孟尝君在薛
Lord Mengchang Was in Xue
【原文】
孟尝君在薛，荆人攻之^淳于髡为齐使于荆，还反过薛，而孟尝令 人体貌而亲郊迎之。谓淳于髡曰荆人攻薛，夫子弗忧，文无以复侍 矣！”淳于髡曰敬闻命。”
【今译】
孟尝君在薛邑的时候，楚国军队进攻薛。淳于髡替齐国出使楚国， 回来路过薛，孟尝君命令手下的人按照礼仪整理好自己的仪表，亲自到 郊外迎接淳于髡。他对淳于髡说楚国军队进攻薛，您却不担忧，我再 也没有什么指望了!”淳于髡说恭敬地听从命令。”
Lord Mengchang was in his fief—Xue, The troops of the state of Chu attacked Xue. On behalf of the state of Qi, Chunyu Kun happened to pay a diplomatic visit to the state of Chu. On his way back, he passed by Xue. Lord Mengchang had himself dressed according to the rules of propriety and then went to the suburbs to welcome Chunyu Kun in person. He told Chunyu Kun, “Now the troops of the state of Chu are invading Xue. If you don’t care about it, whom else can I resort to?” Chunyu Kun said, “1 know what I should do for you-"
【原文】
至于齐，毕报。王曰何见于荆？”对曰荆甚固，而薛亦不量其 力,王曰何谓也？”对曰广薛不量其力，而为先王立清庙。荆固而攻 之，清庙必危。故曰薛不量力，而荆亦甚固。”齐王和其颜色，曰请!先君之庙在焉！ ”疾兴兵救之.
【今译】
淳于髡到了齐国，把出使的情况都报告完毕。齐王问在楚国见 到了什么？”淳于髡回答说楚国欺人太甚，而且薛也太不自量力Z齐 王说什么意思？”淳于髡回答说薛不自量力，为先王在那里建立了 清静的宗庙；楚国欺人太甚，要进攻薛，宗庙定会陷入危险了。所以说, 薛太不自量力，而楚国也欺人太甚。”齐王脸色和悦起来，说：“哎！祖先的宗庙在那里！’’于是迅速起兵救援薛。
After Chunyu Kun arrived in the state of Qi，he reported his work to the king. The king asked him, “What did you see in the state of Chu?，，‘‘The people of Chu ride roughshod over others and the people of Xue overestimate their own capability. ” “ What do you mean?” “ The people of Xue overestimate their own capability because they have built an ancestral temple to worship our deceased sovereigns there. The people of Chu ride roughshod over others because they are invading Xue, As a result, they will cause damage to our ancestral temple. So I said that the people of Chu ride roughshod over others and the people of Xue overestimate their own capability. ” The king’s countenance became kind and pleasant, and he said, “WeH，our ancestral temple is there!” So he sent troops to rescue Xue immediately.
【原文】
颠蹶之请，望拜之谒，虽得则薄矣。善说者，陈其势，言其方。人之 急也，若自在隘窘之中，岂用强力哉！
【今译】
跌跌撞撞地求情，跪坐着请求，虽然能得到别人的帮助，但是微乎 其微的。善于游说的人，陈述情势，描绘方略，形容当事人的急难，如同 自己在危厄之中一般，哪里会费很大的力气！
One might stumble to pray for help or kneel down to beg for assistance. Although others might offer some help in these cases，it wony t be enough. A persuasive talker will describe an urgent situation, expound strategy and vividly depict the danger of those in trouble. So he can make the listeners feel as if they were in danger themselves. Does he really need to take a lot of trouble by doing so?