This sentence comes from the second article of Lv Buwei's Lv Chunqiu Meng Ji Chun No.1. The original excerpt is as follows:
Better be poor than ignorant of wealth. It is also difficult to cause things to be scarce, although what is the reason for wanting to live? Take the car when you leave, take the opportunity when you enter, and take the opportunity when you are self-defeating Fat meat and thick wine, self-improvement, life is called rotten intestines;
The mighty white tooth, the voice of Zheng and Wei, takes pleasure in doing things and is called the axe of cutting. Three patients are also caused by your wealth. Therefore, some people in ancient times refused to be rich, so they were reborn, not boasting, but being honest. Then this theory cannot be ignored.
Translation:
Being rich, but not knowing the truth of keeping in good health, is a disaster, not worse than being poor. It is difficult for the poor to get everything they want. Even if they want to make mistakes, where are the ways to make them?
Go out by bus, come back by chariot, and try to find a way to have fun. We call this situation an opportunity to cause foot disease; In order to keep fit and eat and drink desperately, we call such wine and meat the food that makes the stomach fester;
We call these things axes to cut down nature, because we covet beautiful and lewd sounds and pursue our own happiness. These three evils are all brought by wealth. Therefore, some of the ancients refused to get rich because they paid more attention to their own lives, not to win the reputation of being clean, but to meet the actual needs of their health. These truths cannot be ignored.
Extended data:
At the end of the Warring States period, the trend of political unification was strengthened, and various ideas were rapidly merged. In this context, Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals pays attention to the study of hundred schools of thought.
From the perspective of modern people, the writing purpose of the book Lv's Spring and Autumn Annals is to synthesize the strengths of various schools, guide the ruling class of Qin State to annex six countries, establish a unified feudal dynasty, and achieve long-term stability.
In fact, it absorbs and sublates various theories, mainly absorbing reasonable and progressive contents that are conducive to achieving the above goals. Therefore, "miscellaneous but not miscellaneous" has a clear purpose.