齊伐宋，宋急。蘇代乃遺燕昭王書曰：「夫列在萬乘，而寄質於齊，名卑而權輕。秦齊助之伐宋，民勞而實費。破宋，殘楚淮北，肥大齊，讎強而國弱也。此三者，皆國之大敗也，而足下行之，將欲以除害取信於齊也。而齊未加信於足下，而忌燕也愈甚矣。然則足下之事齊也，失所為矣。夫民勞而實費，又無尺寸之功，破宋肥讎，而世負其禍矣。足下以宋加淮北，強萬乘之國也，而齊并之，是益一齊也。北夷方七百里，加之以魯、衛，此所謂強萬乘之國也，而齊并之，是益二齊也。夫一齊之強，而燕猶不能支也，今乃以三齊臨燕，其禍必大矣。

Qi had attacked Song, and Song was growing desperate. Consequently, Su Dai[1] sent a memorial to King Zhao of Yan[2], saying, "Though you rank among the ten-thousand chariot states, you have nevertheless appointed hostages to be sent to Qi. This degrades your name and diminishes your power. Levying troops[3] to assist in Qi's attack on Song, will exhaust your citizens and squander your weath, and after Song is broken, Qi will proceed to threaten Chu's lands north of the Huai River[4]. Thus your work will serve to will fatten Qi, thus making your enemy's state stronger and yours weaker. Each of these three things can be considered a great failure as far as your state is concerned. If you are conducting yourself thus it must be because you wish to win Qi's trust by ridding it of encumbrances, but Qi itself has done nothing to earn your trust in return - indeed its antipathy towards Yan has only grown deeper[5]. This being so, putting yourself at Qi's service is an approach destined for failure. You will exhaust your citizens and squander your weath for no advancement at all. Breaking Song will merely fatten up your enemy, and bring all the troubles of the earth down upon you. Whoever can unite the lands of Song and those north of the Huai will have the strength of a state of ten thousand chariots. If Qi does it, it will be as if it had gained a second Qi. The lands of the northern Yi[6] are seven hundred square li, and if these were added to those of Lu and Wey, then they could reasonably be said to have the strength of a state of ten thousand chariots. If Qi annexes them, then it will be as if it had gained two more Qis. Yan cannot stand against the strength of a single Qi. If three were now to move against you, that would be a disaster indeed. 

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「雖然，臣聞知者之舉事也，轉禍而為福，因敗而成功者也。齊人紫敗素也，而賈十倍。越王勾踐棲於會稽，而後殘吳霸天下。此皆轉禍而為福，因敗而為功者也。今王若欲轉禍而為福，因敗而為功乎？則莫如遙伯齊而厚尊之，使使盟於周室，盡焚天下之秦符，約曰『夫上計破秦，其次長賓之秦。』秦挾賓客以待破，秦王必患之。秦五世以結諸侯，今為齊下；秦王之志，苟得窮齊，不憚以一國都為功。然而王何不使布衣之人，以窮齊之說說秦，謂秦王曰：『燕、趙破宋肥齊尊齊而為之下者，燕、趙非利之也。弗利而勢為之者，何也？以不信秦王也。今王何不使可以信者接收燕、趙。今涇陽君若高陵君先於燕、趙，秦有變，因以為質，則燕、趙信秦矣。秦為西帝，趙為中帝，燕為北帝，立為三帝而以令諸侯。韓、魏不聽，則秦伐之。齊不聽，則燕、趙伐之。天下孰敢不聽？天下服聽，因驅韓、魏以攻齊，曰，必反宋地，而歸楚之淮北。夫反宋地，歸楚之淮北，燕、趙之所同利也。並立三帝，燕、趙之所同願也。夫實得所利，名得所願，則燕、趙之棄齊也，猶釋弊嬑。今王之不收燕、趙，則齊伯必成矣。諸侯戴齊，而王獨弗從也，是國伐也。諸侯戴齊，而王從之，是名卑也。王不收燕、趙，名卑而國危；王收燕、趙，名尊而國寧。夫去尊寧而就卑危，知者不為也。』秦王聞若說也，必如刺心然，則王何不務使知士以若此言說秦？秦伐齊必矣。夫取秦，上交也；伐齊，正利也。尊上交，務正利，聖王之事也。」

"In such circumstances, your servant has heard that when a perceptive individual handles affairs he can transform curses into blessings and seize victory from the jaws of defeat. The people of Qi changed their white clothes for purple, and their value increased tenfold[7]. King Goujian of Yue[8] was forced to seek refuge in Kuaiji[9], but went on to destroy Wu and become a hegemon within All-Under-Heaven. They both transformed curses into blessings, seizing victory from the jaws of defeat. Do you now wish likewise to transform your curses into blessings and seize victory from the jaws of defeat? Then you could do no better than to encourage Qi to pursue its desire for hegemony far from your own borders, praising it fulsomely while sending envoys to[10] negotiate an alliance with court of Zhou. Under this, all the states of All-Under-Heaven will burn their treaties with Qin and join your agreement, which will read: 'The goal is to destroy Qin; the next best thing would be to separate it from its vassals[11].' Since Qin relies upon its vassals to ensure that others either submit or are destroyed[12], this will be a disaster for its King[13]. For five generations Qin has been creating alliances with the sovereign lords, but it remains Qi's inferior. The King of Qin seeks nothing less than Qi's ruin, and he would not hesitate to sacrifice a city to achieve this. This being so, why do you not send one of your partisans in simple dress to use this argument about ruining Qi to persuade Qin over to your side? He can speak to the King of Qin, saying, 'If Yan and Zhao destroy Song, this will serve to fatten Qi and increase the respect paid to it, thus Yan and Zhao will end up as Qi's underlings. Yan and Zhao will gain no benefit from this, but they are forced by their circumstances to do it. Why? Because they do not trust Your Majesty. Now why do you not send someone to build trust and thereby bind Yan and Zhao to you? If Lord Jingyang[14] and Lord Gaoling[15] are first sent to Yan and Zhao[16], and succeed in changing the attitudes of Yan and Zhao towards Qin, you can then take the opportunity to offer up Lord Jingyang and Lord Gaoling as hostages[17]. Then Yan and Zhao will trust Qin. Qin will be overlord in the West, Zhao will be overlord in the Centre, Yan will be overlord in the North. Three emperors will have been established, and together you will be able to command the sovereign lords. If Han and Wei do not obey you then Qin will attack them. If Qi does not obey you then Yan and Zhao will attack it. Who in All-Under-Heaven will dare disobey you? When All-Under-Heaven submits and obeys[18], you can then spur[19] Han and Wei to attack Qi. At your say-so Qi will return the lands it took from Song as well as Chu's land north of the Huai[20]. This will be to Yan and Zhao's profit, while establishing three emperors is what they both desire. To gain wealth that will benefit them while obtaining the reputation they desire, Yan and Zhao will abandon Qi as though they were casting away a worn-out sandal[21]. If you do not now gain the backing of Yan and Zhao, Qi will certainly achieve hegemony. If the other sovereign lords pay their respects to Qi and you alone do not join their alliance, then your state will certainly be attacked[22], while if they pay respects to Qi and you join them, then your reputation will be ruined. Thus if you cannot get the backing of Yan and Zhao your reputation will be ruined and your state at risk. If you can, however, your name will be respected and your state will be at peace. To reject honour and tranquility and pursue dishonour and danger is not the act of an intelligent individual.' When the King of Qin hears such an argument it will hit him like a knife to the heart, so why not send a knowledgeable official so deliver this self-same speech in Qin[23]? Qin will surely attack Qi. If you obtain Qin's backing you will have acquired a profitable friendship. If Qin attacks Qi you will certainly benefit. To pay due respects to one's friends and work to accrue profit, such is the work of a sage king."

​

燕昭王善其書，曰：「先人嘗有德蘇氏，子之之亂，而蘇氏去燕。燕欲報仇於齊，非蘇氏莫可。」乃召蘇氏，復善待之。與謀伐齊，竟破齊，閔王出走。

King Yan of Zhao liked this memorial, and said, "My predecessor paid tribute to Su, but he fled Yan during Zizhi's[24] insurrection. If Yan wishes to avenge itself upon its enemies in Qi, it can do nothing without him." Accordingly, he summoned Su back and waited upon him solicitously once more. Together they plotted an attack on Qi, crossing the border and destroying it. King Min[25] fled.  

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[1] Su Dai was a brother of Su Qin and shared his anti-Qin sentiments. 

[2] King Zhao of Yan (311-279 BCE) took power following an internal power struggle that resulted when the previous ruler, King Kuai, attempted to pass the throne to his Chancellor, and provoked an invasion by Qi. 

[3] Reading 奉 for 秦, per the commentaries. 

[4] The Huai River runs between the Yellow River and the Yangtze.

[5] Modern translations interpret this in different ways, this is a best guess interpretation. 

[6] The Yi was a non-Chinese people in Eastern China.

[7] This comes from an anecdote from the Han Feizi, describing how the people of Qi dyed their clothes purple in imitation of Duke Heng, and increased their value as a result.

[8] King Goujian of Yue (496–465 BCE) was captured by King Fuchai of Wu early during his reign and forced to serve him for three years. When he was finally released, he set about political and military reforms in Yue, making it strong enough to attack and wipe out Wu, forcing Fuchai to kill himself.  

[9] Kuaiji is now Shaoxing, in Zhejiang.

[10] Reading 使之 for 使使, per the commentaries. 

[11] The commentaries suggest 客 for 之 here. 

[12] Modern translations disagree regarding the interpretation of this sentence. This is a best guess.

[13] King Zhaoxiang of Qin (306–251 BCE) began life as a relatively minor prince, and served as a child hostage in Zhao before being sneaked out by Queen Xuan (his mother), her brother Wei Ran, and King Wuling of Zhao to assume the throne following the premature death of his brother, King Wu. Upon coming of age, he exiled Queen Xuan and Wei Ran, and worked with a succession of important figures of the age (Gan Mao, Fan Ju, Bai Qi...) to expand Qin's territory during the course of a long and successful reign.

[14] Lord Jingyang was also known as Ying Fei. He was a son of King Huiwen of Qin and Queen Xuan, and a brother of King Zhaoxiang.

[15] Lord Gaoling, also known as Prince Kui, was another son of King Huiwen. 

[16] The commentaries give 令 for 今 here. 

[17] There was seemingly little love lost between Zhaoxiang, Jingyang and Gaoling. 

[18] Yao suggests 德 for 聽 here.

[19] Yao suggests 馳 for 驅 here. 

[20] Reading 而歸 for 歸 here, per the commentaries. 

[21] The commentaries disagree regarding the precise reading of this sentence, but the general sense is clear. 

[22] Zeng suggests 代 for 伐 here. 

[23] Liu suggests that 此 here is superfluous. 

[24] Zizhi served as Chancellor under King Kuai of Yan, who later abdicated in his favour, provoking a civil war that ended in his death and that of Zizhi, with Kuai's son Zhao taking the throne. 

[25] King Min of Qi (300–284 BCE) was famously bad at managing his subordinates, and almost lost his state following an invasion by Yan. His own generals eventually turned upon him and one of them, Nao Chi, killed him.