Gongye Chang was another of his students. He was imprisoned on a charge that Confucius believed to be unfounded. As a gesture of his faith in him Confucius announced that he was willing to offer one of his daughters to be his wife. 　　　　
　　One tale may be taken as an illustration of his consideration of differences. Zi Lu asked him a question, "When we hear a good proposal, should we put it into practice at once?" "You should always first ask someone with more experience," Confucius answered the same question. To him Confucius replied, "Of course you should put it into practice at once." A third student who had heard both answers, puzzled by their apparent contradiction, asked Confucius about it. 　　　　
　　"Ran You always hesitates when making a decision," the sage said. "Therefore he should be encouraged to be bolder. Zi Lu tends to make hasty decisions. Therefore he should be reminded to be cautious. It's only natural that different people should get different answers. 　　　　
　　When Confucius died at the age of 73, some of his disciples put up huts beside his grave and lived in them for three years in mourning. One by the name of Zi Gong did not feel this was enough, so he stayed on for three more years. Today visitors to Confucius see a small cottage standing to the right of it, which, rebuilt many times in after years, stands on the site of Zi Gong's hut.