Stories of many idioms

(1) Iron pestle grinding needle

Allusions

Li Bai, the famous poet of the Tang Dynasty, did not like studying when he was a child. He often skipped school and wandered on the street.

One day, Li Bai did not go to school again. He wandered around the street and looked here and there, and unknowingly arrived outside the city. The warm sunshine, cheerful birds, and flowers swaying in the wind made Li Bai sigh, "With such a beautiful weather, how boring would it be to read in the house all day?"

Walking, in a At the door of the dilapidated hut, an old woman with white hair sat grinding an iron pestle as thick as a stick. Li Bai walked over and asked, "Old woman, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to grind this iron pestle into an embroidery needle." The old woman raised her head, smiled at Li Bai, and then lowered her head to continue. Grinding.

"Embroidery needle?" Li Bai asked again: "Is it an embroidery needle used for sewing clothes?"

"Of course!"

"But, Tie Chu When can such a thick needle be ground into a fine embroidery needle?"

The old woman asked Li Bai: "A drop of water can penetrate a stone, and a foolish old man can move a mountain. Why can't an iron pestle be ground into an embroidery needle?"

"But, you are so old?"

"As long as I work harder than others, there is nothing I can't do."

The old woman's words made Li Bai very ashamed, so after he returned, he never skipped school again. I also studied very hard every day, and finally became a poet who will be famous throughout the ages.

Interpretation

No matter what you do, as long as you have perseverance, you will definitely succeed. Hard work pays off. If our children can be serious, hard-working and perseverant in their studies, there will be no problem with good grades.

(2) Hearing the Chicken and Dancing

Allusions

Zu Ti of the Jin Dynasty was a man with an open mind and lofty ambitions. But when he was a child, he was a naughty child who didn't like reading. When he entered his youth, he realized his lack of knowledge and felt that he could not serve the country without studying, so he started reading hard. He read extensively and studied history seriously, so he started reading hard. He read extensively and studied history carefully, from which he learned a wealth of knowledge and made great progress in his knowledge. He had been in and out of Luoyang, the capital, several times. People who had come into contact with him said that Zu Ti was a talented person who could assist the emperor in governing the country. When Zu Ti was 24 years old, someone recommended him to go to court, but he refused and continued to study hard.

Later, Zu Ti and his childhood friend Liu Kun Yizhi served as the chief registrar of Sizhou. He and Liu Kun had a deep relationship. Not only did they often sleep in the same bed and quilt, they also had the same lofty ideals: to make contributions, revive the Jin Dynasty, and become the pillars of the country.

Once, Zu Ti heard the crow of a rooster in his sleep in the middle of the night. He kicked Liu Kun awake and said to him: "Other people think it is unlucky to hear a rooster crow in the middle of the night, but I don't." Thinking about it this way, how about we just get up and practice swordplay when the rooster crows?" Liu Kun readily agreed. So they got up after the rooster crows every day to practice their swords, with sword lights flying and sword sounds clanging. Spring goes to winter, cold comes and heat comes, never stopping. Hard work paid off, and after long-term hard study and training, they finally became all-round talents capable of writing good articles and leading troops to win battles. Zu Ti was named General Zhenxi, realizing his desire to serve the country; Liu Kun became the governor, taking charge of the military affairs of Bing, Hebei and Youzhou, and gave full play to his literary and military talents.

Interpretation

The story comes from "Book of Jin·Zu Ti Zhuan". The idiom "Dance upon hearing the rooster" describes a person who is energetic and promising, and also a metaphor for people with lofty ideals to cheer up in time.

(3) Repairing the situation after a lost time

Allusions

This story comes from the "Warring States Policy". During the Warring States Period, a minister of the Chu State named Zhuang Xin said to King Chu Xiang one day: "When you are in the palace, the Marquis of Zhou is on your left and the Marquis of Xia is on your right; when you go out, Lord Yanling and Lord Shouhe are always together. It's up to you.

You and these four people specialize in luxury and sex, regardless of national affairs, and Ying (the capital of Chu, in the north of Jiangling County, Hubei Province today) must be in danger! "

After hearing this, King Xiang was very unhappy and cursed angrily: "Are you old and confused? Do you deliberately say these sinister words to confuse people's minds? "

Zhuang Xin replied calmly: "I really feel that things must come to this point, and I dare not deliberately say that Chu State has any misfortune.

If you continue to favor this person, Chu State will definitely perish. Since you don't believe me, please allow me to hide in Zhao country and see what happens. "Zhuang Xin had only lived in Zhao for five months. As expected, Qin sent troops to invade Chu, and King Xiang was forced to exile to Yangcheng (now northwest of Xixian County, Henan). Only then did he feel that Zhuang Xin's words were good, and he quickly sent people to retrieve Zhuang Xin. Come and ask him what he can do; Zhuang Xin said sincerely: "I have heard that it is not too late to think of a hound when you see a rabbit's teeth; it is not too late to mend the sheepfold after the sheep has run away." …”

Interpretation

This is a very meaningful story. If you only know how to enjoy yourself but don’t know how to do things, the result will undoubtedly be a tragic failure.

The idiom "repairing the situation before it is too late" is based on the two sentences above. It expresses the meaning that if something goes wrong, it is not too late to save it as soon as possible. For example, a businessman, because of his estimation. He made a mistake in the development of things, rushed forward rashly, and fell into a situation of failure, but he was not discouraged. He patiently thought about the matter again, learned from this mistake, thought of "making amends", and started from scratch. It’s not too late!

(4) The blind man touched the elephant

Allusions

According to the ancient Indian Buddhist scriptures, there was a small country in India in ancient times, and the king was called the Mirror King. . He believed in Sakyamuni's Buddhism, worshiped Buddha and recited sutras every day, and was very devout. However, there were many religious witchcraft and religions popular in the country at that time. Most of the subjects were confused by their preaching, and their hearts were confused and they did not know right from wrong, which was very detrimental to the country. Governance. The Mirror King wanted all his subjects to convert to Buddhism, so he came up with an idea: educate and induce them through the teachings of blind men touching elephants. The Mirror King told his ministers: "Find some blind people who are completely blind to come to the royal city. "The messenger quickly gathered a group of blind men and led them to the palace.

The messenger walked into the palace and reported to the Mirror King: "Your Majesty, the blind man you asked to find has been brought to the palace. "The Mirror King said: "You will lead the blind people to the elephant garden tomorrow morning, so that each of them can only touch one part of the elephant's body, and then take them to the square in front of the palace immediately. ”

The next morning, the Mirror King summoned all the ministers and tens of thousands of civilians to gather in the square in front of the palace. People were whispering to each other. No one knew what important things the king was going to announce. Different At the meeting, the messenger led the blind people to the high seat of the Mirror King, and the people in the square suddenly became quiet. The Mirror King asked the blind people: "Have you touched the elephant?" The blind people replied in unison: "I touched the elephant!" "The Mirror King said again: "Each of you, tell us what an elephant looks like! The blind man who touched the elephant's leg was the first to stand up and said, "Tell the wise king that the elephant is like a big barrel filled with paint." The blind man who touched the elephant's tail said, "Your Majesty, the elephant should be like a broom." The blind man who touched the belly of the elephant said, "Your Majesty, the elephant is indeed like a drum." "Then, those who touched the elephant's head said the elephant was like a big spoon, those who touched the big tusks said the elephant was like a horn, those who touched the back of the tail said the elephant was like a stick, and those who touched the ears said the elephant was like a stick. He said that the elephant was like a dustpan. Finally, the blind man who touched the elephant's trunk said, "Sage, the elephant is really like a thick rope. "A group of blind men divided into several groups. They were noisy and arguing. They all said that they were right and what others said was wrong. They all went to the Mirror King to argue: "Your Majesty! The elephant does look like what I said! "At this time, all the subjects present laughed when they saw this, and the Mirror King also looked at everyone meaningfully and laughed.

Source

32 of the Mahaparinirvana Sutra: "Those who touch the teeth are like words like reed roots, those who touch the ears are like words like a dustpan, and those who touch the head are like a dustpan. When it touches the nose, it sounds like a pestle. When it touches the feet, it sounds like a wooden mortar. When it touches the spine, it sounds like a bed. When it touches the belly, it sounds like an urn. When it touches the tail, it sounds like a rope. . ”

Explanation

It means making random guesses and trying to make a comprehensive judgment based on only one-sided understanding or partial experience of things.

(5) Sit back and wait for the rabbit

Allusions

According to legend, in the Song Dynasty during the Warring States Period, there was a farmer who worked at sunrise and rested at sundown. When there is a good year, you can only have enough to eat and clothe yourself; when there is a famine, you will go hungry. He wants to improve his life, but he is too lazy and very timid. He is lazy and afraid of everything he does, and always wants to encounter the windfall that comes to his door.

The miracle finally happened. One day in late autumn, he was plowing in the fields, and people were hunting around him. There were shouts and shouts everywhere, and the frightened little beast ran desperately. Suddenly, a rabbit hit the root of a tree at the edge of his field and died.

That day, he had a delicious meal.

From then on, he stopped farming. All day long, I guard the magical tree root, waiting for a miracle to appear.

Interpretation

The idiom "waiting for the rabbit" is a metaphor for wanting to get something for nothing, or clinging to a narrow experience without knowing how to adapt.

(6) Pulling seedlings to encourage growth

Allusions

Once upon a time, there was a farmer in the Song Dynasty who thought that the seedlings in his field were growing too slowly, so he was worried all day long. One day, he went to the field with a hoe again. He felt that the rice seedlings did not seem to grow up at all, so he thought hard about how to make the rice grow taller.

Suddenly, he had an idea. Without hesitation, he rolled up his trousers and jumped into the paddy field, starting to pull each seedling a little higher. In the evening, the farmer finally finished what he thought was a clever masterpiece. He ran home triumphantly and couldn't wait to tell his wife: "Let me tell you something great. I thought of a good idea today to let the rice in our field grow." The seedlings have grown a lot." The farmer's wife was dubious and asked her son to go to the field to see what was going on. When my son heard that the rice at home had grown taller, he ran to the field to see it with excitement. At this time, he found that the rice seedlings had grown taller, but they were hanging low and were about to wither.

Interpretation

This story tells us that we must not learn from the farmers of the Song Dynasty. Everything has its order. If you only want to finish it early, destroy its order. , in the end, not only could it not be completed early, but nothing would be accomplished.

(7) Buy a coffin and return a pearl

Allusion

A man from Chu State had a beautiful pearl and he planned to sell it. . In order to sell it at a good price, he thought about packaging the pearl well. He felt that with noble packaging, the "status" of the pearl would naturally increase.

This man from Chu State found the precious magnolia and invited skilled craftsmen to make a box (ie coffin) for the pearl. He used cinnamon pepper to make the box fragrant. Then, many beautiful patterns were carefully carved on the outside of the box, and it was also inlaid with beautiful metal lace. It looked shiny, and it was really an exquisite and beautiful handicraft.

In this way, the Chu people carefully put the pearls into the box and took them to the market to sell.

Not long after arriving at the market, many people gathered around to admire Churen’s box. A man from Zheng held the box in his hand and looked at it for a long time. He couldn't put it down and finally bought Chu's box at a high price. After Zheng Ren paid the money, he took the box and walked back. But after walking a few steps he came back again. Chu Ren thought that Zheng Ren regretted and wanted to return the goods. Before Chu Ren could finish thinking about it, Zheng Ren had already walked up to Chu Ren. I saw Zheng Ren take out the pearl from the opened box and hand it to Chu Ren and said: "Sir, you forgot to put a pearl in the box. I came back specially to return the pearl." So Zheng Ren handed the pearl to Chu Ren. Chu Ren then lowered his head and walked back while admiring the wooden box.

Chu Ren stood there awkwardly holding the returned pearl.

He originally thought that others would appreciate his pearls, but he didn't expect that the exquisite outer packaging exceeded the value of the box, so that it "overwhelmed the guest and took over", making Chu people dumbfounded.

Interpretation

Zheng people only paid attention to appearance and ignored the essence, which made him make improper choices at the expense of the basics; and Chu people's "over-packaging" is also a bit ridiculous.

(8) Playing the Yu indiscriminately

Allusions

According to "Han Feizi", King Xuan of Qi loved to listen to the playing of the Yu and was fond of showing off. There were three hundred people playing Yu for him. He often asked these three hundred people to play the Yu together to listen to him. There was a Mr. Nanguo who didn't know how to play the Yu at all. When he saw this opportunity, he went to King Xuan of Qi and asked to join the Yu playing team. King Xuan of Qi put him in the Yu playing team and gave him a high salary. Mr. Nanguo, who didn't know how to play the Yu at all, would always hang out in the team and show off with the Yu whenever he wanted to play the Yu. He went on like this day after day without being discovered.

When King Qi Xuan died, King Qi Min took over the throne. Unlike King Xuan of Qi, he did not like to listen to everyone playing the Yu together. Instead, he liked to ask the Yu players to play to him one by one. When Mr. Nan Guo heard the news, he had no choice but to run away and no longer dared to pretend to be a Yu player.

Interpretation

A Western proverb says that you can deceive some people at some time, but you cannot deceive all the people all the time. Mr. Nanguo doesn't know how to play the Yu and pretends to be able to play the Yu, but eventually his flaws will be revealed.

This story also shows that Mr. Nanguo is not good at using good learning conditions. In King Xuan of Qi's 300-person Yu playing team, he got along with 299 other musicians, and the learning resources were quite abundant. But he didn't realize this. He was content with making up the truth, deceiving himself and others, and could only end up running away.

(9) Search for Ji according to the picture

Allusions

Sun Yang, a native of Qin in the Spring and Autumn Period, is said to be the most famous horse-sage expert in ancient my country. He can tell at a glance How good a horse is. Because it is said that Bole is the god responsible for managing horses in the sky, so people call Sun Yang Bole.

It is said that Bole compiled his rich experience in horse recognition into a book called "The Book of Horses". In the book, he wrote about the characteristics of various thousand-mile horses and drew many illustrations. For people to use as a reference for recognizing horses.

Bole had a son who was very poor in intelligence. He read his father's "Xiangma Jing" and wanted to find a thousand-mile horse. He saw that the "Xiangma Jing" said: "The main characteristics of a thousand-mile horse are, high forehead, big eyes, and hoofs like stacked distiller's yeast cubes." So he read a book and walked out to test his eyesight.

Not far away, he saw a big toad, and hurriedly caught it and told his father: "I found a good horse, which is similar to what was said in your "Horse Book". It's just that the hooves don't look like stacked koji pieces!"

Bole looked at the big toad in his son's hand and couldn't help but feel funny and angry, and said humorously: "This 'horse' loves to jump, there is nothing we can do about it! "Ride!"

Origin

This idiom comes from "Yilin Cutting the Mountain", Bole's "Xiangma Jing" has "The sun is rising, and the hoofs are like tired music" He said that his son held the "Horse Book" in order to ask for a horse. When he saw a big toad, he said to his father: "I got a horse, which is slightly the same, but the hoofs are not as good as Lequer."

Interpretation

Looking for a good horse based on the image means being rigid in doing things. Dogmatic, legalistic. Now it means following the clues to find it. Suo means searching and seeking, Ji means a good horse.

(10) Handan Learning to Walk

Allusions

According to legend, two thousand years ago, there was a young man in Shouling of Yan State. He didn’t know what his last name was, so he called him He's a Shouling boy!

This Shouling boy has no worries about food and clothing, and he can be regarded as a middle-aged man in terms of appearance. However, he lacks self-confidence and often feels inferior and inferior to others for no reason - clothes are the key to others. They are good, the food is delicious, and the way they stand and sit is also elegant. He learns everything he sees, and throws away the same things he learns. Although he tries new tricks, he still can't do one thing well, and he doesn't know what he should look like.

The family members advised him to correct this problem. He thought it was because the family members were too involved.

Relatives and neighbors said that he was a weakling, but he would not listen at all. As time went by, he actually doubted whether he should walk like this. The more he looked at it, the more he felt that his walking posture was too stupid and ugly.

One day, he met a few people chatting and laughing on the road, and he only heard someone saying that the way Handan people walked was beautiful. When he heard this, he felt worried and hurriedly stepped forward to find out more. Unexpectedly, when those people saw him, they laughed and walked away.

How beautiful is the walking posture of Handan people? He couldn't imagine it. This became his obsession. Finally one day, without telling his family, he went to distant Handan to learn to walk.

As soon as he arrived in Handan, he felt that everything was fresh and dazzling. When he sees a child walking, he feels lively and beautiful, and he learns from it; when he sees an old man walking, he feels steady, and he learns from it; when he sees a woman walking, swaying in various ways, he learns from it. Just like that, it was only half a month later, he couldn't even walk anymore, and all his travel expenses were spent, so he had to crawl back.

Interpretation

The story comes from "Zhuangzi Autumn Waters". The idiom "Learning in Handan" refers to imitating others mechanically. Not only will you fail to learn from others' strengths, but you will also lose your own strengths and abilities.

(11) The frog in the well

Allusions

"Zhuangzi Qiu Shui" tells the story of a shrimp in a shallow well and a turtle in the East China Sea. One day, a frog in a shallow well saw a giant turtle from the East China Sea, and said to it happily: "I'm so happy! When I came out, I jumped around the well railing, and when I went in, I rested in the cracks in the bricks of the well wall." ; Jumping into the well, the water soaked my armpits and cheeks; when I swam to the shallows, my feet were covered in mud. I have the water in the well all to myself, and neither crabs nor tadpoles can compare with me. Why don't you? Come down and take a look too?”

The turtle from the East China Sea came to the well, but before his left foot could get in, the stone knee was already stuck. The turtle of the East China Sea slowly retreated, and then told the shallow well frog about the appearance of the sea: "The words "thousands of miles away" are not enough to describe the vastness of the sea; the words "thousands of feet high" are not enough to measure it. As deep as it is, there were nine floods in ten years during the reign of Emperor Yu, and the sea water did not increase much; in the eighth year and seven mornings of Shang Tang's reign, the sea water did not decrease much..." The frog in the shallow well was dumbfounded, frightened, and confused. If something were lost, how could it have thought that there was a world bigger than its well?

Dynasty

Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period

Source

"Zhuangzi·Qiu Shui": "A frog in a well cannot talk to the sea, he is limited to emptiness."

Interpretation

The frog at the bottom of the well can only see the world as big as the wellhead A piece of sky. A metaphor for a person with narrow knowledge.

(12) Mr. Ye loves dragons

Allusions

Gong Ai of Lu often told others how much he longed for talents and how much he liked people with knowledge and talent. A man named Zi Zhang heard that Duke Ai of Lu welcomed talented people, so he came to the state of Lu from a far away place and asked to see Duke Ai of Lu.

Zizhang stayed in the state of Lu for seven days, but he did not see the shadow of Duke Ai of Lu. It turned out that Duke Ai of Lu said he liked knowledgeable people just to follow the fashion and imitate what other monarchs said. He didn't take Zizhang seriously when he came to ask for an audience, and he had already forgotten it. Zi Zhang was very disappointed and angry. He told a story to the driver of Duke Ai of Lu, and asked the driver to tell the story to Duke Ai of Lu.

Then, Zi Zhang left quietly.

Finally one day, Duke Ai of Lu remembered that Zizhang asked for an audience, and was going to ask his coachman to invite Zizhang. The coachman said to Duke Ai of Lu, "He has already left."

Gong Ai of Lu was confused. He asked the coachman, "Didn't he come to me? Why did he leave again?"

So the driver told Duke Ai of Lu the story left by Zizhang. The story goes like this:

There was a man named Ye Zigao who always boasted to others about how much he liked dragons. He painted dragons on the hooks of his clothes, carved dragons on the wine utensils, and carved dragons in all the carved places in his house and bedroom. The real dragon in the sky knew that Ye Zigao liked dragons so much and was very touched.

One day, the real dragon landed at Ye Zigao's home. It stuck its head into the window to visit and dragged its tail on the hall. Ye Zi was so frightened that his face changed color, and he turned around and ran away in panic. The real dragon felt baffled and disappointed. In fact, Ye Gong does not really like dragons, he just likes them in form and verbally.

Interpretation

There are many people like Ye Zigao in our real life. They often advertise one thing verbally, but once they want to do something real, they run away. How is this different from Ye Gong's love for dragons?

(13) Covering one's ears and stealing the bell

Allusions

In the Spring and Autumn Period, Zhibo, a nobleman of Jin State, destroyed the Fan family. Someone took the opportunity and ran to Fan's house to steal something, and saw a big bell hanging in the yard. The bell is made of fine bronze and has exquisite shapes and patterns. The thief was very happy and wanted to carry this beautiful clock back to his home. But the clock was so big and heavy that it couldn't be moved. After much deliberation, he found only one way, which was to break the clock into pieces and then move them home separately.

The thief found a big hammer and hit the clock with all his strength. A loud bang made him jump. The thief panicked, thinking that this was too bad. Didn't this sound tell people that I was stealing the clock here? He was so anxious that he threw himself on the clock and opened his arms to cover the sound of the bell, but how could he cover it! The sound of the bell still sounds long and distant.

The more he listened, the more frightened he became. He could not freely withdraw his hands and cover his ears with all his strength. "Hey, the bell has become smaller and can't be heard!" The thief became happy, "It's wonderful! If you can't cover your ears, you can't hear the bell!" He immediately found two cloth balls and covered his ears. Stop it, thinking, now no one can hear the bell. So he let go and hit the clock. Every time, the bell sounded loudly and spread far away. People heard the bell and swarmed to catch the thief.

Source

The story comes from "Lü's Spring and Autumn Period: Self-Knowledge"

Interpretation

"Covering one's ears and stealing the bell" is said to be " "hiding one's ears and stealing one's bell" is a metaphor for stupid and self-deceptive cover-up behavior.

(14) Self-Contradiction

Allusion

There was a weapons seller in the Chu State who went to the market to sell spears and shields.

Many people came to see it, so he raised his shield and boasted to everyone: "My shield is the strongest in the world. No matter how sharp or sharp things are, it cannot be pierced." !"

Then the weapons seller picked up another spear and boasted brazenly: "My spear is the sharpest in the world. No matter how strong and solid it is, it can't stop it. As soon as it pokes, as soon as it touches, hey, he will be pierced by it immediately!" He was very proud, and shouted loudly: "Come and see, come and buy, the strongest shield and the strongest shield in the world. The sharpest spear!"

At this time, a spectator stepped forward, picked up a spear, and then picked up a shield and asked: "What will happen if you use this spear to poke the shield?" " This—" The onlookers were stunned at first, then suddenly burst into laughter and dispersed.

The weapons seller walked away dejectedly, carrying his spear and shield.

Source

"Han Feizi·Nanshi"

There are those who admire the shield and praise its strength: "Nothing can fall." They also praised his spear and said: "My spear is so sharp that everything will fall into it." The man responded and said, "What if I use my spear and fall into my shield?" He couldn't respond.

Interpretation

"Spear" is an ancient weapon with a long handle and a metal tip, used to assassinate enemies. "Shield" is a weapon used in ancient times to protect oneself and resist assassination by enemies. Later, it is used as a metaphor for self-contradictory language and actions that are inconsistent or contradictory to each other.

(15) Water droplets penetrate rocks

Allusions

During the Song Dynasty, Zhang Guaiya was the county magistrate in Chongyang. At that time, soldiers often insulted generals and petty officials violated superior officers. Zhang Chengya believed that this was an abnormality and was determined to rectify this phenomenon.

One day, he was patrolling around the Yamen. Suddenly, he saw a petty official coming out of the treasury in a panic.

Zhang Chengya stopped the clerk and found a penny hidden under his turban. The clerk hesitated for a long time before admitting that he had stolen it from the government army. Zhang Chengya took the clerk back to the lobby and ordered him to be tortured. The clerk was unconvinced: "One penny is nothing! You can only beat me, but you can't kill me!" Zhang Chengya was furious and judged: "One penny a day, a thousand penny a thousand days, the rope will cut the wood. A drop of water penetrates a stone." In order to punish this behavior, Zhang Chengya beheaded the clerk in public.

Interpretation

The idiom "drops of water penetrate a stone" originally means that if a small mistake is not corrected, it will turn into a big mistake. It is a metaphor that as long as you persevere, you can always get things done.

(16) Dong Shi imitates her

Allusions

Xi Shi is one of the "Four Beauties" in Chinese history. She was a native of Yue during the Spring and Autumn Period. Her actions Every movement is very attractive, but it is a pity that her health is not good and she suffers from heartache.

Once, she finished washing clothes by the river and was about to go home. On the way home, she suddenly felt pain in her chest, so she held her chest with her hands and frowned. Although she looked very uncomfortable, the villagers she met praised her and said she was more beautiful than usual.

There was a girl named Dong Shi in the same village. Because she was not good-looking, he saw that people in the village praised how beautiful Xi Shi was when she held her hand, so he also imitated Xi Shi's appearance. Holding her chest and frowning, she walked slowly in front of people, thinking that someone would praise her. She was ugly to begin with, and the weird way she deliberately imitated Xi Shi's movements and put on a show made people even more disgusted. After some people saw it, they quickly closed the door; some people hurriedly pulled their wives and children to hide away. They looked down on Dong Shi even more than before!

Interpretation

Dong Shi only knew that Xi Shi’s frown was beautiful, but he didn’t know that it was because of Xi Shi’s own beauty, so he deliberately imitated it, leaving only a legacy for future generations. Make a joke about "doing something to imitate others".

(17) Sit down on fuel and taste courage

Allusions

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Wu and Yue were neighboring countries and often fought wars. Once, King Wu led troops to attack Yue and was defeated. Linggufu, a general of King Goujian of Yue, was hit in the right foot and died of his injuries. After the death of King Wu, his son Fucha succeeded to the throne. Three years later, Fu Chai led troops to attack Yue to avenge his father's murder.

In 497 BC, the two countries fought in Fujiao, and the State of Wu won a complete victory. Gou Jian, the king of Yue, was forced to retreat to Kuaiji. The King of Wu sent troops to pursue him and besieged Gou Jian on Kuaiji Mountain. The situation was very critical. At this time, Gou Jian followed the advice of the doctor Wen Zhong, prepared some gold and silver treasures and several beauties, sent people to secretly send them to the Wu Kingdom Dazai, and through the Dazai, he appealed to the King of Wu. The King of Wu finally agreed to the request of the Yue King Gou Jian. and.

But Wu Zixu of Wu State believed that he could not make peace with Yue State, otherwise it would be like letting the tiger go back to the mountain, but the King of Wu did not listen.

After King Gou Jian of Yue surrendered, he went to the State of Wu with his wife. The couple lived in a stone house next to Fu Chai's father's tomb, guarding the tomb and raising horses. Whenever Fu Chai went on a trip, Gou Jian always followed him respectfully with a riding whip. Later, King Wu Fu Chai fell ill. In order to show his loyalty to Fu Chai, Gou Jian went to taste Fu Chai's stool in order to judge the date of Fu Chai's recovery. The date when Fu Chai recovered from his illness coincided with Gou Jian's prediction. Fu Chai believed that Gou Jian was respectful and loyal to him, so he sent Gou Jian and his wife back to Yue. After Gou Jian, the king of Yue, returned to his country, he was determined to take revenge. In order not to forget the national humiliation, he slept on firewood, and gall hung on the place where he sat and lay, indicating that he would not forget the national humiliation and hardship. After ten years of accumulation, Yue finally turned from a weak country into a strong one, and finally defeated Wu. King Wu committed suicide in shame.

Source

From "The Family of King Goujian" in "Historical Records"

Interpretation

Later, people summarized this story as "Sleeping on fuel and tasting courage" , used to describe people who work hard and strive for self-improvement, and people who strive for strength.

(18) Yelang was arrogant

Allusions

During the Han Dynasty, there was a small country named Yelang in the southwest. Although it was an independent It is a country, but the land is very small, the people are few, and the products are even pitiful.

However, since Yelang was the largest country in the neighboring area, the king of Yelang, who had never left the country, thought that the country he ruled was the largest country in the world.

One day, when the King of Yelang Kingdom and his subordinates were inspecting the border, he pointed ahead and asked: "Which country here is the largest?" In order to cater to the king's wishes, the subordinates said: "Of course It's the biggest one in Yelang Kingdom!" As he walked, the king raised his head again, looked at the mountains in front of him and asked, "Is there any mountain higher than this one in the world?" His subordinates replied, "There is no mountain in the world. There is no higher mountain than this one.

Later, when they came to the river, the king asked again: "I think this is the longest river in the world." The subordinates still said in unison. He replied: "The king is absolutely right." From then on, the ignorant king believed that Yelang was the largest country in the world.

Once, the Han Dynasty sent an envoy to Yelang. On the way, they first passed Yelang's neighboring country Dian. The King of Dian asked the envoy: "Which country is bigger, the Han Dynasty or mine?" He was shocked. He didn't expect that this small country would ignorantly think that it could be compared with the Han Dynasty. Unexpectedly, when the envoy arrived at Yelang Kingdom later, the proud and ignorant king did not know that the country he ruled was only about the size of a county in the Han Dynasty, so he asked the envoy without knowing the height of the sky and the earth. Which country is bigger, the Han Dynasty or my country? "

Interpretation

"Yelang is arrogant" is a metaphor for being ignorant and arrogant.

(19) The Foolish Old Man Moves Mountains

Allusions

Legend has it that in ancient times, there were two mountains, one called Taihang Mountain and the other called Wangwu Mountain. There lived an old man named Yu Gong who was almost 90 years old. Every time he went out, he was blocked by these two mountains. , It takes a long way to go to the south.

One day, he gathered his whole family and said, "I am going to work with you to spend my whole life to move Taihang Mountain and Wangwu Mountain. Build a highway to the south. What do you think? ”

Everyone agreed, but Yugong’s wife raised a question: “With the combined strength of all of us, we can’t move a small mountain, so how can we move the two big mountains of Taihang and Wangwu?” Woolen cloth? Besides, where to put the excavated soil and rocks? ”

After discussion, everyone thought that the excavated soil and stones could be thrown to the seaside in the east and the farthest place in the north.

Early the next morning, Yu Gong took the The children and grandchildren began to dig in the mountains. Although the family could not dig much every day, they continued to dig until the season changed.

An old man named Zhisou learned about this. Afterwards, he specially came to persuade Yu Gong and said: "You are not very smart to do this. With your limited energy, how can you dig down these two mountains?" Yu Gong replied: "You are too stubborn and cannot be enlightened. Even if I die, my son will still be here." When the son dies, there are still grandchildren, and the grandchildren have children, and the children have sons. There is no end to the descendants and descendants, but the mountain will never grow higher. Why can't it be dug level? ”

At that time, the mountain god saw that Yu Gong and the others kept digging mountains, so he reported the matter to God. God was moved by Yu Gong’s spirit and sent two Hercules down to earth to carry the two mountains away. From then on. , there is no longer a mountain barrier here

Dynasty

Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period

Source

"Liezi·Tang Wen No.5" " Records: There were two big mountains blocking the road in front of Yu Gong's house. He was determined to level the mountains. Another old man, Zhisou, laughed at him and thought he was too stupid. Yu Gong said: I have a son after my death, and my son will still be alive after his death. There is no end to the descendants, and the two mountains will eventually be leveled.

Interpretation

It is a metaphor for unremittingly transforming nature and unswerving struggle.

Interpretation

p>