Page 256 - 《孟子》（四）中·英对照版
P. 256
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子
advancing and seizing their object, but cannot forget
their early ways.’ Why did Confucius, when he was
in Chen, think of the ambitious scholars of Lu?”
Mencius replied, “Confucius not getting men
pursuing the true medium, to whom he might
communicate his instructions, determined to take the
ardent and the cautiously-decided. The ardent would
advance to seize their object; the cautiously-decided
would keep themselves from certain things. It is not
to be thought that Confucius did not wish to get
men pursuing the true medium, but being unable to
assure himself of finding such, he therefore thought
of the next class.”
“I venture to ask what sort of men they were
who could be styled ‘The ambitious’?”
“Such,” replied Mencius, “as Qin Zhang, Zeng
Xi, and Mu Pi, were those whom Confucius styled
‘ambitious.’’’
“Why were they styled ‘ambitious’?”
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