Gongsun Chou asks Mencius to simplify the lofty Way for ordinary people. Mencius refuses to lower moral standards, comparing teachers to skilled craftsmen. He uses heuristic teaching, holding the Middle Way for capable learners to follow.
Mencius differentiates two mourning cases. Those who voluntarily cut mourning deserve rebuke; those blocked by rules to observe full rites merit praise for any mourning they can manage, embodying flexible moral judgment.
Mencius rejoices at Yuezheng Zi’s appointment solely for his willingness to accept good advice. Open rulers attract virtuous counselors; arrogant ones drive them away, leaving only flatterers, which dooms good governance.
Gongsun Chou cites Gaozi’s claim that Xiao Bian, full of resentment, is a petty man’s poem. Mencius refutes this: its grief springs from deep familial love. He balances filial emotion, noting resentment fits grave parental faults yet not trivial ones.
Yuezheng Zi (Yuezheng Ke) had come to the state of Qi with Zi Ao (Wang Huan). Later, he went to visit Mencius.
Gongsun Chou asked Mencius: “Why don’t gentlemen teach their own sons?”
Gongsun Chou asked Mencius: “What is the principle behind scholars not seeking audiences with feudal lords?”