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Chu Zi asked Mencius: “The king sent someone to secretly observe you – does he really have any qualities that make him different from ordinary people?”
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When Zengzi (Zeng Zi) lived in Wucheng, Yue invaders approached. Someone said to him, “The enemy is coming – why not leave?”
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Gong Du Zi (Gongdu Zi) asked Mencius: “Everyone in the state says Kuang Zhang is unfilial. Yet you not only associate with him but also treat him with great courtesy. May I ask why?”
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Yu the Great and Hou Ji lived in times of peace. Yu passed by his own home three times while controlling floods but never entered; Hou Ji tirelessly taught farming to feed the people. Confucius praised them.
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Mencius said: “Speech without factual basis brings misfortune. And the one who bears the consequences of this misfortune is the person who blocks or suppresses the worthy.”
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Mencius said: “The noble person pursues deep learning through the proper Way, aiming to attain understanding on their own. When one truly grasps it from within, they can dwell in it with peace; dwelling in it with peace leads to profound accumulation; and with profound accumulation, one can draw upon it freely and abundantly…
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Mencius said: “A truly noble person does not always insist on keeping every promise or carrying every action to completion – what matters is whether it aligns with righteousness.”