Sima Xiangru (c. 179-117 BCE)
“The common folk are terrified by the start of anything extraordinary, but when it has reached completion, the whole world enjoys the benefit thereof.”
- An excerpt from a letter written by Sima Xiangru, included in the Records of the Grand Historian (Shi Ji, 117) by Sima Qian. Translated by Burton Watson (Columbia University Press, 1993).
