| | 備胡: |
大夫曰：「鄙語曰：『賢者容不辱。』以世俗言之，鄉曲有桀，人尚辟之。今明天子在上，匈奴公為寇，侵擾邊境，是仁義犯而藜藿採。昔狄人侵太王，匡人畏孔子，故不仁者，仁之賊也。是以縣官厲武以討不義，設機械以備不仁。」 |
| | The official said: "A vulgar saying goes: 'A virtuous person can endure humiliation.'" In terms of worldly opinion, if there is a tyrant in the local community, people still avoid him. Now that the illustrious Son of Heaven is on high, the Xiongnu openly become bandits and invade and disturb the borders; this is righteousness being violated and common people's livelihoods disrupted. In the past, when the Di people invaded Taiwang, the Kuang people feared Confucius; therefore, those who are unkind are the enemies of benevolence. Therefore, the county officials encourage martial strength to punish injustice and set up defenses to guard against those who are unkind."
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| | 備胡: |
賢良曰：「匈奴處沙漠之中，生不食之地，天所賤而棄之，無壇宇之居，男女之別，以廣野為閭里，以穹廬為家室，衣皮蒙毛，食肉飲血，會市行，牧豎居，如中國之麋鹿耳。好事之臣，求其義，責之禮，使中國干戈至今未息，萬里設備，此兔罝之所刺，故小人非公侯腹心干城也。」 |
| | The virtuous and capable man said: "The Xiongnu dwell in the midst of deserts, on barren land where nothing can be eaten; they are despised and abandoned by Heaven. They have no fixed dwellings or distinctions between men and women; they take the vast wilderness as their neighborhoods and the open sky as their homes. They wear hides with fur still attached, eat meat, and drink blood. When they gather for trade, they travel; when herding livestock, they live in scattered groups—just like deer and elk in China." Ambitious officials seek righteousness from them and hold them to the standards of propriety, causing China's wars with weapons to cease not even until today; defenses are established for thousands of miles. This is precisely what the snares set for rabbits criticize—thus, such petty people cannot be trusted as the core supporters or strongholds of marquises and dukes."
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| | 備胡: |
大夫曰：「天子者，天下之父母也。四方之眾，其義莫不願為臣妾；然猶脩城郭，設關梁，厲武士，備衛於宮室，所以遠折難而備萬方者也。今匈奴未臣，雖無事，欲釋備，如之何？」 |
| | The official said: "The Son of Heaven is the parent of all under heaven. All the people from the four directions, their righteousness makes them all wish to be subjects and servants; Yet still, walls and fortifications are built, passes and bridges are established, martial warriors are trained, and guards are stationed around the palace—this is done to repel difficulties from afar and prepare for all directions. Now that the Xiongnu have not yet submitted, even if there are no immediate troubles, one wishes to relax preparations—what would you do about it?"
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| | 備胡: |
賢良曰：「吳王所以見禽於越者，以其越近而陵遠也。秦所以亡者，以外備胡、越而內亡其政也。夫用軍於外，政敗於內，備為所患，增主所憂。故人主得其道，則遐邇偕行而歸之，文王是也；不得其道，則臣妾為寇，秦王是也。夫文衰則武勝，德盛則備寡。」 |
| | lø The virtuous and capable person said: "This is why the King of Wu was captured by Yue—it was because Yue, being nearby, looked down upon distant enemies. The reason Qin fell was that it focused its external defenses on the Hu and Yue peoples while internally losing control of its governance. Deploying troops externally while governance collapses internally, preparations become sources of trouble, and they increase the ruler's worries. Therefore, when a sovereign follows the right path, both distant and near peoples will travel together to submit to him—this was King Wen's case; If he does not follow the right path, then even his subjects and servants become bandits—as was the case with King Qin. When culture declines, military force prevails; when virtue is abundant, preparations are few."
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| | 備胡: |
大夫曰：「往者，四夷俱強，並為寇虐：朝鮮踰徼，劫燕之東地；東越越東海，略浙江之南；南越內侵，滑服令；氐、僰、冉、駹、巂唐、昆明之屬，擾隴西、巴、蜀。今三垂已平，唯北邊未定。夫一舉則匈奴震懼，中外釋備，而何寡也？」 |
| | The official said: "In the past, all four barbarian groups were strong and jointly became bandits causing harm: Chaoxian crossed the frontier and robbed the eastern territories of Yan; the Dongyue crossed the East Sea and raided the southern regions of Zhejiang; the Nanyue invaded inwardly, subjugating Ling Jun; the Di, Bo, Ran, Mang, Guikang, and Kunming peoples disturbed Longxi, Ba, and Shu. Now the three borders have been pacified, but only the northern frontier remains unsettled. With one decisive action, the Xiongnu would be terrified and cower; both inside and outside would relax their preparations—how few they are!"
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| | 備胡: |
賢良曰：「古者，君子立仁脩義，以綏其民，故邇者習善，遠者順之。是以孔子仕於魯，前仕三月及齊平，後仕三月及鄭平，務以德安近而綏遠。當此之時，魯無敵國之難，鄰境之患。強臣變節而忠順，故季桓隳其都城。大國畏義而合好，齊人來歸鄆、讙、龜陰之田。故為政而以德，非獨辟害折衝也，所欲不求而自得。今百姓所以囂囂，中外不寧者，咎在匈奴。內無室宇之守，外無田疇之積，隨美草甘水而驅牧，匈奴不變業，而中國以騷動矣。風合而雲解，就之則亡，擊之則散，未可一世而舉也。」 |
| | The virtuous and capable said: "In ancient times, gentlemen established benevolence and cultivated righteousness to pacify their people; thus, those nearby became accustomed to goodness, and those far away followed in harmony. Therefore, when Confucius served as an official in Lu, within three months of his first appointment peace was achieved with Qi; and within three months after his later appointment, peace was reached with Zheng. He always focused on using virtue to bring stability nearby and pacify distant regions. At that time, Lu had no troubles from rival states or threats from neighboring territories. Powerful ministers changed their allegiance and became loyal and obedient; thus, Ji Huan dismantled his capital city's walls. Great states revered righteousness and formed good relations—people from Qi returned the lands of Yun, Huan, and Guiyin. Therefore, governing with virtue not only avoids harm and resolves conflicts but also brings about what one desires without having to seek it—it is attained naturally. Now the reason why the common people are in uproar and both inside and outside are unsettled lies with the Xiongnu as the cause. Internally, they have no fixed dwellings to defend; externally, they possess no accumulated fields. They follow lush grass and sweet water for grazing—without the Xiongnu changing their way of life, China remains in turmoil. They gather like wind and disperse like clouds; if you approach them, they vanish; if you attack them, they scatter. They cannot be completely subdued in a single generation."
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| | 備胡: |
大夫曰：「古者，明王討暴衛弱，定傾扶危。衛弱扶危，則小國之君悅；討暴定傾，則無罪之人附。今不征伐，則暴害不息；不備，則是以黎民委敵也。春秋貶諸侯之後，刺不卒戍。行役戍備，自古有之，非獨今也。」 |
| | The official said: "In ancient times, enlightened kings punished the violent and protected the weak, stabilized what was collapsing and supported those in peril. Protecting the weak and supporting those in danger brings joy to the rulers of small states; Punishing violence and stabilizing what is collapsing causes innocent people to rally. Now, if we do not launch military campaigns, then violent harm will never cease; if we are unprepared, it is as though we are surrendering the common people to the enemy. The Spring and Autumn Annals criticized the descendants of feudal lords for abandoning their military service. Military service and frontier defense have existed since ancient times; it is not unique to today."
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| | 備胡: |
賢良曰：「匈奴之地廣大，而戎馬之足輕利，其勢易騷動也。利則虎曳，病則鳥折，辟鋒銳而取罷極；少發則不足以更適，多發則民不堪其役。役煩則力罷，用多則財乏。二者不息，則民遺怨。此秦之所以失民心、隕社稷也。古者，天子封畿千里，繇役五百里，勝聲相聞，疾病相恤。無過時之師，無踰時之役。內節於民心，而事適其力。是以行者勸務，而止者安業。今山東之戎馬甲士戍邊郡者，絕殊遼遠，身在胡、越、心懷老母。老母垂泣，室婦悲恨，推其饑渴，念其寒苦。《》云：『昔我往矣，楊柳依依。今我來思，雨雪霏霏。行道遲遲，載渴載饑。我心傷悲，莫之我哀。』故聖人憐其如此，閔其久去父母妻子，暴露中野，居寒苦之地，故春使使者勞賜，舉失職者，所以哀遠民而慰撫老母也。德惠甚厚，而吏未稱奉職承詔以存恤，或侵侮士卒，興之為市，並力兼作，使之不以理。故士卒失職，而老母妻子感恨也。宋伯姬愁思而宋國火，魯妾不得意而魯寢災。今天下不得其意者，非獨西宮之女。宋之老母也。春秋動眾則書，重民也。宋人圍長葛，譏久役也。君子之用心必若是。」 |
| | The virtuous and capable said: "The Xiongnu's territory is vast, their war horses swift and nimble; thus, it is easy for them to stir up unrest. When they are strong, they act like tigers dragging forward; when weakened, they scatter like birds breaking apart, avoiding sharp attacks and seizing on exhaustion. A small mobilization is insufficient to meet the demands of warfare, while a large one becomes unbearable for the people in terms of labor service. Excessive conscription leads to exhaustion of strength; excessive expenditure leads to depletion of wealth. If these two problems persist, the people will harbor resentment. This is why Qin lost the people's trust and fell from power." In ancient times, the Son of Heaven established a fiefdom within a thousand li radius, and conscripted labor from five hundred li away; people could hear each other's voices in times of triumph or distress, and cared for one another when sick. There were no military campaigns lasting beyond their season, nor labor duties exceeding the set time limit. Internally, they regulated according to public sentiment and ensured that tasks matched people's capacity. Therefore, those who went on campaigns were motivated by duty, while those remaining behind could enjoy peace in their work. Now, the soldiers and armored warriors from Shandong stationed at border commanderies are far removed from their homeland; their bodies are in Hu or Yue, yet their hearts yearn for their aging mothers. Old mothers weep bitterly, and wives at home grieve with resentment; they think of the soldiers' hunger and thirst, their cold and hardship. The Book of Songs says: "When I departed long ago, willows swayed gently." "Now that I return in thought, snow and rain fall heavily." The road home is slow and arduous; thirst and hunger weigh upon me. My heart aches with sorrow, yet none grieve for me." Therefore, the sage felt compassion for this situation and pitied those who had been away from their parents, spouses, and children for so long, exposed in the wilderness, living in cold and harsh lands. Thus, in spring he sent envoys to visit and bestow gifts, identifying and addressing those who neglected their duties—this was done to show compassion for distant people and comfort aging mothers. The virtue and grace were very generous, yet officials did not properly fulfill their duties of receiving orders and showing care; some even insulted soldiers, exploited them for trade, forced excessive labor, and treated them unjustly. Therefore, the soldiers lost their sense of duty, and their aging mothers and families felt deep resentment. Song Boji was filled with sorrow and anxiety when a fire broke out in the State of Song; a concubine of Lu, discontented, saw disaster befall the palace of Lu. Nowadays, those who are dissatisfied and resentful throughout the land are not only the women in the western palace. They are also like the old mother of Song. The Spring and Autumn Annals recorded mobilizations of troops, emphasizing the value placed on the people. When the people of Song besieged Changge, it was a censure for prolonged military service. This is how a gentleman must always think."
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| | 備胡: |
大夫默然不對。 |
| | The official remained silent and did not respond.
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