047. The Three Hairs of the Devil (Los Tres Pelos Del Diablo) There was [once] a woman who had a lovely boy and a king who had a girl who was very beautiful. But it turned out that the king also wanted to have a boy [for a son], so that he went to see…
Mǎi dú huán zhū (買櫝還珠 – 买椟还珠)
買櫝還珠 (Mǎi dú huán zhū) (1) to buy a wooden box and return the pearls inside (2) to show poor judgment (idiom) From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=200 The book “Han Feizi – Outer Congeries of Sayings, The Upper Left Series” recorded that one day the king of Chu said to Tian Jiu (田鳩): “The philosophy of Mozi is…
046. Delgadina
046. Delgadina There was this king who had three daughters whom he loved dearly. The youngest among the three was called Delgadina and she was her father’s favorite. One day the king asked her for love and Delgadina refused [his advance] and said: God forbid that I would be my father’s wife and my sisters’…
Mǎ shǒu shì zhān (馬首是瞻 – 马首是瞻)
馬首是瞻 (Mǎ shǒu shì zhān) (1) to follow blindly (idiom) (2) to take as one’s only guide From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=716 The Zuo Zhuan recorded that in the fourteenth year of Duke Xiang of Lu (魯襄公)’s reign, the State of Jin joined forces with Lu, Qi, Song, Zheng and other states to attack Qin to avenge the…
045. The Lion and Angelina
045. El León Y Angelina (The Lion and Angelina) A man who was the owner of many fertile lands had three daughters, and all three were reputedly the most beautiful [women] in the region. The man was accustomed of going about his lands to see how they were being run, and one day when he…
Luò yáng zhǐ guì (洛陽紙貴 – 洛阳纸贵)
洛陽紙貴 (Luòyáng zhǐ guì) (1) lit. paper has become expensive in Luoyang (because everyone is making a copy of a popular story) (idiom) (2) fig. (of a product) to sell like hotcakes From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=100 Zuo Si, a great scholar from the Western Jin Dynasty, was a dull-looking, inarticulate man who had few friends and was…
044. The Gambling Blacksmith
044. El Herrero Jugador (The Gambling Blacksmith) Once upon a time, Saint Pedro (St. Peter) had to go down to earth for some errands and [there he] met a blacksmith, who was a good-hearted man and who did him numerous favors. Saint Pedro was so pleased with the blacksmith’s help that he told him that…
Lùn gōng xíng shǎng (論功行賞 – 论功行赏)
論功行賞 (Lùn gōng xíng shǎng) Lit. to reward people based on their merits and achievements After Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu and pacified the lands, he ascended the throne as emperor and became known as Emperor Gaozu of Han in history. Afterwards, he evaluated the merits and contributions of each official when determining their respective…
043. Young Maria And The Lizard Prince
043. Young Maria And The Lizard Prince (La Joven María Y El Príncipe Lagarto) Once upon a time there was a king and a queen who couldn’t have any offspring. This worried them greatly and the queen, in a fit of anger because God did not give them a son, once asked God to grant…
Lì bù cóng xīn (力不從心 – 力不从心)
力不從心 (Lì bù cóng xīn) (1) less capable than desirable (idiom); not as strong as one would wish (2) the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak In the Han Dynasty, Ban Zhao once used this phrase in her memorial “A Request Made For My Older Brother [Ban] Chao (為兄超求代疏)”. During the Eastern Han…