Life is what I want, and righteousness is what I want. You cannot have both, and you must sacrifice life for righteousness.

From "Mencius·Gaozi 1"

This is a representative work by Mencius that uses his theory of the goodness of nature as the basis to conduct an in-depth discussion of human life and death. It emphasizes that "justice" is more important than "life" and advocates sacrificing one's life for righteousness. Mencius was good-natured and believed that "all people have a heart of shame and disgust". People should maintain their good nature, strengthen their daily cultivation and education, and refrain from doing things that violate etiquette. Mencius considered this idea to be the essence of the traditional moral cultivation of the Chinese nation and a matter of far-reaching influence.