Interpreting the story behind the idiom "A chicken calls a dog to steal"

Old pedant Zi Chu, tell an idiom story and meet you again.

Culture is the soul of a nation and an inexhaustible motive force for the development of a country.

Determined to stick to the position of Chinese culture, strengthen the self-confidence of Chinese culture, shoulder the mission of spreading Chinese traditional culture, and be a faithful inheritor and promoter of Chinese excellent traditional culture.

Tell the world the story of China.

China culture has a long history and is profound, and idioms are a bright pearl in China culture. It is the crystallization of the wisdom of our ancestors and the concise expression of China language.

It can be said that there is an unknown story behind every idiom, so what are the unknown stories behind the idiom "cock crows and dog thieves"? Let the grassroots take everyone to have a look!

It is a well-known idiom that a chicken calls a dog to steal. It refers to both trivial skills and furtive behavior. This idiom is related to Meng Changjun, one of the four sons of the Warring States Period.

Biography of Meng Changjun in Historical Records records that Chang Jun was detained when he was on a mission to the State of Qin, and Meng Yi, a diner, dressed as a dog, sneaked into the Qin camp and stole the concubine given by fox white skin to show his affection for Meng. When Meng fled to Hangu Pass, he ordered the pursuit. Another diner pretended to be a chicken, made all the chickens sing together and tricked him into opening the city gate, so Meng was able to escape.

Tian Wen (? -279 BC), namely Meng Changjun. Gui, surnamed Tian, was one of the Four Gentlemen of the Warring States Period (Wei Xin, Qi, Zhao and Chu Chun), an aristocrat of the State of Qi during the Warring States Period, the grandson of Tian, the son of Jing Tianying and the nephew of Qi Xuanwang, Qi Xuanwang. For attacking his father Jue Yu Xue, also known as Gong Xue and Meng Changjun.

Tian Ying, a native of Qi Guojing, has a concubine outside, and her son is famous. Tian Wen was born on May 5th.

Tian Ying told Tian Wen's mother that this unlucky day on May 5th would bring disaster to her family and asked her not to support him. Actually, that's just an excuse. To put it bluntly, I just don't want to recognize this bastard.

However, how can Tian Wen's mother be willing to feed her own flesh and blood to wolves, or secretly raise children behind Tian Ying's back? When he grew up, his mother introduced Tian Wen to Tian Ying through one of his brothers.

When Tian Ying saw the child, she said angrily to her mother, I asked you to throw the child away, but you still dare to feed him. Why?

Before Tian Wen's mother answered, Tian Wen was very clever. He immediately knelt down and asked Tian Ying, "What is the reason why you don't want to raise a child born on May 5?" ?

Tian Ying replied: The child born on May 5th will grow up to be as tall as a portal, which will harm mom and dad.

Tian Wen said: Is man's destiny given by heaven? Or was it granted by the portal?

Tian Ying didn't know how to answer well, so she was silent.

Tian Wen went on to say, if this is a gift from heaven, why are you worried? If it is granted by the portal, it is enough to raise the portal. Who can grow so tall?

Tian Ying was speechless and scolded: Stop it!

Tian Wen took the opportunity to ask his father what his son's name was.

Tian Ying replied: Sun Tzu.

Tian Wen then asked: What's the name of this grandson?

Tian Ying replied: It's called Xuansun.

Tian Wen asked again: What's the name of Xuansun?

Tian Ying said: I don't know.

Tian Wen said: You became the prime minister of Qi and experienced three generations of kings. However, the territory of Qi has not expanded, but your private property has accumulated wealth, and you can't see a talent under your door. It is said that there must be a general in a general's family and a prime minister in a prime minister's family.

Your concubines can trample on silks and satins, but smart people can't wear coarse cloth and short clothes; Your servants and slaves have leftover broth, but wise people can't even eat chaff. You are still accumulating, trying to leave it to those who can't even name it, but forgetting that the country is losing power among princes. I am very strange in private.

It was this bold debate that made Tian Ying sit up and take notice of this illegitimate child. He thinks he is eloquent and modest, and he is a rare wizard.

Since then, Tian Ying has changed her attitude towards Tian Wen and attached great importance to him, making him responsible for housework and receiving guests. With the increasing number of guests, Tian Wen's reputation spread to various vassal States.

The vassal States sent people to ask Tian Ying to make Tian Wen a prince, and Tian Ying agreed. After Tian Ying's death, he pursued Feng Jing, who succeeded Tian Ying as a title, that is, a teacher of harmony.

Meng Changjun Tian Wen is in Yi Xue, attracting guests from various vassal states and frustrated people. Many people joined Tian Wen. Tian Wen would rather give up his family business than give them generous treatment, so that all the wise men in the world yearn for it. He has thousands of diners, regardless of status.

With the passage of time, Corporal Meng Changjun Li Xian's reputation spread further and further. So many people are willing to join him. Meng Changjun warmly received all the guests, impartial, and gave them generous treatment.

Grassroots believe that one of the important reasons why Meng Changjun Tian Wen refused all the guests who came to take refuge, regardless of rank or talent, was that his father Tian Ying had a close relationship with his mother when he was driven out of the house in his early years. He especially understands the situation when a person is down and out, so he will give generous care and shelter to those who are frustrated.

Meng Changjun's fame spread to the state of Qin thousands of miles away. The king of Qin was very interested in him and strongly invited Meng Changjun to be the prime minister of Qin. So I came to Qin.

Soon, the ministers of Qin advised the king of Qin to say, "It is not good for the king of Qin to keep Meng Changjun. He was born in the royal family, and he had a fief and a family in Qi. How can he really work for Qin? " Zhao Haoqi of Qin felt right, so he changed his mind and put Meng Changjun and his men under house arrest, just waiting for an excuse to kill them.

King Taizhao has a favorite concubine. As long as the concubine says one, Zhao Haoqi won't say two. Meng Changjun was told that the king of Qin loved Yanji, and only by bribing her to blow pillows in front of the king of Qin could she be saved.

So Meng Changjun prepared a heavy gift and found Yan Ji, the favorite concubine of the king of Qin, hoping that she would help her intercede with the king of Qin and cut herself some slack.

Yanji replied that she was not interested in anything else, as long as he paid for his white fur coat. Meng Changjun was puzzled. He did have a white fox fur coat, but when he first arrived in Qin, he gave it to Zhao Haoqi of Qin. Just then, a doorman said, "I can get the fox white hair out!" " "Say that finish and left.

It turns out that this doorman is best at stealing dogs. He first learned the situation, knowing that Zhao Haoqi liked the fox fur coat so much that he couldn't bear to wear it for a while, so he put it in the exquisite storeroom of the palace. By moonlight, he escaped the patrol's eyes and easily got into the storage room to steal the fox hair.

Qin Zhaowang's concubine was very happy to see Hu Baiqiu. She tried to persuade Qin Zhaowang to give up the idea of killing Meng Changjun and prepare to send him back to Qi in a few days.

Where did Meng Changjun dare to stay in the State of Qin, for fear that Zhao Haoqi might go back on his word, he immediately led his men to secretly ride to the east overnight.

It was midnight when I arrived at Hanguguan (now Lingbao County, Henan Province, which was the east gate of Qin State). According to the law of Qin State, Hangu Pass is not opened until the cock crows every day. Why do chickens crow in the middle of the night? When everyone was worried, only a few "oh oh" cocks crowed, and then all the cocks outside the city crowed.

It turns out that another public in Meng Changjun can crow like a chicken, and the chicken will crow as soon as it hears the first crow.

Meng Changjun said to the soldiers guarding the gate: You heard the cock crowing now, so you can open the gate and let us go.

The soldiers guarding the gate are sleeping in a daze. I feel very strange today. Why do they start crowing before going to bed? Although the soldiers guarding the customs felt strange, they had to get up and open the door to let them out of the city.

Meng Changjun escaped to the State of Qi by luck, and his reputation was even greater than before he went to the State of Qin. This time he brought back a bad reputation.

People regard this joke as after-dinner talk, saying that although he has 3,000 diners in Meng Changjun, look at these people. They are full of chickens and dogs, and gluttons. Since then, Meng Changjun's reputation has plummeted, and this idiom has appeared.