Legge Translation (1861)

Zigong said: "What do you pronounce concerning the poor man who yet does not flatter, and the rich man who is not proud?"

The Master replied: "They will do; but they are not equal to him, who, though poor, is yet cheerful, and to him, who, though rich, loves the rules of propriety."

Zigong replied: "It is said in the Book of Poetry, 'As you cut and then file, as you carve and then polish.' — The meaning is the same, I apprehend, as that which you have just expressed."

The Master said: "With one like Ci, I can begin to talk about the odes. I told him one point, and he knew its proper sequence."