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If a man holds to virtue but does not broaden it, and if he believes in the Way but is not steadfast in it, what does it matter if he exists or not? Discovered in 1992 at the Dunhuang Celestial Spring Site, this pine wood slip measures 13 centimeters long and 0.8 centimeters wide. It records a philosophical dialogue from the Analects concerning virtue and friendship: "Zizhang said: 'If a man holds to virtue but does not broaden it, and if he believes in the Way but is not steadfast, what does it matter if he exists or not?' The disciples of Zixia asked Zizhang about friendship. Zizhang asked them, 'What does Zixia teach?' They replied, 'Zixia says: Associate with those who are worthy, and reject those who are not.' Zizhang responded, 'This differs from what I have been taught. A gentleman honors the worthy but is tolerant of the masses. He praises the good but has compassion for the incompetent. If I am truly a man of great virtue, whom among men can I not tolerate? If I am lacking in virtue, others will reject me, so how could I possibly be in a position to reject them?'" Since the text on this slip differs slightly from the standard, traditionally transmitted versions of the classic, it is highly valued by historians for textual criticism and manuscript comparison. Furthermore, finding this fragment on the remote northwestern frontier provides crucial evidence of how widely Confucian thought had spread through the Hexi Corridor during ancient times.