1. "Book of Remonstrance and Expulsion of Guests" Pre-Qin Dynasty - Li Si:
When I heard that officials discussed expelling guests, I thought it was wrong. Ximu Gong asked for scholars, and he took Yu Yurong from the west, Xi Yuwan from the east, welcomed Uncle Jian from the Song Dynasty, and came to support Pibao and Gongsun from the Jin Dynasty. These five sons were not born in Qin, but Mu Gong used them, merged the country with twenty, and then dominated Xirong. Xiao Gong used the method of commercial martingale to change customs, the people prospered in Yin, the country became prosperous and strong, the people enjoyed using it, the princes personally obeyed, and won the masters of Chu and Wei.
King Hui used Zhang Yi's plan to seize the land of Sanchuan, merge Ba and Shu in the west, capture Shangjun in the north, capture Hanzhong in the south, encircle Jiuyi, control Yan and Ying, occupy the danger of Chenggao in the east, and cut off The fertile soil dispersed the people of the six kingdoms and made them serve Qin in the west, and their achievements have been carried out to this day. The Zhao King captured Fan Ju, deposed Ranghou, drove out Huayang, strengthened the public houses, eliminated private houses, cannibalized the princes, and made Qin an emperor.
These four monarchs all benefit from their guests. From this point of view, how could the guest lose to Qin! To make the four monarchs stay away from each other and to sparse scholars but not to use them is to make the country not rich and profitable, and Qin has no reputation for being strong. The jade that your Majesty has sent to Kunshan today includes the treasure of Suiyi, the pearl of hanging the bright moon, the sword of Tai'a, the horse riding on the slender horse, the flag of the green phoenix, and the drum of the tree spirit.
Qin did not give birth to any of these treasures, and why did your majesty talk about them? The children of Qin must be born later, but they are only luminous jade, not for decorating the court; rhinoceros and elephant utensils are not for fun; the daughters of Zheng and Wei are not for the harem, and the Junliang and Liang are not for the outer stables, and the gold and tin of Jiangnan are not For use, the paintings of Xishu are not for harvesting.
So those who decorate the harem, fill the palace, entertain the mind, and speak to the ears and eyes must come from the Qin Dynasty. Then the hairpin of Wanzhu, the er of Fuji, the clothes of Ajin, and the ornaments of brocade will not enter. In front of her, she followed the customs and became refined, graceful and graceful, and Zhao Nu did not stand to the side.
The man who beats the urn, percusses on the fou, plays the zither and beats the harp, and sings loudly and happily, is the voice of the real Qin; "Zheng", "Wei", "Sangjian", "Zhao", "Zhao", "Sangjian" "Yu", "Wu", and "Xiang" are the joys of foreign countries.
Now we give up beating the urn and knocking on the fou and take "Zheng" and "Wei", and give up playing the zither and take "Zhao" and "Yu". What if this is the case? The present pleasure is just a matter of observation. This is not the case with people today. No matter whether it is okay or not, regardless of the merits, those who are not Qin will go, and those who are guests will be driven away. However, the most important thing is about sex, music, pearls and jade, while the least important thing is about the people.
This is not the art of crossing the sea and controlling the princes. I heard that a vast territory means more millet, a large country means a large number of people, and a strong army means brave soldiers. This is because Taishan Mountain does not allow soil, so it can become big; rivers and seas do not allow small streams, so it can be deep; the king does not exclude the common people, so he can understand his virtue. This is why the five emperors and three kings are invincible because the land has no four directions, the people have no foreign countries, the four seasons are perfect, and ghosts and gods bring blessings.
Today, the head of Guizhou is abandoned to fund the enemy's country, but the guests are used to join the feudal lords, so that the people of the world will retreat and dare not go westward, and will not be able to enter the Qin Dynasty. This is what is called "borrowing the invaders to steal grain" . If the husband's goods were not produced in Qin, there would be many treasures; if the scholars were not produced in Qin, there would be many who would be loyal. Now we are driving away guests to benefit the enemy's country, harming the people in order to gain enmity, and we are vain internally and causing resentment to the princes externally. We seek to ensure that the country is not in danger and cannot gain it.
2. Translation:
I heard that the officials were discussing the matter of expelling the guest, and privately I thought it was a mistake. In the past, Duke Mugong of Qin sought wise men. He obtained Yuyu from Xirong in the west, Bailixi from Wandi in the east, Uncle Jian from Song Dynasty, and Pibao and Gongsunzhi from Jin Dynasty. These five wise men were not born in Qin, but Duke Mu of Qin used them to annex more than 20 countries, and then dominated Xirong.
Qin Xiaogong adopted Shang Yang’s new method and changed customs. As a result, the people were prosperous, the country was prosperous, and the people were willing to serve the country. The princes surrendered, defeated the armies of Chu and Wei, and captured thousands of miles of land. So far, the country enjoys political stability and strong national strength. King Qin Hui adopted Zhang Yi's strategy and captured the Sanchuan area, moved westward to annex the two countries of Ba and Shu, went north to capture Shangjun, and went south to capture Hanzhong.
Swept all the tribes of the nine barbarians, controlled the lands of Yan and Ying, occupied the Chenggao Tianbi in the east, and harvested fertile fields and fertile soil, so they broke up the alliance of the six countries and sent them to the west to serve the Qin State. The violence continues to this day. King Zhao obtained Fan Ju, deposed Ranghou, expelled King Huayang, strengthened and consolidated the power of the royal family, blocked the monopoly of politics by the powerful, encroached on the territory of the princes, and enabled Qin to become an emperor.
These four monarchs all relied on the merits of guest ministers.
From this point of view, how can Keqing have anything to do with Qin? If the four monarchs reject distant visitors without accepting them, and alienate the wise men without appointing them, this will deprive the country of abundant strength and make Qin lose its reputation as a powerful state.
Your Majesty has received the beautiful jade from Kunshan. In the palace there are pearls from the Marquis of Sui and jade from the He family. The clothes are adorned with pearls that shine like the bright moon. He wears the Tai'a sword on his body and rides on a precious Xianli horse. , a flag decorated with green phoenix feathers was erected, and a good drum covered with the skin of a spirit fox was displayed. None of these precious things are produced in Qin, but your majesty likes them very much. Why is this?
If it must be produced in Qin before it is allowed to be used, then this kind of luminous jade will never become a decoration of the Qin court; objects carved from rhinoceros horn and ivory will not become his majesty’s playthings. The women from Zheng and Wei who are good at singing and dancing will never fill His Majesty's harem; the famous horses from the north will never fill His Majesty's stable.
The gold and tin from the south of the Yangtze River will not be used by His Majesty, and the paintings from Xishu will not be used as colorful decorations. If all these things that are used to decorate the harem, serve as concubines, make the heart happy, and be pleasing to the eye must be grown and produced in Qin before they can be used, then hairpins decorated with jewelry, jade pendants on the ears, silk clothes, brocade No decorations will be presented to His Majesty.
Those beauties who are elegant and changeable and can adapt to the changes of the times will not stand beside His Majesty. The banging of pottery, the clapping of the zither, and the singing of the crows are indeed the authentic music of the Qin Dynasty; the singing of Zheng and Wei Sangjian, "Shao Yu" and "Wu Xiang" The music can be regarded as foreign music.
Now His Majesty has abandoned the authentic Qin music of percussion on pottery vessels, and adopted the obscene and melodious sounds of Zheng and Wei. Instead of Qin Zheng, he wanted "Shao and Yu". Why is this? Isn't it because foreign music can be satisfying and satisfy the needs of the ears and eyes? But His Majesty is not like this with his employees. Regardless of whether they are available or not, regardless of the merits, anyone who is not from Qin will leave.
All guests will be expelled. This shows that what your Majesty values ??only is the beauty, appearance, and beauty; but what he despises is the people. This is not a method that can be used to control the world and subdue the princes! I heard that the vastness of the fields means the abundance of food, the largeness of the country means the large population, and the strength of the soldiers who are well equipped with weapons. Therefore, Mount Tai does not reject the soil, so it can achieve its great height.
Rivers, lakes and seas do not abandon the trickle, so they can achieve their profundity; those who are determined to establish a royal industry do not despise the people, so they can demonstrate their virtue. Therefore, the land is not divided into east, west, north and south, and the people, regardless of foreign countries, will be prosperous and beautiful all year round, and the ghosts and gods of heaven and earth will bestow blessings. This is why the five emperors and three kings are incomparable.
Abandoning the common people to help the enemy, rejecting guests to serve the princes, causing the wise men in the world to retreat and not dare to advance westward, and to be unable to enter Qin, this is called "lending weapons to Enemies, send food to thieves." There are many goods that are not produced in Qin, but there are many valuable ones; there are many wise men who are not born in Qin, but there are many who are willing to serve.
Nowadays, if we expel guests to support the enemy, weaken the people to enrich the enemy, and create emptiness internally and build resentment among the princes externally, it is impossible to ensure that the country is free from danger.
Appreciation:
"Book of Remonstrance and Expulsion" is a memorial written by Li Si to the First Emperor of Qin, which took place in the tenth year of the Qin King's victory. The Qin clan nobles used South Korea to send hydraulic workers to repair irrigation canals, plotting to consume Qin's national power, and remonstrated with the Qin Emperor to order the expulsion of all guests. The King of Qin read Li Si's memorial and canceled the order to expel guests. This shows how persuasive this article is.
The author first talks about history, taking the four monarchs of Mu Gong, Xiao Gong, Hui Wang and Zhao Wang as examples, emphasizing the importance of reusing guest officials. Then talking about reality, the author lists the hobbies of the King of Qin, such as the jade from Kunshan, the treasure of Suihe, the pearl of the bright moon, the Tai'a sword he wears, the slim horse he rides on, etc., all from the princes and countries.