The original text and translation of "The Story of a Silent Man on the Country"

The original text of Mencius's "A few people are to the country" in the Warring States period is as follows:

King Hui of Liang said: "A few people are to the country, with all their heart and ears. If there is evil in Hanoi, the people will be removed. To the east of the river, move the grain to the river. The same is true for the people in the east of the river. It is not as good as the people of the neighboring countries. If the people of the neighboring countries are not reduced, why not increase the people of the people?"

Mencius said to him: "The king likes to fight, please use the metaphor of war. Fill up the drum, catch the sword, abandon the armor and drag the soldiers away, maybe stop after a hundred steps, or stop after fifty steps. At fifty steps "If you can't walk a hundred paces," he said. When farming is not done, the grain cannot be eaten. If the grains are not brought into the lake, the fish and turtles cannot be eaten. When the axes are weighed in the forest, the grain and the fish and turtles cannot be used. This is why. Keeping people alive and dying without regrets is the beginning of kingship."

"A house with five acres of trees can be used to clothe chickens, dolphins, and dogs. Don't take away the pigeon's time, and the seventy-year-old can eat meat; don't take away the hundred acres of land, and a family of several people can have no hunger; I will pay attention to Xiangxu's teachings, apply the meaning of filial piety and brotherhood, and give it to Bai Bai He is worthy of being on the road. The seventy-year-old wears silk and eats meat, and the people are neither hungry nor cold. However, there is no such thing as a king. "

"A dog eats people's food without knowing it, and there is a way. When a person dies of hunger and does not know how to respond, he will say: "It's not me, it's Sui." "How is this different from stabbing someone and killing them, saying: "It's not me, it's a soldier." "The king is innocent, and the people of the world are here."

Translation:

King Hui of Liang said: "I have worked really hard to govern the country of Liang. Hanoi has suffered When there was a famine, I moved the people there to Hedong and transported the grain from Hedong to Hanoi. When there was a famine in Hedong, I did the same thing. I once inspected the political affairs of neighboring countries, but no one could be as dedicated as me. "The people of neighboring countries have not decreased, and my people have not increased."

Mencius replied: "The king likes war, so please let me use war to fight it?" Let's use a metaphor. As soon as the war drums beat and the blades of their spears came into contact, some soldiers dropped their armor and ran back, dragging their weapons. Some ran for a hundred steps and stopped, while others ran for fifty. Is it okay for those soldiers who ran fifty steps to laugh at those who ran a hundred steps?" King Hui said, "It's just that they didn't get to one. It’s just a hundred steps, but it’s still an escape.”

Mencius said: “If the king understands this principle, then he should not expect that the people will be more numerous than those of his neighboring countries. If you don’t use fine fishing nets to catch fish in deep swamps, the fish and turtles will eat them up; if you go into the mountains with an ax to cut down trees according to the season, you won’t be able to use up the wood.”

< p> "If there is not enough food, fish and turtles to eat, and there is not enough wood to use up, then the people will have no regrets about life, death, and burial. The people have no regrets about life, death, and burial. This is the beginning of kingship. Allocate five acres of houses to the people By planting mulberry trees in gardens, people over fifty can wear silk. If people can raise chickens, dogs, pigs and other domestic animals in a timely manner, people over seventy can eat meat."

"Each family has hundreds of acres of cultivated land, and if the government does not interfere with their production season, then a family of several people will not go hungry. Run the school seriously, and repeatedly use the principles of filial piety to parents and respect for elder brothers. If you teach the common people the truth, then the old people with gray hair and beards will not carry heavy objects on their backs or walk on the road."

"People over seventy years old have silk to wear and meat to eat, and ordinary people. It has never been possible to live without being hungry or cold. This has never happened before. In Liang, the pigs and dogs of wealthy families eat the people's food without restraint; some people starve to death on the road. , but did not open the granary to rescue."

"The people died, but they said: It was not my fault, but because of their bad age. This statement is not the same as killing people with a knife. But he said that he was not killed by me, but by weapons. What difference does it make? If the king does not blame him until he is old, then the people in the world will defect to Liang Guo."

Creative background

p>

During the Warring States Period, various countries competed for supremacy, and frequent wars resulted in large-scale population migration and casualties. At that time, there was neither a nationality system nor immigration restrictions, and people were free to find the paradise of their own dreams. Whichever country is more stable, prosperous, and harmonious, they will move to that country and become subjects. The number of people in a country is also one of the symbols of a country's stability and prosperity.

Therefore, in order to dominate, various princes hope that the population of their country will increase. King Hui of Liang was no exception. "The Identity of the Country" is selected from "Mencius: King Hui of Liang, Part 1" and is the third chapter of the first part of the chapter. According to "Historical Records of the Wei Family", in the thirty-fifth year of King Hui of Liang, he "recruited sages with humble gifts and generous coins." So among the sages, Mencius traveled thousands of miles to Daliang, the capital of Wei.

As soon as the two met, King Hui of Liang wanted to get a good strategy to "benefit our country". Mencius responded by saying, "Why bother talking about benefit? It's just benevolence and righteousness." He pointed out the seriousness of seeking benefits exclusively. Harmfulness and the importance of benevolence and righteousness. Another meeting between the two was at the edge of a pond where animals were swimming.

King Hui of Liang proudly asked Mencius: "Do wise men also enjoy this?" Mencius responded by saying "The wise will enjoy this, and the unworthy will not be happy even if they have this", and through historical facts The comparison proves the different results of the virtuous "happy together" and the unworthy "alone": King Wen cared about the people, and the people loved him, so King Wen could enjoy it; Xia Jie did not care about the people, and the people resented him, so Xia Jie Can't keep his happiness.

It was during the process of contact and conversation that Mencius and King Hui of Liang got to know each other better, which led to the political Q&A that has been passed down through the ages.