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卷五十一賈鄒枚路傳第二十一
Volume 51: Biographies of Jia, Zou, Mei, and Lu, the twenty-first scroll.
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賈山，穎川人也。 祖父祛，故魏王時博士弟子也。 山受學祛，所言涉獵書記，不能為醇儒。 嘗給事穎陰侯為騎。
Jia Shan came from Yingchuan. His grandfather Qu had been a doctoral student in the days of the former King of Wei. Shan studied under Qu; his learning ranged widely over writings and records, so he never became a narrow, textbook Confucian. He once served as a mounted attendant to the Marquis of Yingyin.
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孝文時，言治亂之道，借秦為諭，名曰《至言》。 其辭曰：
Under Emperor Wen he set forth how states rise and fall, using Qin as his cautionary tale, in a work he called "Words to the Utmost". The piece begins:
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臣聞為人臣者，盡忠竭愚，以直諫主，不避死亡之誅者，臣山是也。 臣不敢以久遠諭，願借秦以為諭，唯陛下少加意焉。
They say a good minister gives his ruler honest counsel even at the cost of his life; Your Majesty, that minister is myself, Shan. I will not weary you with distant ages; let Qin be my mirror. I ask only that Your Majesty give this a moment’s careful thought.
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夫布衣韋帶之士，修身於內，成名於外，而使後世不絕息。 至秦則不然。 貴為天子，富有天下，賦斂重數，百姓任罷，赭衣半道，群盜滿山，使天下之人戴目而視，傾耳而聽。 一夫大呼，天下響應者，陳勝是也。 秦非徒如此也，起咸陽而西至雍，離宮三百，鐘鼓帷帳，不移而具。 又為阿房之殿，殿高數十仞，東西五里，南北千步，從車羅騎，四馬鶩馳，旌旗不橈。 為宮室之麗至於此，使其後世曾不得聚廬而托處焉。 為馳道於天下，東窮燕、齊，南極吳、楚，江湖之上，瀕海之觀畢至。 道廣五十步，三丈而樹，厚築其外，隱以金椎，樹以青松。 為馳道之麗至於此，使其後世曾不得邪徑而托足焉。 死葬乎驪山，吏徒數十萬人，曠日十年。 下徹三泉合采金石，冶銅錮其內，□塗其外，被以珠玉，飾以翡翠，中成觀游，上成山林，為葬□之侈至於此，使其後世曾不得蓬顆蔽塚而托葬焉。 秦以熊羆之力，虎狼之心，蠶食諸侯，併吞海內，而不篤禮義，故天殃已加矣。 臣昧死以聞，願陛下少留意而詳擇其中。
The man in homespun and a leather belt polishes his character at home and wins repute abroad, and his line does not die out. Under Qin, nothing of the kind was true. Qin’s ruler sat as Son of Heaven and owned the world, yet he piled tax after tax on the people until they were broken, russet-clad convicts choked the highways, and robbers swarmed the hills; everyone in the realm watched and listened in dread. When one man raised a cry and the whole realm answered—that was Chen Sheng. Nor did Qin stop there: from Xianyang west to Yong stood three hundred detached palaces, complete with bells and drums, curtains and canopies, all kept ready without ever being visited. They raised the halls of Epang—scores of ren in height, five li east to west and a thousand paces north to south—with chariots and riders massed in ranks, four-horse teams racing like wildfowl, and banners that never furled. Palace splendor went so far that his descendants could not have found room to pitch a single hut among it all. Imperial highways ran to every corner—east to Yan and Qi, south to Wu and Chu—until every famous view along the great rivers and the coast was stitched into one network. Each road was fifty paces across; pines were planted every three zhang, the embankments rammed solid and studded with metal pegs. The highways were glorified to a point where later generations could hardly set foot on a side path. His tomb at Mount Li consumed tens of thousands of laborers and convicts for ten years on end. They sank shafts to the three underground streams, fused copper to line the vault, and sealed the outer shell with cinnabar lacquer, then draped the work in pearls and jade and kingfisher inlay until the middle was a pleasure gallery and the top a miniature forest; burial luxury went so far that later generations could not have afforded even a pebble’s shelter for their own graves. Qin used brute force and a predator’s appetite to pick off the nobles and swallow the realm, all the while spurning ritual and right—so Heaven’s punishment was already upon it. I risk my life to lay this before you; I beg Your Majesty to weigh it with care.
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臣聞忠臣之事君也，言切直則不用而身危，不切直則不可以明道，故切直之言，明主所欲急聞，忠臣之所以蒙死而竭知也。 地之磽者，雖有善種，不能生焉； 江皋河瀕，雖有惡種，無不猥大。 昔者夏、商之季世，雖關龍逢、箕子、比干之賢，身死亡而道不用。 文王之時，豪俊之士皆得竭其智，芻蕘采薪之人皆得盡其力，此周之所以興也。 故地之美者善養禾，君之仁者善養士。 雷霆之所擊，無不摧折者； 萬鈞之所壓，無不糜滅者。 今人主之威，非特雷霆也； 勢重，非特萬鈞也。 開道而求諫，和顏色而受之，用其言而顯其身，士猶恐懼而不敢自盡，又乃況於縱欲恣行暴虐，惡聞其過乎！ 震之以威，壓之以重，則雖有堯、舜之智，孟賁之勇，豈有不摧折者哉？ 如此，則人主不得聞其過失矣； 弗聞，則社稷危矣。 古者聖王之制，史在前書過失，工誦箴諫，瞽誦詩諫，公卿比諫，士傳言諫，庶人謗於道，商旅議於市，然後君得聞其過失也。 聞其過失而改之，見義而從之，所以永有天下也。 天子之尊，四海之內，其義莫不為臣。 然而養三老於大學，親執醬而饋，執爵而□，祝饐在前，祝鯁在後，公卿奉杖，大夫進履，舉賢以自輔弼，求修正之士使直諫。 故以天子之尊，尊養三老，視孝也； 立輔弼之臣者，恐驕也； 置直諫之士者，恐不得聞其過也； 學問至於芻蕘者，求獸無饜也； 商人庶人誹謗已而改之，從善無不聽也。
A loyal minister’s dilemma is this: blunt truth may cost him his life, yet softened speech cannot illuminate the Way. That is why a wise ruler hungers for blunt counsel, and why a true minister will face death to give it. On barren ground even the finest seed will not take. Along riverbanks even poor seed grows thick and tall. At the fall of Xia and Shang, men as worthy as Guan Longpeng, Jizi, and Bigan perished while their counsel went unused. Under King Wen every able man could offer his wit and even the woodcutter his strength—that is how the house of Zhou flourished. Rich soil feeds good grain; a humane ruler feeds good men. What the thunderbolt strikes is shattered. What ten thousand jun crushes is ground to dust. A ruler’s majesty is more terrible than any thunderbolt. The weight of his authority exceeds any ten thousand jun. Even when a ruler invites advice with an open road and a kindly face, and promotes those who speak truly, men still tremble and hold back—let alone when he gives free rein to cruelty and loathes any word of his faults. Threaten them with terror and crush them with power, and not even a Yao or Shun in wisdom, a Meng Ben in courage, could avoid being broken. Then the ruler never hears his own errors. If he does not hear them, the altars are in peril. The ancient sage kings set it so: the scribe recorded misdeeds before the throne, craftsmen sang warnings, blind musicians sang corrective odes, nobles remonstrated in turn, rumor reached the court from scholars, commoners could speak on the road, and merchants argue in the market—only thus did a ruler learn his faults. He amended what he heard was wrong and embraced what he saw was right; that is how dynasties endure. The Son of Heaven is supreme: within the four seas all owe him subjection in principle. Yet he would feed the three elders in the Imperial Academy with his own hands on the sauce and cup, with attendants chanting warnings against choking before him and against gagging behind him, while nobles offered staffs and shoes and he summoned worthies to counsel him and upright men to speak plainly. Thus even Heaven’s Son honors the three elders—that is filial piety made visible. He sets up ministers to steady him—that is guarding against pride. He keeps plain-speaking advisers—that is fearing to miss his faults. That he would take counsel even from a wood-gatherer shows a ruler insatiable in seeking what is good. When merchants or commoners criticized him, he changed course; every good word found a hearing.
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昔者，秦政力並萬國，富有天下，破六國以為郡縣，築長城以為關塞。 秦地之固，大小之勢，輕重之權，其與一家之富，一夫之強，胡可勝計也！ 然而兵破於陳涉，地奪於劉氏者，何也？ 秦王貪狼暴虐，殘賊天下，窮困萬民，以適其欲也。 昔者，周蓋千八百國，以九州之民養千八百國之君，用民之力不過歲三日，什一而籍，君有餘財，民有餘力，而頌聲作。 秦皇帝以千八百國之民自養，力罷不能勝其役，財盡不能勝其求。 一君之身耳，所以自養者馳騁弋獵之娛，天下弗能供也。 勞罷者不得休息，饑寒者不得衣食，亡罪而死刑者無所告訴，人與之為怨，家與之為仇，故天下壞也。 秦皇帝身在之時，天下已壞矣，而弗自知也。 秦皇帝東巡狩，至會稽、琅邪，刻石著其功，自以為過堯、舜統； 縣石鑄鐘□，篩土築阿房之宮，自以為萬世有天下也。 古者聖王作謚，三四十世耳，雖堯、舜、禹、湯、文、武累世廣德以為子孫基業，無過二三十世者也。 秦皇帝曰死而以謚法，是父子名號有時相襲也，以一至萬，則世世不相復也，故死而號曰始皇帝，其次曰二世皇帝者，欲以一至萬也。 秦皇帝計其功德，度其後嗣，世世無窮，然身死才數月耳，天下四面而攻之，宗廟滅絕矣。
Once Qin’s armies had swallowed the feudal states and owned the wealth of the realm, it carved the old kingdoms into commanderies and counties and ran the Long Wall as its outer bolt. Qin’s terrain, its scale of forces, its weight in the balance—how could that be compared to the fortune of one clan or the muscle of a single man? Yet Chen She broke its armies and the house of Liu stripped its territory—why? The First Emperor was rapacious and cruel; he bled the realm and beggared the people to serve his appetites. Under the Zhou order there were said to be some eighteen hundred states; the nine provinces fed eighteen hundred rulers, corvée rarely exceeded three days a year, and the tithe was the rule—so the treasury stayed full, the people strong, and praise was heard. The First Emperor made the people of those eighteen hundred polities feed him alone, until strength could not bear his levies nor wealth his demands. One man’s body—and the hunting and racing he wanted could not be supplied by the whole empire. The overworked had no rest, the hungry no clothes or food, the innocent condemned had no appeal; every man nursed a grudge, every house a feud—so the realm collapsed. The world was already coming apart while the First Emperor still lived, and he never saw it. He toured the east as far as Kuaiji and Langya, cut inscriptions to boast his deeds, and imagined his line outshining Yao and Shun. He hung stone to cast bells and stands, piled earth for Epang, and believed his throne would last ten thousand generations. The ancient sage kings used posthumous names, yet lines ran only thirty or forty generations; even Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, Wen, and Wu, for all their piled virtue, handed down no more than twenty or thirty reigns. He declared that posthumous titles would let father and son share a style in turn; counting from one to ten thousand, no reign-name need ever repeat—hence he called himself First Emperor and his heir Second Emperor, as if he could count his line to infinity. He measured his merit and planned an endless succession, yet within months of his death the realm rose on every side and his ancestral temple was extinguished.
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秦皇帝居滅絕之中而不自知者何也？ 天下莫敢告也。 其所以莫敢告者何也？ 亡養老之義，亡輔弼之臣，亡進諫之士，縱恣行誅，退誹謗之人，殺直諫之士，是以道諛偷合苟容，比其德則賢於堯、舜，課其功則賢於湯、武，天下已潰而莫之告也。 詩曰：「匪言不能，胡此畏忌，聽言則對，譖言則退。」 此之謂也。 又曰：「濟濟多士，文王以寧。」 天下未嘗亡士也，然而文王獨言以寧者何也？ 文王好仁則仁興，得士而敬之則士用，用之有禮義。 故不致其愛敬，則不能盡其心； 不能盡其心，則不能盡其力； 不能盡其力，則不能成其功。 故古之賢君於其臣也，尊其爵祿而親之； 疾則臨視之亡數，死則往吊哭之，臨其小斂大斂，已棺塗而後為之服錫衰麻絰，而三臨其喪； 未斂不飲酒食肉，未葬不舉樂，當宗廟之祭而死，為之廢樂。 故古之君人者於其臣也，可謂盡禮矣； 服法服，端容貌，正顏色。 然後見之。 故臣下莫敢不竭力盡死以報其上，功德立於後世，而令聞不忘也。
How could he sit in the midst of ruin and not know it? Because no one in the realm dared tell him. Why did no one dare? There was no duty to care for elders, no ministers to steady him, no path for frank advice; he killed critics and silenced slander while flatterers compared him to Yao and Shun and rated his deeds above Tang and Wu—so the realm rotted while no voice warned him. The Classic of Poetry says: "It is not that they cannot speak—but why this dread? They answer when spoken to fair, yet shrink from slander." That is what is meant. It also says: "In such numbers stood the officers, and King Wen had peace." The world has never lacked able men—so why does the ode single out King Wen’s peace? Because King Wen loved humaneness, humaneness flourished; because he won men of talent and treated them with respect, they served him—and he employed them with ritual and right. Without genuine love and respect he cannot win their hearts. If he does not win their hearts, he will not have their full strength. Without their full strength he cannot complete his great work. So the wise kings of old honored rank and salary and drew their ministers near. If a minister fell ill, the ruler visited again and again; if he died, the ruler mourned, attended the successive shroudings, waited until the coffin was sealed, then donned mourning and thrice came to the rites. Until the corpse was laid out he took no wine or meat; until burial he ordered no music; if a death fell during an ancestral offering, the music ceased for him. Such was the ritual ancient rulers showed their ministers. He put on court dress, set his bearing, and composed his face. Only then did he receive them. Then no minister held back life or strength in repaying his lord, and their merit lived after them with an undying name.
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今陛下念思祖考，術追厥功，圖所以昭光洪業休德，使天下舉賢良方正之士，天下皆訢訢焉，曰將興堯、舜之道，三王之功矣。 天下之士莫不精白以承休德。 今方正之士皆在朝廷矣，又選其賢者使為常侍諸吏，與之馳驅射獵，一日再三出。 臣恐朝廷之解馳，百官之墮於事也，諸侯聞之，又必怠於政矣。
Today Your Majesty remembers the ancestors, follows their achievements, and seeks to magnify a glorious rule; you have called for worthy and upright men across the realm, and the people rejoice, saying the ways of Yao and Shun and the three kings will rise again. Scholars everywhere polish themselves to answer that summoning virtue. Those upright men are already at court—yet Your Majesty picks the best among them for constant attendance and then rides and hunts with them, sometimes three sorties in a single day. I fear the court will grow lax, officials will neglect their duties, and when the regional lords hear of it they too will slacken in government.
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古者大臣不媟，故君子不常見其齊嚴之色、肅敬之容。 大臣不得與宴游，方正修潔之士不得從射獵，使皆務其方以高其節，則群臣莫敢不正身修行，盡心以稱大禮。 如此，則陛下之道尊敬，功業施於四海，垂於萬世子孫矣。 誠不如此，則行日壞而榮日滅矣。 夫士修之於家，而壞之於天子之廷，臣竊愍之。 陛下與眾臣宴游，與大臣方正朝廷論議。 夫游不失樂，朝不失禮，議不失計，軌事之大者也。
In old times high ministers were not treated lightly, so a gentleman did not daily see their grave mien and reverent bearing. Keep great officers from idle feasting and hunts, and keep upright scholars from the chase; let each mind his station and lift his integrity, and the whole court will order person and conduct to match the great ritual. Then your way will be held in awe, your work will reach the four seas, and your descendants for ages will inherit it. If not, conduct rots day by day and glory fades. It pains me to see a man refine himself at home only to be undone in the imperial hall. Let Your Majesty sport with the many officials, but debate policy in court with your gravest ministers. Then pleasure need not cost dignity, audience need not cost ritual, and counsel need not cost good planning—that is the right way to govern.
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其後，文帝除鑄錢令，山復上書諫，以為變先帝法，非是。 又訟淮南王無大罪，宜急令反國。 又言柴唐子為不善，足以戒。 章下詰責，對以為：「錢者，亡用器也，而可以易富貴。 富貴者，人主之操柄也，令民為之，是與人主共操柄，不可長也。」 其言多激切，善指事意，然終不加罰，所以廣諫爭之路也。 其後復禁鑄錢雲。
Later, when Emperor Wen lifted the ban on private minting, Jia Shan again remonstrated, arguing that to alter the laws of the former emperors was wrong. He also urged that the King of Huainan had committed no grave offense and should be sent back to his kingdom at once. He also warned that Zhai Tangzi’s misconduct was enough to serve as a lesson. The document was returned with questions; he replied that money is useless in itself yet buys wealth and rank. Wealth and rank are the ruler’s levers; letting the common people mint is to share those levers with the throne, and that cannot last." His language was often blunt and pointed squarely at the issue, yet he was never punished—so the court kept the channels of debate open. Minting was later forbidden again, or so the record runs.
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鄒陽，齊人也。 漢興，諸侯王皆自治民聘賢。 吳王濞招致四方游士，陽與吳嚴忌、枚乘等俱仕吳，皆以文辯著名。 久之，吳王以太子事怨望，稱疾不朝，陰有邪謀，陽奏書諫。 為其事尚隱，惡指斥言，故先引秦為諭，因道胡、越、齊、趙、淮南之難，然後乃致其意。 其辭曰：
Zou Yang was a native of Qi. When the Han arose, each feudal king ruled his own people and recruited worthy men. King Liu Pi of Wu gathered wandering literati; Zou Yang served him alongside Yan Ji of Wu, Mei Sheng, and others, and they all won fame for their eloquence and letters. In time the King of Wu, nursing a grudge over the crown-prince affair, feigned illness and stayed away from court while plotting in secret and, on the surface, lodging memorials of remonstrance. Because the matter was still veiled, he would not name it outright; he opened with Qin as his mirror, then rehearsed the crises of the Hu, Yue, Qi, Zhao, and Huainan regions before he would speak his mind. The memorial runs:
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臣聞秦倚曲台之官，懸衡天下，畫地而不犯，兵加胡、越； 至其晚節末路，張耳、陳勝連從兵之據，以叩函谷，咸陽遂危。 何則？ 列郡不相親，萬室不相救也。 今胡數涉北河之外，上覆飛鳥，下不見伏菟，斗城不休，救兵不止，死者相隨，輦車相屬，轉粟流輸，千里不絕。 何則？ 強趙責於河間，六齊望於惠後，城陽顧於盧博，三淮南之心思墳墓。 大王不憂，臣恐救兵之不專，胡馬遂進窺於邯鄲，越水長沙，還舟青陽。 雖使梁並淮陽之兵，下淮東，越廣陵，以遏越人之糧，漢亦折西河而下，北守漳水，以輔大國，胡亦益進，越亦益深。 此臣之所以大王患也。
I have heard how Qin trusted its Curved Terrace bureaucracy, weighed the whole realm in its scales, drew its boundaries so that none might cross, and sent armies against the Hu and the Yue. Yet in its last days Zhang Er and Chen Sheng chained rebel bases together, beat on the Hangu barrier, and Xianyang itself trembled. Why? Because the commanderies did not stand together and the people could not rescue one another. Today the Hu raid again and again beyond the northern He; their dust hides the birds in the sky and the hare on the ground; siege works never rest nor do relief columns; the dead fall in windrows, grain carts stretch in an endless chain for a thousand li. Why? Zhao presses hard at Hejian, the Qi domains watch the house of Empress Hui, Chengyang casts its eye toward Lu and Bo, and the three Huainan lines ache for their old tombs. If Your Highness does not take alarm, I fear the allies will never act as one: Hu cavalry will press on Handan, Yue hulls will thread Changsha, and their fleets double back toward Qingyang. Even were Liang to join Huaiyang's hosts, sweep the Huai east, and cross Guangling to choke the Yue grain lines, the court could still wheel west of the great bend, hold the line on the Zhang, and stiffen the great kingdom—while the Hu push deeper and the Yue drive farther in. That, my lord, is the peril I see hanging over you.
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臣聞交龍襄首奮翼，則浮雲出流，霧雨咸集。 聖王底節修德，則游談之士歸義思名。 今臣盡智畢議，易精極慮，則無國不可奸； 飾固陋之心，則何王之門不可曳長裾乎？ 然臣所以歷數王之朝，背淮千里而自致者，非惡臣國而樂吳民也，竊高下風之行，尤說大王之義。 故願大王之無忽，察聽其志。
They say when twin dragons rear and beat their wings, clouds stream out and rain gathers. When a sage king reins himself in and builds virtue, wandering scholars flock to his justice and hunger for a name. Were I to pour out every plan and polish every scheme, there is no kingdom I could not undermine. Were I to flatter a petty heart, there is no ruler's gate where I could not drag a long scholar's hem. Yet I have crossed many courts and left the Huai a thousand li behind not because I despise my home and love Wu's folk, but because I honor your reputation and am drawn above all to your sense of right. So I beg you not to brush this aside: read my meaning and hear me out.
15
臣聞鷙鳥累百，不如一鶚。 夫全趙之時，武力鼎士衣玄服叢台之下者一旦成市，而不能止幽王之湛患。 淮南連山東之俠，死士盈朝，不能還厲王之西也。 然而計議不得，雖諸、賁不能安其位，亦明矣。 故願大王審畫而已。
A hundred common raptors do not match one eagle. When Zhao still stood intact, armored bravos thronged the Cong Terrace like a market in a single dawn, yet they could not spare King You of Zhao his doom. Huainan rallied the swordsmen east of the mountains and filled its halls with men sworn to die, yet it could not stop King Li's drive westward. When strategy fails, not even warriors like Zhu Hai and Meng Ben can hold their ground—that much is plain. I urge you, my lord, to weigh this counsel and stay your hand.
16
始孝文皇帝據關入立，寒心銷志，不明求衣。 自立天子之後，使東牟硃虛東褒義父之後，深割嬰兒王之。 壤子王梁、代，益以淮陽。 卒僕濟北，囚弟於雍者，豈非象新垣平等哉！ 今天子新據先帝之遺業，左規山東，右制關中，變權易勢，大臣難知。 大王弗察，臣恐周鼎復起於漢，新垣過計於朝，則我吳遺嗣，不可期於世矣。 高皇帝燒棧道，水章邯，兵不留行，收弊民之倦，東馳函谷，西楚大破。 水攻則章邯以亡其城，陸擊則荊王以失其地，此皆國家之不幾者也。 願大王孰察之。
When Emperor Wen first came through the passes to take the throne, he woke in dread before dawn and groped for his robes. Once enthroned, he sent the lords of Dongmou and Zhuxu east to honor the house of Emperor Yi of Chu, carved away great domains, and set infants on those thrones. He enfeoffed younger sons on Liang and Dai and enlarged their domains with Huaiyang. In the end he destroyed the Prince of Jibei and caged his own brother at Yong—was that not the very trick of men like Xinyuan Ping? The present emperor has just inherited the old throne: he grips the east with one hand and the interior with the other, shifting leverage at will, and no one can tell what his high ministers intend. If you do not see this clearly, I fear the royal cauldron will pass to Han once more, another Xinyuan will overreach in court, and the house of Wu will have no heirs to count on. Gaozu burned the mountain roads, drowned Zhang Han's armies, never let his columns slow, rallied a spent people, raced east to Hangu, and shattered Western Chu. Zhang Han lost his cities to the flood, the King of Jing his lands to the blade—both were powers with no margin left. I beg you, my lord, to weigh this with care.
17
吳王不內其言。
The King of Wu would not heed him.
18
是時，景帝少弟梁孝王貴盛，亦待士。 於是鄒陽、枚乘、嚴忌知吳不可說，皆去之梁，從孝王游。
Meanwhile Emperor Jing's younger brother, King Xiao of Liang, stood at the height of power and kept scholars about him. Zou Yang, Mei Sheng, and Yan Ji saw Wu was past persuasion and left for Liang to join King Xiao's circle.
19
陽為人有智略，慷慨不苟合，介於羊勝、公孫詭之間。 勝等疾陽，惡之孝王。 孝王怒，下陽吏，將殺之。 陽客遊以讒見禽，恐死而負累，乃從獄中上書曰：
Zou Yang was clever and bold, slow to compromise, and moved between Yang Sheng and Gongsun Gui. Sheng and his clique envied him and whispered slander to King Xiao. The king flew into a rage, threw Zou Yang to the jailers, and prepared to execute him. A wandering client seized on a whisper of malice, he faced death and a ruined name; from his cell he sent up this memorial:
20
臣聞忠無不報，信不見疑，臣常以為然，徒虛語耳。 昔荊軻慕燕丹之義，白虹貫日，太子畏之； 衛先生為秦畫長平之事，太白食昂，昭王疑之。 夫精變天地而信不諭兩主，豈不哀哉！ 今臣盡忠竭誠，畢議願知，左右不明，卒從吏訊，為世所疑。 是使荊軻、衛先生復起，而燕、秦不寤也。 原大王孰察之。
They say loyalty always meets its reward and good faith never meets doubt—I used to believe it; I see now it was only a saying. When Jing Ke took up Prince Dan's cause, a white rainbow spanned the sun—yet the prince flinched. When Master Wei laid the Changping plan for Qin, Venus swallowed Mao—and King Zhao turned against him. Their sincerity shook heaven and earth, yet neither ruler could trust them—how bitter that is. I have given you my whole loyalty and every honest plan, yet those about you cannot see it; I end in the jailers' questions and the world calls me faithless. You would raise Jing Ke and Master Wei from the grave while Yan and Qin still slept on. I beg you, my lord, to look into this.
21
昔玉人獻寶，楚王誅之； 李斯竭忠，胡亥極刑。 是以箕子陽狂，接輿避世，恐遭此患也。 願大王察玉人、李斯之意，而後楚王、胡亥之聽，毋使臣為箕子、接輿所笑。 臣聞比干剖心，子胥鴟夷，臣始不信，乃今知之。 願大王孰察，少加憐焉！
The jade carver once offered a gem and the King of Chu had him killed. Li Si gave his utmost loyalty and received the cruelest death from Huhai. So Jizi played the madman and Jieyu fled the world, dreading that very fate. Study the jade carver's and Li Si's hearts, turn away from the ears of the King of Chu and of Huhai, and do not make me a laughingstock to Jizi and Jieyu. I had heard of Bigan's heart cut out and Wu Zixu sewn in a leather bag—I did not believe it; now I do. Look closely, my lord, and show a little mercy.
22
語曰：「有白頭如新，傾蓋如故。」 何則？ 知與不知也。 故樊於期逃秦之燕，借荊軻首以奉丹事； 王奢去齊之魏，臨城自剄以卻齊而存魏。 夫王奢、樊於期非新於齊、秦而故於燕、魏也，所以去二國死兩君者，行合於志，慕義無窮也。 是以蘇秦不信於天下，為燕尾生； 自圭戰亡六城，為魏取中山。 何則？ 誠有以相知也。 蘇秦相燕，人惡之燕王，燕王按劍而怒，食以□騠； 白圭顯於中山，人惡之於魏文侯，文侯賜以夜光之璧。 何則？ 兩主二臣，剖心析肝相信，豈移於浮辭哉！
The proverb says some remain strangers though their hair turns white, while others are old friends from the moment their canopies touch. Why? Because one was known and the other was not. Fan Wuji fled Qin for Yan and lent Jing Ke his head to serve Prince Dan. Wang She left Qi for Wei and opened his own throat beneath the wall to drive Qi back and save Wei. Wang She and Fan Wuji were not newcomers to Qi and Qin nor strangers to Yan and Wei; they left two kingdoms and died for two lords because each man's deed matched his purpose and his love of right knew no limit. Su Qin was distrusted everywhere, yet for Yan he kept faith like Wei Sheng. Bai Gui lost six cities in war, then won Zhongshan back for Wei. Why? Because true understanding ran between them. When Su Qin served Yan as chancellor, men slandered him; the king gripped his sword in fury—then feasted him on the finest horses. When Bai Gui rose in Zhongshan, men maligned him to Marquis Wen of Wei, who then bestowed the luminous jade. Why? Those two rulers and two ministers trusted each other to the marrow—no idle rumor could move them.
23
故女無美惡，入官見妒； 士無賢不肖，入朝見嫉。 昔司馬喜臏腳於宋，卒相中山； 范睢拉脅折齒於魏，卒為應侯。 此二人者，皆信必然之畫，捐朋黨之私，挾孤獨之交，故不能自免於嫉妒之人也。 是以申徒狄蹈雍之河，徐衍負石入海。 不容於世，義不苟取比周於朝以移主上之心。 故百里奚乞食於道路，繆公委之以政； 甯戚飯牛車下，桓公任之以國。 此二人者，豈素宦於朝，借譽於左右，然後二主用之哉？ 感於心，合於行，堅如膠□，昆弟不能離，豈惑於眾口哉？ 故偏聽生奸，獨任成亂。 昔魯聽季孫之說逐孔子，宋任子冉之計囚墨翟。 夫以孔、墨之辯，不能自免於讒諛，而二國以危。 何則？ 眾口鑠金，積毀銷骨也。 秦用戎人由余而伯中國，齊用越人子臧而強威、宣。 此二國豈繫於俗，牽於世，系奇偏之浮辭哉？ 公聽並觀，垂明當世。 故意合則胡、越為兄弟，由余、子臧是矣； 不合則骨肉為仇敵，硃、象、管、蔡是矣。 今人主誠能用齊、秦之明，後宋、魯之聽，則五伯不足侔，而三王易為也。
In the harem beauty hardly matters: every woman meets envy. At court talent hardly matters: every man meets envy. Sima Xi was maimed in Song yet ended as minister of Zhongshan. Fan Ju had his ribs broken and his teeth smashed in Wei, yet rose to be Lord Ying. Both staked everything on a sure design, renounced clique interest, and stood alone with their lords—yet neither escaped the envious. So Shentu Di walked into the Yong and Xu Yan walked into the sea with a stone on his back. They could not bear the age, yet they would not court a cabal at court to sway their ruler. Baili Xi begged on the road, yet Duke Mu of Qin handed him the government. Ning Qi tended his ox under the wagon, yet Duke Huan of Qi made him steward of the realm. Did either owe his place to long service at court or praise from favorites? Heart answered to heart, deed to deed, bonded like glue—brothers could not have pulled them apart, let alone the crowd's tongue. A ruler who hears only one side invites treason; one who trusts a single voice courts chaos. Lu heeded Jisun and drove out Confucius; Song followed Ziran's counsel and caged Mozi. Men as eloquent as Confucius and Mozi could not save themselves from spite, and both states stumbled. Why? Because many tongues can melt bronze, and piled slander can wear away bone. Qin used the Rong adviser You Yu and dominated the heartland; Qi used the Yue man Zicang and grew mighty under Wei and Xuan. Were those kingdoms slaves to fashion, rumor, or prejudice? They listened widely, looked everywhere, and let clear sight rest on the age. When minds meet, Hu and Yue are brothers—that was You Yu and Zicang. When they do not, kin become foes—look at Danzhu and Xiang, or Guan and Cai of Zhou. Were a ruler to match Qi and Qin's breadth of hearing and shun Song and Lu's narrowness, he would outshine the Five Hegemons and rival the Three Kings with ease.
24
是以聖王覺寤，捐子之之心，而不說田常之賢，封比干之後，修孕婦之墓，故功業覆於天下。 何則？ 欲善亡厭也。 夫晉文親其仇，強伯諸侯； 齊桓用其仇，而一匡天下。 何則？ 慈仁殷勤，誠加於心，不可以虛辭借也。
A waking sage casts off a Zizhi's flattery, refuses to dote on a Tian Chang's seeming virtue, ennobles Bigan's line, tends the tomb of the woman who died with her unborn child—such a ruler's fame covers the realm. Why? Because the hunger for good knows no end. Duke Wen of Jin embraced his old foe and rose to lord the nobles. Duke Huan of Qi raised up his enemy and set the realm to rights. Why? Because deep kindness and steady truth in the heart cannot be faked with fine phrases.
25
至夫秦用商鞅之法，東弱韓、魏，立強天下，卒車裂之。 越用大夫種之謀，禽勁吳而伯中國，逆誅其身。 是以孫叔敖三去相而不悔，於陵子仲辭三公為人灌園。 今人主誠能去驕傲之心，懷可報之意，披心腹，見情素，墮肝膽，施德厚，終與之窮達，無愛於士，則桀之犬可使吠堯，跖之客可使刺由，何況因萬乘之權，假聖王之資乎！ 然則荊軻湛七族，要離燔妻子，豈足為大王道哉！
Qin used Shang Yang's code to crush Han and Wei in the east and tower over the world—yet Shang Yang died under the cart wheels. Yue followed Zhong's counsel, broke mighty Wu, and ruled the heartland—yet Zhong himself was put to death. Sunshu Ao resigned the prime ministership three times without regret; Ziling Zizhong refused the three highest offices to hoe another man's garden. Were a ruler to shed arrogance, show himself worthy of devotion, open his breast, lay bare his good faith, give his whole substance, heap kindness on his men, and stand by them in want or wealth without stinting talent—even Jie's hounds could be set on Yao, Zhi's henchmen sent against You; how much truer when he wields the power of ten thousand chariots and wields a sage king's legacy! Would you have me rehearse how Jing Ke's kin were wiped out to the seventh degree, or how Yaoliao burned his wife and child—examples hardly fit for your ears!
26
臣聞明月之珠，夜光之璧，以暗投人於道，眾莫不按劍相眄者。 何則？ 無因而至前也。 蟠木根柢，輪囷離奇，而為萬乘器者，以左右先為之容也。 故無因而至前，雖出隨珠和璧，祗怨結而不見德； 有人先游，則枯木朽株，樹功而不忘。 今夫天下布衣窮居之士，身在貧羸，雖蒙堯、舜之術、挾伊、管之辯，懷龍逢、比干之意，而素無根柢之容，雖竭精神，欲開忠於當世之君，則人主必龔按劍相眄之跡矣。 是使布衣之士不得為枯木朽株之資也。
They say that if you toss a famous pearl or a glowing jade to strangers in the dark, every passerby will reach for his sword and eye you with mistrust. Why? Because no one had vouched for you first. A knotted stump may become the emperor's chariot timber only after his attendants have praised its grain. Present such gifts unintroduced and you bind resentment, not gratitude. With a sponsor's word even deadwood wins lasting credit. Consider the poor scholar in homespun: he may wield the learning of Yao and Shun, the rhetoric of Yi Yin and Guan Zhong, the steadfast heart of Longpeng and Bigan—yet without patrons at court to polish his name, he can pour out his soul in loyal counsel and still meet only a ruler's hand on his hilt and a sidelong glare. Thus the man in homespun lacks even the advocate a rotten stump enjoys.
27
是以聖王制世御俗，獨化於陶鈞之上，而不牽乎卑辭之語，不奪乎從多之口。 故秦皇帝任中庶子蒙嘉之言，以信荊軻，而匕首竊發； 周文王獵涇渭，載呂尚歸，以王天下。 秦信左右而亡，周用烏集而王。 何則？ 以其能越攣拘之語，馳域外之議，獨觀乎昭曠之道也。 今人主沉謅諛之辭，牽帷□之制，使不羈之士與牛驥同皁，此鮑焦所以憤於世也。
The sage king shapes the world as a potter turns his wheel: he is not tugged by petty rumor nor overruled by the clamor of the crowd. The First Emperor believed his inner attendant Meng Jia and trusted Jing Ke—and the hidden dagger nearly struck home. King Wen hunted where the Jing meets the Wei, carried Lü Shang home in his carriage, and so came to rule the realm. Qin listened to palace favorites and fell; Zhou took counsel from chance-met strangers like a flock alighting and rose to kingship. Why? Because they could leap past narrow convention, hear voices from beyond the court, and keep their eyes on the clear, open path. Today's rulers drown in flattery and let inner-chamber rules bind them; they pen free spirits with draft animals—no wonder Bao Jiao despaired of the world.
28
臣聞盛飾入朝者不以私污義，底厲名號者不以利傷行。 故里名勝母，曾子不入； 邑號朝歌，墨子回車。 今欲使天下寥廓之士籠於威重之權，脅於位勢之貴，回面污行，以事諂諛之人，而求親近於左右，則士有伏死堀穴巖藪之中耳，安有盡忠信而趨闕下者哉！
I have heard that one who comes to court in full dress does not stain his integrity with private gain, and one who hones a reputation does not sell his conduct for profit. There was a hamlet called 'Outshining Mother'—Zengzi would not set foot in it. There was a town called Zhaoge—Mozi turned his chariot around. If you cage the empire's freest minds with terror and rank, force them to grovel before sycophants and court favorites, they will die in their holes in the hills—who then would bring honest faith to your gate!
29
書奏孝王，孝王立出之，卒為上客。
When the memorial reached King Xiao, he had Zou Yang freed at once and later honored him as a chief retainer.
30
初，勝、詭欲使王求為漢嗣，王又嘗上書，願賜容車之地徑至長樂宮，自使梁國士眾築作甬道朝太后。 爰盎等皆建以為不可。 天子不許。 梁王怒，令人刺殺盎。 上疑梁殺之，使者冠蓋相望責梁王。 梁王始與勝、詭有謀，陽爭以為不可，故見讒。 枚先生、嚴夫子皆不敢諫。
Earlier Yang Sheng and Gongsun Gui had urged the king to seek appointment as imperial heir; the king had also asked leave to run a private carriage road straight to Changle Palace and to raise a covered walk from Liang so he could visit the empress dowager. Yuan Ang and others all argued this could not be allowed. The emperor refused. King Xiao of Liang in his rage sent assassins to murder Yuan Ang. The throne suspected Liang; envoys with their train of carriages arrived one after another to call the king to account. The king had plotted with Sheng and Gui, while Zou Yang had openly opposed the plot—so the king came under suspicion of slander. Mei Sheng and Yan Ji dared not speak up.
31
及梁事敗，勝、詭死，孝王恐誅，乃思陽言，深辭謝之，繼以千金，令求方略解罪於上者，陽素知齊人王先生，年八十餘，多奇計，即往見，語以其事。 王先生曰：「難哉！ 人主有私怨深怨，欲施必行之誅，誠難解也。 以太后之尊，骨肉之親，猶不能止，況臣下乎？ 昔秦始皇有伏怒於太后，群臣諫而死者以十數。 得茅焦為廓大義，始皇非能說其言也，乃自強從之耳。 茅焦亦廑脫死如毛□耳，故事所以難者也。 今子欲安之乎？」 陽曰：「鄒、魯守經學，齊、楚多辯知，韓、魏時有奇節，吾將歷問之。」 王先生曰：「子行矣。 還，過我而西。」
When the plot collapsed and Sheng and Gui were dead, King Xiao feared the death sentence, remembered Zou Yang's counsel, offered deep apologies and a thousand pounds of gold, and sent for a way to appease the throne. Zou Yang sought out the Qi strategist Master Wang, past eighty and full of stratagems, and laid the whole matter before him. Master Wang said, "This is hard. When a ruler nurses a settled grudge and means to carry out a certain execution, it is almost impossible to talk him round. Not even the empress dowager's rank and kinship could stay him—what chance have mere subjects? Qin Shihuang once nursed a secret rage against his mother; dozens of ministers died remonstrating. Only when Mao Jiao framed the issue in high principle could the First Emperor yield—not because he liked the advice, but because he forced himself to accept it. Mao Jiao himself escaped execution by a hair's breadth—that is how hard such moments are. Do you mean to settle this now? Zou Yang replied, "Zhou and Lu cling to the classics; Qi and Chu breed debaters; Han and Wei produce men of odd mettle—I will canvass them in turn." Master Wang said, "Go then. On your way back west, stop here again."
32
鄒陽行月餘，莫能為謀，還，過王先生，曰：「臣將西矣，為如何？」 王先生曰：「吾先日欲獻愚計，以為眾不可蓋，竊自薄陋不敢道也。 若子行，必往見王長君，士無過此者矣。」 鄒陽發寤於心，曰：「敬諾。」 辭去，不過梁，逕至長安，因客見王長君。
After more than a month no one had a plan. On his return Zou Yang called on Master Wang and said, "I am leaving for the capital—what now?" Master Wang said, "I once had a humble scheme but held my tongue, thinking no common crowd could match it. When you go, you must see Wang Changjun, the empress's elder brother—there is no better man for this." Zou Yang's mind cleared; he said, "I obey." He avoided Liang, rode straight to Chang'an, and gained audience with Wang Changjun through a client.
33
初，吳王濞與七國謀反，及發，齊、濟北兩國城守不行。 漢既破吳，齊王自殺，不得立嗣。 濟北王亦欲自殺，幸全其妻子。 齊人公孫□謂濟北王曰：「臣請試為大王明說梁王，通意天子，說而不用。 死未晚也。」 公孫□遂見梁王，曰：「夫濟北之地，東接強齊，南牽吳、越，北脅燕、趙，此四分五裂之國，權不足以自守，勁不足以扞寇，又非有奇怪雲以待難也，雖墜言於吳，非其正計也。 昔者鄭祭仲許宋人立公子突以活其君，非義也，《春秋》記之，為其以生易死，以存易亡也。 鄉使濟北見情實，示不從之端，則吳必先歷齊畢濟北，招燕、趙而總之。 如此，則山東之從結而無隙矣。 今吳、楚之王練諸侯之兵，驅白徒之眾，西與天子爭衡，濟北獨底節堅守不下。 使吳失與而無助，跬步獨進，瓦解土崩，破敗而不救者，未必非濟北之力也。 夫以區區之濟北而與諸侯爭強，是以羔犢之弱而扞虎狼之敵也。 守職不橈，可謂誠一矣。 功義如此，尚見疑於上，脅肩低首，累足撫衿，使有自悔不前之心，非社稷之利也。 臣恐籓臣守職者疑之。 臣竊料之，能歷西山，徑長樂，抵未央，攘袂而正議者，獨大王耳。 上有全亡之功，下有安百姓之名，德淪於骨髓，恩加於無窮，願大王留意詳惟之。」 孝王大說，使人馳以聞。 濟北王得不坐，徙封於淄川。
When Liu Pi of Wu rose with the seven kingdoms, Qi and Jibei held their walls and sent no troops. After Han crushed Wu, the King of Qi took his own life and left no heir. The King of Jibei prepared to kill himself but was spared, with wife and children safe. A man of Qi, Gongsun [name missing], told the King of Jibei, "Let me try to explain your case to the King of Liang and win the emperor's ear; if he will not listen, you may die then—but not before." It will not be too late to die." Gongsun [lacuna] then said to King Xiao, "Jibei lies between powerful Qi, Wu and Yue to the south, Yan and Zhao to the north—a splintered salient too weak to defend or strike, with no heavenly omens to shield it; even if it once made overtures to Wu, that was never its true design for rebellion. When Zhai Zhong of Zheng promised the Song to set up Prince Tu to save his lord, the Spring and Autumn Annals recorded it—not as righteous, but because he traded life for death and survival for ruin. Had Jibei shown its true loyalty and refused the rebels early, Wu would first have had to fight through Qi and grind down Jibei before it could win Yan and Zhao to its league. The eastern league would have held fast with no breach. While Wu and Chu drilled allied hosts and marched west against the throne, Jibei alone stood siege and never yielded. Wu lost its partners and had no help; its advance faltered and its host crumbled—much of that collapse was Jibei's doing. For that small state to defy the rebel alliance was like a lamb facing wolves. It held its post without wavering—utter fidelity. For such service he was still suspected by the throne, left cringing and afraid to move—hardly a gain for the realm. I fear every loyal prince along the frontier will lose heart. I believe only you, my lord, can cross the western hills, pass Changle, reach Weiyang Palace, roll up your sleeve, and speak plain truth to the throne. You would save a kingdom above and quiet the people below; your virtue would sink into bone and your kindness know no end—I beg you to weigh this carefully." King Xiao was delighted and sent riders to lay the plea before the court. The King of Jibei escaped punishment and was transferred to a fief at Zichuan.
34
枚乘字叔，淮陽人也，為吳王濞郎中。 吳王之初怨望謀為逆也，乘奏書諫曰：
Mei Sheng, styled Shu, came from Huaiyang and was a gentleman-attendant to King Liu Pi of Wu. When the king first nursed a grudge and plotted revolt, Mei Sheng sent up this memorial:
35
臣聞得全者全昌，失全者全亡。 舜無立錐之地，以有天下； 禹無十戶之聚，以王諸侯。 湯、武之士不過百里，上不絕三光之明，下不傷百姓之心者，有王術也。 故父子之道，天性也； 忠臣不避重誅以直諫，則事無遺策，功流萬世。 臣乘願披心腹而效愚忠，唯大王少加意念惻怛之心於臣乘言。
I have heard that wholeness brings full fortune, and its loss brings utter ruin. Shun began without an inch of land yet came to own the realm. Yu had not ten households to his name yet came to be king over the feudal lords. The founders of Shang and Zhou began on a patch of ground no larger than a hundred li, yet they never dimmed sun, moon, and stars above nor broke the people's hearts below—because they held the true art of kingship. The bond of father and son is nature itself. When a loyal minister risks death to speak plainly, no policy is left unexamined and his fame runs for ages. I, Cheng, lay bare my heart and offer my poor loyalty; I beg you, my lord, to hear me with compassion.
36
夫以一縷之任系千鈞之重，上縣無極之高，下垂不測之淵，雖甚愚之人猶知哀其將絕也。 馬方駭鼓而驚之，系方絕又重鎮之； 系絕於天下不可復結，隊入深淵難以復出。 其出不出，間不容髮。 能聽忠臣之言，百舉必脫。 必若所欲為，危於累卵，難於上天； 變所欲為，易於反掌，安於泰山。 今欲極天命之壽，敝無窮之樂，究萬乘之勢，不出反掌之易，以居泰山之安，而欲乘累卵之危，走上天之難，此愚臣之所大惑也。
It is like hanging a thousand jun from a single thread over a bottomless pit—even a fool knows to fear the snap. The team is already panicked, yet you beat the drum; the rope is fraying, yet you pile on more weight. Once the thread parts it cannot be knotted again; once you fall into the pit you cannot climb back. Between safety and ruin there is not room for a hair. Heed a loyal minister and you may slip free a hundred times over. If you insist on your present course, you stand higher than a tower of eggs and face a climb harder than heaven. Change course and the danger becomes as easy as turning your hand, the safety as sure as Mount Tai. You would spend heaven's allotted years and the power of ten thousand chariots chasing boundless pleasure, yet refuse the ease of a hand's turn and the safety of Taishan while you mount the peril of stacked eggs and the climb to the sky—this your humble servant cannot understand.
37
人性有畏其景而惡其跡者，卻背而走，跡愈多，景愈疾，不知就陰而止，景滅跡絕。 欲人勿聞，莫若勿言； 欲人勿知，莫若勿為。 欲湯之凔，一人炊之，百人揚之，無益也，不如絕薪止火而已。 不絕之於彼，而救之於此，譬猶抱薪而救火也。 養由基，楚之善射者也，去楊葉百步，百發百中。 楊葉之大，加百中焉，可謂善射矣。 然其所止，乃百步之內耳，比於臣乘，未知操弓持矢也。
Some men fear their shadow and loathe their footprints: they run from the sun and only multiply both—never thinking to step into shade, where shadow dies and prints end. If you would not be overheard, better not speak. If you would not be found out, better not do the deed. To cool boiling soup one man heats while a hundred fan—useless; better lift the fuel and kill the fire. To stoke the blaze here while hoping to douse it there is to hug kindling to a bonfire. Yang Youji of Chu could stand a hundred paces from a willow leaf and hit it a hundred times in a hundred tries. To put a hundred arrows through a leaf as small as a willow blade is indeed fine shooting. Yet he never shot beyond a hundred paces; set beside your servant Cheng, he has not yet learned to take up bow and arrow.
38
福生有基，禍生有胎； 納其基，絕其胎，禍何自來？ 泰山之霤穿石，單極之絲亢斷□。 水非石之鑽，索非木之鋸，漸靡使之然也。 夫銖銖而稱之，至石必差； 寸寸而度之，至丈必過。 石稱丈量，逕而寡失。 夫十圍之木，始生如薛，足可搔而絕，手可擢而拔，據其未生，先其未形也。 磨礱底厲，不見其損，有時而盡； 種樹畜養，不見其益，有時而大； 積德累行，不知其善，有時而用； 棄義背理，不知其惡，有時而亡。 臣願大王孰計而身行之，此百世不易之道也。
Good fortune has its roots; disaster has its embryo. Nourish the root and cut the bud—how should calamity arise? The drip from Taishan bores through stone; a single rope's strand can snap the beam. Water is no chisel and rope no saw—yet grinding wear does the work. Weigh grain by the scruple and you will miss the stone. Measure inch by inch and you will overshoot the rod. Weigh by the stone and measure by the rod—straightforward and seldom wrong. A tree that will take ten men to gird began as a sprig you could break with a toe—catch evil before it grows. Whetstone and grindstone wear away unseen—until the blade is gone. Plant a tree and tend it; you see no growth day by day—until one day it towers. Heap up merit in secret; you may not notice the good—until the moment it saves you. Cast off right and turn your back on principle; you may not feel the evil—until the hour of ruin. I beg you, my lord, to weigh this counsel and live by it—the changeless path for a hundred generations.
39
吳王不納。 乘等去而之梁，從孝王游。
The King of Wu would not listen. Mei Sheng and his companions left for Liang and joined King Xiao's court.
40
景帝即位，御史大夫晃錯為漢定制度，損削諸侯，吳王遂與六國謀反，舉兵西鄉，以誅錯為名。 漢聞之，斬錯以謝諸侯。 枚乘復說吳王曰：
Emperor Jing had ascended; Grand Counselor Chao Cuo rewrote Han law and pared the kingdoms, so the King of Wu conspired with six states, marched west, and used "punishing Chao Cuo" as his banner. The court cut off Chao Cuo's head to appease the kings. Mei Sheng remonstrated again:
41
昔者，秦西舉胡戎之難，北備榆中之關，南距羌□之塞，東當六國之從。 六國乘信陵之籍，明蘇秦之約，厲荊軻之威，並力一心以備秦。 然秦卒禽六國，滅其社稷，而並天下，是何也？ 則地利不同，而民輕重不等也。 今漢據全秦之地，兼六國之眾，修戎狄之義，而南朝羌□，此其與秦，地相什而民相百，大王之所明知也。 今夫讒諛之臣為大王計者，不論骨肉之義，民之輕重，國之大小，以為吳禍，此臣所以為大王患也。
Qin once fought the western Rong, guarded the Yuzhong pass in the north, held the Qiang passes in the south, and turned east to meet the allied six states. Those six kingdoms rode on Lord Xinling's name, honored Su Qin's league, brandished Jing Ke's daring, and stood as one against Qin. Yet Qin swallowed them all, snuffed their dynastic fires, and unified the realm—why? Because terrain differed and the strength of their peoples was not the same. Han holds all Qin's old territory and the combined manpower of the six states, courts the Rong and Di in good faith, and fronts the Qiang in the south—its ground outstrips Qin's ten times over, its people a hundredfold, as you well know. Yet your flatterers plot for you without regard to kinship, popular strength, or the size of states, and call it Wu's doom—that is what I fear for you.
42
夫舉吳兵以訾於漢，璧猶蠅蚋之附群牛，腐肉之齒利劍，鋒接必無事矣。 天子聞吳率失職諸侯，願責先帝之遺約，今漢親誅其三公，以謝前過，是大王之威加於天下，而功越於湯、武也。 夫吳有諸侯之位，而實富於天子； 有隱匿之名，而居過於中國。 夫漢並二十四郡，十七諸侯，方輸錯出，運行數千里不絕於道，其珍怪不如東山之府。 轉粟西鄉，陸行不絕，水行滿河，不如海陵之倉。 修治上林，雜以離宮，積聚玩好，圈守禽獸，不如長洲之苑。 游曲台，臨上路，不如朝夕之池。 深壁高壘，副以關城，不如江淮之險。 此臣之所為大王樂也。
To march Wu against Han is like gnats swarming a herd of oxen or rotten meat meeting a keen blade—when steel strikes, you will be nothing. The emperor heard Wu lead disaffected kings and invoke the late emperor's covenants; the court has just executed three grand ministers to atone for past wrongs—your prestige, my lord, already weighs on the realm, your deed outshines Tang and Wu. Wu holds only a king's title, yet it is wealthier than the throne. It is called a remote fief, yet its splendor exceeds the heartland. Han gathers tribute from twenty-four commanderies and seventeen kingdoms along roads that never rest—yet its hoard cannot match your Eastern Mountain vaults. Its grain barges fill the rivers—yet they cannot match your granaries at Hailing. Its Shanglin Park with its lodges and menageries cannot match your Changzhou hunting preserve. Its Curved Terrace and highways cannot match your pleasure pools at hand. Its stacked walls and barred passes cannot match the natural rampart of the Yangtze and Huai. That, my lord, is your advantage.
43
今大王還兵疾歸，尚得十半。 不然，漢知吳之有吞天下之心也，赫然加怒，遣羽林黃頭循江而下，龔大王之都； 魯東海絕吳之餉道； 梁王飭車騎，習戰射，積粟固守，以備滎陽，待吳之饑。 大王雖欲反都，亦不得已。 夫三淮南之計不負其約，齊王殺身以滅其跡，四國不得出兵其郡，趙囚邯鄲，此不可掩，亦已明矣。 大王已去千里之國，而制於十里之內矣。 張、韓將此地，弓高宿左右，兵不得下壁，軍不得太息，臣竊哀之。 願大王孰察焉。
Wheel your host about now and you may yet keep half of what you have. Refuse, and once Han knows you mean to seize the realm, it will blaze with wrath and send palace guards and river fleets down the stream against your capital. Lu and Donghai will sever your supply lines. King Xiao of Liang will drill cavalry, stack grain, and hold Xingyang fast until Wu starves. Then even if you wish to wheel back to your seat, you will be unable. The Huainan princes kept faith, the King of Qi died to wipe away suspicion, four kingdoms never marched, Zhao is bottled in Handan—these facts cannot be hidden; they are plain. You have marched out of a thousand-li realm only to be pinned within ten li. Zhang and Han will hold this ground, Gongao will camp on your flanks—your men will not dare leave the walls nor draw a full breath; I grieve for it. I beg you to weigh this.
44
吳王不用乘策，卒見禽滅。
The king ignored Mei Sheng's plan and was taken and ruined.
45
漢既平七國，乘由是知名。 景帝召拜乘為弘農都尉。 乘久為大國上賓，與英俊並游，得其所好，不樂郡吏，以病去官。 復游梁，梁客皆善屬辭賦，乘尤高。 孝王薨，乘歸淮陰。
When Han crushed the seven kingdoms, Mei Sheng's name was known everywhere. Emperor Jing summoned him and named him chief of Hongnong commandery. Long a honored client of a great kingdom, keeping company with the brilliant, he found no joy in a county post and resigned on grounds of illness. He returned to Liang, where every retainer wrote fu; Mei Sheng stood highest among them. After King Xiao died, Mei Sheng went back to his home commandery of Huaiyin.
46
武帝自為太子聞乘名，及即位，乘年老，乃以安車蒲輪征乘，道死。 詔問乘子，無能為文者，後乃得其薛子皋。
The emperor had known Mei Sheng's name since his own heirship; after his accession, with the scholar's carriage and rattan wheels he called the aged Mei Sheng, who died en route. An edict sought Mei Sheng's sons; none could write; at last a bastard son, Gao, was found.
47
子皋
His son: Mei Gao
48
皋字少孺，乘在梁時，取皋母為小妻。 乘之東歸也，皋母不肯隨乘，乘怒，分皋數千錢，留與母居。 年十七，上書梁共王，得召為郎。 三年，為王使，與冗從爭，見讒惡遇罪，家室沒入。 皋亡至長安。 會赦，上書北闕，自陳枚乘之子。 上得大喜，召入見待詔，皋因賦殿中。 詔使賦平樂館，善之。 拜為郎，使匈奴。 皋不通經術，詼笑類俳倡，為賦頌好嫚戲，以故得媟默貴幸，比東方朔、郭舍人等，而不得比嚴助等得尊官。
Mei Gao, styled Shaoru: while Mei Sheng was in Liang he took Gao's mother as a concubine. When Mei Sheng went east, the mother refused to follow; in anger he gave the boy a few thousand cash and left him with her. At seventeen he memorialized King Gong of Liang and was called to court as a gentleman. Within three years, on mission for the king, he brawled with hangers-on, was slandered, convicted, and his family confiscated. Mei Gao fled to Chang'an. When an amnesty came, he petitioned at the northern portal, declaring himself Mei Sheng's son. The emperor rejoiced, summoned him as a palace writer-in-waiting, and Mei Gao composed a rhapsody in the hall. He was ordered to write on Pingle Lodge and won praise. He was made a gentleman-cavalier and sent as envoy to the Xiongnu. Mei Gao had no classical learning; his humor was buffoon's humor; his fu and songs ran to coarse jokes—so he won the emperor's intimate favor like Dongfang Shuo and Guo She'er, but never rose to grave posts like Yan Zhu.
49
武帝春秋二十九乃得皇子，群臣喜，故皋與東方朔作《皇太子生賦》及《立皇子禖祝》，受詔所為，皆不從故事，重皇子也。
When the emperor was twenty-nine and at last had a son, the court rejoiced; Mei Gao and Dongfang Shuo were commissioned to write "On the Birth of the Heir" and "Prayer for the Heir's Rite"—compositions that broke precedent to magnify the event.
50
初，衛皇后立，皋奏賦以戒終。 皋為賦善於朔也。
When Empress Wei was first raised, Mei Gao submitted a fu warning how such stories end. In fu composition Mei Gao surpassed Dongfang Shuo.
51
從行至甘泉、雍、河東，東巡狩，封泰山，塞決河宣房，遊觀三輔離宮館，臨山澤，弋獵射馭狗馬蹴鞠刻鏤，上有所感，輒使賦之。 為文疾，受詔輒成，故所賦者多。 司馬相如善為文而遲，故所作少而善於皋。 皋賦辭中自言為賦不如相如，又言為賦乃俳，見視如倡，自悔類倡也。 故其賦有詆□東方朔，又自詆□。 其文骫骳，曲隨其事，皆得其意，頗詼笑，不甚閒靡。 凡可讀者百二十篇，其尤女曼戲不可讀者尚數十篇。
He accompanied the court to Ganquan, Yong, Hedong, on the eastern tour, the Mount Tai rite, the Xuanfang works on the Yellow River, the lodges of the capital region—hunting, racing dogs, ball games, inlay work—whenever the emperor felt moved, Mei Gao was told to write. He wrote at speed and finished whatever he was ordered—hence his large body of work. Sima Xiangru wrote more slowly but better—so he produced less yet finer pieces than Mei Gao. In his own fu Mei Gao admitted he fell short of Sima Xiangru, called the art mere clowning, said he was treated like a player, and regretted resembling one. His pieces therefore mocked Dongfang Shuo and mocked himself. His style was rough and wayward, tailored to each occasion, apt to the point, often humorous, seldom ornate. About a hundred twenty pieces are fit to read; several dozen more are too obscene to circulate.
52
路溫舒
Lu Wenshu
53
路溫舒字長君，巨鹿東里人也。 父為裡監門。 使溫舒牧羊，溫舒取澤中蒲，截以為牒，編用寫書。 稍習善，求為獄小吏，因學律令，轉為獄史，縣中疑事皆問焉。 太守行縣，見而異之，署決曹史。 又受《春秋》，通大義。 舉孝廉，為山邑丞，坐法免，復為郡吏。
Lu Wenshu, styled Changjun, came from the eastern ward of Julu. His father was gatekeeper for the village. He sent the boy to tend sheep; Lu Wenshu cut marsh cattails into slips and copied texts on them. As he improved he became a prison runner, studied law, rose to prison clerk, and the county brought him every doubtful case. The grand administrator, touring the county, marked him out and named him clerk of the sentencing office. He also mastered the Spring and Autumn and grasped its larger principles. Recommended as filial and incorrupt, he served as assistant at Shanyi, lost his post for a legal fault, then returned as a commandery clerk.
54
臣聞齊有無知之禍，而桓公以興； 晉有驪姬之難，而文公用伯。 近世趙王不終，諸呂作亂，而孝文為太宗。 繇是觀之，禍亂之作，將以開聖人也。 故桓、文扶微興壞，尊文武之業，澤加百姓，功潤諸侯，雖不及三王，天下歸仁焉。 文帝永思至德，以承天心，崇仁義，省刑罰，通關梁，一遠近，敬賢如大賓，愛民如赤子，內恕情之所安，而施之於海內，是以囹圄空虛，天下太平。 夫繼變化之後，必有異舊之恩，此賢聖所以昭天命也。 往者，昭帝即世而無嗣，大臣憂戚，焦心合謀，皆以昌邑尊親，援而立之。 然天不授命，淫亂其心，遂以自亡。 深察禍變之故，乃皇天之所以開至聖也。 故大將軍受命武帝，股肱漢國，披肝膽，決大計，黜亡義，立有德，輔天而行，然後宗廟以安，天下咸寧。
I have heard that after Qi's crisis of Wuzhi, Duke Huan rose from it. Jin suffered Lady Li's plot, yet Duke Wen turned it into hegemony. In our day the King of Zhao met an untimely end, the Lü clan rebelled, and Emperor Wen became founding ancestor. From this it follows that rebellion and disaster are heaven's way of ushering in a sage. Thus Huan and Wen raised fallen houses, continued the work of Wen and Wu, blessed the people and strengthened the nobles; though they fell short of the Three Kings, the realm turned to humaneness. Emperor Wen pondered supreme virtue to answer heaven: he honored benevolence, lightened punishments, opened the roads, treated worthy men as honored guests and the people as infants, and spread inward peace across the seas—so his jails stood empty and the realm knew great peace. After great change must come a mercy unlike the old—that is how sages show heaven's mandate. When Emperor Zhao died without an heir, the ministers agonized and together raised Changyi because he was of the imperial kin. Heaven refused him: lust and folly mastered him, and he destroyed himself. Sound the reasons for that fall, and you see how High Heaven clears the path for the greatest sage. The great general, charged by Emperor Wu, was pillar of Han: he laid bare his heart, set the great design, cast out the unworthy, raised the worthy, and acted with heaven—only then were the ancestral shrines secured and the realm quieted.
55
巨聞《春秋》正即位，大一統而慎始也。 陛下初登至尊，與天合符，宜改前世之失，正始受之統，滌煩文，除民疾，存亡繼絕，以應天意。
The Spring and Autumn teaches right succession, one rule for the realm, and a scrupulous beginning. Your Majesty has just mounted the throne in accord with heaven: you should mend the errors of the past, set right the line you inherit, cut red tape, heal the people's hurts, restore broken lines, and answer heaven's will.
56
臣聞秦有十失，其一尚存，治獄之吏是也。 秦之時，羞文學，好武勇，賤仁義之士，貴治獄之吏； 正言者謂之誹謗，遏過者謂之妖言。 故盛服先生不用於世，忠良切言皆鬱於胸，譽諛之聲日滿於耳； 虛美熏心，實禍蔽塞。 此乃秦之所以亡天下也。 方今天下賴陛下恩厚，亡金革之危，饑寒之患，父子夫妻戮力安家，然太平未洽者，獄亂之也。 夫獄者，天下之大命也，死者不可復生，絕者不可復屬。 《書》曰：「與其殺不辜，寧失不經。」 今治獄吏則不然，上下相驅，以刻為明； 深者獲公名，平者多後患。 故治獄之吏皆欲人死，非憎人也，自安之道在人之死。 是以死人之血流離於市，被刑之徒比肩而立，大辟之計歲以萬數，此仁聖之所以傷也。 太平之未洽，凡以此也。 夫人情安則樂生，痛則思死。 棰楚之下，何求而不得？ 故囚人不勝痛，則飾辭以視之； 吏治者利其然，則指道以明之； 上奏畏卻，則鍛練而周內之。 蓋奏當之成，雖咎繇聽之，猶以為死有餘辜。 何則？ 成練者眾，文致之罪明也。 是以獄吏專為深刻，殘賊而亡極，偷為一切，不顧國患，此世之大賊也。 故俗語曰：「畫地為獄，議不入； 刻木為吏，期不對。」 此皆疾吏之風，悲痛之辭也。 故天下之患，莫深於獄； 敗法亂正，離親塞道，莫甚乎治獄之吏。 此所謂一尚存者也。
I have heard that Qin had ten faults; one remains—the way we run our prisons. Under Qin, letters were despised, arms exalted, humane scholars slighted, and jailers honored. Plain truth was branded slander; honest criticism was called witch talk. So scholars in court dress found no employment, loyal counsel choked in the throat, while flattery rang in every ear. Hollow praise blinded the heart while true disaster was walled out. That is how Qin lost the realm. Today, thanks to your kindness, we have no war or famine, and families work in peace—yet full peace eludes us because the prisons are in chaos. Justice is the empire's lifeline: the executed cannot rise, the mutilated cannot be made whole. The Documents say, "Better to risk mishandling a case than to put the innocent to death." Today's jailers do the opposite: rank drives rank and cruelty passes for competence. The harsh win a name for zeal; the fair inherit later trouble. So every jailer wants a capital verdict—not from hatred, but because his own safety lies in another man's death. Blood runs in the marketplace, the branded stand shoulder to shoulder, and executions mount by the tens of thousands each year—it wounds every humane ruler. That is why perfect peace has not come. Human nature seeks life when treated gently and thinks of death when tortured. Under the lash, what confession can fail? So the accused, unable to bear pain, frames a tale for the torturer. The jailer, liking that outcome, coaches the story into shape. Fearing a rebuff upstairs, he forges the record until the charge fits. Once the sentencing memorial is on file, even Gao Yao presiding would conclude the prisoner deserved worse than death. Why? Too many hands have polished the forged case, and the paper "crime" reads as plain as day. So jailers trade in cruelty and extortion without end, cut every corner, and never mind the harm to the state—they are the great brigands of our time. Hence the proverb: "They draw a jail on the dust—yet counsel never crosses the line." "They carve a wooden magistrate—yet no one will plead before it." Such words are the voice of a people who loathe their jailers and grieve their wrongs. No scourge in the realm runs deeper than the prisons. Nothing corrupts law, severs families, and chokes the Way like the men who run those halls. That is the one of Qin's ten faults that still lives among us.
57
臣聞烏鳶之卵不毀，而後鳳凰集； 誹謗之罪不誅，而後良言進。 故古人有言：「山藪藏疾，川澤納污，瑾瑜匿惡，國君含詬。」 唯陛下除誹謗以招切言，開天下之口，廣箴諫之路，掃亡秦之失，尊文、武之德，省法制，寬刑罰，以廢治獄，則太平之風可興於世，永履和樂，與天亡極，天下幸甚。
I have heard that when no one smashes the crows' and kites' eggs, the phoenix will come to roost. When no one dies for the crime of "slander," honest counsel will flow again. The ancients said, "Hills hide sickness, rivers hold muck; flawless jade may bear a blemish, and a true king may bear a slur." If you strike down the law against slander, open every mouth to frank advice, widen the road of remonstrance, cast off Qin's errors, lift up the model of Kings Wen and Wu, simplify statutes and ease punishments, and break the jailers' grip on justice, then the breeze of true peace will stir in our time, harmony will last as long as heaven, and the realm will know a great blessing.
58
上善其言，遷廣陽私府長。
The emperor praised his memorial and promoted him to steward of the Guangyang princely treasury.
59
內史舉溫舒文學高第，遷右扶風丞。 時，詔書令公卿選可使匈奴者。 溫舒上書，願給廝養，暴骨方對，以盡臣節。 事下度遼將軍范明友、太僕杜延年問狀，罷歸故官。 久之，遷臨淮太守，治有異跡，卒於官。
The metropolitan governor ranked him top in the literary examination, and he was promoted to assistant governor of Youfufeng. An edict then called on high officials to name envoys fit for the Xiongnu. Lu Wenshu offered himself as a menial groom, begging to leave his bones bleaching on the frontier if that would fulfill a subject's duty. The case went to General Fan Mingyou and Chamberlain Du Yannian for review; he was sent back to his old post. Later he became grand administrator of Linhuai, where his rule left a remarkable record, and he died in harness.
60
溫舒從祖父受歷數天文，以為漢厄三七之間，上封事以豫戒。 成帝時，谷永亦言如此。 及王莽篡位，欲章代漢之符，著其語焉。 溫舒子及孫皆至牧守大官。
He learned calendrical astronomy from a great-uncle, believed Han would meet crisis in a "three times seven" cycle, and filed sealed warnings. Under Emperor Cheng, Gu Yong voiced the same prophecy. When Wang Mang seized the throne and sought omens of Han's supersession, he set these sayings down in his propaganda. His sons and grandsons rose to governorships and other high posts.
61
贊曰：春秋魯臧孫達以禮諫君，君子以為有後。 賈山自下劘上，鄒陽、枚乘游於危國，然卒免刑戮者，以其言正也。 路溫舒辭順而意篤，遂為世家，宜哉！
The historian's judgment: In the Spring and Autumn Annals, Zang Sunda of Lu remonstrated with ritual—the gentleman said his line would endure. Jia Shan counseled from the bottom of society upward; Zou Yang and Mei Sheng served treasonous courts, yet all escaped the block—because their counsel was just. Lu Wenshu spoke with deference yet meant every word, and his family rose to lasting prominence—exactly as he deserved.