Floodwaters and Neighboring States

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Original Chinese text

English translation

Bai Gui said, “My flood-control works are better than Yu’s.” Mencius replied, “You are mistaken. Yu governed the waters by following their natural courses; he made the four seas their destination. You, however, use neighboring states as your drainage ditch. Water flowing backward is called a flood, and floods are what benevolent people abhor. You are mistaken.”

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