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.
This Han Feizi ‑ Chapter 41 traces empty scholarly disputation to rulers’ lack of clarity. It advocates judging speech and deeds by practical utility, with law and commands as standards, rejecting pointless sophistries harmful to farming‑warfare state interests.
This Legalist section from Han Feizi ‑ Chapter32.8 presents multiple tales including the thorn‑tip monkey fraud. It argues rulers must test theories against real‑world outcomes, rejecting persuasive yet impractical empty rhetoric.
This Legalist excerpt from Han Feizi ‑ Chapter32.2 urges rulers to adopt practical utility as their judging standard. It condemns empty sophistry and hollow doctrines, stressing real results over mere verbal victories.
This Mohist chapter advocates moderation in five spheres: housing, clothing, food, transport and concubines. Sage kings prioritized practical utility, while contemporary rulers’ extravagant ornamentation drains labor and wealth, triggering poverty, social unrest and population decline.