Idioms Story

Chinese Idioms Story ---- Suspicious Neighbor Stealing Axe

Once upon a time there was a countryman who lost an axe. He thought that his neighbor's son had stolen it, so he paid attention to the man's every word and every move, and the more he saw, the more he felt that the man looked like a thief who had stolen the axe. Later, the man who lost the axe found the axe, it turned out to be a few days ago when he went up the mountain to cut wood, a moment of negligence lost in the valley. After finding the axe, he ran into his neighbor's son, and then looked at him carefully, and how he didn't look like a thief.

Suspicious Neighbors Stealing Axes: not focusing on the factual basis, making wild suspicions about people and things.

2. Pulling up seedlings to help them grow

During the Spring and Autumn period, there was a farmer in the state of Song, who always thought that the crops in his field grew too slowly, and when he went to take a look at them today, and then tomorrow, he felt that the seedlings seemed to have never grown taller. He thought to himself, "What can I do to make them grow taller and faster?

One day he went out into the field and pulled the seedlings up one by one. It took a lot of effort to pull up the seedlings one by one, and when he finished pulling them up, he was already exhausted, but he was very happy in his heart. When he returned home, he boasted, "Today I am exhausted, and I have helped the seedlings grow several inches taller!" When his son heard this, he rushed to the field and found that all the seedlings in the field had died

3. Irredeemable

There was a minister in the Zhou Dynasty named Fan Bo. He was not only talented in poetry, but also good at ruling the country. Later, he worked for King Li of the Zhou Dynasty. However, King Li of Zhou was a domineering person and he was not able to fulfill his duty to the Emperor. He was also a good advisor to the king's ministers, who tried to please him. While Fan Bo advised the king of the Zhou Dynasty to list the faults of the government, the treacherous ministers whispered bad words about him in the ear of the king. King Li of Zhou got very tired of Fan Bo, and from then on, the treacherous ministers came in and out of the court, not taking Fan Bo into account. Fan Bo was so indignant that he wrote a poem which was later included in the Book of Songs. The poem attacked the treacherous ministers, saying, "Doing evil, irredeemable!"

"Incorrigible": so sick that it cannot be saved by medicine. Later, the metaphor is used to describe things that are so bad that they cannot be saved.

4. Riding the Wind and Breaking the Waves

In ancient times during the North and South Dynasties, there was a general in the state of Song surnamed Zongcourt, who had been very brave and ambitious since he was a child. One day, Zongcourt's uncle asked him what his ambition was, and Zongcourt replied, "I wish to ride the long wind and break ten thousand miles of waves." He replied, "I wish to ride the long wind and break ten thousand miles of waves." Meaning: I must break through all obstacles and go forward to do something. Zongcourt, through diligent study and hard work, finally became a capable general.

Later, people used the phrase "riding the wind and breaking the waves" to describe the spirit of not being afraid of difficulties and advancing courageously

5.

Yang Jian, the chancellor of the Northern Zhou, abolished Emperor Jing of the Zhou and became emperor himself, establishing the Sui Dynasty.

Determined to destroy the state of Chen, he once said, "I am the parent of all the common people in the country. Can I watch the people in the south suffer and not save them just because they are separated by the Yangtze River, which is as narrow as a sash?

Later, people used the phrase "a belt of water" to describe two places that were very close to each other, separated only by a narrow strip of water.

6. High Mountains and Flowing Water

During the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a man named Yu Bo Ya, who was a famous qin master at that time. When he was young, Yu Bo Ya was a clever and studious man, and he studied under the tutelage of a great master, and his zither skills reached a high level, but he always felt that he was not yet able to express his feelings about various things in an extraordinary way. Knowing his thoughts, Bo Ya's teacher took him to Penglai Island in the East China Sea by boat, so that he could enjoy the scenery of nature and listen to the sound of the ocean waves. When Bo Ya lifted his eyes and looked out, he saw the waves surging and splashing; the sea birds flying and chirping in his ears; the mountains and trees, lush and green, as if he had entered a fairyland. A wonderful feeling arose, as if the ear clucked up the harmony of nature's music. He couldn't help but take the zither and play, and the sound turned freely, melting the beauty of nature into the sound of the zither, and Boya experienced a realm he had never known before. The teacher told him, "You have learned."

One night Bo Ya took a boat trip. Facing the breeze and the moon, he was overwhelmed with thoughts, so he played the zither again, and the sound of the zither was melodious, getting better and better. Suddenly heard someone on the shore called. Bo Ya heard the sound out of the boat, only to see a woodcutter standing on the shore, he knew that this person is the soulmate immediately invited the woodcutter on board, excited to play for him. When Bo Ya played a tune in praise of the mountains, the woodcutter said, "That's great! Majestic and dignified, as if towering over Mount Tai!" When he played a tune expressing the surging waves, the woodcutter said, "How wonderful! Wide and voluminous, as if seeing the rolling water, the boundless sea in general!" Boya was excited and said excitedly, "You are my soulmate! You are really my soulmate." This woodcutter was Zhong Ziqi. From then on, they became very good friends.

The story is from "Lie Zi - Tang Wen" (列子-汤问). The idiom of "High Mountains and Flowing Water" refers to a close friend or soulmate, as well as beautiful music.

7. A word teacher

The teacher who corrects a very crucial word in an article.

The phrase comes from Tao Yue's "Supplement to the History of the Five Dynasties" of the Song Dynasty.

The Tang Dynasty was a very prosperous period in the development of China's feudal society, and literature and art were also very developed, of which poetry was the most representative. At that time, not only were there many poets and many poems created, but they were also very high in art and in the level of content.

Among the many poets at that time, there was a poet named Qi already. One winter, he was in the wilderness after a heavy snowfall, saw the plum blossoms opening proudly in the snow, and was so inspired by the poem that he composed a poem called "Early Plum Blossoms", which recited the plum blossoms that bloomed early in the winter. Two lines of the poem read: "In the deep snow of the village before me, a few branches bloomed last night". After writing it, he felt very satisfied.

A man named Zheng Gu, after seeing the poem written by Qi, thought that the meaning of the poem had not been exhausted. So, after much thought and scrutiny, he changed the two lines of the poem to read: In the deep snow of the former village, a branch bloomed last night. Because he thought that since several branches of plum blossoms had bloomed, they could not be considered early plums.

This change by Zheng Gu, although only changing the number to one word, only one word change, made "Early Plum Blossoms" more relevant to the title, and the mood of the poem was also more perfect. Qi was so impressed by this change that he called Zheng Gu his one-word master.

8. Concentration

Once upon a time, there was a chess player named Qiu.

Autumn had two students who studied chess with him, and one of them was very concentrated on learning from his teacher. The other one was not like that, he thought it was easy to learn how to play chess, so he didn't need to be serious. While the teacher was explaining the game, he sat there with his eyes looking at the pieces, but in his mind he was thinking, "How nice it would be if I could go out into the field now and shoot down a wild goose and have a nice meal." Because he was always distracted by his thoughts, he didn't listen to the teacher's explanation at all.

As a result, although the two students were taught by the same famous teacher, one of them progressed very quickly and became a famous chess player, while the other did not learn a thing.

Respondent:_WEN_WEN_ - Apprentice Wizard Level 2 2-25 13:29

Following the Graphs

Sun Yang had a son who read his father's book, "The Book of Horse Reading," and thinking that it was easy to read about horses, he went around looking for a good horse with the book. He followed the graphics drawn in the book and found nothing. Then he looked for the characteristics written in the book, and finally found a toad which resembled the characteristics of a thousand-mile horse written in the book, so he happily brought the toad home and said to his father, "Father, I have found a thousand-mile horse, only its hooves are a little bit worse." The father looked at it, cried and laughed, not expecting his son to be so foolish, so he said humorously, "It's a pity that this horse likes to jump too much to be used for pulling a cart." Then he exclaimed, "The so-called by the map also."

Nanke Yimeng

The idiom of "A Dream in Nanke"

is an expression that describes a big dream, or a metaphor for an empty joy.

Chinese idiom source: Tang Dynasty - Li Gongzuo "Nanke Taishou Biography"

Chinese idiom story: Sun Yu was a man in the Tang Dynasty. Once, because he was drunk, he couldn't help resting up under the acacia tree in the courtyard, not realizing that he fell asleep as a result. In his dream, he saw that the king of the state of Sophora An sent someone to fetch him to the state of Sophora An, and then married his beloved princess to him, and sent him to be the governor of Nanke County.

During this time, Chunyu governed Nanke well, and the king admired him. His five sons were all titled, and his two daughters were married to princes and lords, so he was in a very high position in the state of Samuel An.

Later, the Tangluo Kingdom attacked Nanke County, and Chunyu's army lost, and then his wife died of a serious illness. All these misfortunes made Chunyu not want to continue living in Nanke County, so he returned to the capital. However, in the capital, someone spoke ill of Jun Yu in front of the king, and without checking, the king arrested his children and sent him back to his original hometown. As soon as he left the country of Samuel An, Chun Yu woke up and realized that it was a dream.

Soon after, Chunyu found an ant hole under the acacia tree in the courtyard, and inside the hole, there was a palace han citadel pushed into the mud, etc. He realized that the Sophora Anguilla that he had seen in his dream was supposed to be this ant hole. And the highest branch of the acacia tree could be Nanke County where he was the governor.

Jun Yu remembered everything about Nanke in his dream, and felt that the human world was very impermanent, and that the so-called wealth and fame disappeared really easily, so he finally returned to the Taoist sect.

The story is from "The Art of Forests and Mountains" by Yang Shen of the Ming Dynasty. The idiom of "follow the map to find the steed" is a metaphor for doing things mechanically in the old way without knowing how to change; it is also a metaphor for following certain clues to find things. (END)

Banmen ludicrous

There is a pile of soil by the quarry river, Li Bai's name is high for thousands of years;

There is a poem in front of Lu Ban's door to make a big axe.

This is a poet of the Ming Dynasty, "Title Li Bai's Tomb". Li Bai was a world-famous poet of the Tang Dynasty, and after his death, his fame spread through the ages. How many literati pass by Li Bai's tomb, all want to stay for a moment, reciting poetry to express their inner feelings. And their behavior can only be attached to the elegant, "Lu Ban door in front of the door to show off the axe", too unselfconscious.

Lu Ban was a native of Lu in the Warring States period. He is a good at making exquisite utensils, people call him "clever people", folk traditionally regarded him as the originator of carpentry. Who dares to show off the use of axe technology in front of Lu Ban, that is to say, want to show their own skills in front of the big connoisseurs, this kind of ridiculous behavior is not too modest, it is called "Lu Ban's door to make a big axe", referred to as "Banmen to make an axe". This and the proverbial "Guan Gong in front of a big sword" mean about the same thing.

In fact, the idiom "Banmen juggling" had its beginnings as early as the Tang Dynasty. Literary scholar Liu Zongyuan in a preface to an essay has this sentence: "Manipulating the axe in the door of the class Ying, Si Yan ear!" It means that it is too thick-skinned to show one's skill with an axe at the door of Lu Ban and Ying (who is also an axe manipulator).

This idiom is sometimes used as a word of self-effacement, indicating that one does not dare to show off one's small skills in front of connoisseurs.

Cup Bow, Snake Shadow

One day, Le Guang invited his friend to drink in the hall of his house. While drinking, that friend suddenly saw the shadow of a small snake swaying in his glass, and he was disgusted in his heart, but he drank the wine anyway. After drinking, he was not comfortable and relieved in the end. He returned home and became ill.

After a few days, Le Guang heard the news of his friend's illness and learned the reason for his illness. Le Guang thought to himself, "There would never be a snake in a wine cup!" So he ran to the place where he had been drinking that day to inspect it. It turned out that on the wall of the hall, there was a bow painted with colors. The shadow of the bow happened to fall on the place where his friend had put the wine cup, so Le Guang went to his friend and explained this to him. When the man understood the reason, he was cured immediately.

Later, people used the expression "a bow and a snake's shadow" to describe a person who is suspicious of something, and who is afraid of his own self.

Bele's Horses

Legend has it that the god who manages horses in heaven is called Bele. On earth, people also call those who are good at identifying the merits of horses as Bole.

The first person who was called Bole, whose real name was Sun Yang, was from the Spring and Autumn Period. Because he was so good at studying horses, people forgot his original name and simply called him Bole, which has remained true to the present day.

On one occasion, Bole was commissioned by the king of Chu to buy a steed that could travel thousands of miles in a day. Bole explained to the king of Chu that thousands of miles of horses were rare and it was not easy to find them, and he needed to visit everywhere, so he asked the king of Chu not to be in a hurry, and he tried his best to get the job done.

Bole traveled to several countries and carefully searched the area of Yan and Zhao, where the famous horses were abundant, and worked hard, but he still couldn't find a good horse that he liked. One day, Bole returned from Qi, and on the way, he saw a horse pulling a salt cart, struggling to move up a steep slope. The horse was so tired that he was panting, and every step he took was very difficult. Bole was always close to the horse and could not help but walk up to it. When the horse saw Bole approaching, it suddenly raised its head and widened its eyes, neighing loudly as if it wanted to tell Bole something. Bole immediately judged from the sound that this was a rare stallion.

The rare horse

Toward the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a famous scholar named You Heng, who had outstanding talent. At that time, Kong Rong, the Taizhong Daifu, was particularly appreciative of him and recommended him to Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty. He wrote: "The emperor's room, the royal residence, must be stored in the very treasure. If Heng and other generation, can not be obtained."

The Emperor Xian did not dare to make a decision, and gave Kong Rong's recommendation to Cao Cao. Cao Cao loved talent, so he summoned You Heng. But he was disdainful of Cao Cao and treated him rudely. Cao Cao sent Thieu Heng to be a drummer, and ordered him to play the drums during a banquet for the guests. When he was asked to play the drum for the guests at a banquet, he was told to play the drum for the guests, but he was embarrassed and cursed Cao Cao while he played the drum. Cao Cao sent Thieu Heng to Jingzhou to persuade Liu Biao to kill him. Cao Cao sent Thieu Heng to Jingzhou to persuade Liu Biao to kill him, but Liu Biao treated Thieu Heng as his guest of honor, and Thieu Heng was required to state his position every time he held a meeting or issued an announcement. Later, he was disrespectful to Liu Biao. Liu Biao sent him to his general Huang Zu as a secretary. He was so arrogant that he was finally killed by Huang Zu.

The idiom of "not to be found in abundance" is derived from this idiom, which describes that it is very rare and hard to find.

Incomparable

There was a minister in the Zhou Dynasty named Fan Bo. Fan Bo was not only talented in poetry, but also good at governing the state. Later, he worked for King Li of the Zhou Dynasty. However, King Li of Zhou was a domineering person and he was not able to fulfill his duty to the Emperor. He was also a good advisor to the king's ministers, who tried to please him. While Fan Bo advised the king of the Zhou Dynasty to list out the shortcomings of the government, the treacherous officials whispered bad things about him in the ear of the king. King Li of Zhou became very tired of Fan Bo, and from then on, the treacherous ministers came in and out of the court, not taking Fan Bo into account. Fan Bo was so indignant that he wrote a poem which was later included in the Book of Songs. The poem attacked the treacherous ministers, saying, "Doing evil, irredeemable!"

"Incorrigible": so sick that it cannot be saved by medicine. Later, the metaphor is used to describe things that are so bad that they cannot be saved.

No learning

When Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was on the throne, General Huo Guang was a pivotal minister of the court, y trusted by Emperor Wu. Before his death, he entrusted his young son Liu Fuling (Emperor Zhao) to Huo Guang. After the death of Emperor Zhao, Huo Guang made Liu Xun the emperor (Emperor Xuan). Huo Guang was in control of the dynasty for more than 40 years and made great achievements for the Western Han Dynasty.

After Liu Xun succeeded to the throne, he made Consort Xu his empress. Huo Guang's wife, Huo Xian, was a woman who coveted riches and wanted to marry her youngest daughter, Cheng Jun, to Liu Xun as the empress, so she took the opportunity of Lady Xu's illness to bribe a female doctor to poison and kill Empress Xu. When the poisonous plan was exposed, the female doctor was imprisoned. Huo Guang did not know anything about this in advance, and Huo Xian only told him when the matter came out. Huo Guang was very frightened and accused his wife of not doing such things. He also wanted to denounce, but could not bear to see his wife being punished, and thought about it before and afterward, but still hid this hurtful thing. After Huo Guang's death, someone reported the case to Emperor Xuan, who sent someone to investigate and deal with it. When Huo Guang's wife heard about it, she discussed her strategy with her family and close friends and decided to gather her clan to plan a rebellion, but she didn't want to leak the news, and Emperor Xuan sent soldiers to surround the Huo family and decapitate them.

Ban Gu, a historian of the Eastern Han Dynasty, commented on Huo Guang's merits and faults in his biography of Huo Guang in the Book of Han, saying that he was "uneducated, ignorant and uninformed", meaning that Huo Guang was uneducated and uneducated, and thus uninformed about the big picture. The idiom of "no learning, no skill" refers to the lack of learning and skill

The man of talent

Xie Lingyun of the Southern Dynasty was a literary scholar who wrote a large number of poems about landscapes. He was smart and studious, read many books, and was loved by his grandfather Xie Xuan since childhood.

He came from a great scholarly family in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and was called "Xie Kangle" because of his title of Duke of Kangle. He was sent to Yongjia to be the governor of the city. Xie Ling Yun sighed that his talents were not recognized, and he often left his official duties behind and traveled to the mountains. Later, he resigned from his post and moved to Huiji, where he often drank and had fun with his friends. The local governor sent someone to advise him to be more moderate, but he was rebuked angrily. However, the landscape poems written by Xie Ling Yun were very popular. Whenever he wrote a new poem, it was immediately copied and quickly spread.

When Emperor Wen of the Song Dynasty took over the throne, he called him back to the capital as an official and praised his poetry and calligraphy as "two treasures". Xie Ling Yun became even more proud, he said: "There is only one stone in the world, Cao Zijian only eight buckets, I get a bucket, the world **** share a bucket."

The idiom of "Grass and trees are all soldiers" means to treat grass and trees as enemy soldiers. It describes a person who is extremely fearful and alarmed.

This idiom comes from the Book of Jin. Fu Jian Zhi Ji (苻堅載记), in which Jian and Fu Rong climbed up to the city to look at the king's division, and saw that the troops were in perfect order, and the generals were excellent; and they also looked at the grass and trees on the Bagong Mountain in the north, all of them resembling human figures.

In 383 A.D., Fu Jian, the former Qin emperor who had basically unified the north, led 900,000 soldiers and horses to attack the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The Eastern Jin dynasty appointed Xie Shi as the general and Xie Xuan as the vanguard, leading 80,000 elite troops to meet the battle.

After the Qin army's vanguard, Fu Rong, captured Shouyang (present-day Shou County, Anhui Province), Fu Shi himself arrived at the city with 8,000 cavalrymen. He listened to Fu Rong's judgment that the Jin soldiers were too weak to be defeated, and that they would surely win a great victory once his follow-up army arrived. So he sent a man named Zhu Xu to persuade Xie Shi to surrender.

Ju Xu was an official of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. When he met Xie Shi, he reported on the deployment of the Qin army and suggested that the Jin army should attack the Luojian (present-day Huainan Dongluo River in Anhui Province) before the follow-up army of the former Qin arrived. Xie Shi followed his advice and sent out troops to sneak attack the Qin camp, resulting in a great victory. The Jin soldiers took advantage of the victory and marched to Shouyang.

When Fu Jian learned of the defeat of Luo Jian and that the Jin army was heading toward Shouyang, he was so alarmed that he immediately climbed to the top of Shouyang with Fu Rong and personally observed the movements of the Jin army on the other side of the Interflu River. At that time it was winter, and cloudy, far away, Interfax over a gray cloud. Look closely, where the masts stand, the warships are densely packed, Jin soldiers holding swords and halberds, the lineup is very neat. He couldn't help but secretly praise the Jin soldiers for their well-organized and well-trained deployment.

Next, Fu Jian looked northward. There lay Bakong Mountain, a mountain with eight rolling peaks, a very dangerous terrain. The main camp of the Jin soldiers was stationed at the bottom of Bakong Mountain. As a northwestern wind whistled past, the swaying grass and trees on the mountain looked like countless soldiers in motion. Fu Jian immediately turned ashen and said to Fu Rong in horror, "The Jin army is a strong enemy, how can we say it is a weak army?"

Soon after, Fu Jian fell for Xie Xuan's plan and ordered his army to retreat slightly to allow the Jin soldiers to cross the Interstate River for a duel. As a result, the Qin soldiers trampled on each other as they retreated, and the army collapsed, returning north in a great defeat.

This battle is the famous Battle of the Interfluve, a famous battle in history in which the few win more, and the weak win more.

Handan Learning

Legend has it that two thousand years ago, Yan Shuling place there is a young man, not worry about food, not worry about clothes, on the looks is also counted in the middle of the people, but he is the lack of self-confidence, and often for no apparent reason feel that everything is not as good as the others, inferior - clothes are other people's good, the food is other people's incense, stand phase Sitting is also elegant. He has been learning a lot of things, and although he has been doing a lot of things differently, he has never been able to do a good job, and he doesn't know what he should look like.

The people at home advised him to change this problem, he thought it was too much control by the family. Relatives and neighbors said that he is a dog with a stick, and he simply can not listen to it. As time goes by, he even doubts that he should walk like this, and the more he looks at it, the more he feels that his walking posture is too stupid and ugly.

One day, he ran into a few people on the road, laughing and joking, only to hear someone say that Handan people walking posture is very beautiful. As soon as he heard this, he hurriedly went up to them, wanting to find out more. When he saw them, they laughed and left.

What is the beauty of the Handan people's walk? He couldn't visualize it, and it became a problem for him. One day, he hid from his family and traveled to the faraway city of Handan to learn how to walk.

On arriving in Handan, he was dazzled by the newness of the place. See children walking, he felt lively, beautiful, learn; see the old man walking, he felt stable, learn; see women walking, swaying posture, learn. In this way, but half a month's time, he can't even walk, and spent all the money, so he had to crawl back.

The story is from "Zhuangzi - Autumn Water". The idiom of "Handan Learning to Walk" refers to the fact that if you imitate others mechanically, not only will you fail to learn others' strengths, but you will also lose your own strengths and skills.

The Finger of the Deer as a Horse

English

During the reign of Qin II, Zhao Gao, the prime minister of Qin, was very ambitious, and planned day and night to usurp the throne. But he had no idea how many ministers in the court could listen to him and how many opposed him. So he thought of a way to test his own prestige, and at the same time, he could feel out those who dared to oppose him.

One day at court, Zhao Gao had a deer brought in and said to Qin Ershi with a big smile on his face, "Your Majesty, I offer you a good horse." Qin Ershi took a look and thought, "This is not a horse, it is a deer! So he smiled and said to Zhao Gao, "The prime minister is mistaken, here is a deer, how can you say it is a horse?" Zhao Gao said without changing his face, "Please look at it clearly, Your Majesty, this is indeed a thousand-mile horse." Qin Ershi took another look at the deer and said skeptically, "How can a horse have horns on its head?" Zhao Gao turned around, pointed his finger at the ministers and said loudly, "If Your Majesty doesn't believe me, you can ask the ministers."

The ministers were overwhelmed by Zhao Gao's nonsense and muttered privately, "What is this Zhao Gao up to? Isn't it obvious whether it's a deer or a horse? When they saw Zhao Gao with a sinister smile on his face and two eyes staring at everyone in turn, the ministers suddenly understood his intention.

Some of the timid and righteous people lowered their heads, not daring to speak, because they were sorry for their conscience if they told lies, and they were afraid of being victimized by Zhao Gao in the future if they told the truth. Some righteous people insisted that it was the manual and not the horse. There were also some treacherous people who usually followed Zhao Gao closely who immediately expressed their support for Zhao Gao's statement and said to the Emperor, "This is indeed a thousand-mile horse!"

After the incident, Zhao Gao, through various means, had those upright ministers who did not obey him punished, and even beheaded all of them.

Tuì bì sān shě

English

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Xian of Jin listened to slanderous rumors and killed the crown prince, Shen Sheng, and sent men to arrest Shen Sheng's younger brother, Chong Er. Upon hearing the news, Chong Er escaped from the state of Jin, and was in exile for more than ten years.

After a lot of hard work, Chong Er came to the state of Chu. The king of Chu thought that Chong Er would be a great man in the future, so he welcomed him as a guest of honor and treated him like a guest of honor.

One day, the king of Chu hosted a banquet for Chong Er, and the two of them drank and talked in a very cordial atmosphere. Suddenly, the king of Chu asked Chong Er: "If you return to Jin one day and become the king, how should you repay me?" Chong Er thought for a moment and said: "Beautiful women to stay from, treasures silk, the king you have plenty of, rare bird feathers, ivory animal skin, but also the abundance of the Chu land, Jin where there is what rare items to offer to the king it?" The king of Chu said, "Your Excellency is too modest. Although you say so, you should show me something, right?" Chong Er smiled and replied, "If by your blessing. If I can really return to my country and become a ruler, I would like to be friendly with your country. If one day there is a war between Jin and Chu, I will order my army to retreat three sheds (one shekel is equal to thirty miles) first, and if I cannot obtain your forgiveness, I will then engage you in war."

Four years later, Chong Er really returned to Jin to become the king of the state, the famous Duke Wen of Jin in history. The state of Jin grew stronger under his rule.

In 633 BC, the armies of Chu and Jin met in battle. In order to fulfill the promise he had made, Duke Wen of Jin ordered his army to retreat ninety miles and stationed at Cheng Pu. When the Chu army saw the Jin army retreating, they thought the other army was afraid and immediately pursued. Taking advantage of the weakness of the Chu army's pride and gullibility, the Jin army concentrated their troops and greatly defeated the Chu army, winning the Battle of Cheng Pu.

The story is from "Zuo Zhuan (左传)-Xi Gong 22". The idiom of "Retreating and Avoiding Three Shelters" is used to describe not competing with others or making concessions on one's own initiative.

To quench a thirst for plums

English

One summer, when Cao Cao led his troops on a crusade against Zhang Xiu, the weather was surprisingly hot, with the sun blazing down and not a cloud in the sky, and the troops couldn't breathe as they traveled along the winding mountain paths, with dense trees on both sides and rocks scorched by the sun. By noon, the soldiers' clothes were soaked through, and the march slowed down so much that a few frail soldiers actually fainted on the side of the road.

Cao Cao was anxious to see how the march was slowing down and was worried about missing the opportunity to fight. But how can he speed up when tens of thousands of men can't even drink water? He immediately called his guide and quietly asked him, "Is there any water source nearby?" The guide shook his head and said, "The spring is on the other side of the valley, and it's a long way around." Cao Cao thought for a moment and said, "No, there's not enough time." He looked ahead at the woods, pondered for a moment, and said to his guide, "Don't say anything, I'll figure it out." He knew that at this moment even if he gave the order to ask the troops to speed up, it would not help. Brain turn, the way came, he a clip horse stomach, quickly rushed to the front of the team, with a horse whip pointing ahead, said: "soldiers, I know that there is a large plum forest in front, where the plums are big and delicious, let's hurry up the road, around this hill will be to the plum forest!" When the soldiers heard this, it was as if they had already eaten it in their mouths, and their spirits were so high that their pace could not help but quicken a lot.

The story is from "Shishu Xinyi - False Lies" (世说新语-假谲). The idiom of "Quench Thirst by Looking at Plums" is a metaphor for comforting oneself or others with empty thoughts.

Covering up one's ears and stealing bells

English

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Zhi Bo, a nobleman of the state of Jin, exterminated the Fan clan. Someone took the opportunity to run to Fan's house to steal something, and saw a big bell hanging in the yard. The bell was cast in fine bronze, with exquisite shapes and patterns. The thief was so happy that he wanted to carry the bell back to his house. But the bell was so big and heavy that he could not move it. He thought about it, there is only one way, that is, the clock cracked, and then moved home separately.

The thief found a big hammer and smashed it against the clock with a loud bang, which startled him. The thief panicked, thinking this is bad, this kind of sound is not tantamount to tell people I am here to steal the clock? He was in a hurry, his body pounced on the bell, open arms to cover the sound of the bell, but the sound of the bell and how to cover it! The sound of the bell still traveled far and wide.

The more he heard it, the more frightened he became, and differently and freely drew back his hands and made to cover his own ears. "Huh, the bells have gotten smaller, I can't hear them anymore!" The thief cheered up, "Wonderful! Can't hear the bells if you can't stop covering your ears!" He immediately found two balls of cloth, stuffed the ears, thinking, now no one can hear the bell. So he let go and smashed the bells, one by one, and the sound of the bells carried loudly to a faraway place. When people heard the sound of the bell, they flocked to catch the thief.

The story is from "Lüshi Chunqiu - Self-knowledge" (吕氏春秋-自知), in which "Covering up the ears and stealing the bell" is said to be "Covering up the ears and stealing the bell", which is a metaphor for stupid and self-deceiving cover-up behavior.