Master Chinese idioms about strategic thinking, decisive action, and tactical wisdom. These chengyu teach the art of effective planning and execution.
108 idioms in this category
xiōng yǒu chéng zhú
“Bamboo ready in heart”
Have clear plan beforehand
This descends from Su Shi's account of the painter Wen Tong of the Northern Song, who held that to paint bamboo (竹) one must first have the finished b...
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bù bù wéi yíng
“Each step make camp”
Advance methodically with caution
At every step (步步) making (为) a camp (营). The phrase belongs to the vocabulary of vernacular military fiction rather than to any surviving manual, and...
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tuì bì sān shè
“Retreat three camps”
Make concessions to avoid conflict
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...
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páng qiāo cè jī
“Knock side hit flank”
Approach indirectly to achieve goal
Knocking (敲) at the side (旁) and striking (击) at the flank (侧) rather than asking outright. Despite the vocabulary this is not a military phrase: late...
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àn dù chén cāng
“Secretly cross Chencang”
Achieve secretly through misdirection
Shut into Hanzhong in 206 BCE, Liu Bang took Han Xin's plan and came back out 从故道, by the old road, to fall on Zhang Han at Chencang. That is all the ...
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fǔ dǐ chōu xīn
“Remove firewood under pot”
Eliminate root cause of problem
To draw out (抽) the firewood (薪) from under (底) the cauldron (釜). The nineteenth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems states the logic: you cannot meet the bo...
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tuī bō zhù lán
“Push the waves, raise the billows”
Amplifying existing trends or momentum
To push (推) the waves (波) and help (助) the swell (澜). Wang Tong uses it alongside a second image, letting the wind loose to stop a fire, and both desc...
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yù bàng xiāng zhēng
“Snipe clam mutual fight”
Mutual conflict benefits third party
A snipe stabbed at the flesh of an open clam and the shell closed on its beak. Neither would let go: no rain today or tomorrow, said the bird, and you...
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jīn gē tiě mǎ
“Metal halberds, armoured horses”
Magnificent military might and valor
This descends from Xin Qiji of the Southern Song, recalling a warlord's campaigns in a poem written from a northern lookout: 金戈铁马，气吞万里如虎 — metal (金) h...
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yǔ hǔ móu pí
“With tiger plot skin”
Asking someone to sacrifice their core interests
The original form is 与狐谋皮, negotiating with the fox for its skin — a man who wanted a fur robe put the proposal to the foxes, and wanted meat for a sa...
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yuán mù qiú yú
“Climb tree seek fish”
Using completely wrong method for a task
Mencius said it to King Xuan of Qi, who wanted to extend his territory by force and expected contentment to follow. To pursue what you want by those m...
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zhēn fēng xiāng duì
“Needle points facing each other”
Sharp, direct confrontation in argument
Needle point (针锋) meeting needle point (相对). The expression comes out of Chan Buddhist dialogue, where the exchange of question and answer was describ...
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zhěn gē dài dàn
“Pillow spear await dawn”
Maintain high vigilance awaiting challenge
This comes from the Book of Jin, on Liu Kun, who wrote that he slept with his spear (枕戈) for a pillow waiting for dawn (待旦), determined that a rival s...
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zhí dǎo huáng lóng
“Drive straight to Huanglong”
Strike directly at the heart of enemy territory
The History of Song records Yue Fei telling his officers 直抵黄龙府，与诸君痛饮尔 — we will reach Huanglong Prefecture (黄龙) and drink together there. The modern f...
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àn jiàn shāng rén
“Hidden arrow wounds person”
Covert attacks avoiding direct confrontation
In the Zuo Zhuan, Ying Kaoshu seizes the duke's banner and is first up the wall in the assault on Xu; 子都自下射之，颠 — Zidu, a jealous colleague on his own ...
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àn tú suǒ jì
“Go by the drawing to find the horse”
Rigidly following outdated methods
Mei Fu, memorialising the Han throne about how it chose officials, said that looking for able men by the current method was like consulting Bo Le's di...
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bèi shuǐ yī zhàn
“Back to water one battle”
Fight with total commitment having no retreat
For a single battle (一战) Han Xin drew his army up with the river (水) at their backs (背), which every officer present knew was the one formation the ma...
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shā jī qǔ luǎn
“Kill chicken take eggs”
Sacrifice long-term benefits for short-term gains
Killing (杀) the hen (鸡) in order to take (取) the eggs (卵) — destroying what produces in order to have what it produced. Versions of the fable appear a...
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qī shǒu bā jiǎo
“Seven hands eight feet”
Many people busily working together in disorder
Seven (七) hands (手) and eight (八) feet (脚). Chinese pairs seven and eight to mean disordered multiplicity rather than any count, and the same device p...
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xiǎo xīn yì yì
“Careful, and solemnly attentive”
Act with extreme caution and care
The Book of Songs uses it of King Wen: reverent and careful (小心翼翼) in his service. 翼翼 there means solemn and attentive rather than anything to do with...
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bù yuē ér tóng
“Not arrange yet same”
Arrive at same point without coordination
Without (不) having arranged it (约) yet (而) alike (同). The phrase describes convergence without communication — several people reaching the same conclu...
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chàng kōng chéng jì
“Perform empty city strategy”
Use bold confidence to mask vulnerability
To 唱 (sing, perform) the empty-city stratagem. The base is 空城计, the episode in Romance of the Three Kingdoms in which Zhuge Liang, holding a town with...
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chéng fēng pò làng
“Ride wind break waves”
Boldly forge ahead through adversity
The Book of Song records Zong Que's uncle asking the boy what he wanted from life, and the answer: I wish to ride the long wind (乘风) and break (破) ten...
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hòu gù zhī yōu
“Backward glance's worry”
Worry about the home front left behind
The worry (忧) that comes from looking back (后顾). The image is military and precise: a commander who must keep glancing behind at an unsecured rear can...
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sì tōng bā dá
“Connected in four directions, reaching in eight”
Extending in all directions; well-connected
Four (四) ways through (通) and eight (八) ways out (达). The construction takes the four cardinal directions and the four corners between them, so it nam...
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zhēng fēn duó miǎo
“Fighting for minutes and seizing seconds”
Race against time; make every second count
This modern idiom emerged during China's industrialization period in the 20th century, reflecting the urgency of national development. It combines 'fi...
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shì bù kě dǎng
“Momentum that cannot be blocked”
Unstoppable; irresistible momentum
A momentum (势) that cannot (不可) be blocked (挡). In the History of the Jin, Chi Jian uses it of a rebel force: their momentum cannot be met head-on, so...
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luò huā liú shuǐ
“Falling flowers and flowing water”
Utter defeat; scattered in disarray
Falling (落) blossom (花) on flowing (流) water (水). It begins as a lyric image of late spring in Tang poetry, and it is worth noticing how completely th...
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yíng rèn ér jiě
“Split apart upon meeting the blade”
Easily solved once properly approached
With Wu's capital nearly taken, Du Yu's officers proposed halting until the following winter. He answered them in council that the army's might was al...
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tiě zhèng rú shān
“Iron evidence like a mountain”
Irrefutable evidence; conclusive proof
Proof (证) as iron (铁), immovable as a mountain (如山). The two comparisons are doing different work: iron for what cannot be bent, the mountain for what...
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wú zhōng shēng yǒu
“Create something from nothing”
Fabricate something out of nothing
This idiom has dual origins. Philosophically, it derives from the Daoist concept in 'Tao Te Ching' that all things emerge out of (中) nothingness (无) t...
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shì rú pò zhú
“Momentum like splitting bamboo”
Irresistible momentum; sweeping advance
At a council of his commanders in 280, with some arguing that the campaign against Wu should pause until winter, Du Yu said the army's might was alrea...
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yáng cháng bì duǎn
“Promote strengths avoid weaknesses”
Play to one's strengths
Raising up (扬) what is long (长) and steering clear of (避) what is short (短). 长 and 短 are literally the long and the short of a thing, and Chinese uses...
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chéng shàng qǐ xià
“Continuing above and opening below”
Serve as a link between preceding and following
Taking up (承) what is above (上) and opening the way to (启) what is below (下). It began as a term in literary criticism for the transitional sentence —...
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suí jī yìng biàn
“Follow opportunity respond to change”
Adapt to circumstances; think on one's feet
Following (随) the moment (机) and responding (应) to change (变). 机 is the pivot or the trigger, the point at which a situation turns, so the phrase is n...
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yī láo yǒng yì
“One labor forever ease”
Solve a problem once and for all
One (一) exertion (劳) and lasting (永) ease (逸). Ban Gu uses the older form in an inscription cut on a mountain after a frontier campaign, arguing that ...
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bǎi nián dà jì
“Hundred-year great plan”
Long-term plan; matter of lasting importance
A plan (计) reaching a hundred (百) years (年), on the largest (大) scale. 百年 is conventional rather than counted — Chinese uses it for any span longer th...
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dāng jī lì duàn
“Face opportunity immediately decide”
Make a prompt decision
To meet (当) the moment (机) and settle it (断) on the spot (立). 机 is the pivot, the point at which a situation can still be turned, and 断 is to cut, so ...
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jū ān sī wēi
“Dwelling in peace think of danger”
Be prepared for danger in times of safety
The Zuo Zhuan records Wei Jiang declining half the musicians and gifts Zheng had sent, and offering advice instead, in words the Book of Documents had...
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àn bù jiù bān
“Follow the categories, fall into the order”
Follow established procedures; step by step
Lu Ji, writing on composition, describes the writer choosing meanings according to (按) their section (部) and settling words into (就) their proper rank...
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lìng pì xī jìng
“Separately open a side path”
Find an alternative approach; think outside the box
To open up (辟) a separate (另) footpath (蹊径). 蹊 is a track worn by feet rather than a built road, which is exactly right: what gets made is not an alte...
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bù gōng zì pò
“Without attack self-collapse”
Collapse without being attacked; self-defeating
Broken (破) of itself (自), without (不) being attacked (攻). The military sense is literal, a position so unsound it fails before anybody assaults it, an...
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yī jǔ liǎng dé
“One action two gains”
Kill two birds with one stone
One (一) action (举) and two (两) gains (得). 举 is a single lifting or raising, the smallest complete unit of doing something, so the arithmetic is stated...
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lì bīng mò mǎ
“Sharpen weapons and feed horses”
Make thorough preparations; get ready for action
Sharpening (厉) the weapons (兵) and feeding (秣) the horses (马). The Zuo Zhuan uses it flatly, as reconnaissance: Duke Mu of Zheng sent someone to look ...
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shēng dōng jī xī
“Make noise in east, strike in west”
Create a diversion; use misdirection
Making the noise (声) in the east (东) and striking (击) in the west (西). The sixth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, and the text states its condition: it w...
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yǐ tuì wéi jìn
“Use retreat as advance”
Strategic retreat for ultimate victory
Taking (以) retreat (退) as (为) the way forward (进). The construction puts the two directions in a means-and-end relation instead of opposing them, and ...
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wéi wèi jiù zhào
“Besiege Wei to rescue Zhao”
Relieve pressure by attacking the source
When Wei besieged the Zhao capital in 354 BCE, Qi sent an army under Tian Ji, and Sun Bin argued against marching to Zhao's relief at all: strike at W...
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yù qín gù zòng
“Wishing to capture, first let go”
Give slack before tightening; let go to catch
Wanting (欲) to capture (擒) and therefore deliberately (故) letting go (纵). The sixteenth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, and its argument is practical ra...
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wěn zhā wěn dǎ
“Stable camp, stable attack”
Proceed steadily; consolidate before advancing
Pitching camp (扎) firmly (稳) and striking (打) firmly (稳). The doubled 稳 is the whole instruction: both the halting and the advancing are to be done fr...
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shì zài bì xíng
“Circumstances demand it must be done”
No longer optional
The momentum (势) is such that (在) the thing must (必) go ahead (行). 势 is the force a situation has already accumulated — the same character as in 势如破竹 ...
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tiān luó dì wǎng
“Nets of heaven and earth”
Inescapable net; dragnet
A net (罗) over heaven (天) and a net (网) across earth (地). Two different words for a net are used, one for catching birds and one for fish, so the pair...
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mì bù tòu fēng
“So dense wind cannot penetrate”
Airtight; impenetrable
So close-packed (密) that no (不) wind (风) gets through (透). Air is the test, as water is in 滴水不漏, and it is the more demanding of the two. The phrase c...
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wàn wú yī shī
“Ten thousand without one failure”
Absolutely sure; foolproof
Ten thousand (万) and not (无) one (一) miss (失). 万 is the standard Chinese figure for an uncountable number rather than a literal count, so what the phr...
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xiān fā zhì rén
“Act first to control others”
Seize initiative
As the risings against Qin spread in 209 BCE, the Kuaiji governor Yin Tong proposed rebelling and put the maxim to Xiang Liang: 先即制人，后则为人所制 — strike f...
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hòu fā zhì rén
“Act later to control others”
Let them commit, then move
Xunzi's chapter on warfare contains the counter-doctrine: move later (后发) and arrive before. Where 先发制人 claims the advantage of tempo, this claims the...
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bīng bù yàn zhà
“Warfare does not spurn deceit”
Strategic deception
Before the battle of Chengpu, Duke Wen of Jin asked how to fight an enemy with more men. His uncle Fan answered that in matters of ritual one cannot h...
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zhī jǐ zhī bǐ
“Know yourself, know others”
Strategic insight
Sun Tzu's line in the chapter on attack by stratagem runs 知彼知己，百战不殆 — know the other and know yourself, and a hundred engagements will not endanger yo...
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chū qí zhì shèng
“Use surprise to win”
Unexpected strategy
Sun Tzu's formulation is that engagement is made with the orthodox and victory is secured (制胜) by putting out (出) the unorthodox (奇) — 奇 being the for...
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bì shí jiù xū
“Shun the solid, go to the hollow”
Avoid strength and strike where it is weak
Sun Tzu, in the chapter on the full and the empty, compares an army to water — it avoids heights and runs to low ground, and so should force avoid (避)...
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diào hǔ lí shān
“Lure tiger from mountain”
Divert and conquer
The fifteenth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, and the illustration usually given is Sun Ce against Liu Xun, whose position was too strong to attack dire...
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dǎ cǎo jīng shé
“Hit grass startle snake”
Alert the enemy
A magistrate named Wang Lu, whose own hands were far from clean, was handed a petition accusing his clerk of taking bribes. He wrote on it: you may on...
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jiè dāo shā rén
“Kill with a borrowed knife”
Indirect manipulation
The third of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: when the enemy is clear but an ally is uncommitted, induce the ally to do the work. Kill a man (杀人) with a bor...
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chèn huǒ dǎ jié
“Take advantage of fire to rob”
Exploit vulnerability
The fifth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, and among the bluntest: when the enemy is in serious trouble, that is the moment to take from him. Take advant...
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jīn chán tuō qiào
“Golden cicada sheds shell”
Strategic escape
The twenty-first of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, though the image is older than the list and appears freely in drama and fiction. A cicada leaves behind...
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shùn shǒu qiān yáng
“Conveniently lead away a sheep”
Exploit small opportunities
The twelfth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, and the mildest in the list: exploit the smallest gap, take the smallest advantage. To lead away (牵) a sheep...
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mán tiān guò hǎi
“Deceive heaven, cross sea”
Disguise true intentions
The first of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, illustrated by a tale of Tang Taizong, who had to cross the sea and could not bear the sight of it. His office...
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lǐ dài táo jiāng
“The plum dies in the peach's place”
Substitute or take the fall
A Han ballad in the Yuefu collection supplies the image: a peach tree grows by the well, a plum tree beside it, and when insects come to gnaw the peac...
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fǎn kè wéi zhǔ
“Turn guest into host”
Seize control
The thirtieth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, and the textbook illustration is Liu Bei in Yi Province: Liu Zhang invited him in as a guest to deal with ...
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qín zéi qín wáng
“Capture thief capture king”
Target the leader
Du Fu wrote it in a frontier poem, in a couplet that is quoted more often than the poem: to shoot a man first shoot his horse, to catch the bandits (擒...
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guān mén zhuō zéi
“Shut the door catch thief”
Trap and eliminate
The twenty-second of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: against a small and mobile enemy, close the escape first and fight second, because a force you cannot ...
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yuǎn jiāo jìn gōng
“Befriend distant, attack nearby”
Strategic prioritization
Fan Ju arrived in Qin and told King Zhaoxiang that his campaigns made no sense: Qin was attacking distant states and leaving neighbours intact, so eve...
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jiǎ dào fá guó
“Borrow the way to attack Guo”
Exploitation through deception
This strategic idiom originates from the historical account in the 'Zuo Zhuan' (左传), a classical Chinese text. During the Spring and Autumn period, th...
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shù shàng kāi huā
“Flowers bloom on a tree”
Create favorable illusion
The twenty-ninth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: where a tree (树) has no blossom, tie silk flowers (花) onto (上) it, and at a distance it appears to bloo...
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kōng chéng jì
“Empty city strategy”
Strategic bluff
The idiom 空城计 (kōng chéng jì) originates from the classic Chinese novel 《三国演义》 (Romance of the Three Kingdoms) by 罗贯中 (Luo Guanzhong). The story takes...
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kǔ ròu jì
“Suffering flesh plan”
Self-sacrifice strategy
The idiom 苦肉计 (kǔ ròu jì) originates from the classic Chinese novel 《三国演义》 (Romance of the Three Kingdoms) by Luo Guanzhong. It tells the story of a c...
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lián huán jì
“Interlocking stratagems”
Complex strategic plan
The idiom 连环计 (lián huán jì) originates from the classic Chinese military text 《三十六计》 (Thirty-Six Stratagems), specifically the thirty-fifth stratagem...
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zǒu wéi shàng jì
“Retreat as the best plan”
Strategic retreat
Wang Jingze, in rebellion during the Southern Qi, heard that his opponent was preparing to flee the capital and remarked that of Duke Tan's thirty-six...
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yī wǎng dǎ jìn
“Capture all in one net”
Round up every last one in a single sweep
One (一) net (网) taking (打) the lot (尽). A Song anecdote has an official using it after arresting an entire faction at a single banquet, and the phrase...
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wéi ér bù gōng
“Surround but do not attack”
Strategic patience
To surround (围) and yet (而) not (不) attack (攻). The tactic is old and the logic is set out in Sun Zi, which rates taking a state whole above breaking ...
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bì qí ruì qì
“Avoid enemy's vigor”
Wait out the first rush
This strategic idiom originates from the ancient military text 'The Art of War' by Sun Tzu (孙子兵法). It advises military leaders to avoid (避, bì) confro...
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gū zhù yī zhì
“Stake everything on one throw”
All-in risk
The History of Song records the slander that Wang Qinruo laid before Emperor Zhenzong about Kou Zhun, who had pushed the emperor to the front at the C...
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lǐ yìng wài hé
“Inside support outside cooperation”
An inside accomplice working with an outside force
Those inside (里) answer (应) and those outside (外) join them (合) — the pincer in which a siege is broken by a gate opened from within. It appears in Yu...
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shā yī jǐng bǎi
“Kill one warn a hundred”
Punish to deter others
Yin Wengui, taking up a difficult post, opened by prosecuting the single most protected criminal in the district rather than the easiest, and executed...
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shēn xiān shì zú
“Self ahead of the soldiers”
Leadership by action
Self (身) ahead of (先) the soldiers (士卒). The phrase belongs to the historical literature of command and describes a specific and verifiable thing: the...
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sǔn bīng zhé jiàng
“Lose soldiers and generals”
Suffer heavy losses
Losing (损) the rank and file (兵) and breaking (折) the officers (将). 折 is snapping rather than merely losing, and the phrase's force is in naming both ...
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tóng qiáng tiě bì
“Copper wall iron wall”
Impenetrable defense
Walls (墙) of bronze (铜) and ramparts (壁) of iron (铁). The phrase belongs to vernacular fiction and describes fortification that cannot be breached. Wh...
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tóu shǔ jì qì
“Throw at the rat, but fear for the vessel”
Held back from striking by fear of collateral damage
Jia Yi, arguing that senior officials should not be punished like common criminals, quoted a village proverb: you want to throw something at the rat (...
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yǐ yì dài láo
“Conserve energy, wait for fatigue”
Rested against the exhausted
Sun Tzu's chapter on manoeuvre lists the pairings: meet the distant with the near, the tired with the rested, the hungry with the fed. This is the sec...
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zòng héng bǎi hé
“Vertical and horizontal alliances, opening and closing”
Strategic maneuvering
纵 and 横 are the vertical and horizontal alliances of the Warring States — the north-south coalition against Qin and the east-west accommodation with i...
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zuò shōu yú lì
“Sit and collect fishing profits”
Benefit from others' conflict
Su Dai, dissuading Zhao from attacking Yan, told the king a story. A clam lay open on the bank; a snipe stabbed at its flesh and the shell closed on i...
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cháng xiù shàn wǔ
“Long sleeves make for good dancing”
Skilled maneuvering
Han Feizi's pairing is blunter than the idiom that came out of it: long sleeves (长袖) make for good dancing (善舞), plenty of money makes for good tradin...
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chéng xià zhī méng
“Treaty under the city walls”
Forced agreement
In 700 BCE Chu besieged the small state of Jiao, drew its soldiers outside the walls with a decoy of unescorted woodcutters, and destroyed them. The Z...
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dà dāo kuò fǔ
“Big knife, broad axe”
Bold action
Big knives (大刀) and broad axes (阔斧) — the heavy weapons of vernacular fiction, swung rather than aimed. Applied to action the phrase means sweeping an...
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fàng hǔ guī shān
“Release a tiger back to the mountain”
Empower a threat
Liu Zhang, governor of Yi province, invited Liu Bei in to help against a common enemy. His adviser Liu Ba warned him that admitting the man was releas...
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gōng qí bù bèi
“Attack the unprepared”
Surprise attack
Sun Tzu's first chapter ends with a pair: 攻其无备，出其不意 — attack (攻) where they (其) are unprepared (备), appear where you are not expected. The common mode...
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hún shuǐ mō yú
“Muddy the water, grope for fish”
Exploit chaos
The twentieth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems. Fish in clear water see the hand coming; stir the water (混水) and the fish (鱼) can be taken (摸) by feel. Th...
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huǒ zhōng qǔ lì
“Take chestnuts from fire”
Used by others
This one is not Chinese in origin. It comes from La Fontaine's fable of the monkey who flatters the cat into pulling (取) roasting chestnuts (栗) out of...
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jiāng jì jiù jì
“Take his plan and go along with it”
Turn the enemy's own plot against him
To take (将) the plan (计) and proceed by (就) that plan (计). The construction is deliberately circular, and the tactic it names is more specific than a ...
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jǐn náng miào jì
“Silk pouch ingenious plan”
Prepared clever strategy
In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Zhuge Liang sends Zhao Yun to escort Liu Bei into enemy territory with three brocade pouches (锦囊), each holding ...
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hǔ rù yáng qún
“A tiger loose in the flock”
Unstoppable force against the defenceless
The picture needs no explanation, which is why the phrase survived: a tiger (虎) loose among (入) a flock (群) of sheep (羊) — overwhelming force meeting ...
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yī jiàn shuāng diāo
“One arrow two eagles”
Two aims with one act
The History of the Northern Dynasties preserves this in the biography of Zhangsun Sheng, sent by the Northern Zhou court as deputy envoy escorting Pri...
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táng láng bǔ chán
“Mantis catches the cicada”
Chasing gain, blind to danger
In Liu Xiang's Garden of Persuasions, the King of Wu resolved to attack Chu and warned that anyone who argued against it would die. A young attendant ...
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sān lìng wǔ shēn
“Three orders five reminders”
Repeated, unmistakable instruction
The Records of the Grand Historian anchors this phrase in Sun Wu's audition for the King of Wu, who asked whether the theorist could really drill troo...
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táng bì dāng chē
“Mantis arm against the cart”
Futile resistance
In the Zhuangzi, Qu Boyu advises Yan He, who has just been appointed tutor to the violent heir of Duke Ling of Wei: 汝不知夫螳蜋乎？怒其臂以当车辙，不知其不胜任也 — do you n...
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yǐ luǎn jī shí
“Strike stone with an egg”
Doomed by mismatch
Using (以) an egg (卵) to strike (击) a stone (石). The comparison appears across the Warring States philosophers and its point is that the outcome does n...
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yáng rù hǔ kǒu
“A sheep enters a tiger's mouth”
Walk helplessly into certain danger
A vernacular idiom from late-imperial fiction rather than the classics. It appears in the novel Fenzhuang Lou (《粉妆楼》, chapter 7) — 'then it will be a ...
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shí yáng jiǔ mù
“Ten sheep, nine shepherds”
Too many officials for too few people
From the Book of Sui (《隋书·杨尚希传》). Early in the Sui dynasty the empire had inherited far too many prefectures and counties from the divided centuries b...
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qū yáng gōng hǔ
“Drive sheep to attack a tiger”
Send the weak against the strong to certain defeat
From the Records of the Grand Historian (《史记·张仪列传》), with a near-identical passage in the Stratagems of the Warring States (《战国策·楚策一》). The strategist...
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Discover profound Chinese idioms about life's meaning, perspective, and philosophical wisdom. These ...
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