In a story from the Strategies of the Warring States, Zou Ji asks his wife, his concubine and a guest whether he is more handsome than Lord Xu of the northern city. All say yes. When he sees Lord Xu, he knows they were wrong. His wife favored him, his concubine feared him, and the guest wanted something from him.
Zou Ji then tells King Wei of Qi that the king, surrounded by palace women, ministers and common people, is deceived far more than he is. He urges the king to open the way for criticism. The story is collected in the anthology Guwen Guanzhi as “Zou Ji Admonishes the King of Qi Indirectly to Accept Advice.”