《资治通鉴·晋纪·晋纪三十一》
桓玄说： 王恭为人正直，嫉恶如仇，你应该暗地里和他联合起来，约定时间，仿效战国赵鞅发动晋阳之兵马，以清除君侧之恶人的办法，东西两面一齐起兵，桓玄我虽然不成材，也愿意率领荆州、楚州两地的英雄豪杰，手拿武器充任前锋。这是齐桓公、晋文公似的功勋呵！ 
玄曰： 孝伯疾恶深至，君宜潜与之约，兴晋阳之甲以除君侧之恶，东西齐举，玄虽不肖，愿帅荆、楚豪杰，荷戈先驱，此桓、文之勋也。 
Huan Xuan said: “Wang Gong is a righteous man, who hates evil like enemies. You should secretly unite with him, agree on a time, imitate the way Zhao Yang of Jin Yang sent troops in the Warring States period, and clear out the evil men around the emperor. You raise troops in the east and west, while I Huan Xuan will lead the heroes of Jing Zhou and Chu Zhou to serve as the vanguard. This is the resplendent feat of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin!”