Paragraph 12: Guo Sheren (郭舍人)
When Emperor Wu of Han reigned, he favored a court entertainer Guo Sheren, whose words deviated from those of saints and sages but often delighted his master. Emperor Wu, in his infancy, was placed in the nursery care of Marquess Dongwu (the mother of Marquis Dongwu); in his adulthood, Emperor Wu rewarded her with the title of the Imperial Fosterer (or Darumu, lit. the Grand Nursing Mother). Now, this wet nurse of Emperor Wu's usually visited him twice a month. At her visit in the morning, Emperor Wu would have his well-trusted official Ma You-qing give her fifty reels of silk and serve her food and drink. One day, the nurse met with Emperor Wu and said, "I am aware of some royal farmland available; I'd like to loan it." Emperor Wu replied, "Would my nurse like to own it?" And so she had it. Every request of the nurse's was met by the Emperor's goodwill. And the edict had it that the nurse was entitled to traveling the Imperial Highway in her carriage. At that time, all the court honored her. Some time later, the servants and attendants of the nurse's household began to act like villains and their villainy plagued the capital Chang-An. They stopped people, horses, and carriages in broad daylight and robbed people of their personal belongings. Word spread and reached the Emperor, who could not bear to hold his nurse's household punishable by law. Officials in charge suggested the nurse's household be relocated onto the borders as a punishment of exile. The Emperor authorized the punishment. On the day of exile, the nurse was to ask the Emperor for her leave before departure. Before that, she went to Guo Sheren in tears. Guo said to her, "When you see the Emperor, you ask for your leave adn you leave quickly. But stop and look back between your hurried steps." The nurse followed Guo's instruction and did accordingly at court. Guo then, in the presence of the Emperor, responded abruptly to her act by saying, "Tush! Hag! Hurry away! His Majesty is now fully grown. Would he ever need you around to suckle him? Don't bother looking back!" At Guo's words, the Emperor felt sad and sorry for his nurse. The Emperor gave his order to annul the exile and whoever spoke ill of it was to be punished.
*武帝時有所幸倡郭舍人(she4ren2; an honorific similar to Mister or Master)者，發言陳辭雖不合大道，然令人主和說(yue4; pleased)。武帝少時，東武侯母常養帝，帝壯時，號之曰「大乳母」。率(shuo4; generally)一月再朝。朝奏入，有詔使幸臣馬游卿以帛五十匹賜乳母，又奉飲(yin3)糒(bei4; cooked rice)飱(sun1; prepared food)養(yang4; to feed)乳母。乳母上書曰：「某所有公田，願得假倩(jia3qian4; to borrow)之。」帝曰：「乳母欲得之乎？」以賜乳母。乳母所言，未嘗不聽。有詔得令乳母乘車(jü1)行馳道中。當此之時，公卿大臣皆敬重乳母。乳母家子孫奴從者(nü2zong4zhe3; servants and attendants)橫(heng4)暴長安中，當道掣頓(che4dun4; to rob or to detain)人車馬，奪人衣服。聞於中(zhong1; the court)，不忍致之法。有司請徙乳母家室，處之於邊。奏可。乳母當入至前，面見辭。乳母先見郭舍人，為(wei2)下泣。舍人曰：「即入見辭去，疾步數(shuo4)還(huan2)顧。」乳母如其言，謝去，疾步數還顧。郭舍人疾言罵之曰：「咄(duo4; Zut!; Blast!)！老女子！何不疾行！陛下已壯矣，寧尚須汝乳而活邪(ye2)？尚何還顧！」於是人主憐焉悲之，乃下詔止無徙乳母，罰謫譖(zen4; to malign)之者。
**The original paragraph in Chinese is taken from: Sima Qian. Ed. Han Zhaoqi. New Translation Shiji. vol.VIII. Taipei: Sanmin, 2008. 4955-4956. (司馬遷. 韓兆琦 注譯. 新譯史記, 第八冊. 臺北市：三民, 2008. 4955-4958頁. ISBN: 978-95-14-5001-8). All translation is based upon the text and annotations thereof (4955-4958), with the exception of the ending line where the San-Min translation reads: "The Emperor punished instead the officials who suggested exile for his nurse." My understanding of the last line in the original somehow differs in a way that allows a more reasonable possibility to me as a reader and a translator.
***All translation is mine.
