Explanation 1
The weight of authority is the ruler’s deep pool; ministers are the fish within that pool of authority. A fish once lost from the deep pool can never be recovered; a ruler once stripped of his authority by ministers can never reclaim it. The ancients found it difficult to speak plainly, and so entrusted their meaning to the metaphor of fish.
Rewards and punishments are sharp instruments. The ruler wields them to control his ministers; if ministers gain hold of them, they use them to overpower the ruler. Therefore, if the ruler reveals in advance what he intends to reward, the ministers will peddle it as their own virtue; if the ruler reveals in advance what he intends to punish, the ministers will peddle it as their own authority. Thus it is said: “The sharp instruments of the state must not be shown to the people.”
When Lord Jing of Xue served as chancellor of Qi, if he spoke at length with an old acquaintance, that acquaintance would become wealthy; if he casually helped those around him wash things, those around him would gain influence. A prolonged conversation and a casual act of washing – these are trifling favors, yet they were enough to create wealth. How much more so the authority of an official in office?
During the reign of Duke Li of Jin, the Six Ministers had grown powerful. Xu Tong and Zhang Yu Jiao remonstrated: “When ministers are noble and powerful, they rival the ruler in affairs of state, forge alliances abroad and build factions, disrupt the laws of the state below, and coerce the ruler above – that a state in such a condition has not perished has never been the case.” The duke said, “Good.” And so he executed three of the ministers. Xu Tong and Zhang Yu Jiao remonstrated again: “When those who share the same crime are only partially punished and not entirely eliminated, resentment is nurtured and opportunity is granted to them.” The duke said, “In a single morning I have already destroyed three ministers – I cannot bear to finish them all.” Zhang Yu Jiao replied: “If you cannot bear to do it, they will bear to do it to you.” The duke did not listen. Three months later, the remaining ministers staged a rebellion, killed Duke Li, and divided his territory among themselves.
When Lord Zhou served as chancellor of Chu, he was powerful and made decisions unilaterally. The King of Chu suspected him and asked those around him. They replied, “There is nothing of the sort,” all speaking as if from a single mouth.
A man of Yan was not confused. His wife was carrying on an affair with a gentleman. One morning, the husband returned early from outside, and the gentleman happened to be leaving. The husband asked, “Who was that guest?” His wife said, “There was no guest.” He asked those around them, and they said, “There was no one,” all speaking as if from a single mouth. His wife said, “You must be delirious.” And so they bathed him in dog excrement.
Another version: A man of Yan named Li Ji was fond of traveling far from home. His wife was carrying on an affair with a gentleman. Li Ji returned suddenly, and the gentleman was still inside the house. His wife was distressed. A woman of the household said, “Have the young man strip naked and let down his hair, then rush straight out the door – we will all pretend not to see him.” The young man followed her plan and bolted out the door at full speed. Li Ji asked, “Who was that person?” All the women of the household said, “There was no one.” Li Ji said, “Have I seen a ghost?” The woman said, “Yes.” “What should be done about it?” she said, “Bathe in the excrement of the five sacrificial animals.” Li Ji said, “Very well.” And so he was bathed in excrement. Another version says he was bathed in orchid-scented water.
Note
This excerpt comes from Explanation One in Han Feizi: Inner Congested Sayings, Part II. Centered on three arguments‑power as abyss, reward‑punishment as sharp tools, minor favours building influence, it draws a chilling conclusion: powerful ministers controlling information can completely overturn what people see with their own eyes.
Lord Jing of Xue / Jing Guo Jun (靖郭君):
Also known as Tian Ying (田婴), he was a son of King Wei of Qi (齐威王) and the father of the famous Lord Mengchang (孟尝君). He served as chancellor of Qi and was enfeoffed at Xue. Han Fei uses him as an example of how even trivial displays of favor – a long conversation, a casual act of kindness – can create enormous political capital in a court environment where everyone is watching for signs of the ruler’s preference.
Duke Li of Jin / Jin Li Gong (晋厉公):
A ruler of the state of Jin during the Spring and Autumn period. His reign was marked by the growing power of the Six Ministers, who would eventually fragment Jin into three separate states (Han, Zhao, and Wei). Duke Li attempted to curb their power by executing three of the six ministers, but failed to eliminate all of them. Three months later, the surviving ministers staged a coup and killed him. This is one of the most vivid examples in Chinese political literature of the danger of half-measures in power struggles.
Xu Tong and Zhang Yu Jiao (胥僮、长鱼矫):
Two ministers who advised Duke Li of Jin. They correctly diagnosed the threat posed by the powerful ministers and urged the duke to eliminate them all at once. When the duke showed mercy and stopped halfway, Zhang Yu Jiao delivered the famous warning: “If you cannot bear to kill them, they will bear to kill you.” Their advice went unheeded, and the duke paid with his life.
Lord Zhou / Zhou Hou (州侯):
A chancellor of Chu who wielded enormous power and made decisions unilaterally. When the King of Chu suspected him and asked his attendants, they all denied any wrongdoing in perfect unison – “as if from a single mouth”. This phrase has since become a Chinese idiom 如出一口 meaning “speaking with one voice,” often used to describe a coordinated cover-up.
Li Ji (李季) and the Bath of Excrement:
A fictional or semi-fictional character used by Han Fei to illustrate the absurdity of collective deception. Li Ji literally saw a naked man run out of his own house, yet when everyone around him denied the man’s existence, he began to doubt his own eyes just as an old Chinese saying goes “three people claiming there is a tiger creates belief in a tiger,” and submitted to being bathed in animal excrement as a “ghost-exorcism” ritual. This story is a darkly comic allegory for how information monopoly can override direct sensory experience.
Authority-Power/Shi:
One of the three pillars of Han Fei’s political philosophy (along with 法 fa/law and 术 shu/method). “Shi” (势) refers to the structural authority that comes from occupying a position of power – not personal charisma or moral virtue, but the institutional weight of the throne itself. Han Fei argues that this authority, once lost, is irrecoverable.
“The sharp instruments of the state must not be shown to the people”:
A quotation from Chapter 36 of the Laozi (Dao De Jing). Han Fei repurposes this Daoist maxim for Legalist purposes: the “sharp instruments” are rewards and punishments, and they must remain exclusively in the ruler’s hands, never delegated or even previewed to ministers.
如出一口 (As if from a single mouth):
This phrase, originating from this very passage, describes a situation where multiple people give identical answers – suggesting coordination, collusion, or fear-driven conformity. It has become a standard Chinese idiom for describing suspicious unanimity.
Bathing in dog excrement / excrement of the five sacrificial animals:
In ancient Chinese folk belief, animal excrement – particularly dog excrement – was considered a powerful substance for warding off evil spirits and ghosts. The wife in the story exploits this belief: by convincing her husband that he has “seen a ghost,” she manipulates him into undergoing a humiliating “exorcism” bath, thereby covering up her adultery. Han Fei uses this as a metaphor for how those who control information can make a ruler accept absurd explanations for what he has directly witnessed.
“If you cannot bear to do it, they will bear to do it to you”:
This line from Zhang Yu Jiao has become one of the most quoted maxims in Chinese political thought. It encapsulates the Legalist view that mercy in the context of power struggles is not a virtue but a fatal weakness – because your enemies will not reciprocate your restraint.
说一
势重者，人主之渊也；臣者，势重之鱼也。鱼失于渊而不可复得也，人主失其势重于臣而不可复收也。古之人难正言，故托之于鱼。
赏罚者，利器也，君操之以制臣，臣得之以拥主。故君先见所赏，则臣鬻之以为德；君先见所罚，则臣鬻之以为威。故曰：”国之利器，不可以示人。”
靖郭君相齐，与故人久语，则故人富，怀左右刷，则左右重。久语怀刷，小资也，犹以成富，况于吏势乎？
晋厉公之时，六卿贵，胥僮、长鱼矫谏曰：”大臣贵重，敌主争事，外市树党，下乱国法，上以劫主，而国不危者，未尝有也。”公曰：”善。”乃诛三卿。胥僮、长鱼矫又谏曰：”夫同罪之人偏诛而不尽，是怀怨而借之间也。”公曰：”吾一朝而夷三卿，予不忍尽也。”长鱼矫对曰：”公不忍之，彼将忍公。”公不听。居三月，诸卿作难，遂杀厉公而分其地。
州侯相荆，贵而主断。荆王疑之，因问左右，左右对曰：”无有。”如出一口也。
燕人无惑，故浴狗矢。燕人其妻有私通于士，其夫早自外而来，士适出。夫曰：”何客也？”其妻曰：”无客。”问左右，左右言”无有”，如出一口。其妻曰：”公惑易也。”因浴之以狗矢。
一曰：燕人李季好远出，其妻私有通于士，季突至，士在内中，妻患之。其室妇曰：”令公子裸而解发，直出门，吾属佯不见也。”于是公子从其计，疾走出门。季曰：”是何人也？”家室皆曰：”无有。”季曰：”吾见鬼乎？”妇人曰：”然。””为之奈何？”曰：”取五牲之矢浴之。”季曰：”诺。”乃浴以矢。一曰浴以兰汤。
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