Students of Zixia asked Zizhang about making friends. Zizhang asked, “What did Zixia teach you?”
“Zixia taught us, ‘Associate with the right kind of people and avoid the wrong kind.’”
Zizhang replied, “I was taught something else. I was taught that the noble person respects the worthy and tolerates the ordinary people. The noble person applauds the good and takes pity on those who have a hard time being good.
“If I’m worthy, who can’t I tolerate? If I’m not worthy, people will surely avoid me, so on what grounds could I avoid them?”