17
Duke Ching of Ch`i sent Yen-tzŭ on a mission south to Ch`u.
On hearing of it the King of Ch`u said to his attendants, "Ch`i has
sent Yen-tzŭ on a mission to my state, and he will soon arrive."
1YTCC 6.33a-b, closely followed by SY 12.13b-14a, has a rather weaker version
of this anecdote.
The attendants said, "Yen-tzŭ is the greatest sophist in the
world. No one can equal him in deliberating the concerns of a
state or in discussing the methods of antiquity. All Your Majesty
can do is sit with him. Then have an officer pass by with a bound
man, and let Your Majesty make inquiries. Have him [prepared
to] say, `The men of Ch`i have a propensity for thieving, and so I
have bound him.' This is a good way to embarrass [Yen-tzŭ]."
The king approved.
When Yen-tzŭ arrived, he sat with him. [Yen-tzŭ] outlined the
cares and concerns of the state and criticized the degrees of success
of their contemporaries. Over and over he would bring up a topic
and exhaust it, while the king sat speechless and unable to take up
the conversation. They had been [sitting] there for a while when
a bound man passed them. The king said, "Who is that?"
2[OMITTED] is unusual. It is unlikely that the Chinese idiom would correspond with
the English "pick it up"—i. e., the practice.
The officer replied, "This is one of those natives of Ch`i who
have a propensity for stealing. I have bound him and am going
to turn him over to the sheriff."
The king emitted a loud laugh of pleasure and said, "Ch`i is
a state where officials caps and belts [are worn], and where eloquence
reigns. Do they really have a propensity for stealing [too]?"
Yen-tzŭ said, "Of course. Certainly they take things.[5]
Has
not Your Majesty seen those trees south of the Chiang called
orange trees? If you plant them north of the Chiang they change
to chih trees.[3]
Why? It is simply caused by the soil. When this
gentleman dwelt in Ch`i he stood up in his official cap and belt as
stern in his scruples as Po-i. Now that he is living in Ch`u, if he
has a propensity for thieving, it seems to me that it is simply a
change [wrought by] the soil. What is there for Your Majesty
to be surprised about?"
The Ode says,[4]
Every word finds its answer;[5]
Every good deed has its recompense.
