Gifts from Qi, Song, and Xue
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English translation
Original Chinese text
陈臻问曰:「前日于齐,王馈兼金一百而不受;于宋,馈七十镒而受;于薛,馈五十镒而受。前日之不受是,则今日之受非也;今日之受是,则前日之不受非也;夫子必居一于此矣。」
English translation
Chen Zhen asked: “Earlier in Qi, the king offered you one hundred yi of fine gold, and you did not accept it; in Song, he offered seventy yi, and you accepted them; in Xue, he offered fifty yi, and you accepted them. If refusing then was right, accepting now must be wrong; if accepting now is right, refusing then must have been wrong. Master, one of these judgments must be yours.”
Original Chinese text
孟子曰:「皆是也。当在宋也,予将有远行;行者必以赆,辞曰『馈赆』,予何为不受?当在薛也,予有戒心,辞曰『闻戒故为兵馈之』,予何为不受?若于齐则未有处也。无处而馈之,是货之也;焉有君子而可以货取乎?」
English translation
Mencius said: “They were all right. When I was in Song, I was about to make a long journey. A traveler must be given a parting gift; the stated reason was ‘a gift for the journey.’ Why should I not have accepted it? When I was in Xue, I had a mind to take precautions; the stated reason was ‘Having heard that you are taking precautions, we are giving this for arms.’ Why should I not have accepted it? As for Qi, there was no occasion. To give without an occasion is to treat me as merchandise; how could a gentleman be obtained with merchandise?”