Classical Chinese Assignment 2

Tsou Chi Induces King Wei to Accept Admonitions
(鄒忌諷齊王納諫 Tsou Chi Feng Qi Wang Na Jian)


There was a man Tsou Chi tall and handsome. One day he was well-dressed, looked into the mirror and tried to ask his wife, “Mr. Xu, the one who lives in the north of the city, and I, who is more dashing? ” His wife answered, ”Of course you are! Mr. Xu cannot compare to you!” Mr. Xu, the one who lived in the north of the city, was a famous refined person in Qi. Tsou Chi was not confident in himself and tried again to ask his concubine, “Between Mr. Xu and I, who is more dashing?” His concubine answered, “Mr. Xu cannot compare to you!” The next day, a visitor came. Tsou Chi talked with the visitor and asked, “Mr. Xu and I, who do you think more handsome?” The visitor answered, “Mr. Xu is not as handsome as you are.”

Another day passed, Mr. Xu came in person. Tsou Chi looked at him very carefully and thought himself really inferior to Mr. Xu. Looking into the mirror Tsou Chi viewed himself, again, he felt Mr. Xu was far more handsome than he was. In the evening he went to bed and immersed into thinking—My wife said that I am handsome because she is intimate with me. My concubine said so because she is respectful to me. The visitor gave the same answer because he wants something from me. Tsou Chi then went to King Wei to present at the Court.

Tsou Chi said to King Wei, “Honestly I know I am less handsome than Mr. Xu. My wife is intimate with me, my concubine is respectful to me, and the visitor wants something from me. They all told me that I am more handsome than Mr. Xu, which is not a truth. Now our country Qi, territory extends to thousands of kilometer, and has more than hundred cities under your government. Ladies in your seraglio, servants at your sides are all intimate with you. Subjects and courtiers are all respectful to you. All the people within our country are asking something from you. If we view this from the same perspective, you, my majesty, are deceived so seriously. ” Then King Wei answered, “Your allegory is very true.”

Thus King Wei handed down the edict: Subjects, couriers or any person who can criticize in front of me will be bestowed a glorious reward; those who can write and admonish me will be bestowed a moderate reward; those who can remonstrate in the public and let me hear about it, will be bestowed a humble reward. When the edict was first published, there were lots of subjects bustling at the court to admonish King Wei in the beginning. A couple months later, they came on rare occasions. After one year, some people may still want to present admonitions, there was no flaw to be criticized, however. The nearby countries such as Yan, Zhao, Han, and Wei heard of this policy. They became subject to Qi. This was what we said a benevolent government could conquer without a war.