初，楚元王好书，与鲁申公、穆生、白生俱受《诗》于浮丘伯；及王楚，以三人为中大夫。穆生不耆酒；元王每置酒，常为穆生设醴。及子夷王、孙王戊即位，常设，后乃忘设焉。穆生退，曰：“可以逝矣！醴酒不设，王之意怠；不去，楚人将钳我于市。”遂称疾卧。申公、白生强起之，曰：“独不念先王之德与！今王一旦失小礼，何足至此！”穆生曰：“《易》称：‘知几其神乎！几者，动之微，吉凶之先见者也。君子见几而作，不俟终日。’先王之所以礼吾三人者，为道存也。今而忽之，是忘道也。忘道之人，胡可与久处，岂为区区之礼哉！”遂谢病去。申公、白生独留。王戊稍淫暴，太傅韦孟作诗讽谏，不听，亦去，居于邹。戊因坐削地事，遂与吴通谋。申公、白生谏戊，戊胥靡之，衣之赭衣，使雅舂于市。休侯富使人谏王。王曰：“季父不吾与，我起，先取季父矣！”休侯惧，乃与母太夫人奔京师。
翻译为英文如下：
“Initially, Prince Chu of the Han Dynasty was fond of books, and together with Liu Sheng, Mo Sheng, and Bai Sheng, he received the “Books” from Fuqiu Ba; when he ascended to the throne as prince, he made Liu Sheng, Mo Sheng, and Bai Sheng his ministers. Mo Sheng was not fond of wine; whenever Prince Chu held a banquet, he would always set aside a jug of wine for Mo Sheng. When Prince Xiwang and Prince Wanghuang became rulers, they would still serve wine, but later, they forgot to do so. Upon seeing this, Mo Sheng left, saying: “It’s time to depart! The king has forgotten to serve wine, showing that he is losing his sense of honor. If we don’t leave now, the people in our country will use us against each other.” Thus, he announced his illness and retired from the court. Liu Sheng and Bai Sheng tried to rouse him, saying: “Don’t you remember the king’s benevolence? Now that the king has forgotten a small ceremony, what reason is there to stay?” Mo Sheng said: “The ‘I Ching’ states: ‘Knowing the signs, one can become divine. The sign is the slightest movement, the foretelling of both good and evil. A gentleman sees the signs before others and acts without waiting for the whole day.’ The king treated us three with respect because of our adherence to the Way. But now, he has forgotten it, which shows he has forgotten the Way. People who forget the Way cannot stay with me for long. Are these small rituals worth staying for?” Then he declined the illness and left court. Liu Sheng and Bai Sheng stayed behind. King Wanghuang gradually lost his morals, and the Grand Preceptor Wei Meng composed poems to rebuke him, but he did not listen. He also left and resided in Zou. King Wanghuang then engaged in plotting against Wu, and Liu Sheng and Bai Sheng advised him, but Wanghuang was imprisoned with the criminals and dressed in yellow clothes, forced into serving the grain in the market. Xugu侯爵 was rich, and sent a messenger to advise the king. The king replied, “My elder brother does not support me; if I rise up first, then he must have been prior to me!” Fearful, Xugu侯爵 and his mother-in-law fled to Beijing. King Wanghuang thus used the occasion of his own downfall to plot with Wu against Zhou. Liu Sheng and Bai Sheng counseled King Wanghuang, but Wanghuang was chained and dressed in yellow clothing, forced into serving the grain on the market. Xugu侯爵’s maternal uncle lived affluently, sent someone to advise the king. The king replied: “Xugu, my elder brother doesn’t support me; if I were to rise up first, he would have been prior to me!” Fearful, Xugu侯爵’s mother-in-law fled to Beijing.
译文如下：
楚元王喜好书籍，和鲁申公、穆生、白生一同从浮丘伯那里接受《诗经》。当元王在楚国即位时，他让这三个人在朝廷中担任中大夫。穆生不善于饮酒；每当元王设酒宴的时候，常给穆生准备甜酒。等到子夷王、孙王戊即位，常设酒宴，后来就忘记了。穆生退朝后说：”可以离去了！甜酒不再设，大王的心意怠懈了；如果不离开，楚国人将在市井中钳制我。”于是称病在家。申公、白生强行将他请起，说：”难道您不想念先王的恩德吗？现在大王一旦失去小礼节，为什么至于此呢？”穆生说：”《易经》称：‘知几者神乎！’‘几’是行动的细微之处，也是吉凶的前兆。君子看到这些微小的变化，就能够及时地采取行动，不等到整天。’先王之所以礼遇我们三个人，是因为道的存在。现在却忽略了它，这是忘记道的人，怎能和他久处下去，岂是为了区区的小礼哉！’于是称病而去。申公、白生独自留下。王戊渐趋暴虐，太傅韦孟作诗讽谏，不被听从，也离去，居住在邹州。戊因坐削地之罪，与吴国通谋。申公、白生劝谏王戊，但王戊被鞭打成胥靡，穿上赭色的衣服，在市场中舂米。休侯富派人劝谏王。王说：“叔父你不支持我，我起来，要先取叔父的！”休侯恐惧，于是就和他的母亲太夫人逃到京师。”