King Hui of Liang said, "I am a country, and I devote myself to it. If Hanoi is fierce, the people will move to Hedong and the millet will move to Hanoi; Hedong is also fierce. People who observe the politics of neighboring countries have no intention like me. There are not many people in neighboring countries, and there are not many people in my country. Why? "
Mencius said to him, "The king is belligerent. Please use the metaphor of war. Replenish drums, weapons company, abandon armor. Or stop after a hundred steps, or stop after fifty steps. What if the pot is too black? "
King Hui of Liang said, "No, it's not a hundred paces straight, but it's also a walk."
Mencius said, "If Wang knew this, there would be no hope that there would be more people than neighboring countries."
Liang said to Mencius, "I am loyal to my country. When there was a famine in Hanoi, I moved people there to live in Hedong and transported food there to Hanoi. I used the same method when there was a famine in Hedong. I don't think the governments of neighboring countries have done their best like me. But the number of people in neighboring countries has not decreased, and the number of people in our country has not increased. Why? "
Mencius replied: "Wang is belligerent, please allow me to take war as an example." Once the two countries are at war, the soldiers of the two armies meet each other with swords and guns, abandon their helmets and armour and drag their troops away. Some stopped after running a hundred paces, while others stopped after running fifty paces. Pot calling the kettle black, so what? "
Liang said to Mencius, "No, it's just that he didn't run a hundred paces. This is also an escape. "
Mencius said: "If you know this, then don't expect your people to increase compared with neighboring countries."
The Implication of Idioms in pot calling the kettle black
Liang is very proud of his "good governance" in resettling victims and delivering relief food. But in Mencius' view, this can only show that his practice is superior to that of neighboring monarchs, because it is only a remedial measure and does not fundamentally enrich the people. Therefore, Wei is not as good as he thinks, and can attract people from other countries. Liang thinks he is better than other monarchs, which is much like pot calling the kettle black, whom Liang denies.
In battle, those who take fifty steps back laugh at those who take a hundred steps back. Although the number and degree are different, but the essence is the same, they are all running away. This idiom also satirizes a phenomenon: some people turn a blind eye to their own mistakes when blaming others for their pain, gangrene and ulcer, and use the method of "pot calling the kettle black" to cover up for themselves. Sometimes what we see is only the dazzling appearance of things, and the essence of things is determined by appearances, which is often overlooked.