欲加之罪，何患无辞

春秋时，晋国国君晋献公宠爱妃子骊姬。骊姬为了使自己的儿子奚齐当上太子，先设计陷害早被立为太子的申生，使他被逼自杀;接着又诬陷献公的另外两个儿子重耳、夷吾与申生同谋，迫使他们逃亡国外。终于，奚齐在献公死后登上王位，大夫荀息辅佐朝政。

到后来，大夫里克和丕郑杀掉了奚齐和荀息。骊姬又让自己妹妹的儿子卓子当上了国君。里克和丕郑又杀了卓子，并将骊姬鞭打至死。接着， 他们派人迎重耳回国当政，重耳没有答应。于是他们又想请夷吾归国为君。夷吾派手下芮出使秦国，寻求帮助，并允诺将送给秦国五座城池。

终于，夷吾回到晋国继位，即晋惠公。从前，夷吾曾写信给里克，说自己即位后要赐给他封地。可回国后，夷吾怕他拥立重耳造反，想杀了 他。夷吾派人对里克说，他杀了两位国君、一位大夫，罪当该死。里克明白他的意思，悲愤地说:“不把他们废了，主人怎能当上国君？要对人加上罪名，还担心没 有借口吗？好，我就听从国君的命令吧！”说完这席话，里克便拔剑自刎而死。

这则成语出自《左传·僖公十年》:“对曰：‘不有废也，君何以兴？欲加之罪，其无辞乎！臣闻名矣。’”后人由此引申出成语“欲加之罪，何患无辞”。

If one is out to condemn someone, he doesn’t need to worry about finding an excuse.

During the Spring and Autumn Period about 2600 years ago, Duke Xian of the State of Jin wanted to make his son Xi Qi the new duke of Jin.  So when he was dying, he told a senior official named Xun Xi,: “ Xi Qi is too young to protect himself.
Please do help him.”  Xun Xi said: “I’ll try my best.  If I can protect him it will be your spirit in heaven blessing him. But if I fail, I’ll commit suicide by way of apology.”

About one month later after Duke Xian died, his son Xi Qi was murdered by another senior official named Li Ke.  When Xun Xi was helping another son of Duke Xian’s to dukedom, Li Ke killed the new would-be duke, too.  Xun Xi committed suicide for not having been able to prevent Xi Qi from being killed.

Afterwards, under the help of the State of Qin and Qi, Yi Wu became the new duke of Jin. He was called Duke Hui.  He arrested Li Ke and ordered to put Li to death.  Before Li Ke was executed, the duke said to Li: “Without you, I wouldn’t be the duke today.  Even so, you committed capital crime by killing  two dukes and driving a senior official to death.  If I don’t punish you, as a duke, how can my people be convinced?” Li Ke answered: “If I didn’t kill them, how could you become the duke? If you decide to impute a crime to me and kill me, you can always trump up a charge.  I know what you mean.”  This said, Li Ke cut his own throat.

From what Li Ke said people drew the idiom: Yu Jia Zhi Zui, He Huan Wu Ci — It’s always easy to find a pretext if you are out to condemn somebody.    Doesn’t it sound like the English proverb “He who has a mind to beat his dog will easily find his stick”?  Now people use it to describe those who have set their mind on harming others.

So,  If you are out to condemn somebody, you can always trump up a charge — Yu Jia Zhi Zui, He Huan Wu Ci

(Source:english.cri.cn)