备内 Preventing Treachery from Within
人主之患在于信人，信人，则制于人。The misfortune of a ruler lies in trusting others. Once a ruler trusts others, he will be controlled by them.
人臣之于其君，非有骨肉之亲也，缚于势而不得不事也。The relationship between ministers and their ruler is not based on the kinship of blood and flesh. Ministers are bound by the power situation and have no choice but to serve the ruler.
故为人臣者，窥觇其君心也，无须臾之休，而人主怠傲处上，此世所以有劫君杀主也。Therefore, ministers constantly spy on the ruler's mind without a moment's rest. However, the ruler, being complacent and negligent while in power, is the reason why there are cases of ministers seizing power and even killing the ruler in this world.
为人主而大信其子，则奸臣得乘于子以成其私，故李兑传赵王而饿主父。If a ruler places too much trust in his son, treacherous ministers may take advantage of the son to fulfill their own selfish desires. Thus, Li Dui took control of King Zhao of Zhao and starved Lord Wuling to death.
为人主而大信其妻，则奸臣得乘于妻以成其私，故优施传丽姬杀申生而立奚齐。If a ruler places too much trust in his wife, treacherous ministers may take advantage of the wife to achieve their own private ends. Hence, You Shi, through Lady Li Ji, killed Crown Prince Shen Sheng and established Xi Qi.
夫以妻之近与子之亲而犹不可信，则其余无可信者矣。If even the close-by wife and the dear son cannot be trusted, then there is no one else who can be trusted.
且万乘之主，千乘之君，后妃夫人、适子为太子者，或有欲其君之蚤死者。Moreover, among rulers of large states with ten-thousand chariots or small states with one-thousand chariots, there are cases where the empresses, concubines, and the legitimate sons designated as crown princes may hope for the early death of the ruler.
何以知其然，夫妻者，非有骨肉之恩也，爱则亲，不爱则疏。How do we know this? Husband and wife do not have the deep affection of blood relations. When there is love, they are close; when there is no love, they become distant.
语曰："其母好者其子抱。"然则其为之反也，其母恶者其子释。As the saying goes, "A mother who is favored will have her child embraced." Conversely, a mother who is disliked will have her child neglected.
丈夫年五十而好色未解也，妇人年三十而美色衰矣。A man of fifty still has an unquenchable passion for beauty, while a woman of thirty begins to lose her beauty.
以衰美之妇人事好色之丈夫，则身见疏贱，而子疑不为后，此后妃夫人之所以冀其君之死者也。When a woman with fading beauty serves a man with a passion for beauty, she will be alienated and despised, and her son may be suspected of not being the heir. This is why empresses and concubines hope for the death of the ruler.
唯母为后而子为主，则令无不行，禁无不止。Only when the mother becomes the empress-dowager and the son becomes the ruler can orders be carried out without obstruction and prohibitions be enforced without failure.
男女之乐不减于先君，而擅万乘不疑，此鸩毒扼昧之所以用也。The pleasures of men and women will not be less than those of the former ruler, and the power over a large state can be wielded without doubt. This is why poison and strangulation are used.
故《桃左春秋》曰："人主这疾死者不能处半。"，人主弗知，则乱多资。Therefore, the "Taoluo Spring and Autumn" states, "Less than half of the rulers die a natural death." If the ruler is unaware of this, it will provide more opportunities for chaos.
故曰：利君死者众，则人主危。故王良爱马，越王勾践爱人，为战与驰。So it is said that when there are many people who benefit from the ruler's death, the ruler is in danger. Just as Wang Liang loved horses, and Goujian, the King of Yue, loved his people, all for the sake of battle and racing.
医善吮人之伤，含人之血，非骨肉之亲也，利所加也。Doctors are good at sucking people's wounds and spitting out their blood. This is not out of kinship, but for the sake of profit.
故與人成舆，则欲人之富贵；匠人成棺，则欲人之夭死也。Therefore, a car-maker, when making a cart, hopes people will be rich and noble; a coffin-maker, when making a coffin, hopes people will die young.
非舆人仁而匠人贼也，人不贵，则舆不售；人不死，则棺不买。情非憎人也，利在人之死也。It is not that the cart-maker is kind-hearted and the coffin-maker is malicious. If people are not wealthy, the cart will not be sold; if people do not die, the coffin will not be bought. It is not that they hate people, but their profit lies in people's death.
故后妃、夫人太子之党成而欲君之死也，君不死，则势不重。情非憎君也，利在君之死也。So, when the factions of empresses, concubines, and crown princes are formed, they hope for the ruler's death. If the ruler does not die, their power will not be significant. It is not that they hate the ruler, but their profit lies in the ruler's death.
故人主不可以不加心于利己死者。故日月晕围于外，其贼在内，备其所憎，祸在所爱。Therefore, a ruler must be vigilant against those who benefit from his death. Just as the halos around the sun and the moon indicate that the harm comes from within, precautions are taken against those one hates, yet the disaster may come from those one loves.
是故明王不举不参之事，不食非常之食；For this reason, an enlightened king does not undertake things without verification, and does not eat unusual food.
远听而近视，以审内外之失，省同异之言以知朋党之分，偶参伍之验以责陈言之实；He listens to distant voices and observes nearby affairs carefully to examine the mistakes both inside and outside. He examines the words that are the same or different to understand the divisions of cliques, and checks the results of various verifications to assess the truth of the statements presented.
执后以应前，按法以治众，众端以参观。He uses later events to verify earlier ones, enforces laws to govern the people, and observes various aspects to make comprehensive judgments.
士无幸赏，无逾行，杀必当，罪不赦，则奸邪无所容其私。Scholars do not receive rewards by chance, and do not overstep their proper conduct. Executions must be appropriate, and crimes are not pardoned. Then, the treacherous and evil will have no way to pursue their private interests.
徭役多则民苦，民苦则权势起，权势起则复除重，复除重则贵人富。If corvée labor is excessive, the people will suffer. When the people suffer, the power of the powerful will rise. When the power of the powerful rises, exemptions from labor and taxes will increase. When exemptions increase, the noble will become wealthy.
苦民以富贵人，起势以藉人臣，非天下长利也。Making the people suffer to enrich the noble, and creating power for the sake of ministers is not beneficial to the long - term interests of the state.
故曰：徭役少则民安，民安则下无重权；So it is said that when corvée labor is reduced, the people will be at peace. When the people are at peace, those below will not have excessive power;
下无重权则权势灭，权势灭则德在上矣。When those below do not have excessive power, the power of the powerful will decline. When the power of the powerful declines, the virtue will lie with the ruler.
今夫水之胜火亦明矣，然而釜鬵间之，水煎沸竭尽其上，而火得炽盛焚其下，水失其所以胜者矣。Now, it is clear that water can overcome fire. However, with a cauldron in between, the water above will boil and dry up while the fire below can burn fiercely, and water loses its ability to overcome fire.
今夫治之禁奸又明于此，然法守之臣为釜鬵之行，则法独明于胸中，而已失其所以禁奸者矣。Now, the laws to prevent evil-doing are even clearer than this. But if the officials in charge of the laws act like the cauldron, the laws will only be clear in their minds, and the means to prevent evil-doing will be lost.
上古之传言，《春秋》所记，犯法为逆以成大奸者，未尝不从尊贵之臣也。The legends of ancient times and the records in the "Spring and Autumn Annals" show that those who violate the law, rebel, and become great villains always come from the noble and powerful ministers.
然而法令之所以备，刑罚之所以诛，常于卑贱，是以其民绝望，无所告诉。However, the laws and regulations are often applied to the humble and the lowly, and the punishments are also imposed on them. As a result, the people despair and have nowhere to turn to.
大臣比周，蔽上为一，阴相善而阳相恶，以示无私，相为耳目，以候主隙。Ministers form cliques, deceive the ruler, and act as one. They secretly befriend each other while showing enmity publicly to appear self-less. They act as each other's eyes and ears, waiting for the ruler's loopholes.
人主掩蔽，无道得闻，有主名而无实，臣专法而行之，周天子是也。The ruler is deceived and has no way to hear the truth. He has an empty title but no real power, and the ministers enforce the laws as they please. This was the case with the King of Zhou.
偏借其权势，则上下易位矣，此言人臣之不可借权势。If power is wrongly delegated to ministers, the positions of the ruler and the ministers will be reversed. This shows that power should not be delegated to ministers.
