After hearing that sixteen women committed suicide when her son, Gongpu Wenbo, who was a high official in the state of Lu had died, the mother did not shed a single drop of tear.

 

She said, "My son was not a good man. when Confucius was dispelled¹ from Lu, he did not follow him to seek truth. Now he is dead, and there were sixteen women who committed suicide for him. So it is obvious that he treated elder people harshly while he was very lenient² to women. So I would not consider him to be my son at all."

 

Coming out of the mouth of a mother, these words can show the virtue³ of the mother. If a wife said this, she would be considered to be a jealous wife. The same words uttered from different people can have different effect.

 

公甫文伯的母亲得知在鲁国做官的儿子病逝后有十六个妇人为他自杀，没流下一滴眼泪。

 

她说：“我的这个儿子不是个好东西。当年孔子被鲁国赶走，他没有跟随孔子追求真理；如今死了，却有十六个女人为他自杀。可见他对长辈非常刻薄，而对妇人却非常宽厚。这样的儿子就当他不存在好了。”

 

这些话出自母亲之口，足以证明母亲的贤惠；倘若出自妻子之口，则必定会被人认为是妒妇。同样的话从不同人的口中说去来，产生的效果则完全不同。

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