Han Feizi – Chapter 48.6

If the ruler does not compare and cross-check what he hears, he has no basis for holding ministers accountable. If words are not examined for practical use, false doctrines will flatter the ruler. Speech gains credibility through numbers: a thing that is not so will raise doubts when ten people repeat it, win assent when a hundred affirm it, and become hard to unravel when a thousand proclaim it. The inarticulate are heard with suspicion; the eloquent are heard with trust. Treacherous ministers feed upon the ruler by drawing support from the crowd, borrowing credibility from eloquence, and using analogies to disguise their private aims. If the ruler cannot restrain his anger or pleasure and waits for cross-verification, his hesitation itself becomes an opening for ministers.

A ruler who possesses the Way listens to words, supervises their application, and evaluates their results. From such evaluation, reward and punishment arise; therefore empty rhetoric has no place at court. If a person entrusted with affairs lacks the wisdom to fulfill his duties, he is removed from office and his authority is withdrawn. Claims that are grand and boastful must be traced to their source; when treachery is exposed, the ruler expresses his anger. To speak without grounds is slander; slander brings punishment upon the minister. Every statement must be answered by corresponding facts, and every proposal must be judged by its usefulness, so that factional talk does not reach the ruler.

The general principle of listening is this: loyal ministers present their arguments to expose treachery, and broad discussion is used to arrive at a single judgment. If the ruler is not wise, treacherous ministers will exploit this. The enlightened ruler acts as follows: when he is pleased, he examines whom ministers are trying to introduce; when he is angered, he investigates whom they are trying to incriminate. He forms his judgment only after his emotions have changed, so that he can discern whether praise or blame serves public or private ends. When many remonstrate in order to display their cleverness, they invite the ruler to choose one view and thus shield themselves from blame; such mass remonstrance defeats its own purpose. When the ruler selects a proposal, he must not allow ministers to offer multiple alternative forecasts in anticipation of future events. Instead, he should later compare their earlier words with actual outcomes, thereby distinguishing deceit from honesty. The enlightened ruler does not permit a minister to present two contradictory proposals; the minister must commit to one. He must not act on his own; his actions must accord with cross-verification. Thus treachery finds no way to advance.

Note

This Han Feizi ‑ Chapter 48.6 explains rules for evaluating ministerial speeches. Rulers must test rhetoric against practical results, resist mass‑opinion and eloquence bias, bar hedging proposals, and judge after emotional impulses fade to spot factional deceit.

Cross-checking speech (参言):

Han Fei treats speech as evidence. A ruler should not accept statements at face value but must compare them, test them, and later verify them against results.

Credibility through numbers:

Han Fei understands that repeated claims can create false credibility. This is an early insight into rumor, propaganda, and factional pressure.

Eloquence versus substance:

The text warns that articulate ministers can appear more trustworthy than honest but clumsy ones. Legalism therefore prefers measurable results over persuasive speech.

Evaluating after emotion changes:

The ruler should not judge while angry or pleased, because ministers may exploit his mood. Waiting allows him to see whether praise or blame serves private interests.

Commitment to one proposal:

Ministers must not hedge by offering multiple contradictory options. This prevents them from later claiming, “I warned you,” whichever outcome occurs.

Matching words to outcomes:

Han Fei insists on later verification. A minister’s earlier prediction should be compared with what actually happens, so that deceit can be detected.

　　六、参言

　　听不参，则无以责下；言不督乎用，则邪说当上。言之为物也以多信，不然之物，十从云疑，百人然乎，千人不可解也。呐者言之疑，辩者言之信。奸之食上也，取资乎众，籍信乎辩，而以类饰其私。人主不餍忿而待合参，其势资下也。有道之主听言，督其用，课其功，功课而赏罚生焉，故无用之辩不留朝。任事者知不足以治职，则放官收。说大而夸则穷端，故奸得而怒。无故而不当为诬，诬而罪臣。言必有报，说必责用也，故朋党之言不上闻。凡听之道，人臣忠论以闻奸，博论以内一，人主不智则奸得资。明主之道，己喜，则求其所纳；己怒，则察其所构；论于已变之后，以得毁誉公私之征。众谏以效智故，使君自取一以避罪，故众之谏也败。君之取也，无副言于上以设将然，今符言于后以知谩诚语。明主之道，臣不得两谏，必任其一语；不得擅行，必合其参，故奸无道进矣。