When Cheng was accused of crimes in Jin, Jin executed Yangshe Hu and enslaved Shu Xiang.
When this occurred, Qi Xi82 said, “I have heard that, when a petty person gains a position, he will not act righteously unless he is admonished and that, when a man of quality is in distress, to fail to rescue him is inauspicious.” He then went to Fan Xuanzi83 and reasoned with him as follows: “I have heard that those who are good at administering states are not excessive in bestowing rewards or indiscriminate in inflicting punishments.
When rewards are excessively bestowed, they are apt to reach to miscreants; and, when punishments are indiscriminately inflicted, they are apt to extend to men of quality.
If one must make mistakes, it is preferable to err by bestowing rewards on miscreants rather than by inflicting punishments on men of quality.
Thus, Yao’s use of punishments84 was such that he abandoned Gun85 on Feather Mountain but made use of [his son] Yu.
Zhou’s use of punishments was such that they executed Guan and Cai87 but made [their brother] the Duke of Zhou88 prime minister.
These are examples of not being indiscriminate in the infliction of punishment.” Fan Xuanzi thereupon sent an emissary to speak with Shu Xiang.
Rescuing others from their difficulties is hazardous and difficult work, and demands that one not shrink from troublesome complications; yet, in spite of all this, such attempts do not always succeed.
In this case, however, Qi Xi discussed the virtues of the former kings and by so doing obtained a pardon for Shu Xiang.
How can study ever be abandoned!