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Guan Zhong recognized petty people.

Guan Zhong recognizes petty people.

Yi Ya: He once cooked and killed his own son to make meat soup to offer to Duke Huan of Qi. Guan Zhong believed: "Killing one's own child to please the ruler is inhuman and unacceptable." A person who can harm his own flesh and blood will not be truly loyal to the ruler.

Shu Diao: To get close to Duke Huan of Qi, he castrated himself. Guan Zhong pointed out: "Castrating oneself to please the ruler is not human nature and is difficult to be close to." If one does not even cherish their own body, how can they truly be loyal to their lord?

Wei Kaifang (or Chang Zhi Wu): A nobleman of the Wei state, who has not returned home to visit his parents for fifteen years. Guanzhong said: "To double the affection for the monarch, it is not human sentiment, and it is difficult to be close." If one can abandon even the feelings for one's parents, there will be no true loyalty to the monarch.

Guan Zhong believed that the behavior of these three individuals went against common human feelings:

Human nature is selfish: no one loves others more than they love themselves, and those who self-harm will be even harsher to others.

Familial instinct: Parents' love for their children and children's filial piety towards their parents is instinctive; those who go against it will surely have ulterior motives.

Surface loyalty: Behind extreme pleasing behavior often lies greater ambition.