| | 齊宿瘤女: |
宿瘤女者，齊東郭採桑之女，閔王之后也。項有大瘤，故號曰宿瘤。初，閔王出游，至東郭，百姓盡觀，宿瘤女採桑如故。 |
| | Su Liu Nu was a woman from Dongguo of Qi who gathered mulberry leaves; she was the descendant of King Min. She had a large tumor on her neck, so she was called Su Liu. Initially, King Min went out for an outing and arrived at Dongguo; the common people all came to watch, but Su Liu Nu continued gathering mulberry leaves as usual.
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| | 齊宿瘤女: |
王怪之，召問曰：「寡人出遊，車騎甚眾，百姓無少長皆棄事來觀，汝採桑道旁，曾不一視，何也？」對曰：「妾受父母教採桑，不受教觀大王。」王曰：「此奇女也，惜哉宿瘤！」女曰：「婢妾之職，屬之不二，予之不忘，中心謂何，宿瘤何傷？」王大悅之曰：「此賢女也。」命後車載之，女曰：「賴大王之力，父母在內，使妾不受父母之教，而隨大王，是奔女也，大王又安用之？」王大慚，曰：「寡人失之。」又曰：「貞女一禮不備，雖死不從。」 |
| | The king found this strange and summoned her to ask, "I have gone out for an outing, with a large number of chariots and horses. People of all ages among the commoners have abandoned their tasks to come watch me. You were gathering mulberry leaves by the roadside but did not even glance at me once. Why is that?" She replied, "I was taught by my parents to gather mulberry leaves; I was not taught to watch the great king." The king said, "This is a remarkable woman. Too bad she has this tumor!" She said, "A servant's duty is to be loyal without deviation and faithful without forgetting. What does the heart think? How could a tumor cause harm?" The king was greatly pleased and said, "This is a virtuous woman." The king ordered his rear carriage to take her, but the woman said, "By virtue of the great king's power, my parents are at home. If I were to leave without their permission and follow the great king, that would make me a runaway daughter. How could the great king possibly use such a person?" The king was deeply ashamed and said, "I have made a mistake." He also said, "A chaste woman will not follow even if the proper rites are not fully observed; she would rather die than do so."
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| | 齊宿瘤女: |
於是王遣歸，使使者加金百鎰，往聘迎之，父母驚惶，欲洗沐，加衣裳，女曰：「如是見王，則變容更服，不見識也，請死不往。」於是如故，隨使者，閔王歸見諸夫人，告曰：「今日出遊，得一聖女，今至斥汝屬矣。」諸夫人皆怪之，盛服而衛，遲其至也，宿瘤，駭，宮中諸夫人皆掩口而笑，左右失貌，不能自止，王大慚曰：「且無笑不飾耳。夫飾與不飾，固相去十百也。」女曰：「夫飾與不飾，相去千萬，尚不足言，何獨十百也！」 |
| | The king then sent her back, and dispatched envoys with a hundred ying of gold to formally request her hand in marriage. Her parents were startled and wanted to bathe her and dress her in fine clothes, but the woman said, "If I appear before the king like this, changing my appearance and outfit, he will not recognize me. Please allow me to die rather than go." Thus, she went as she was and followed the envoys. When King Min returned home and saw his concubines, he told them, "Today on my outing I found a holy woman; now that she has arrived, you all should be put aside." The concubines were all surprised and dressed in their finest clothes to guard against her arrival, eagerly awaiting her. When Su Liu arrived, the ladies of the palace were startled and covered their mouths with laughter; those around them lost composure and could not stop laughing. The king was deeply ashamed and said, "Do not laugh merely because she is unadorned." "The difference between being adorned or not is indeed a hundredfold." The woman said, "The difference between being adorned and unadorned is not merely ten or a hundred times; it is thousands of times greater! How could it be only ten or a hundred?"
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| | 齊宿瘤女: |
王曰：「何以言之？」對曰：「性相近，習相遠也。昔者堯舜桀紂，俱天子也。堯舜自飾以仁義，雖為天子，安於節儉，茅茨不翦，采椽不斲，後宮衣不重采，食不重味。至今數千歲，天下歸善焉。桀紂不自飾以仁義，習為苛文，造為高臺深池，後宮蹈綺縠，弄珠玉，意非有饜時也。身死國亡，為天下笑，至今千餘歲，天下歸惡焉。由是觀之，飾與不飾，相去千萬，尚不足言，何獨十百也。」於是諸夫人皆大慚，閔王大感，立瘤女以為后。出令卑宮室，填池澤，損膳減樂，後宮不得重采。期月之間，化行鄰國，諸侯朝之，侵三晉，懼秦楚，立帝號。閔王至於此也，宿瘤女有力焉。及女死之後，燕遂屠齊，閔王逃亡，而弒死於外。君子謂宿瘤女通而有禮。《》云：「」此之謂也。 |
| | The king asked, "Why do you say that?" She replied, "Human nature is originally similar; it is habits and practices that create differences." "In the past, Yao, Shun, Jie, and Zhou were all emperors." "Yao and Shun adorned themselves with benevolence and righteousness. Although they were emperors, they lived in contentment with frugality; their thatched roofs were not trimmed, their wooden beams were left uncarved, the women of the inner palace wore clothes without multiple layers of color, and their food had no repeated flavors." "For thousands of years now, all under heaven have returned to goodness in their memory." "Jie and Zhou did not adorn themselves with benevolence or righteousness; instead, they became accustomed to harsh formalities. They built high terraces and deep pools, while the women of their inner palaces danced in brocade and silk, playing with pearls and jade. Their desires were never satisfied." "They perished, their states fell, and they became the laughingstock of all under heaven. For over a thousand years now, all under heaven continue to condemn them." "Therefore, the difference between being adorned and not being adorned is a matter of thousands or even ten thousand times; it cannot be measured in mere tens or hundreds." At this, the concubines were deeply ashamed. King Min was greatly moved and immediately made Su Liu Nu his queen. He issued orders to lower the palace buildings, fill in pools and marshes, reduce food offerings and music, and prohibited the inner palace women from wearing clothes with multiple layers of color. Within a month, this transformation spread to neighboring states; feudal lords came to pay homage. He invaded the three Jin states and was feared by Qin and Chu, thus establishing his imperial title. King Min reached this level of achievement; Su Liu Nu had a significant role in it. After the woman's death, Yan attacked and destroyed Qi. King Min fled into exile but was assassinated abroad. The virtuous men said that Su Liu Nu was wise and courteous. "The Book of Songs" says: "Green and lush is the akebia vine, growing in the middle of the hill. When I see the gentleman, my joy is full and my manner is right." This is what it means.
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| | 齊宿瘤女: |
頌曰：齊女宿瘤，東郭採桑，閔王出遊，不為變常，王召與語，諫辭甚明，卒升后位，名聲光榮。 |
| | Ode: The woman of Qi, Su Liu Nu, gathered mulberry leaves in Dongguo. When King Min went out on an outing, she did not change her usual conduct. The king summoned and spoke with her; her admonitions were clear and wise. In the end, she was elevated to the position of queen, and her name and reputation became glorious.
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