending to restore Duke Mu's work and recover the lands in the east, so he went west into Qin and sought an audience through Jing Jian, a favored minister of Duke Xiao. When Duke Xiao met Wei Yang, they talked for a long time, and the duke was often asleep and did not listen. After they left, Duke Xiao angrily told Jing Jian: 'Your guest is just a fool; how is he worth using?' Jing Jian reproached Wei Yang. Wei Yang said: 'I spoke to the duke of the Way of emperors, and his mind was not opened.' Five days later he sought another audience. Yang saw Duke Xiao again and it was better, but still did not hit the point. After they left, Duke Xiao again reproached Jing Jian, and Jing Jian again reproached Yang. Yang said: 'I spoke to the duke of the Kingly Way and it did not enter. Let me see him again.' Yang saw Duke Xiao again, and the duke thought well of it but did not use him. After they left, Duke Xiao said to Jing Jian: 'Your guest is good; I can talk with him.' Yang said: 'I spoke to the duke of the Way of hegemony and he intends to use it. If he truly sees me again, I know it.' Wei Yang saw Duke Xiao again, and the duke talked with him, not realizing that his knees moved forward off the mat, and talked for days without tiring. Jing Jian said: 'How did you hit it with my lord? My lord is delighted.' Yang said: 'I spoke to the lord of the Way of emperors and kings, comparing it with the Three Dynasties, and the lord said it was too far off and he could not wait; moreover, worthy rulers each wish to be famous throughout the world in their own lifetimes, and how could he wait gloomily for ten-odd years to become emperor or king? So I spoke to him of the art of strengthening the state, and he was greatly pleased. Yet it is hard to compare it in virtue with Yin and Zhou.' Once Duke Xiao used Wei Yang, he made him Left Shuzhang and in the end fixed the decrees of changing the law. The Mencius commentary says: Zou Yan saw that the rulers of states grew more arrogant and extravagant and could not honor virtue as in the Great Odes, putting it in order in themselves and extending it to the common people, so he deeply observed the waxing and waning of yin and yang and made the strange and tortuous changes, and the chapters on the beginning and end of the great sages, more than a hundred thousand words. His language was grand and unorthodox; he first tested small things and extended them to the boundless. Kings and lords at first sight of his art were startled and turned toward transformation. So Master Zou was esteemed in Qi; going to Liang, King Hui welcomed him in the suburbs and held the ritual of host and guest; going to Zhao, Lord Pingyuan walked beside him and brushed the mat; going to Yan, King Zhao held a broom and led the way, asked to be seated among his disciples and receive instruction, built the Jieshi Palace and went in person to study with him, and he composed 'The Movement of the Masters.' His honor and treatment among the feudal lords was like this. Bao Jiao said: One who is not known by the age yet does not stop acting is of erring conduct; one who is not used by superiors yet does not stop seeking is of ruined integrity. Erring in conduct and ruined in integrity yet not giving up is being deluded by profit.] So a horse's merit is a thousand li and does not need to be from Hu or Dai, and an officer values achievement and not literary expression. [The Annals of Lu says: A good sword is expected to cut, not expected to be Moye; a good horse is expected to go a thousand li, not expected to be a Ji or Ao (the base text's character is obscure and lost in transcription; read as 'Ji').] Mencius kept to old methods and did not know the affairs of the age, so he was in difficulty in Liang and Song; Confucius could be square but not round, so he went hungry at Liqiu. [The Mencius commentary says: Zhongni had a hungry look in Chen and Cai, and Mencius was in difficulty in Qi and Liang. Duke Wen of Jin said: One who is straight and not crooked cannot go far with others; one who is square and not round cannot last long with others.] Now the Confucians of the late age strive for virtue, but there are times of want and shortage, and what they say is thought wrong, so it is not practiced. In the more than a thousand years since the Zhou house, there have only been Wen, Wu, Cheng, and Kang; if in speaking one must take one of them as a standard, taking what one cannot reach and praising it, it is like a lame man (reading note: 'bi' is read as 'bi') who can speak of the far but cannot walk it. The sages took different roads and returned to the same point, some acting and some stopping, but their aim was one. Lord Shang, though he reformed laws and changed teachings, kept his aim in strengthening the state and benefiting the people; Master Zou's making of the art of change also returned to humaneness and righteousness. Zhai Zhong lowered and diminished himself to practice expedience, which was timely. [The Spring and Autumn Annals says: The people of Song seized Zhai Zhong of Zheng. The Gongyang Commentary says: Who was Zhai Zhong? The chancellor of Zheng. Why is he not named? He was worthy. How was Zhai Zhong worthy? He is thought to have known expedience. How did he know expedience? In ancient times the state of Zheng was at Liu; the previous Marquis of Zheng had been on good terms with the Duke of Kuai, had an affair with the duchess to take over his state and moved Zheng there, and left Liu a wilderness. When Duke Zhuang died and was buried, Zhai Zhong was about to go inspect Liu and the road went through Song. The people of Song seized him and told him: 'Drive out Hu for me and establish Tu.' If Zhai Zhong did not follow their word, the ruler would surely die and the state would surely perish; if he followed their word, the ruler could live in place of dying, and the state survive in place of perishing; if he delayed a little, Tu could be deliberately driven out and Hu could be deliberately returned; if it could not be obtained, then there would be harm, and only after that the state of Zheng. Among ancient men who had expedience, Zhai Zhong's expedience was this. What is expedience? Expedience is going against the norm and then having something good. The place where expedience is set is nowhere but where there is death and ruin. There is a way of practicing expedience: lower and diminish oneself to practice expedience, not harm others to practice expedience; to kill people to save oneself, or ruin people to preserve oneself, the gentleman does not do.] So a small crookedness for a great straightness is what the gentleman does. [The Huainanzi, 'Miao Cheng,' says: One who walks a dangerous path cannot tread level ground, and one who leaves the forest cannot take a straight road. The 'Discussion of Generalities' says: To bend an inch to extend a foot, the sage does it; a little crookedness for great straightness, the gentleman does it.] Now to cling rigidly to one way and cite Weisheng's idea would be to say that Duke Wen of Jin's deception of the feudal lords to honor the Zhou house is not worth mentioning, and that Guan Zhong's bearing of disgrace to preserve what was perishing is not worth praising.

文學曰伊尹之於湯知聖主也百里之歸秦知明君也【許慎曰伊尹處於有莘之野執鼎爼和五味以幹湯欲其調隂陽行其道詩云實維阿衡實左右商王是也孟子曰百里奚時舉於秦知繆公之可與有行也而相之可謂不智乎】二君之能知伯【音霸】王其冊【通作防】素形於已非暗而以防防決事也孔子曰名不正則言不順言不順則事不成如何其茍合而以成伯【音霸】王也君子執徳秉義而行故造次必於是顛沛必於是孟子曰居今之朝【音潮】不易其俗而成千乗【去聲】之勢不能一朝居也寧窮飢居於陋巷安能變已而從俗也【齊桓公曰萬乗之君不好仁義不輕身於布衣之士布衣之士不欲富貴不輕身於萬乗之君叢談曰君子雖窮不處亡國之勢雖貧不受亂君之祿尊乎亂世同乎暴君君子之恥也】闔廬殺僚公子札去而之延陵終身不入吳國魯公殺子赤叔肸退而隠處不食其祿【節士傳曰延陵季子者吳王之子也嫡同母昆弟四人長曰遏次曰餘祭次曰夷昩次曰札札即季子最小而賢兄弟皆愛之既除防將立季子季子辭曰曹宣公之卒也諸侯與曹人不義曹君將立子臧子臧去之遂不為也以成曹君君子曰能守節矣君義嗣也誰敢幹君有國非吾節也札雖不才願附子臧以無失節固立之棄其室而耕乃舍之遏曰今若是作而與季子季子必不受請無與子而與弟弟兄迭為君而致諸侯於季子皆曰諾故諸其為君者皆輕死為勇飲食必祝曰天若有吾國必疾有禍予身故遏也死餘祭立餘祭死夷昧立夷昧死而國宜之季子也季子使而未還僚者長兄之庶子也自立為吳王季子使而還至則君事之遏之子曰王子光號曰闔閭不恱曰先君之所為不與子而與弟者凡為季子也將從先君之命則國宜之季子也如不從先君之命而與子我宜當立者也僚惡得為君於是使專諸刺僚而致國乎季子季子曰爾殺吾君吾受爾國是吾與爾為亂也爾殺吾兄吾又殺爾是父子兄弟相殺終身無已也去而之延陵終身不入吳國故號曰延陵季子君子以其不受國為義以其不殺為仁是以春秋賢季子而尊貴之也左傳曰冬十月仲殺惡及視而立宣公書曰子卒諱之也仲以君命召惠伯其宰人公冉務人曰若君命可使非君命何聼弗聼乃入殺而埋之馬矢之中公冉務人奉其帑以奔蔡既而復叔仲氏公羊傳曰子卒者孰謂謂子赤也何以不日之也何耳殺也殺則何以不日不忍言也穀梁傳曰公弟叔賢之也其賢之何也宣弒而非之也非之則胡為不去也曰兄弟也何去而之與之財則曰我足矣織屨而食終身不食宣公之食君子以是為通恩也以取貴乎春秋節士傳曰魯宣公者魯文公之弟也文公薨文公之子子赤立為魯侯宣公殺子赤而奪之國立為魯侯公子肸者宣公之同母弟也宣公殺子赤而肸非之宣公與之祿則曰我足矣何以兄之食為哉織屨而食終身不食宣公之食其仁恩厚矣其守節固矣故春秋美而貴之孔子曰刳胎焚夭則麒麟不至幹澤而漁則蛟龍不遊覆巢毀卵則鳳鳥不翔君子重傷其類者也】虧義得尊枉道取容效死不為也聞正道而行釋事而退未聞枉道以求容也【子貢曰非其世者不生其利汚其君者不履其土鮑焦曰賢者重進而輕退廉者易愧而輕死石買曰女不貞衒士不信】

The Literati said: Yi Yin knew in Tang a sage ruler; Boli Xi, turning to Qin, knew in Duke Mu an enlightened lord. [Xu Shen said: Yi Yin dwelt in the wilds of Youshen and, holding the cauldron and cutting board and blending the five flavors, sought an audience with Tang, wishing to harmonize yin and yang and carry out his Way. The Book of Poetry says: 'It was truly Aheng who truly assisted the king of Shang.' This is it. Mencius said: 'Boli Xi was raised in Qin; he knew that Duke Mu could be one with whom to act and served as his chancellor; can this be called unwise?'] That these two rulers could know hegemons and kings, their plans were long formed in themselves, and they did not decide matters in the dark and obscurely. Confucius said: if names are not correct, speech does not flow; if speech does not flow, affairs are not accomplished; how could one carelessly join and thereby become a hegemon or king? The gentleman holds virtue and keeps righteousness in his conduct, so even in haste he must be in it and even in turmoil he must be in it. Mencius said: to stand in today's court without changing its customs and yet gain the power of a thousand-chariot state, he could not remain a single morning. He would rather be poor and hungry in a mean alley; how could he change himself to follow custom? [Duke Huan of Qi said: a ruler of ten thousand chariots who does not love benevolence and righteousness does not lightly deal with commoner scholars; a commoner scholar who does not desire wealth and honor does not lightly deal with rulers of ten thousand chariots. The Miscellaneous Talks say: though poor, the gentleman does not dwell in the situation of a ruined state; though poor, he does not accept the salary of a disordered ruler. To be honored in a disordered age and to be the same as a tyrant is a shame to the gentleman.] When Helu killed Liao, Prince Zha left for Yanling and never entered the state of Wu for the rest of his life; when the Duke of Lu killed Zichi, Shu Xi withdrew and lived in seclusion and did not eat his salary. [The Biographies of Scholars of Principle say: Jizi of Yanling was a son of the King of Wu; of four brothers of the same mother, the eldest was called E, the next Yuji, the next Yimo, and the youngest Zha. Zha was Jizi, the youngest and worthy, and his brothers all loved him. After the mourning was over they were about to set Jizi up as ruler, but Jizi declined, saying: 'When Duke Xuan of Cao died, the feudal lords and the people of Cao thought the Cao ruler unrighteous and were going to set up Zizang, but Zizang left and so did not do it, which allowed the Cao ruler to stand. The gentleman said Zizang could keep his principle. You are the rightful heir; who dares oppose you? To hold a state is not my principle. Though I, Zha, am untalented, I wish to attach myself to Zizang and not lose my principle.' They insisted on setting him up, and he abandoned his house and went to plow, so they let him go. E said: 'If we now suddenly give it to Jizi, Jizi will surely not accept it. Let us not give it to a son but to a brother, and let brothers succeed one another as ruler and finally yield the state to Jizi.' All said yes. So each of those who became ruler made light of death as a mark of courage, and at every meal prayed: 'If Heaven has our state, may disaster fall at once on my own person.' So when E died, Yuji was set up; when Yuji died, Yimo was set up; when Yimo died, the state should have gone to Jizi. Jizi was away on a mission and had not returned, and Liao, the son of the eldest brother by a secondary wife, set himself up as King of Wu. When Jizi returned from his mission, on arriving he served him as ruler. E's son, called Prince Guang and titled Helu, was displeased and said: 'The reason the late ruler did not give it to a son but to a brother was entirely for Jizi. If we follow the late ruler's command, the state should go to Jizi; if we do not follow the late ruler's command and give it to a son, I should be the one set up. How can Liao be ruler?' Then he had Zhuan Zhu stab Liao and offered the state to Jizi. Jizi said: 'You killed my ruler and I accept your state; this is joining you in disorder. You killed my brother and I kill you in turn; this is father and son, brothers, killing each other for life without end.' He left for Yanling and never entered the state of Wu for the rest of his life, so he is called Jizi of Yanling. The gentleman took his not accepting the state as righteousness and his not killing as benevolence, which is why the Spring and Autumn Annals honored Jizi as worthy. The Zuo Commentary says: In the winter, tenth month, Zhong killed E and Shi and set up Duke Xuan, and the Annals recorded 'the son died,' concealing it. Zhong summoned Hui Bo in the ruler's name, and his steward Gongran Wuren said: 'If it is the ruler's command, go; if it is not the ruler's command, what is there to obey?' He did not listen and went in, and was killed and buried in horse dung. Gongran Wuren took his family and fled to Cai, and then the Shuzhong clan was restored. The Gongyang Commentary says: 'The son died': who is meant? It means Zichi. Why is the date not given? It is concealing it. What is concealed? That he was killed. If killed, why is the date not given? One cannot bear to say it. The Guliang Commentary says: the Duke's younger brother Shu Xi was regarded as worthy. Why was he regarded as worthy? Because Xuan committed regicide and he condemned it. If he condemned it, why did he not leave? He said: he is my brother, so where would I go? When given wealth he said 'I have enough,' wove sandals for food, and never ate Duke Xuan's food. The gentleman took this as exemplifying the passing on of kindness, and so was valued in the Annals. The Biographies of Scholars of Principle say: Duke Xuan of Lu was the younger brother of Duke Wen of Lu. When Duke Wen died, Duke Wen's son Zichi was set up as Marquis of Lu; Duke Xuan killed Zichi, seized the state and was set up as Marquis of Lu. Prince Xi was Duke Xuan's full younger brother. Duke Xuan killed Zichi and Xi condemned it; when Duke Xuan gave him salary he said 'I have enough; why would I take my brother's food?' He wove sandals for food and never ate Duke Xuan's food. His benevolence and kindness were deep and his keeping of principle firm, so the Annals praised and honored him. Confucius said: if one cuts open pregnant animals and burns the young, the qilin does not come; if one drains a marsh to fish, the flood dragons do not swim; if one overturns nests and breaks eggs, the phoenix does not fly. The gentleman is gravely hurt by harm to his own kind.] To harm righteousness to gain honor, or bend the Way to be tolerated, they would die rather than do. They heard of the correct Way and followed it, put aside affairs and withdrew; they never heard of bending the Way to seek toleration. [Zigong said: one who is not of an age does not make a profit from it; one who defiles his ruler does not tread on his land. Bao Jiao said: the worthy value advancing and take withdrawing lightly; the upright are easily ashamed and take death lightly. Shi Mai said: a woman who elopes is not chaste, a scholar who peddles himself is not trustworthy.]

御史曰論語云親於其身為不善者君子不入也【鄒陽曰盛飾入朝者不以私行義砥礪名號者不以利傷行故里名勝母曽子不入邑號朝歌墨子回車】有是言而行不足從也季氏為無道逐其君奪其政而冉求仲由臣焉禮男女不授受不交爵孔子適衛因嬖臣彌子瑕以見衛夫人子路不說【音恱】子瑕佞臣也夫子因之非正也男女不交孔子見南子非禮也禮義由孔氏出且貶道以求容惡【音烏】在其釋事而退也【泰族訓曰夫聖人之屈者以求伸也枉者以求直也故雖出邪僻之道行幽昧之塗將欲以直大道成大功猶出林之中不得直道拯溺之人不得不濡足也孔子欲行王道東西南非七十說而無所偶故因衛夫人彌子瑕而欲通其道由至昭昭動於權而統於善者也】

The Imperial Secretary said: The Analects says: 'A gentleman does not enter the place of one who does what is not good in his own person.' [Zou Yang said: those who enter court in splendid dress do not practice righteousness for private ends, and those who hone their names do not harm their conduct for profit. So when a village was named 'Overcoming Mother,' Master Zeng would not enter; when a town was named 'Morning Song,' Mozi turned his carriage back.] There are such words, but the conduct does not suffice to follow them. The Ji clan acted without the Way, expelled their ruler and seized his government, and yet Ran Qiu and Zhong You served as ministers to them. By ritual, men and women do not hand things to each other directly and do not exchange cups. Confucius went to Wei and through the favorite minister Mi Zixia sought to see the lady of Wei, and Zilu was displeased. Zixia was a flatterer and the Master relied on him, not rightly; men and women do not exchange, and Confucius's seeing Nanzi was against ritual. Ritual and righteousness come from Confucius, yet he lowered the Way to seek toleration; so how is withdrawing from affairs worth praise? [The Huainanzi, in the chapter on kinds of power, says: the sage bends in order to extend, and warps in order to straighten. So though he goes out by a crooked road and travels a dim path, he is going to straighten the great Way and achieve great work, just as when going out of a forest one cannot take a straight road, and when rescuing a drowning person one cannot avoid wetting one's feet. Confucius wished to practice the kingly way, and in the east, west, south and north he made seventy appeals but found no match; so he relied on the lady of Wei and Mi Zixia to wish to open his Way, going from dimness to brightness, moving by expedience and ruled by goodness.]

文學曰天下不平庶國不寧明王之憂也上無天子下無方伯天下煩亂賢聖之憂也是以堯憂洪水伊尹憂民管仲束縛孔子周流【孟子曰當堯之時天下猶未平洪水橫流泛濫於天下堯獨憂之舉舜而敷治焉泰族訓曰伊尹憂天下之不治調和五味負鼎爼而行五就桀五就湯將欲以濁為清以危為安也許慎曰管仲相齊公子紏不死子紏之難而奔魯束縛以歸齊桓公用之而霸也劉向曰孔子生於亂世莫之能容也故言行於君澤加於民然後仕言不行於君澤不加於民則處孔子懐天覆之心挾仁聖之徳憫時俗之汚泥傷紀綱之廢壊服重歴逺周流應聘乃俟幸施道以子百姓而當世諸侯莫能任用是以徳積而不肆大道屈而不伸海內不其化群生不被其恩故喟然嘆曰如有用我者則吾其為東周乎故孔子行說非欲私身運德於一城將欲舒之於天下而建之於群生者耳】憂百姓之禍而欲安其危也是以負爼囚拘匍匐以救之故追亡者趨拯溺者濡今民陥溝壑雖欲無濡豈得已哉御史黙不對

The Literati said: When the world is not at peace and the many states are not settled, this is the worry of an enlightened king; when there is no Son of Heaven above and no regional lord below and the world is in turmoil, this is the worry of worthies and sages. So Yao worried about the great flood, Yi Yin worried about the people, Guan Zhong was bound, and Confucius traveled everywhere. [Mencius says: in the time of Yao the world was not yet at peace; floods flowed across and overflowed the world, and Yao alone worried about it, promoted Shun, and had him spread order. The Huainanzi, in the chapter on kinds of power, says: Yi Yin worried that the world was not in order, blended the five flavors, and went carrying the cauldron and cutting board, five times going to Jie and five times to Tang, wishing to make the turbid clear and danger safe. Xu Shen said: Guan Zhong served as chancellor to Prince Jiu of Qi, did not die in Prince Jiu's calamity but fled to Lu, was bound and brought back to Qi, and Duke Huan used him and became hegemon. Liu Xiang said: Confucius was born in a disordered age and no one could tolerate him. So when his words were put into practice by the ruler and his favor reached the people, he served in office; when his words were not practiced by the ruler and his favor did not reach the people, he stayed at home. Confucius held a mind that covers like Heaven and carried the virtue of benevolence and sagehood; he pitied the mire of the age's customs and grieved at the collapse of the guiding threads; he bore heavy burdens and traveled far, going about and answering invitations, hoping to apply the Way and treat the people as his children, but the feudal lords of that time could not employ him. So virtue accumulated but was not set out, the great Way was bent and not extended, those within the seas did not receive his transformation, and the multitude of beings did not receive his kindness. So he sighed deeply and said: 'If anyone were to employ me, might I make a Zhou of the east?' So Confucius's going about to persuade was not to seek for himself, nor to apply his virtue in one city; he wished to extend it to the whole world and establish it for all beings.] He worried over the disasters of the people and wished to make their danger safe. So they carried the cauldron and cutting board, were imprisoned and bound, and crawled, to rescue them. So one who chases a fugitive hurries, and one who rescues a drowning person gets wet. Now when the people have fallen into ditches and ravines, though one would like not to get wet, how could one help it? The Imperial Secretary was silent and did not answer.

大夫曰文學言天下不平庶國不寧明王之憂也故王者之於天下猶一室之中也有一人不得其所則謂之不樂【音洛貴德篇曰聖人之於天下也譬猶一堂之上也今有滿堂飲酒者有一人獨索然向隅而泣則一堂之人皆不樂矣聖人之於天下也譬猶一堂之上也有一人不得其所者則孝子不敢以其物薦進主術訓曰髙臺層榭接屋連閣非不麗也然民無掘穴狹廬所以託身者明主弗樂肥醲甘脆非不美也然民有糟糠菽粟不接於口者則明主弗甘也匡床蒻席非不寜也然民有處邉城犯危難澤死暴骸者明主弗安也故古之君人其慘怛於民也國有飢者食不重味民有寒者而冬不被裘嵗登民豐乃始縣鐘鼓陳於戚君臣上下同心而樂之國無哀人】故民流沈溺而不救非恵君也國家有難【去聲】而不憂非忠臣也夫【音扶】守節死難【去聲】者人臣之職也【申鳴曰始吾父之孝子也今吾君之忠臣也食其食者死其事受其祿者畢其能】衣食飢寒者慈父之道也【河間獻王曰堯存心於天下加志於窮民痛萬姓之罹罪憂眾生之不遂也有一民飢則曰此我飢之也有一人寒則曰此我寒之也一民有罪則曰此我防之也仁昭而義立德博而化廣故不賞而民勸不罸而民治先恕而後教是堯德也貴德篇曰聖人之於天下百姓也其猶赤子乎飢者則食之寒者則衣之將之養之育之長之惟恐其不至於大也】今子弟逺勞於外人主為之夙夜不寜群臣盡力畢議冊【通防】作茲國用故少府丞令請建酒【音較】以【古贍字】邊給戰士拯救民於難【去聲】也為人父兄者豈可以已乎內省衣食以恤在外者猶未足今又欲罷諸用減奉邊之費未可為慈父賢兄也

The Grand Secretary said: The Literati say that when the world is not at peace and the many states are not settled, this is the worry of an enlightened king. So a true king regards the world like a single room: if one person does not get his place, he calls it not joyful. [The Garden of Stories, in the chapter on valuing virtue, says: the sage toward the world is like one hall: suppose there are people drinking all through the hall, but one person alone sits weeping desolately facing the corner; then everyone in the hall is not joyful. The sage toward the world is like one hall: if there is one person who has not got his place, a filial son does not dare present his offerings. The Huainanzi, in the chapter on the art of rulership, says: high terraces and layered pavilions, houses joined and towers connected, are not unbeautiful; but if some people do not even have caves and narrow huts to shelter them, an enlightened ruler takes no joy. Rich and fat, sweet and crisp food is not unpleasant; but if some people cannot get husks and beans to their mouths, an enlightened ruler finds it not sweet. A comfortable bed and soft mat are not unrestful; but if some people live in border cities, braving danger and difficulty, dying in marshes with their bones exposed, an enlightened ruler is not at ease. So the rulers of old were pained for the people: if there were hungry people in the state, he did not eat a second flavor; if some among the people were cold, he did not wear fur even in winter; only when the year was good and the people abundant did he begin to hang bells and drums and set out shields and axes, ruler and ministers, high and low, rejoicing together, with no sorrowful person in the state.] So if the people drift and drown and he does not rescue them, he is not a kind ruler; if the state has trouble and he does not worry, he is not a loyal minister. To keep one's principle and die in a crisis is the duty of a minister. [Shen Ming said: once I was my father's filial son; now I am my ruler's loyal minister. One who eats a man's food dies for his affairs, and one who receives a man's salary exhausts his abilities.] To clothe and feed the hungry and cold is the way of a kind father. [Prince Xian of Hejian said: Yao set his heart on the world and applied his will to the destitute people; he was pained that the myriad families met with guilt and worried that the multitude of living beings did not thrive. If one person was hungry he said, 'It is I who starve him'; if one was cold he said, 'It is I who chill him'; if one had a crime he said, 'It is I who dropped him into it.' Benevolence shone and righteousness stood, virtue was broad and transformation wide, so the people were encouraged without reward and governed without punishment. Considerateness first and instruction after: this was Yao's virtue. The Garden of Stories, in the chapter on valuing virtue, says: the sage toward the common people of the world is like a newborn child: if hungry he feeds him, if cold he clothes him, he carries him, nourishes him, raises him and lets him grow, fearing only that he will not grow great.] Now sons and younger brothers are toiling far outside, and the ruler is restless day and night for them; the ministers exhaust their strength and finish deliberating, planning this state expenditure, which is why the Deputy of the Privy Treasury asked to set up the wine monopoly to supply the borders and provide for the soldiers, to rescue the people from calamity. Can those who are fathers and elder brothers possibly be satisfied with stopping? Cutting back clothing and food at home to relieve those abroad is still not enough, and now to want to abandon these revenues and reduce the cost of supplying the borders is not being a kind father or a worthy elder brother.

文學曰周之季末天子防弱諸侯力政故國君不安謀臣奔馳何者敵國眾而社稷危也【賈生曰周室卑防五霸既滅令不行於天下是以諸侯力勁強凌弱眾暴寡兵革不休士民罷】今九州同域天下一統陛下優遊巖廊覽群臣極言至內論雅頌外鳴和鸞純徳粲然並於唐虞功烈流於子孫夫【音扶】蠻貊之人不食之地何足以煩慮而有戰國之憂哉若陛下不棄加之以德施之以恵北夷必內向欵塞【音賽】自至然後以為胡制於外臣即匈奴沒齒不食其所用矣

The Literati said: In the last years of Zhou, the Son of Heaven was feeble and the feudal lords attacked one another by force, so rulers were not at ease and strategist ministers rushed about. Why? Because enemy states were many and the altars of state in danger. [Jia Yi said: the house of Zhou was humble and weak, the Five Hegemons were already gone, orders did not run in the world, so the feudal lords were strong in force, the strong bullied the weak and the many oppressed the few, weapons never rested, and the gentry and people were exhausted.] Now the nine provinces share one territory and the world is unified; Your Majesty strolls at ease in the palace corridors, reviews the ministers' frank words, discusses the Ya and Song within, and sounds the harmonious bells without; your pure virtue shines alongside Tang and Yu, and your achievement will flow to your descendants. As for the barbarians and the lands where nothing is eaten, what is enough to trouble your thoughts and give worries as in the Warring States? If Your Majesty does not abandon them and applies virtue and bestows kindness, the northern Yi will certainly turn inward and come knocking at the border of their own accord. Then using the Hu to restrain others outside as subject, the Xiongnu will not eat what they use till the end of their lives.

大夫曰聖主思念中國之未寧北邊之未安故使廷尉評【古本作平】等問人間所疾苦極恤貧賤周澹【古贍字】不足【漢武紀曰始元二年閏九月遣故廷尉王平等五人持節行郡國舉賢良問民所疾苦寃失職者顔師古曰前為此官今不居者皆謂之故也】君臣所宣明王之德安宇內者未得其紀故問諸生諸生議不幹天則入淵【修務訓曰所為言者齊於眾而同於俗今不稱九天之頂則言黃泉之底是兩末之端議何可以公論乎】乃欲以閭里之治而況國家之大事亦不幾矣發於畎畆出於窮巷不知氷水之寒若醉而新寐殊不足與言也

The Grand Secretary said: The sage ruler is anxious that the central lands are not yet at peace and the northern border not yet secure, so he sent the Commandant of Justice Ping and others to ask the people what they suffer from, to exert themselves to comfort the poor and lowly and provide for those in want. [The Book of Han, Annals of Emperor Wu, says: in the intercalary ninth month of the second year of Shiyuan, he sent the former Commandant of Justice Wang Ping and four others, holding credentials, to travel through the commanderies and kingdoms, nominate the worthy and virtuous, and ask about what the people suffer, their grievances, and those who had lost their posts. Yan Shigu said: those who held the office before but no longer do are all called 'former.'] What the ruler and ministers must make plain is the virtue of an enlightened king and what keeps the world at peace, and they have not yet got their threads; so they ask you scholars. Your discussions do not strike the sky or else fall into the abyss. [The Huainanzi, in the chapter on cultivating effort, says: what is spoken of should be level with the crowd and the same as custom. Now if you do not praise the top of the ninth heaven you speak of the bottom of the Yellow Springs, which are two extreme ends; how can such discussion be public discussion?] And you wish to compare the government of a village to great affairs of state, which is also not close. You come from the fields and out of poor lanes, and do not know the cold of ice and water; like someone newly sobered from drink, you are quite unfit to talk with.

文學曰夫【音扶】欲安民富國之道在於反本本立而道生順天之理因地之利即不勞而功成【原道訓曰禹之決瀆也因水以為師神農之播谷也因苗以為教】夫【音扶】不修其源而事其流無本以統之雖竭精神盡思慮無益於治欲安之適足以危之慾救之適足以敗之夫【音扶】治亂之端在於本末而已不至勞其心而道可得也【建本篇曰孔子曰君子務本本立而道生本不正者末必倚始不盛者終必衰詩云原隰既平泉流既清本立而道生春秋之義有正春者無亂秋有正君者無危國易曰建其本而萬物理失之毫釐差以千里是故君子貴建本而重立始】孔子曰不通於論者難於言治道不同者不相與謀今公卿意有所倚文學之言不可用也【大夫種曰有髙世之材者必有負俗之累有至智之明者必破眾庻之議成大功者不拘於俗論大道者不合於眾雜言曰鍾子期死而伯牙絶弦破琴知世莫可為鼔也恵施卒而莊子深瞑不言見世莫可與語也】

The Literati said: To make the people peaceful and the state rich, the way lies in returning to the root. When the root is established the Way grows; follow Heaven's principle and rely on Earth's advantage, and success is achieved without toil. [The Huainanzi, in the chapter on the origin of the Way, says: when Yu breached the channels, he took the water as his teacher; when Shennong sowed the grain, he took the sprouts as his teaching.] If one does not cultivate the source and works on the stream, with no root to govern it, even if one exhausts one's spirit and thought it is no help to government. If one wishes to make it safe, it is just enough to endanger it; if one wishes to save it, it is just enough to ruin it. The beginning of order and disorder lies only in root and branch, and one need not toil in the heart for the Way to be obtained. [The Garden of Stories, in the chapter on establishing the root, says: Confucius said: the gentleman attends to the root, and when the root is established the Way grows. If the root is not straight, the branch must lean; if the beginning is not full, the end must decline. The Book of Poetry says: 'The plains and lowlands are leveled, the springs flow clear.' When the root is established, the Way grows. The principle of the Spring and Autumn Annals: where there is a correct spring there is no disordered autumn; where there is a correct ruler there is no endangered state. The Book of Changes says: establish the root and the myriad things are in order; lose it by a hair's breadth and the difference is a thousand li. So the gentleman values establishing the root and prizes setting up the beginning.] Confucius said: those who do not understand the discussion are hard to talk of governing with, and those whose ways differ do not plan together. Now the dukes and ministers have their minds leaning one way, and the words of the Literati cannot be used. [Grand Master Zhong said: those with talent exceeding the age must bear the burden of custom; those with the keenest wisdom must break the opinions of the common people; those who achieve great things are not bound by custom, and those who discuss the great Way do not accord with the crowd. The Miscellaneous Sayings say: when Zhong Ziqi died, Boya broke his strings and smashed his zither, knowing no one in the world was fit to play for; when Hui Shi died, Zhuangzi was deeply silent and did not speak, seeing that there was no one in the world to talk with.]

大夫曰吾聞為人臣者盡忠以順職為人子者致孝以承業君有非則臣覆蓋之父有非則子匿逃之故君薨臣不變君之政父沒則子不改父之道也春秋譏毀泉臺為其隳【音灰】先祖之所為而君父之惡也【春秋曰夫人姜氏薨毀泉臺公羊傳曰泉臺者何郎臺也郎臺則曷為謂之泉臺未成為郎臺既成為泉臺毀泉臺何以書譏也何譏爾築之譏毀之譏先祖為之已毀之不如勿居而已矣】今鹽鐵均輸所從來乆矣而欲罷之得無害先帝之功而妨聖主之德乎有司倚於忠孝之路是道殊而不同於文學之謀也

The Grand Secretary said: I have heard that a minister fulfills his loyalty by doing his duty and a son fulfills his filial piety by continuing the family's work. If the ruler has faults, the minister covers them; if the father has faults, the son conceals them. So when the ruler dies, the minister does not change the ruler's government; when the father is gone, the son does not alter the father's way. The Spring and Autumn Annals criticized the demolition of the Spring Terrace because it tore down what the ancestors had done and revealed the ruler's or father's wrongs. [The Annals says: Lady Jiang, the ruler's wife, died, and the Spring Terrace was demolished. The Gongyang Commentary says: what is the Spring Terrace? The Lang Terrace. Why is the Lang Terrace called the Spring Terrace? Before it was finished it was called the Lang Terrace; after it was finished it was called the Spring Terrace. Why is the demolition of the Spring Terrace recorded? As criticism. Criticism of what? Criticism of building it and criticism of demolishing it. If the ancestors made it and one has already demolished it, it would have been better simply not to live there.] Now the salt and iron monopoly and the equalization system have come from long ago, and to want to abolish them would harm the achievement of the former emperor and impede the virtue of the sage ruler. The officials rely on the path of loyalty and filial piety, and so their way differs and does not match the Literati's plans.