Zheng said: A gentleman will not make plans with others if he does not have to, but if he makes plans with others, then there is no way other than the Dao. Therefore, a gentleman's planning can certainly follow the Dao, but cannot necessarily be accepted; it can certainly be loyal, but cannot necessarily be heeded; it can certainly be trustworthy, yet may not necessarily be trusted.

A gentleman does not express disapproval in words but demonstrates it through actions — a principle deeply aligned with wu wei (non-action). Therefore, those who condemn wrongdoing act rightly, and those who detest evil deeds perform good actions, thus the Dao is made clear.

Primary sources include the Shoushanige Congshu edition, the Mohaijinju edition, and the Zhengtong Daozang (Taoist Canon) edition. The text belongs to the tradition of early Taoist governance philosophy, reflecting the political ideals of the Five Emperors and Three Kings — a cosmological framework also explored through yin and yang theory and the Book of Changes and Five Elements in classical Chinese thought.