臣聞往者秦有十失，其一尚存，治獄吏是也。
“Your servant has heard that Qin in former times had ten faults, and among them one survives: namely, the officers who handle criminal and civil cases.
In former times the faults of Qin included the destruction of literature and the promotion of military prowess, the demotion of men of principle and the advancement of officers in charge of criminal cases, the misdesignation of honest speech as slander and the confusion of upright remonstrance with baseless slander.
昔秦之時，滅文學，好武勇，賤仁義之士，貴治獄之吏，正言謂之誹謗，謁過謂之妖言；故盛服先生，不用於世，忠良切言，皆鬱於胸，譽諛之聲，日滿於耳，虛美薰心，實禍蔽塞，此乃秦之所以亡天下也。
The consequence of this was that men of punctilious integrity were given no employment, and honest speech remained sealed up in people’s chests.
Day after day, words of praise and flattery filled the ruler’s ears, and fine-sounding phrases spread their fragrance through his heart while actual disasters remained concealed—that is why Qin lost possession of the realm.
方今海內賴陛下厚恩，無金革之危，饑寒之患，父子夫婦，戮力安家，天下幸甚。
“In the present era, thanks to the vast beneficence of Your Majesty, all peoples within the four seas are free from the dangers of sword and shield, and secure from the calamities of famine and poverty.
Fathers, sons, husbands, and wives work diligently in their households—the realm is fortunate indeed.