From Cuentos Populares en Chile (Chilean Folktales) – by Ramón A. LavalPart 2 – Myths, Traditions, Things (Mitos, Tradiciones, Casos) 044. Otra Version (Another Version) (From the young student D. Francisco Vásquez, 15 years old, from Santiago.) In Chimba, Santiago there lived, very long ago, a witch who was married to a shoemaker, to whom…
Xiōng yǒu chéng zhú (胸有成竹 – 胸有成竹)
胸有成竹 (Xiōng yǒu chéng zhú) (1) to plan in advance (idiom)(2) a card up one’s sleeve(3) forewarned is forearmed From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=9 Wen Tong (文同, 1018-1079A.D.), courtesy name Yuke (與可), was from Yongtai (永泰), Zizhou (梓州) (east of present day Yanting County, Sichuan) in the Northern Song Dynasty. He excelled at poetry, literature, calligraphy, and painting,…
043. The Calchona
From Cuentos Populares en Chile (Chilean Folktales) – by Ramón A. LavalPart 2 – Myths, Traditions, Things (Mitos, Tradiciones, Casos) 043. The Calchona (Told by the 14-year old child, D. Ramón Fernández G., a student from Santiago, in 1911.) A man, ignorant of his fiancee’s actions, got married to a witch. By certain events that…
Xìng gāo cǎi liè (興高采烈 – 兴高采烈)
興高采烈 (Xìng gāo cǎi liè) (1) happy and excited (idiom)(2) in high spirits(3) in great delight From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=388 From Southern Dynasties – Liang – Liu Xie – The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons: 叔夜俊俠，故興高而采烈 (Shuye was handsome and chivalrous, so he [his poetry] is cheerful and full of enthusiasm). Liu Xie (劉勰), courtesy…
042. The Chumaco
From Cuentos Populares en Chile (Chilean Folktales) – by Ramón A. LavalPart 2 – Myths, Traditions, Things (Mitos, Tradiciones, Casos) 042. El Chumaco (The Chumaco) (Information provided to me in 1921 by the dental surgeon D. Roberto Sundt, a native of the Coquimbo Region.) A legendary character with whom women were frightened in the fields…
Xiǎo xīn yì yì (小心翼翼 – 小心翼翼)
小心翼翼 (Xiǎo xīn yì yì) (1) cautious and solemn (idiom); very carefully(2) prudent(3) gently and cautiously From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=435 The Classic of Poetry is the earliest extant collection of poems and songs. It was not written by one person at a point in time nor in a single place, but is mainly a collection of folksongs…
041. The Chanchillo
From Cuentos Populares en Chile (Chilean Folktales) – by Ramón A. LavalPart 2 – Myths, Traditions, Things (Mitos, Tradiciones, Casos) 041. The Chanchillo (El Chanchillo) (Told by 17-year old D. H. Iribarren Charlín on July 8th, 1911.) The Chanchillo is a fish from the shores of Coquimbo, of about one and a half meter long…
Xiān shēng duó rén (先聲奪人 – 先声夺人)
先聲奪人 (Xiān shēng duó rén) To gain the upper hand by a show of strengthTo seize at the first sound From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=445 This idiom means to first inflate one’s own influence (prestige) in order to suppress the enemy’s morale. This is a commonly used tactic when two armies are facing one another in battle. It…
040. The Herons And The Toad
From Cuentos Populares en Chile (Chilean Folktales) – by Ramón A. LavalPart 1 – Magnificent Stories, Stories of Animals, Anecdotes (Cuentos maravillosos, Cuentos de animales, Anécdotas) 040. The Herons And The Toad (Los Guairaos Y El Sapo) Two Herons were flying [over a lake] when they saw a Toad lying on his back with his…
Wò xīn cháng dǎn (臥薪嚐膽 – 卧薪尝胆)
臥薪嚐膽 (Wò xīn cháng dǎn) Lit. to lie on firewood and taste gall (idiom);Fig. suffering patiently, but firmly resolved on revenge From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=199 According to the “Records of the Grand Historian – Volume 41 – King Goujian of Yue“, in the ending years of the Spring and Autumn Period, Wu and Yue often fought wars…