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To close the door and think on one's past mistakes
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闭门思过恐怕不是改正错误的最好办法 | Bìménsīguò kǒngpà bùshì gǎizhèng cuòwù de zuì hǎo bànfǎ
I'm afraid that locking oneself in one's room and reflecting on past errors isn't the correct way to fix those errors
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小明犯了错误，妈妈不准他出去玩让他闭门思过 | Xiǎo Míng fàn le cuòwù, māmā bù zhǔn tā chūqù wán ràng tā bìménsīguò
Little Ming made a mistake, and his mother forbade him from going out to play. Instead, she made him stay in his room and reflect on what he'd done
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《汉书》(Hàn Shū), a work documenting the history of the Western Han dynasty (西汉, Xī Hàn, 206 BC - 8 AD). It was written by 班固 (Bān Gù), and is generally known in English as the "Book of Han" or the "History of the Former Han."
韩延寿 (Hán Yánshòu) was the provincial governor of 东郡 (dōng jùn) during the Western Hàn Dynasty (西汉, 206 BC - 25 AD). He governed strictly and impartially, and during his tenure, the condition of his province drastically improved, so much so that the province was soon regarded to be one of the best in the nation.
One day, he was patrolling a county in modern-day 陕西 (Shǎnxī) when two brothers approached him. They were arguing over a plot of land — the elder brother claimed that his younger brother was occupying his land, and the younger brother claimed that their parents had left him the land when they passed away.
韩延寿 listened intently and felt grieved. He felt that he was personally responsible for the brothers' quarrel, as he had not done enough to educate his people on proper moral conduct. He wondered if he should resign to let someone more qualified to take his place.
The next day, he claimed that he was sick, locked himself in his room, and refused to come out. There, he reflected on his past mistakes. News of this reached the brothers, and they were so moved that they stripped down and went to apologize profusely to the governor. They also stopped arguing over the plot of land.
韩延寿 was delighted by this development, and he threw the brothers a dinner. There, he entreated them to be sure to correct any mistakes that they made as soon as possible. With that, the governor was able to resume his work presiding over the province.