暗箭傷人 (Àn jiàn shāng rén)
Literally: Injuring others with an arrow in the back [hidden/secret/sniping arrow]
Explanation:
It is a metaphor for secretly conducting a nefarious act or plot to injure others
In the Spring and Autumn period, Duke Zhuang of Zheng obtained backing from the states of Lu and Qi for its plan to conquer the state of Xu. (Xu was a small state, now at the city of Xuchang in Henan province. The state of Zheng was situated at Xu’s northern border, Xinzheng in Henan was its capital at the time.)
This event was recorded in 《左傳·隱公十一年》(Zuozhuan – Duke Yin 11th year). In the fifth month of that summer, Duke Zhuang of Zheng inspected troops in front of his palace and gave order to dispatch military chariots. An old general, Ying Kaoshu, and a young general, Gongsun Zidu, were vying for the honor [of leading the chariots] and a quarrel ensued. Ying Kaoshu was a courageous general, refusing to back down due to old age, [so that] he pulled up the chariot then turned and ran; Gongsun Zidu had always looked down on others, so it was natural that he did not back down, thus he too pulled up [grabbed] his crescent halberd and rushed in pursuit. When he reached the road, Ying Kaoshu was already nowhere to be seen. Gongsun Zidu began to harbor his grudges for Ying Kaoshu from that day. [Note: at the time of this translation, there are no Wikipedia entries for Ying Kaoshu and Gongsun Zidu, even though the former is well-known in Chinese history for being a wise, brave, and filial man. You can do a google search for stories about him.]
Comes fall in the seventh month, Duke Zhuang of Zheng gave official order to attack the State of Xu. Zheng’s troops closed in on the capital of Xu; when it was time to attack the city, Ying Kaoshu bravely led the charge and scaled the walls. Witnessing Ying Kaoshu about to achieve a great deed, Gongsun Zidu became even more jealous, [so he] pulled out an arrow and took aim at him. One [people, everyone] would only see the brave, old general fell in the fight. Another general, Xia Shuying, thought Ying Kaoshu was killed by Xu’s soldiers, so he promptly picked up the battle flag, commanded his troops to continue fighting, and finally defeated the city’s defense. As Zheng’s troops entered the city, the State of Xu’s lord, Duke Zhuang of Xu, fled to the State of Wei (衛國). As a result, Xu’s land was incorporated into Zheng’s territory.
In taking advantage of an unprepared Ying Kaoshu by secretly shooting that arrow, Gongsun Zidu had given rise to the saying “Injuring Others [with a] Secret Arrow.” However, one does not limit this idiom to simply indicating secret arrows as [literal] lethal weapons; whenever anyone adopts underhanded means to wait for that [sneak] opportunity to injure others, this can also be called “Injuring Others [with a] Secret Arrow.” Here we might as well relate a story pertaining to a man from the Song Dynasty, Liu Ban.
Liu Ban, courtesy name Gongfu, was said to be quite a literary talent, and was especially well-learned in the study of history. He participated in compiling the work “Zizhi Tongjian” under the chief editor Sima Guang. Shao Bo’s “Wen Jian Hou Lu” (邵博 – 聞見後錄) from the Song Dynasty has a story about him, from which it seemed that he was quite a humorous character. The story went thus: Once, there was a “Zhong Si” (中司, a court official title, which is the same as “Yu Shi Zhong Cheng” 禦史中丞, whose function was to monitor and impeach officials for misconducts) who wanted his colleagues to accuse [charge] someone. Someone else asked Liu Ban whether the accused truly had done something wrong to have Zhong Si drumming up the charge [against him]. Liu Ban indifferently replied: “Zhong Si can beat his drum [drum up the charge], but I won’t be pressed into acting as a sniping [secret] arrow!”
This so-called “Secret Arrow” is a sniping/hidden arrow used in secretly injuring others. Liu Ban was unwilling to participate in shady plots meant to backstab someone, so he said he won’t be [serve as] a secret arrow. (With regard to the allusion 鳴鼓 – “Beat the Drum”, please refer to 鳴鼓而攻 “Ming Gu Er Gong” – Beat the Drum and Attack).
—– VOCABULARY —–
詭計 guǐ jì – trick, ruse, crafty scheme
詭 guǐ – sly, crafty [[quỷ: dối trá, giảo hoạt; lạ lùng, kì dị, đặc thù; làm trái lại]]
得到 dé dào – to get; to obtain; to receive
支持 zhī chí – to be in favor of; to support; to back; support; backing; to stand by
討伐 tǎo fá – to suppress by armed force; to send a punitive expedition against; to crusade against [[thảo phạt]]
檢閱 jiǎn yuè – to inspect; to review (troops etc); military review [[kiểm duyệt, kiểm tra, xem xét phê duyệt]]
檢 jiǎn – to check, to examine, to inspect, to exercise restraint [[kiểm]]
閱 yuè – to inspect; to review; to read; to peruse; to go through; to experience [[duyệt]]
派兵 pài bīng – to dispatch troops
潁 yǐng – grain husk; tip of sth short and slender [[toánh; hoặc ‘dĩnh’]]
吵了chǎo – to quarrel; to make a noise; noisy; to disturb by making a noise [[sảo: quấy rầy, quấy nhiễu; cãi nhau; ồn ào, ầm ĩ]]
不服 bùfú – not to give in to; to remain unconvinced by; to refuse to accept as final; to refuse to obey or comply; to want to have sth overruled or changed; not to accept sth
拉 lā – to pull; to play (a bowed instrument); to drag; to draw; to chat [[lạp: bẻ gãy; vời, mời; dẫn, dắt, lôi, kéo; kéo đàn, chơi đàn; móc nối, liên hệ]]
轉身 zhuǎn shēn – (of a person) to turn around; to face about; (of a widow) to remarry (archaic)
跑 pǎo – to run; to run away; to escape; to run around (on errands etc) [[bào]]
向來 xiàng lái – always (previously)
瞧 qiáo – to look at; to see; to see (a doctor); to visit [[tiều: coi, xem; trông trộm]]
瞧不起 qiáo bù qǐ – to look down on; to hold in contempt
拔 bá – to pull up; to pull out; to draw out by suction; to select; to pick; to stand out (above level); to surpass; to seize [[bạt: nhổ, rút; hút ra, kéo ra ngoài; cải biến, dời đổi; trừ khử; cất nhắc, tuyển chọn; vượt trội; đánh chiếm]]
戟 jǐ – halberd; long handled weapon with pointed tip and crescent blade; combined spear and battle-ax [[kích]]
飛奔 fēi bēn – (1) to dash (run fast); (2) to rush; (3) to dart
奔 bēn – to hurry; to rush; to run quickly; to elope [[bôn: chạy vội, chạy nhanh; trốn chạy, thua chạy]]
懷恨 huái hèn – to nurse hatred; to harbor a grudge; spiteful
正式 zhèng shì – formal, official [[chính thức]]
逼近 bī jìn – to press on towards; to close in on; to approach; to draw near
奮勇 fèn yǒng – dauntless; to summon up courage and determination; using extreme force of will
奮 fèn – to exert oneself (bound form) [[phấn: gắng sức lên; giơ lên; chấn động, rung động; dũng mãnh tiến tới, không sợ chết]]
爬上 pá shàng – to climb up
爬 pá – to crawl, to climb, to get up or sit up [[ba: bò; leo, trèo, vin; nép, nằm ép mình xuống; gãi, cào; đào lên, móc ra, bới ra]]
就要 jiù yào – will; shall; to be going to
忌妒 jì du – to be jealous of; to envy; jealousy; envy
忌 jì – to be jealous of; fear; dread; scruple; to avoid or abstain from; to quit; to give up sth [[kị: ghen ghét; sợ, e dè; kiêng, cử]]
妒 dù – to envy (success, talent); jealous [[đố: ghen ghét]]
抽出 chōu chū – to take out; to extract [[rút ra, kéo ra; trích lời văn]]
抽 chōu – to draw out; to pull out from in between; to remove part of the whole; (of certain plants) to sprout or bud; to whip or thrash [[trừu: rút ra; đưa, dẫn; hút, bơm; quật, vụt; nẩy ra, nhú ra]]
對準 duì zhǔn – to aim at; to target; to point at; to be directed at; registration
摔 shuāi – to throw down; to fall; to drop and break [[suất: quẳng, vứt; rơi xuống; đánh rơi; ngã, té]]
另一 lìng yī – (1) another; (2) the other
瑕 xiá – blemish; flaw in jade [[hà: tì vết trên ngọc; điều lầm lỗi, khuyết điểm; kẽ hở, khoảng trống]]
盈 yíng – full; filled; surplus [[doanh: tràn đầy, sung mãn; đầy, đủ; tăng thêm; thừa thãi; kiêu ngạo, tự mãn]]
連忙 lián máng – promptly, at once
忙 máng – busy; hurriedly; to hurry; to rush [[mang]]
拾 shí – to pick up; to collate or arrange; ten (banker’s anti-fraud numeral) [[thập: nhặt, mót; thu dọn, thu xếp]]
指揮 zhǐ huī – to conduct; to command; to direct [[chỉ huy]]
繼續 jì xù – to continue; to proceed with; to go on with
逃亡 táo wáng – (1) to flee; (2) flight (from danger); (3) fugitive
衛 wèi – to guard; to protect; to defend [[vệ]]
於是 yú shì – thereupon; as a result; consequently; thus; hence
版圖 bǎn tú – domain; territory
象 xiàng – elephant; shape; form; appearance; to imitate [[tượng: dạng, hình trạng, trạng thái; phép tắc, mẫu mực; giống, tương tự; phỏng theo, bắt chước]]
趁 chèn – to avail oneself of; to take advantage of [[sấn: theo, đi theo; đuổi theo; tìm, kiếm; thừa dịp, lợi dụng, thừa cơ; chuẩn bị kịp thời]]
限 xiàn – limit; bound; to set a limit (on) [[hạn: đất hiểm trở, chỗ ách yếu (làm ranh giới); phạm vi quy định; bậc cửa, ngưỡng cửa; không cho vượt qua]]
凡是 fán shì – each and every; every; all; any
凡 fán – ordinary; commonplace; mundane; temporal; of the material world (as opposed to supernatural or immortal levels); every; all; whatever; altogether; gist; outline [[phàm]]
采取 cǎi qǔ – to adopt or carry out (measures, policies, course of action); to take
采 cǎi – to pick; to pluck; to collect; to select; to choose; to gather [[thải]]
取 qǔ – to take; to get; to choose; to fetch [[thủ]]
伺機 sì jī – to wait for an opportunity; to watch for one’s chance
伺 sì – to watch; to wait; to examine; to spy [[tí, tứ: dò xét, rình; trông chờ]]
不妨 bù fáng – there is no harm in; might as well
妨 fáng – to hinder; (in the negative or interrogative) (no) harm; (what) harm [[phương: tổn hại; trở ngại]]
關於 guān yú – pertaining to; concerning; with regard to; about; a matter of
攽 bān – [[chia; ban bố; văn vẻ sáng láng]]
據說 jù shuō – it is said that; reportedly
頗 pō – rather; quite; considerably; oblique; inclined; slanting [[pha: lệch, không bằng phẳng; phả: có phần, hơi; rất, lắm; không thể]]
尤其 yóu qí – especially; particularly
尤 yóu – outstanding; particularly, especially; a fault; to express discontentment against [[vưu: càng, thật là; gần gũi, thân ái; oán trách, oán hận; lầm lỗi; người hay vật lạ kì, ưu tú]]
研究 yán jiū – research; a study
編寫 biān xiě – to compile
邵 shào – surname Shao [[thiệu]]
博 bó – extensive; ample; rich; obtain; aim; to win; to get; plentiful; to gamble [[bác: rộng, lớn, nhiều, phong phú; thông suốt, sâu rộng (kiến thức); đánh bạc; lấy, đổi lấy, giành được]]
幽默 yōu mò – (loanword) humor; humorous
幽 yōu – remote; hidden away; secluded; serene; peachful; to imprison; in superstition indicates the underworld [[u: sâu xa, sâu kín; lặng lẽ, yên tĩnh; thanh nhã; tối, ảm đạm; ẩn kín]]
默 mò – silent; to write from memory [[mặc: giữ lặng yên, không nói không cười; lặng yên; ngầm, thầm; thuộc lòng]]
專 zhuān – for a particular person, occasion, purpose; focused on one thing; special; expert; concentrated; specialized [[chuyên]]
彈劾 tán hé – to accuse of misconduct (in official task); to impeach [[đàn hặc: buộc tội, tố cáo; khiển trách, phê bình]]
彈 tán – to accuse; to impeach; to flick; to flip; to pluck (a string); to play (a string instrument) [[đàn: bắn; búng, phủi; đánh, gõ; hạch hỏi, vạch tội]]
劾 hé – to impeach [[hặc: hạch, vạch ra những hành vi trái phép]]
監察 jiān chá – (1) to supervise; (2) to control
監 jiān – to supervise; to inspect; jail; prison [[giam: coi sóc, thị sát; thống lĩnh, thống suất; cai quản, quản lí; bắt nhốt trong ngục, giữ trong nhà tù]]
察 chá – to examine; to inquire; to observe; to inspect; to look into; obvious; clearly evident [[sát: nhìn xem kĩ càng; biện rõ, xét kĩ, tường thẩm; tìm tòi, điều tra; hiểu, biết, lí giải]]
責 zé – duty; responsibility; to reproach; to blame [[trách: phận sự phải làm; đòi hỏi, yêu cầu; đánh đòn, xử phạt; hỏi vặn, cật vấn]]
同僚 tóng liáo – (1) colleague; (2) fellow-worker
僚 liáo – bureaucrat; colleague [[liêu: quan lại; người cùng làm việc]]
某 mǒu – some; a certain; sb or sth indefinite; such-and-such [[mỗ: đại từ nhân vật không xác định; tiếng tự xưng]]
劣跡 liè jì – bad record (esp. of a public official); unsavory track record
劣 liè – inferior [[liệt: kém, đối lại với “ưu” 優 hơn; hèn mọn; xấu; ít; yếu đuối; hơi, chỉ vừa]]
跡 jì – footprint; mark; trace; vestige; sign; indication [[tích: vết chân; ngấn, dấu vết; sự vật, công nghiệp tiền nhân lưu lại; khảo sát, tham cứu]]
冷淡 lěng dàn – (1) cold; (2) indifferent
淡 dàn – insipid; diluted; weak; mild; light in color; tasteless; fresh [[đạm: vị không mặn; không đậm đặc, không nồng, thưa thớt; nhạt (màu sắc); lạnh nhạt, thờ ơ]]
難為 nán wei – to bother; to press sb, usu. to do sth; it’s a tough job; sorry to bother you (polite, used to thank sb for a favor)
勾當 gòu dàng – shady business
勾 gōu, gòu – to attract; to arouse; to tick; to strike out; to delineate; to collude [[câu: móc, vật có hình cong; ngoặc đi, ngoặc bỏ đoạn mạch trong văn bài; bỏ đi, xóa đi; trích lấy, tuyển chọn; móc nối, thông đồng; khêu ra, móc ra, dụ, khơi, gợi; vẽ, vạch, mô tả, phác họa]]
充當 chōng dāng – to serve as; to act; to play the role of
充 chōng – to fill; to satisfy; to fulfill; to act in place of; substitute; sufficient; full [[sung: đầy, tràn; chất vào, lấp chặt, nạp; gánh vác, đảm nhậm; giả mạo, giả làm; tịch thu]]