1
汲黯字長孺，濮陽人也。 其先有寵於古之衛君。 至黯七世，世為卿大夫。 黯以父任，孝景時為太子洗馬，以莊見憚。 孝景帝崩，太子即位，黯為謁者。 東越相攻，上使黯往視之。 不至，至吳而還，報曰：「越人相攻，固其俗然，不足以辱天子之使。」 河內失火，延燒千餘家，上使黯往視之。 還報曰：「家人失火，屋比延燒，不足憂也。 臣過河南，河南貧人傷水旱萬餘家，或父子相食，臣謹以便宜，持節發河南倉粟以振貧民。 臣請歸節，伏矯制之罪。」 上賢而釋之，遷為滎陽令。 黯恥為令，病歸田里。 上聞，乃召拜為中大夫。 以數切諫，不得久留內，遷為東海太守。 黯學黃老之言，治官理民，好清靜，擇丞史而任之。 其治，責大指而已，不苛小。 黯多病，臥閨閤內不出。 歲餘，東海大治。 稱之。 上聞，召以為主爵都尉，列於九卿。 治務在無為而已，弘大體，不拘文法。
Ji An, whose courtesy name was Changru, was a native of Puyang. His forebears had enjoyed the favor of the ancient rulers of Wei. For seven generations down to Ji An himself, every generation had produced ministers and grandees. Through the privilege of his father's rank, Ji An served as Attendant to the Crown Prince during the reign of Emperor Jing, and his solemn bearing inspired awe in all who knew him. When Emperor Jing passed away and the Crown Prince ascended the throne, Ji An was appointed Master of Ceremonies. When the tribes of Eastern Yue fell to fighting among themselves, the Emperor dispatched Ji An to investigate. He never reached his destination but turned back at Wu, reporting to the throne: 'The Yue people have always fought among themselves—it is simply their way. Such matters are beneath the dignity of an envoy of the Son of Heaven.' When a fire broke out in Henei and spread to consume more than a thousand homes, the Emperor once again sent Ji An to investigate. Upon his return, he reported: 'A household fire spread to the neighboring buildings—this is no cause for concern. But as I passed through Henan, I found more than ten thousand households ravaged by flood and drought—so desperate that in some cases fathers and sons were reduced to eating one another. I took it upon myself, bearing my staff of authority, to open the Henan granaries and distribute grain to the starving people. I now return my staff of authority and humbly submit myself to punishment for acting without imperial sanction.' The Emperor, impressed by his integrity, pardoned him and appointed him Magistrate of Xingyang. Ji An considered a mere magistrate's post beneath his dignity and, claiming illness, retired to his country home. When the Emperor learned of this, he summoned Ji An back to court and appointed him Palace Grandee. But because he so often spoke his mind in blunt remonstrance, he was unable to remain at court for long and was transferred to serve as Governor of Donghai. Ji An was a student of Huang-Lao philosophy. In governing, he preferred tranquility and non-interference, carefully selecting able deputies and entrusting them with the administration. His style of rule focused on the broad strokes and did not trouble itself with petty details. Ji An was frequently ill and would remain bedridden in his private quarters, rarely venturing out. Yet after little more than a year, the Donghai commandery was flourishing under exemplary governance. The people praised him widely. When the Emperor heard of his success, he summoned Ji An to court and appointed him Commandant of the Noble Ranks, elevating him to the ranks of the Nine Ministers. His approach to governance remained one of non-interference—he upheld broad principles and refused to be constrained by the letter of the law.
2
黯為人性倨，少禮，面折，不能容人之過。 合己者善待之，不合己者不能忍見，士亦以此不附焉。 然好學，游俠，任氣節，內行修絜，好直諫，數犯主之顏色，常慕傅柏、袁盎之為人也。 善灌夫、鄭當時及宗正劉棄。 亦以數直諫，不得久居位。
By temperament, Ji An was proud and blunt, sparing little thought for social niceties. He would rebuke people to their faces and could not abide the failings of others. Those who shared his views he treated warmly, but those who disagreed he could hardly bear to look upon. For this reason, few officials chose to attach themselves to him. And yet he was a man devoted to learning who kept company with wandering knights, a man who prized integrity and honor. His personal conduct was beyond reproach, and he delighted in speaking truth to power, frequently provoking the Emperor's displeasure. He had always admired the example set by Fu Bai and Yuan Ang. He was close friends with Guan Fu, Zheng Dangshi, and Liu Qi, the Director of the Imperial Clan. Here too, his habit of blunt remonstrance prevented him from holding his position for long.
3
當是時，太后弟武安侯蚡為丞相，中二千石來拜謁，蚡不為禮。 然黯見蚡未嘗拜，常揖之。 天子方招文學儒者，上曰吾欲云云，黯對曰：「陛下內多欲而外施仁義，柰何欲效唐虞之治乎！」 上默然，怒，變色而罷朝。 公卿皆為黯懼。 上退，謂左右曰：「甚矣，汲黯之戇也！」 群臣或數黯，黯曰：「天子置公卿輔弼之臣，寧令從諛承意，陷主於不義乎？ 且已在其位，縱愛身，柰辱朝廷何！」
At that time, Tian Fen, the Marquis of Wu'an and younger brother of the Empress Dowager, held the post of Chancellor. When officials of the two-thousand-bushel rank came to pay their respects, he would not deign to return their courtesies. Yet when Ji An encountered Tian Fen, he never once performed a full bow, offering only a casual salute with cupped hands. The Emperor was at that time actively courting men of letters and Confucian scholars. When the Emperor spoke of his grand ambitions, Ji An replied: 'Your Majesty harbors boundless desires within, yet makes an outward show of benevolence and righteousness—how can you hope to emulate the governance of Yao and Shun!' The Emperor fell silent, his face darkening with rage, and abruptly dismissed the court. Every minister and grandee at court trembled for Ji An's sake. After withdrawing, the Emperor said to his attendants: 'What an impossible fool Ji An is!' When some of the other ministers rebuked him, Ji An replied: 'The Son of Heaven appoints his ministers to advise and assist him—surely not to have them merely flatter and fawn, leading the sovereign into unrighteousness? Once a man holds such a position, even if he values his own skin, how can he bear to bring disgrace upon the court!'
4
黯多病，病且滿三月，上常賜告者數，終不愈。 最後病，莊助為請告。 上曰：「汲黯何如人哉？」 助曰：「使黯任職居官，無以踰人。 然至其輔少主，守城深堅，招之不來，麾之不去，雖自謂賁育亦不能奪之矣。」 上曰：「然。 古有社稷之臣，至如黯，近之矣。」
Ji An was plagued by illness, and on one occasion was bedridden for nearly three months. The Emperor repeatedly granted him sick leave, yet he never fully recovered. When he fell ill for the last time, Zhuang Zhu petitioned the Emperor on his behalf for an extension of leave. The Emperor asked: 'What sort of man is this Ji An, after all?' Zhuang Zhu replied: 'If Ji An were judged solely on his ability to handle official duties, he would be no better than any other man. But when it comes to safeguarding a young sovereign, he would hold the fortress with unyielding resolve—no summons could lure him away, and no command could dislodge him. Even men who fancy themselves the equals of Meng Ben and Xia Yu could not wrest his loyalty from him.' The Emperor said: 'Just so. The ancients spoke of ministers devoted to the altars of state—Ji An comes close to that ideal.'
5
大將軍青侍中，上踞廁而視之。 丞相弘燕見，上或時不冠。 至如黯見，上不冠不見也。 上嘗坐武帳中，黯前奏事，上不冠，望見黯，避帳中，使人可其奏。 其見敬禮如此。
When the Grand General Wei Qing attended him at court, the Emperor would receive him while lounging casually by the latrine. When Chancellor Gongsun Hong came for a private audience, the Emperor would sometimes receive him without even donning his formal cap. But when Ji An sought an audience, the Emperor would never receive him unless he was properly capped and dressed. Once, the Emperor was sitting informally in the military tent when Ji An approached to present a report. Caught without his cap, the Emperor spotted Ji An in the distance, retreated behind the curtains, and sent an attendant to approve the memorial on his behalf. Such was the degree of respect the Emperor accorded him.
6
張湯方以更定律令為廷尉，黯數質責湯於上前，曰：「公為正卿，上不能褒先帝之功業，下不能抑天下之邪心，安國富民，使囹圄空虛，二者無一焉。 非苦就行，放析就功，何乃取斑皇帝約束紛更之為？ 公以此無種矣。」 黯時與湯論議，湯辯常在文深小苛，黯伉厲守高不能屈，忿發罵曰：「天下謂刀筆吏不可以為公卿，果然。 必湯也，令天下重足而立，側目而視矣！」
Zhang Tang had recently been appointed Commandant of Justice, tasked with revising the laws. Ji An repeatedly challenged him before the Emperor, declaring: 'You serve as Chief Justice, yet you have neither upheld the legacy of the former emperors above nor suppressed the wickedness in the hearts of the people below. You have failed to bring peace and prosperity to the nation, and the prisons remain full—you have accomplished neither of these goals. Rather than striving to enforce proper conduct and build real achievements, why do you seize upon the late emperors' statutes only to throw them into confusion with endless revisions? Mark my words—with such conduct, your line will come to an end.' Whenever Ji An debated with Zhang Tang, Tang would invariably retreat into the fine print and petty technicalities of the law. Ji An, unbending and holding to his lofty principles, refused to yield, and at last erupted in fury: 'Everyone says that petty clerks should never be made ministers—and indeed it is true! It is Zhang Tang who has made the whole empire stand frozen in terror, barely daring to glance sideways!'
7
是時，漢方征匈奴，招懷四夷。 黯務少事，乘上閒，常言與胡和親，無起兵。 上方向儒術，尊公孫弘。 及事益多，吏民巧弄。 上分別文法，湯等數奏決讞以幸。 而黯常毀儒，面觸弘等徒懷詐飾智以阿人主取容，而刀筆吏專深文巧詆，陷人於罪，使不得反其真，以勝為功。 上愈益貴弘、湯，弘、湯深心疾黯，唯天子亦不說也，欲誅之以事。 弘為丞相，乃言上曰：「右內史界部中多貴人宗室，難治，非素重臣不能任，請徙黯為右內史。」 為右內史數歲，官事不廢。
At that time, the Han dynasty was waging campaigns against the Xiongnu and working to win over the barbarian peoples on all four frontiers. Ji An advocated simplicity in governance and, seizing every opportunity when the Emperor was at ease, would urge him to pursue peace through marriage alliances with the Hu rather than resorting to war. The Emperor, however, was increasingly drawn to Confucian scholarship and had elevated Gongsun Hong to a place of honor. As the affairs of state multiplied, officials and commoners alike grew ever more cunning and manipulative. The Emperor took to parsing the fine points of the law with relish, and Zhang Tang and his ilk frequently submitted judicial verdicts to curry favor. Ji An was relentless in his criticism of the Confucians, confronting Gongsun Hong and others to their faces with the charge that they harbored nothing but deceit, dressing up their cleverness to flatter the Emperor. As for the legal clerks, he accused them of twisting the law and crafting specious accusations to entrap the innocent, denying them any chance of vindication—and counting each conviction as a triumph. Yet the Emperor continued to elevate Gongsun Hong and Zhang Tang, who in turn harbored a deep hatred of Ji An. Even the Emperor himself had grown weary of Ji An, and the two men sought a pretext to have him put to death. When Gongsun Hong became Chancellor, he said to the Emperor: 'The district of the Right Prefect of the Capital is filled with nobles and members of the imperial clan—it is exceedingly difficult to govern. Only a minister of proven authority can manage it. I recommend that Ji An be transferred to the post of Right Prefect of the Capital.' Ji An served as Right Prefect of the Capital for several years, and the administration ran smoothly under his watch.
8
大將軍青既益尊，姊為皇后，然黯與亢禮。 人或說黯曰：「自天子欲群臣下大將軍，大將軍尊重益貴，君不可以不拜。」 黯曰：「夫以大將軍有揖客，反不重邪？」 大將軍聞，愈賢黯，數請問國家朝廷所疑，遇黯過於平生。
Even after the Grand General Wei Qing had risen to ever greater eminence—his own sister having become Empress—Ji An continued to treat him as an equal. Someone advised Ji An: 'The Son of Heaven expects every minister to defer to the Grand General, and his honor and rank only continue to grow—surely you cannot refuse to bow before him.' Ji An replied: 'For the Grand General to have a guest who offers only a casual salute rather than a bow—does that not, in fact, add to his stature?' When the Grand General heard this, his admiration for Ji An only grew. He frequently sought Ji An's counsel on difficult matters of state, treating him with greater courtesy than he had shown in all their years of acquaintance.
9
淮南王謀反，憚黯，曰：「好直諫，守節死義，難惑以非。 至如說丞相弘，如發蒙振落耳。」
When the King of Huainan plotted his rebellion, he was wary of Ji An, saying: 'Ji An delights in blunt remonstrance and would sooner die than abandon his principles—he cannot be deceived or led astray. But as for winning over Chancellor Gongsun Hong—that would be as easy as lifting a veil or shaking leaves from a tree.'
10
天子既數征匈奴有功，黯之言益不用。
As the Emperor's repeated campaigns against the Xiongnu bore fruit, Ji An's counsel was increasingly ignored.
11
始黯列為九卿，而公孫弘、張湯為小吏。 及弘、湯稍益貴，與黯同位，黯又非毀弘、湯等。 已而弘至丞相，封為侯； 湯至御史大夫； 故黯時丞相史皆與黯同列，或尊用過之。 黯褊心，不能無少望，見上，前言曰：「陛下用群臣如積薪耳，后來者居上。」 上默然。 有閒黯罷，上曰：「人果不可以無學，觀黯之言也日益甚。」
When Ji An first took his place among the Nine Ministers, Gongsun Hong and Zhang Tang were still petty officials. As Gongsun Hong and Zhang Tang gradually rose to stand at his level, Ji An continued to denounce them. In time, Gongsun Hong ascended to the Chancellorship and was enfeoffed as a marquis; Zhang Tang rose to the office of Imperial Secretary; and men who had once served as clerks under the Chancellor now held the same rank as Ji An—or had even surpassed him. Ji An, being a man of narrow patience, could not conceal his resentment. In an audience with the Emperor, he stepped forward and declared: 'Your Majesty employs his ministers the way one stacks firewood—the latest additions always end up on top.' The Emperor said nothing. After Ji An had withdrawn, the Emperor remarked: 'A man truly cannot afford to neglect his studies. Just look at how Ji An's remarks grow more outrageous by the day.'
12
居無何，匈奴渾邪王率眾來降，漢發車二萬乘。 縣官無錢，從民貰馬。 民或匿馬，馬不具。 上怒，欲斬長安令。 黯曰：「長安令無罪，獨斬黯，民乃肯出馬。 且匈奴畔其主而降漢，漢徐以縣次傳之，何至令天下騷動，罷獘中國而以事夷狄之人乎！」 上默然。 及渾邪至，賈人與市者，坐當死者五百餘人。 黯請閒，見高門，曰：「夫匈奴攻當路塞，絕和親，中國興兵誅之，死傷者不可勝計，而費以巨萬百數。 臣愚以為陛下得胡人，皆以為奴婢以賜從軍死事者家； 所鹵獲，因予之，以謝天下之苦，塞百姓之心。 今縱不能，渾邪率數萬之眾來降，虛府庫賞賜，發良民侍養，譬若奉驕子。 愚民安知市買長安中物而文吏繩以為闌出財物于邊關乎？ 陛下縱不能得匈奴之資以謝天下，又以微文殺無知者五百餘人，是所謂『庇其葉而傷其枝』者也，臣竊為陛下不取也。」 上默然，不許，曰：「吾久不聞汲黯之言，今又復妄發矣。」 後數月，黯坐小法，會赦免官。 於是黯隱於田園。
Not long afterward, the Xiongnu King of Hunye led his people in surrender to the Han, and the court mobilized twenty thousand chariots to receive them. The government treasury was empty, so horses had to be requisitioned on credit from the common people. Some of the people hid their horses, and the required number could not be assembled. The Emperor was furious and wanted to have the Magistrate of Chang'an beheaded. Ji An said: 'The Magistrate of Chang'an bears no guilt. If you must behead someone, behead me, and the people will willingly bring out their horses. Moreover, these Xiongnu have abandoned their own lord to surrender to us. We need only pass them along from district to district at a leisurely pace—why must we throw the entire empire into turmoil, exhausting the resources of China to pamper barbarian peoples!' The Emperor made no reply. When the Hunye people arrived, more than five hundred merchants who had traded with them were convicted and sentenced to death. Ji An requested a private audience at the High Gate and said: 'When the Xiongnu attacked our frontier passes and severed the marriage alliance, China raised armies to punish them. The dead and wounded were beyond counting, and the costs ran to hundreds of millions. In my humble view, Your Majesty should have given all captured Hu people as slaves to the families of soldiers who perished in the campaigns; and distributed the spoils among them, to repay the empire for its suffering and ease the resentment of the common people. Even if that is no longer possible, now that the King of Hunye has led tens of thousands in surrender, you drain the treasury to shower them with rewards and mobilize honest citizens to wait upon and feed them—as though indulging a spoiled child. How could simple commoners have known that trading goods in Chang'an would be construed by the legal clerks as smuggling across the frontier? Your Majesty not only fails to use the wealth of the Xiongnu to repay the empire for its sufferings, but now would use petty legal technicalities to execute more than five hundred innocent people. This is the very meaning of the saying, "protecting the leaves while breaking the branches." I humbly advise Your Majesty against this course.' The Emperor said nothing and refused the request, remarking: 'It has been a long time since I last heard from Ji An, and now he is spouting nonsense once again.' Several months later, Ji An was found guilty of a minor infraction. Though an amnesty spared him punishment, he was dismissed from office. And so Ji An withdrew into retirement on his country estate.
13
居數年，會更五銖錢，民多盜鑄錢，楚地尤甚。 上以為淮陽，楚地之郊，乃召拜黯為淮陽太守。 黯伏謝不受印，詔數彊予，然後奉詔。 詔召見黯，黯為上泣曰：「臣自以為填溝壑，不復見陛下，不意陛下復收用之。 臣常有狗馬病，力不能任郡事，臣願為中郎，出入禁闥，補過拾遺，臣之願也。」 上曰：「君薄淮陽邪？ 吾今召君矣。 顧淮陽吏民不相得，吾徒得君之重，臥而治之。」 黯既辭行，過大行李息，曰：「黯棄居郡，不得與朝廷議也。 然御史大夫張湯智足以拒諫，詐足以飾非，務巧佞之語，辯數之辭，非肯正為天下言，專阿主意。 主意所不欲，因而毀之； 主意所欲，因而譽之。 好興事，舞文法，內懷詐以御主心，外挾賊吏以為威重。 公列九卿，不早言之，公與之俱受其僇矣。」 息畏湯，終不敢言。 黯居郡如故治，淮陽政清。 後張湯果敗，上聞黯與息言，抵息罪。 令黯以諸侯相秩居淮陽。 七歲而卒。
Some years later, the currency was reformed with the introduction of the five-zhu coin. Counterfeiting became rampant, particularly in the Chu region. The Emperor, recognizing that Huaiyang bordered the troubled Chu region, summoned Ji An from retirement and appointed him Governor of Huaiyang. Ji An prostrated himself and repeatedly declined to accept the seal of office. Only after the Emperor insisted several times did he finally submit to the appointment. When summoned to a final audience, Ji An wept before the Emperor and said: 'I had resigned myself to dying in some ditch, never to see Your Majesty again. I never imagined you would call upon me once more. I am plagued by constant illness and lack the strength to administer an entire commandery. My wish is to serve as a Palace Gentleman, passing through the gates of the inner court, where I might help correct mistakes and fill in what has been overlooked—that is all I ask.' The Emperor replied: 'Do you think the post of Huaiyang beneath you? I have called upon you for a reason. The officials and people of Huaiyang are at odds with one another. I rely on the weight of your authority alone—govern them, even if you must do so from your sickbed.' After taking his leave, Ji An visited Li Xi, the Grand Herald, and said: 'I am being cast aside to a distant commandery, cut off from the deliberations of the court. But the Imperial Secretary Zhang Tang is clever enough to deflect any remonstrance and deceitful enough to disguise any wrong. He devotes himself to honeyed flattery and sophistic rhetoric, never willing to speak honestly for the good of the realm—he exists only to pander to the Emperor's whims. Whatever the Emperor dislikes, Zhang Tang tears down; whatever the Emperor desires, he praises to the skies. He delights in stirring up trouble and twisting the law to his purposes. Behind closed doors he employs deceit to bend the Emperor's mind; in public he enlists corrupt officials to project an air of fearsome authority. You hold a seat among the Nine Ministers—if you do not speak out soon, you will share in his downfall.' But Li Xi was afraid of Zhang Tang and never dared to speak. Ji An governed Huaiyang in his accustomed style, and the administration of the commandery became clear and well-ordered. In time, Zhang Tang did indeed meet his downfall. When the Emperor learned of what Ji An had said to Li Xi, he punished Li Xi for his failure to speak up. He ordered Ji An to continue at Huaiyang, now with the rank and salary of a Chancellor to a feudal lord. Seven years later, he passed away.
14
卒後，上以黯故，官其弟汲仁至九卿，子汲偃至諸侯相。 黯姑姊子司馬安亦少與黯為太子洗馬。 安文深巧善宦，官四至九卿，以河南太守卒。 昆弟以安故，同時至二千石者十人。 濮陽段宏始事蓋侯信，信任宏，宏亦再至九卿。 然衛人仕者皆嚴憚汲黯，出其下。
After his death, the Emperor, out of regard for Ji An, elevated his younger brother Ji Ren to the rank of the Nine Ministers and his son Ji Yan to the post of Chancellor to a feudal lord. Sima An, Ji An's cousin on his mother's side, had likewise served alongside him as an Attendant to the Crown Prince in their youth. Sima An was a master of legal subtleties, clever, and adept at navigating the bureaucracy. He attained the rank of the Nine Ministers four separate times and eventually died while serving as Governor of Henan. Thanks to Sima An's influence, ten of his brothers and cousins simultaneously held positions at the two-thousand-bushel rank. Duan Hong of Puyang began his career in the service of Xin, the Marquis of Gai, who placed great trust in him. Duan Hong twice rose to the rank of the Nine Ministers. And yet every official from Wei stood in awe of Ji An and acknowledged his superiority.
15
鄭當時者，字莊，陳人也。 其先鄭君嘗為項籍將； 籍死，已而屬漢。 高祖令諸故項籍臣名籍，鄭君獨不奉詔。 詔盡拜名籍者為大夫，而逐鄭君。 鄭君死孝文時。
Zheng Dangshi, whose courtesy name was Zhuang, was a native of Chen. His forebear, Lord Zheng, had once served as a general under Xiang Yu; After Xiang Yu's death, the family came under the allegiance of the Han. When Emperor Gaozu ordered all former officers of Xiang Yu to register their names, Lord Zheng alone refused to comply. By imperial edict, all who had registered were appointed as Grandees, while Lord Zheng was driven into exile. Lord Zheng died during the reign of Emperor Wen.
16
鄭莊以任俠自喜，脫張羽於緦聲聞梁楚之閒。 孝景時，為太子舍人。 每五日洗沐，常置驛馬安諸郊，存諸故人，請謝賓客，夜以繼日，至其明旦，常恐不遍。 莊好黃老之言，其慕長者如恐不見。 年少官薄，然其游知交皆其大父行，天下有名之士也。 武帝立，莊稍遷為魯中尉、濟南太守、江都相，至九卿為右內史。 以武安侯魏其時議，貶秩為詹事，遷為大農令。
Zheng Zhuang prided himself on his chivalrous spirit. He rescued Zhang Yu from peril, and his reputation spread throughout the lands of Liang and Chu. During the reign of Emperor Jing, he served as a Gentleman of the Crown Prince's Household. Whenever he was granted his five-day leave, he would station relay horses in the outskirts and ride out to call upon his old friends, receiving and bidding farewell to guests through the night until dawn, always fearing he would not have time to see them all. Zheng Zhuang was devoted to the teachings of Huang-Lao, and he sought out men of virtue with an urgency that suggested he feared he might never get the chance to meet them. Though young and of modest rank, the men he befriended were all of his grandfather's generation—men of renown throughout the realm. After Emperor Wu took the throne, Zheng Zhuang rose steadily through the ranks—serving as Commandant of Lu, Governor of Jinan, and Chancellor of Jiangdu—until he reached the Nine Ministers as Right Prefect of the Capital. In the fallout from the dispute between the Marquis of Wu'an and the Marquis of Weiqi, he was demoted to Superintendent of the Imperial Household, and later transferred to the post of Grand Director of Agriculture.
17
莊為太史，誡門下：「客至，無貴賤無留門者。」 執賓主之禮，以其貴下人。 莊廉，又不治其產業，仰奉賜以給諸公。 然其餽遺人，不過算器食。 每朝，候上之閒，說未嘗不言天下之長者。 其推轂士及官屬丞史，誠有味其言之也，常引以為賢於己。 未嘗名吏，與官屬言，若恐傷之。 聞人之善言，進之上，唯恐後。 山東士諸公以此翕然稱鄭莊。
When Zheng Zhuang held office, he instructed his gatekeepers: 'When guests arrive, whether noble or humble, no one is to be kept waiting at the gate.' He scrupulously observed the courtesies between host and guest, humbling himself before others despite his high rank. Zheng Zhuang was scrupulously honest and gave no thought to building up his personal fortune. He relied entirely on his official salary and imperial gifts to support his circle of associates. Yet the gifts he gave were never more than simple utensils and plain food. At every court session, whenever he found a moment with the Emperor, he never failed to put in a good word for the worthy men of the realm. When he recommended scholars or his own subordinates and clerks, he spoke of them with such evident sincerity and relish that he invariably presented them as worthier than himself. He never addressed his officials by their personal names, and when speaking with subordinates, he seemed almost afraid of causing offense. Whenever he learned of a good idea from someone, he would hasten to present it to the Emperor, as though afraid of being too late. For all these reasons, the scholars and gentlemen east of the mountains spoke of Zheng Zhuang with unanimous admiration.
18
鄭莊使視決河，自請治行五日。 上曰：「吾聞『鄭莊行，千里不齎糧』，請治行者何也？」 然鄭莊在朝，常趨和承意，不敢甚引當否。 及晚節，漢征匈奴，招四夷，天下費多，財用益匱。 莊任人賓客為大農僦人，多逋負。 司馬安為淮陽太守，發其事，莊以此陷罪，贖為庶人。 頃之，守長史。 上以為老，以莊為汝南太守。 數歲，以官卒。
When Zheng Zhuang was sent on a mission to inspect a breach in the Yellow River, he requested five days to prepare for the journey. The Emperor laughed and said: 'I have heard it said that "when Zheng Zhuang travels, he needs no provisions for a thousand li." So why does he ask for time to prepare?' At court, however, Zheng Zhuang tended toward accommodation, deferring to the Emperor's wishes and never daring to press too firmly on questions of right and wrong. In his later years, the Han was waging war against the Xiongnu and seeking to win over the barbarian peoples on all four frontiers. The expenses of the realm mounted, and the treasury grew ever more depleted. Zheng Zhuang had recommended his own associates and guests to serve as contractors for the Grand Director of Agriculture, and many of them absconded with their debts. When Sima An, then serving as Governor of Huaiyang, exposed the scandal, Zheng Zhuang was convicted and reduced to the status of a commoner, allowed to pay a fine in lieu of harsher punishment. Before long, he was reappointed to serve as Acting Chief Clerk. The Emperor, considering him too old for central office, appointed him Governor of Runan. After several years, he died while still in office.
19
鄭莊、汲黯始列為九卿，廉，內行修絜。 此兩人中廢，家貧，賓客益落。 及居郡，卒後家無餘貲財。 莊兄弟子孫以莊故，至二千石六七人焉。
When Zheng Zhuang and Ji An first took their places among the Nine Ministers, both were incorruptible, with personal conduct that was upright and beyond reproach. When the two of them fell from power and their households grew poor, the guests and associates who had once flocked to them melted away. After they were sent out to govern distant commanderies and died in their posts, their families were left with nothing. Thanks to Zheng Zhuang's legacy, six or seven of his brothers, sons, and grandsons rose to the two-thousand-bushel rank.
20
太史公曰：夫以汲、鄭之賢，有勢則賓客十倍，無勢則否，況眾人乎！ 下邽翟公有言，始翟公為廷尉，賓客闐門； 及廢，門外可設雀羅。 翟公復為廷尉，賓客欲往，翟公乃人署其門曰：「一死一生，乃知交情。 一貧一富，乃知交態。 一貴一賤，交情乃見。」 汲、鄭亦云，悲夫！
The Grand Historian remarks: Even for men as worthy as Ji An and Zheng Dangshi, when they held power their guests multiplied tenfold, and when they lost it those same guests vanished. How much truer must this be for ordinary men! Master Zhai of Xiagui had a saying about this. When he first served as Commandant of Justice, guests thronged his gate; when he was dismissed from office, his doorway was so deserted that one could have strung a net across it to catch sparrows. When Master Zhai was restored to the post of Commandant of Justice and the guests came flooding back, he inscribed upon his gate: 'Only between life and death does one discover the truth of friendship. Only between poverty and wealth does one learn the nature of one's friends. Only between honor and disgrace is the truth of friendship revealed.' The same could be said of Ji An and Zheng Dangshi. How sorrowful it is!