雙語智慧書·決不與一無所有者爭斗

172．決不與一無所有者爭斗
　　決不與一無所有者爭斗。如果這樣做，你會陷入不公平的爭斗中。對方肆無忌憚，因他已失去一切，包括羞恥感，也決不害怕再失去什么。他可以為所欲為。你絕不能把自己珍貴的名聲暴露在如此可怕的危險之中，以免積攢多年的名聲毀于一旦--稍不留神，你所有的辛勞就會化為烏有。擁有名譽、有責任心的人有好名聲，他們擔心失去許多東西，所以他們會權(quán)衡自己與對方的名聲，謹慎地參與斗爭，小心翼翼地開展工作，慎重地及時撤退，以保全名譽。否則，即便獲勝，他也會因冒險而得不償失。



172．Never contend with a man who has nothing to lose
　Never contend with a man who has nothing to lose; for thereby you enter into an unequal conflict. The other enters without anxiety: having lost everything, including shame, he has no further loss to fear. He therefore resorts to all kinds of insolence. One should never expose a valuable reputation to so terrible a risk, lest what has cost years to gain may be lost in a moment, since a single slight may wipe out much sweat. A man of honour and responsibility has a reputation, because he has much to lose. He balances his own and the other's reputation: he only enters into the contest with the greatest caution, and then goes to work with such circumspection that he gives time to prudence to retire in time and bring his reputation under cover. For even by victory he cannot gain what he has lost by exposing himself to the chances of loss.