7.33 The Master said, “As far as taking trouble goes, I do not think I compare badly with other people. But as regards carrying out the duties of a gentleman in actual life, I have never yet had a chance to show what I could do.”
7.13 The rites to which the Master gave the greatest attention were those connected with purification before sacrifice, with war and with sickness.
7.12 The Master said, “If any means of escaping poverty presented itself that did not involve doing wrong, I would adopt it, even as a lowly attendant holding a whip. But so long as it is a question of illegitimate means, I shall continue to pursue the quests that I love.”
4.8 The Master said, “In the morning, hear the Dao (the Way); in the evening, die content!”
Jiaona, a seminal tale in Strange Tales from Liaozhai, redefines human-fox dynamics by transcending conventional romantic tropes common to the collection.