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Mencius said: “The influence of a noble person lasts for five generations and then ends; the legacy of a petty person also ends after five generations. I never had the chance to be Confucius’s direct disciple, but I learned his Dao by privately admiring and studying through his later followers.”
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The Mohist scholar Yi Zhi, through Xu Bi (a disciple of Mencius), requested to meet Mencius. Mencius said: “I’d be glad to see him, but I’m still unwell. Once I recover, I’ll go to him – Yi Zhi need not come!”
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During the Warring States period, Wei, once the strongest among the “Three Jins” (Wei, Zhao, Han), watched with alarm as Qin surged ahead under Shang Yang’s reforms. Determined not to be left behind, King Hui of Wei followed Duke Xiao of Qin’s example: he offered lavish rewards to attract brilliant minds from across the…