八面威風 (Bā miàn wēifēng) (1) intimidating, commanding presence; aura of awesome might Explanation: To allude to great fame and power, with incomparable prestige. The story dated back to the last years of the Yuan Dynasty when the feudal government was becoming more and more corrupted, with peasants everywhere raising the banner of rebellion: to revolt…
081. Juan The Bear
081. Juan The Bear (Juan El Oso) There was once a father who had two children, a boy and a girl. One day he sent them to the forest to search for firewood. They were collecting bundles [of firewood] in such good spirits when they saw a gigantic bear coming, whereupon they became so afraid…
Àn tú suǒ jì (按圖索驥 – 按图索骥)
按圖索驥 (àn tú suǒ jì) (1) lit. looking for a fine steed using only a picture (idiom) (2) fig. to do things along rigid, conventional lines (3) to try and find something with the help of a clue From https://dict.idioms.moe.edu.tw/bookView.jsp?ID=159 Ming Dynasty. Yang Shen’s Yilin Fa’shan《藝林伐山．卷七》(the title is literally “Grow A Forest, Split A Mountain”,…
080. The Fool of Coria
080. The Fool of Coria (El Tonto de Coria) There was a married couple who had a son. Some said the boy was stupid and others said that he was too smart, but the case was in that town they all called him the Fool of Coria. One year, at the time of St. Martin,…
Àn jiàn shāng rén (暗箭傷人 – 暗箭伤人)
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…
079. The Young Pilgrim
079. The Young Pilgrim (La Peregrinita) Once there was a cursed prince [who lived] in a beautiful palace. While being cursed, the prince was not able to leave the palace; however, he was able to walk around in all of his gardens or to go on hunts even, as long as he never crossed the…
Àn dù Chéncāng (暗渡陳倉 – 暗渡陈仓)
暗渡陳倉 (Àn dù chén cāng) (1) lit. secretly crossing the Wei River 渭河[Wei4 He2] at Chencang (idiom, refers to a stratagem used by Liu Bang 劉邦|刘邦[Liu2 Bang1] in 206 BC against Xiang Yu 項羽|项羽[Xiang4 Yu3] of Chu)(2) fig. to feign one thing while doing another(3) to cheat under cover of a diversion Explanation: This is…
078. Metamorphosis
078. Metamorphosis, e.g. Transformation (Metamorfosis) [Note: I still don’t fully understand a key description of this tale, which you can see below. Please note this deficiency in the translation before you decide to read on.] There was a girl, of plebeian class and from a poor family, who had an idea planted in her head…
077. The Little House of Sugar
077. The Little House [made] of Sugar (La Casita de Azúcar) There were two very very poor siblings, a boy and a girl, who had nothing to eat other than the leftovers sometimes handed to them by others. Because of this, they decided one day to travel the world to see if they can find…
Ān rú Tài Shān (安如泰山 – 安如泰山)
安如泰山 (Ān rú TàiShān) (1) as secure as Mount Tai(2) as solid as a rock Note: for a background of this idiom, in particular the Rebellion of the Seven States, please see this Wikipedia article. Explanation:To be as steady [secure] as Mount Tai. This phrase describes full steadiness, without any slight chance of wavering. Mei…