退避三舍

Pronunciation: tuì bì sān shè Literal meaning: Retreat three camps

Origin & Usage

Chong'er of Jin, sheltering in Chu as an exile, was asked what he would give in return and answered that if the two states ever met in battle he would withdraw three stages (退避三舍). A 舍 was a day's march, thirty li. Years later, as Duke Wen, he was facing Chu at Chengpu and did exactly that — and the withdrawal drew the Chu army out of position and into the defeat that followed. The Zuo Zhuan tells it. The phrase means yielding ground on purpose, and the story is careful that the yielding was also the tactic.

Examples

English: "The company voluntarily decreased their market share to avoid monopoly accusations"

Chinese: 公司主动减少市场份额以避免垄断指控