“The wise lose neither the person nor the words” appears in the Wei Ling Gong chapter of the Analects. The preceding lines say that failing to speak with someone who can be spoken with loses the person, while speaking with someone who cannot be spoken with loses the words. Here 知 carries the sense of wisdom. The point is not that silence is always safest, but that speech requires judgement about audience and occasion.
Read today, the sentence suggests that a truth does not become effective merely by being true. Expression still depends on whether another person can take part and whether the occasion permits it. Yet this judgement should not become contempt for others or an excuse to avoid a difficult conversation. Wisdom lies in neither abandoning people too quickly nor spending words carelessly.
https://ctext.org/analects/wei-ling-gong/zh
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