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六曰── |
| | Sixth day──
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人主之行與布衣異，勢不便，時不利，事讎以求存。執民之命，執民之命，重任也，不得以快志為故。故布衣行此，指於國，不容鄉曲。 |
| | The conduct of a sovereign differs from that of an ordinary man; when the situation is inconvenient and the timing unfavorable, one must deal with enemies to ensure survival. To hold the lives of the people in one's hands is a grave responsibility; it cannot be used as an excuse for personal gratification. Therefore, if an ordinary person acts thus, he will point to the state and find no tolerance in his hometown or local community.
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堯以天下讓舜。鯀為諸侯，怒於堯曰：「得天之道者為帝，得地之道者為三公。今我得地之道，而不以我為三公。」以堯為失論。欲得三公。怒甚猛獸，欲以為亂。比獸之角，能以為城；舉其尾，能以為旌。召之不來，仿佯於野以患帝。舜於是殛之於羽山，副之以吳刀。禹不敢怨，而反事之，官為司空，以通水潦，顏色黎黑，步不相過，竅氣不通，以中帝心。 |
| | Yao ceded the empire to Shun. Guan, as a feudal lord, was angry with Yao and said: "He who understands the way of Heaven becomes an emperor; he who understands the way of Earth becomes one of the Three Dukes." "Now I have understood the way of Earth, yet you do not appoint me as one of the Three Dukes." He regarded Yao as having erred in judgment. He desired to become one of the Three Dukes. His anger was as fierce as that of a wild beast, and he wished to incite chaos. He compared the horns of beasts, which could be used to build walls; he raised their tails, which could serve as banners. When summoned, he did not come; instead, he wandered in the wilds to trouble the emperor. Shun then executed him at Yushan and beheaded him with a Wu dao (a type of sword). Yu did not dare to harbor resentment, but instead served him diligently. He was appointed as Sikong (Minister of Works) to manage waterways and drainage; his complexion turned dark and sallow, his steps were slow and cautious, his breath labored, all in order to meet the emperor's expectations.
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昔者紂為無道，殺梅伯而醢之，殺鬼侯而脯之，以禮諸侯於廟。文王流涕而咨之。紂恐其畔，欲殺文王而滅周。文王曰：「父雖無道，子敢不事父乎？君雖不惠，臣敢不事君乎？孰王而可畔也？」紂乃赦之。天下聞之，以文王為畏上而哀下也。《》曰：「惟此文王，小心翼翼，昭事上帝，聿懷多福。」 |
| | In ancient times, Zhou was tyrannical; he killed Mei Bo and minced him into a stew, killed Gui Hou and dried his flesh like meat, all to set an example for the feudal lords in the ancestral temple. Wen Wang wept and lamented over this. Zhou feared that he would rebel, and wished to kill Wen Wang and destroy the Zhou state. Wen Wang said: "Though a father may be unjust, how could a son dare not serve his father?" Though a ruler may lack benevolence, how could a minister dare not serve the ruler? Which sovereign is there that one can rebel against?" Zhou then pardoned him. The people throughout the realm heard of this and regarded Wen Wang as one who revered his superiors and pitied those below. The Shi Jing says: "This was King Wen, cautious and reverent in every way, diligently serving the Supreme Deity, thus bringing abundant blessings."
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齊攻宋，燕王使張魁將燕兵以從焉，齊王殺之。燕王聞之，泣數行而下，召有司而告之曰：「余興事而齊殺我使，請令舉兵以攻齊也。」使受命矣。凡繇進見，爭之曰：「賢主故願為臣。今王非賢主也，願辭不為臣。」昭王曰：「是何也？」對曰：「松下亂，先君以不安、棄群臣也。王苦痛之而事齊者，力不足也。今魁死而王攻齊，是視魁而賢於先君。」主曰：「諾。」「請王止兵。」王曰：「然則若何？」凡繇對曰：「請王縞素辟舍於郊，遣使於齊，客而謝焉，曰：『此盡寡人之罪也。大王賢主也，豈盡殺諸侯之使者哉？然而燕之使者獨死，此弊邑之擇人不謹也。願得變更請罪。』」使者行至齊。齊王方大飲，左右官實，御者甚眾，因令使者進報。使者報言燕王之甚恐懼而請罪也，畢，又復之，以矜左右官實。因乃發小使以反令燕王復舍。此濟上之所以敗，齊國以虛也。七十城，微田單固幾不反。湣王以大齊驕而殘，田單以即墨城而立功。《》曰：「將欲毀之，必重累之；將欲踣之，必高舉之」，其此之謂乎？累矣而不毀，舉矣而不踣，其唯有道者乎！ |
| | Qi attacked Song, and Yan Wang sent Zhang Kui to lead Yan troops in support. King Qi killed him. Yan Wang heard of this, wept with tears streaming down his face in rows, summoned the officials and told them: "I have taken action, yet King Qi has killed my envoy. I request that you prepare to raise an army to attack Qi." The envoys had already received their orders. Fanyou, upon being summoned for an audience, argued: "A wise ruler would originally wish to have me as a minister." "Now the king is not a wise ruler; I wish to decline and not serve as his minister." Zhao Wang asked: "What do you mean by that?" He replied: "There was chaos beneath the pines; your late father, unsettled, abandoned his ministers. The king endured this hardship and served Qi because he lacked strength. "Now that Zhang Kui has died, if the king attacks Qi, it would mean considering Zhang Kui wiser than your late father." The ruler said: "You are right." "Please, Your Majesty, cease the military campaign." The king asked: "Then what should we do?" Fanyou replied: "Please, Your Majesty, wear plain white robes and withdraw to a pavilion in the suburbs; send envoys to Qi and humbly apologize, saying: 'This is entirely my fault.'" "A great king such as yourself, a wise ruler, would surely not kill all the envoys of the feudal lords?" "Yet only Yan's envoy was killed; this is due to our small state's failure in selecting envoys carefully. We wish to change our ways and seek forgiveness." The envoy proceeded to Qi. King Qi was holding a grand banquet, surrounded by many officials and attendants; he therefore ordered the envoy to proceed with his report. The envoy reported that King Yan was greatly fearful and had come to plead for forgiveness; after finishing, he repeated the message in order to impress upon the officials and attendants present. King Qi then dispatched a minor envoy back to Yan with orders for King Yan to return to his palace. This is why the Battle of Ji Shang ended in defeat, because the state of Qi was hollow and insubstantial. Seventy cities—had it not been for Tian Dan, they would have almost never been recovered. King Minwang became arrogant and cruel due to the greatness of Qi, while Tian Dan achieved merit by defending the city of Ji Mo. The Shi Jing says: "If one wishes to destroy something, he must first heap up great burdens upon it;" "If one wishes to overthrow someone, he must first raise him very high"—is this not what is meant? Though burdened heavily and yet not destroyed, though raised high and yet not overthrown—this can only be the case for one who follows the Way!
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楚莊王使文無畏於齊，過於宋，不先假道。還反，華元言於宋昭公曰：「往不假道，來不假道，是以宋為野鄙也。楚之會田也，故鞭君之僕於孟諸。請誅之。」乃殺文無畏於揚梁之隄。莊王方削袂，聞之曰：「嘻！」投袂而起，履及諸庭，劍及諸門，車及之蒲疏之市，遂舍於郊，興師圍宋九月。宋人易子而食之，析骨而爨之。宋公肉袒執犧，委服告病，曰：「大國若宥圖之，唯命是聽。」莊王曰：「情矣宋公之言也。」乃為卻四十里，而舍於盧門之闔，所以為成而歸也。凡事之本在人主，人主之患，在先事而簡人，簡人則事窮矣。今人臣死而不當，親帥士民以討其故，可謂不簡人矣。宋公服以病告而還師，可謂不窮矣。夫舍諸侯於漢陽而飲至者，其以義進退邪？彊不足以成此也。 |
| | Chu Zhuangwang sent Wen Wuwei to Qi, and while passing through Song, he did not first request permission to traverse the territory. Upon his return, Hua Yuan said to Song Zhao Gong: "He went without requesting passage and returns the same way; this treats the State of Song as a remote frontier." At the time of the Chu alliance gathering, they even whipped your groom at Mengzhu. Please, let us execute him." They then killed Wen Wuwei at the embankment of Yangliang. Chu Zhuangwang was just rolling up his sleeves when he heard this and said: "Ah!" He flung his sleeves aside and rose in anger, his slippers not yet reaching the courtyard, his sword still at the gate, his chariot overtaking him at the marketplace of Pushu. He then withdrew to the suburbs, raised an army, and besieged Song for nine months. The people of Song exchanged their children to eat, and split bones to burn as fuel. Song Gong appeared in person with bare upper body, holding sacrificial animals, clad only in simple robes and declaring his submission, saying: "If the great state would show mercy and spare us, we shall obey your every command." Chu Zhuangwang said: "The words of King Song are indeed sincere." He then withdrew his troops forty li and encamped at the gates of Lu Men, thus concluding the campaign and withdrawing. The root of all affairs lies in the sovereign; the sovereign's greatest concern is to act prematurely and neglect his people. When a ruler neglects his people, matters will inevitably reach an impasse. When a minister dies unjustly and the sovereign personally leads officials and commoners to investigate the cause, this can be said to show that he does not neglect his people. King Song submitted with feigned illness and succeeded in having the army withdrawn—this may be called avoiding an impasse. Those who encamp among the feudal lords at Hanyang and drink until drunk—do they advance or retreat according to righteousness? Might alone is insufficient to achieve this.
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