Nevertheless, one should not accept them if his aim is not achieved in a right way. Everyone dislikes poverty and lower rank. Nevertheless, one should not try to get rid of them if his aim is not achieved in a right way. I would still feel happy even if I had to eat coarse food, drink nothing but water, and take my arms as a pillow when asleep. Wealth and higher rank, if gained without righteousness, mean no more than a flying cloud to me.
Superior men keep harmonious relations with each other but they never form cliques.
On the contrary, inferior men tend to form cliques but fail to keep harmonious relations with each other. There are three sorts of friends that are helpful, and three sorts that are harmful. Friendship with the upright, with the trustworthy, and with the learned is helpful. Friendship with the obsequious, with the outwardly kind but inwardly wicked, and with those of cunning words is harmful.