culture
128 篇The Donkey of Guizhou Has Exhausted Its Tricks | 黔驴技穷
A tiger initially fears a strange donkey but discovers its only trick is kicking. The idiom means...
34 阅读Sun Shan, the Last on the List | 名落孙山
This story explains the origin of the Chinese idiom "名落孙山," which describes exam or competition f...
29 阅读Adding Feet to a Snake | 画蛇添足
A story from the Warring States Period where a servant, after quickly drawing a snake, unnecessar...
36 阅读Oh Mighty Garments | 哦，强大的衣装
A holy Brahmin discovers that people respect his rich garments more than his true self, leading h...
37 阅读At the End of One's Tether | 日暮途穷
This article recounts the story of Wu Zixu from the Spring and Autumn Period, which gave rise to ...
41 阅读Myths, Roots, and Words | 神话、词根与单词
This article explores English vocabulary through mythology and etymology. It explains the root 't...
31 阅读An Old Horse Knows the Way | 老马识途
The idiom tells how Duke Huan of Qi's army, lost in a winter snowstorm, found their way home by f...
34 阅读Besieged on All Sides | 四面楚歌
This article recounts the historical origin of the Chinese idiom "Besieged on All Sides," describ...
33 阅读Pulling Up Seedlings to Help Them Grow | 揠苗助长
An impatient farmer pulls up his rice shoots to make them grow faster, only to cause them all to ...
30 阅读Where Does Rice Come From? | 大米从何而来？
A rich man's foolish sons, when asked where rice comes from, give absurd answers (kitchen, bag), ...
29 阅读The Man of Qi Who Feared the Sky | 杞人忧天
This fable tells of a man from Qi who was paralyzed by the irrational fear that the sky would fal...
41 阅读The Goat Butcher | 屠羊者
A successful goat butcher ignores moral warnings from friends, attributing them to superstition. ...
30 阅读Birds of a Feather | 一丘之貉
This article explains the Chinese idiom "一丘之貉" (Birds of a Feather) through a historical anecdote...
39 阅读Much Ado Over Hearsay | 甚嚣尘上
This article recounts the historical origin of the Chinese idiom "甚嚣尘上" from the Warring States P...
34 阅读Adding Feet to a Snake | 画蛇添足
This fable tells of a servant who lost a wine-drawing contest by adding unnecessary feet to his s...
29 阅读Beat the Grass and Startle the Snake | 打草惊蛇
The idiom 'Beat the grass and startle the snake' originates from a story about a corrupt magistra...
30 阅读Looking for a Steed with a Picture | 按图索骥
The story of Sun Yang (Bo Le), a legendary horse judge, and his son who literally tried to find a...
32 阅读The Chu Man and the Boat | 楚人操舟
A Chu man, after learning basic boat steering in calm waters, overconfidently dismisses his teach...
31 阅读Drawing a Cake to Satisfy Hunger | 画饼充饥
The idiom 'Drawing a Cake to Satisfy Hunger' originates from Cao Rui's warning about false reputa...
32 阅读Highbrow Songs Find Few Followers | 曲高和寡
A Chu singer's audience dwindled from thousands to a handful as his songs grew more refined and c...
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