Where does this sentence come from? -Liu Hanxiang's "Yan Zi makes Chu"
The complete original text is like this:
one
Yan zi makes Chu. The Chu people called it "short for" and "extended for", because the small gate is on the edge of the city gate. Yan Zi refused to go in and said, "Let the dog country go in through the dog door. Now that I am a minister, I shouldn't go in through this door. " It's more polite to enter through the gate. See the king of Chu. The king said, "Is there no one here? Let children become ambassadors. " He said to him, "Qi's face is 300 meters long, his face is cloudy and he is sweating like rain, standing side by side. Why is there no one? " The king said, "But what is a special envoy?" Yan Zi said to him, "Everyone has his own master: saints make saints masters, and unscrupulous people make unscrupulous people masters. Babies are the most corrupt, and it is just right to be Chu Yi! " (Zhang Mei becomes a shadow: Zhang Mei becomes a curtain)
two
Yan Zi will make Chu. Hearing this, the King of Chu said to the left and right, "Yan Ying, a scholar in the State of Qi, is also a poet. Today, I want to humiliate it. Why? " The left and right said, "For the sake of coming, please tie up a man and walk past the king. The king said, "What is it?" Right:' Qi people are also.' The king said, "Why sit down?" Say, "Sit down and steal." "
three
Yan Zizhi, the king of Chu, gave Yanzi wine, which was filled with wine. Two officials tied a man to the king of Chu. The king said, "What about those who are bound?" He said, "Qi people are also thieves." The King of Qi looked at Yan Zi and said, "Are Qi people good at stealing?" Yan Zi avoided the table and said, "Babies smell it, but oranges are born in Huainan and oranges are born in Huaibei. Leaves are similar to disciples, but they taste different. What's that? Soil and water are different. Now people's livelihood is better than Qi's, but they stole it when they went to Chu. If he has soil and water without Chu, then the people are good and thieves. " Wang smiled and said, "saints are not interested in happiness, but I am interested in disease."
I also released a translation for your understanding:
( 1)
Yan Zi sent an envoy to Chu. Because Yanzi was short, the Chu people opened a small door next to the gate and invited Yanzi in. Yan Zi refused to go in, saying, "People who were sent to the dog country went in through the dog door. Send me to Chu today, and I can't enter this dog gate. " The person who greeted the guests entered the gate with Yan Zigai. (Yan Zi) Visit the King of Chu. The king of Chu said, "There is no one in Qi to send? I sent you as a special envoy. " Yan Zi replied: "There are 7,500 families in Linzi, the capital of Qi State. People can cover the sky by opening their sleeves together; " Sweating and raining; Pedestrians in the street lean on their shoulders and their toes touch their heels. How can you say that there is no one? "The king said," in that case, why did you come? Yan Zi replied: "Qi has different regulations on sending envoys. Those who have virtue and ability will be sent to the country where the king of virtue and ability is located, and those who have no virtue and talent will be sent to the country where the king of virtue and talent is located. I, Yan Ying, am the most heartless and immoral, so I have to send an envoy to Chu. "
(2)
Yan Zi will be sent to the State of Chu. When the King of Chu heard the news, he said to the ministers around him, "Yan Ying was an eloquent man in Qi, and now he has come. I want to humiliate him. What can I do? " The courtier replied, "When he comes, Your Majesty will allow us to walk past him with people tied up. The king asked, "What does he do?" I said,' He is from Qi. The king asked, "What crime did he commit?" (I will) answer: "(He) committed theft." "
(3)
Yanzi came to Chu, and the king of Chu invited Yanzi to drink. Just as he was having fun, two small officials tied a man to the king of Chu. The king of Chu asked, "What do the people who are tied up do? (Tolerance) Answer: "(He) is a Qi person and committed theft. The king of Chu looked at Yan Zi and asked, "Are Qi people good at stealing?" ? Yan Zi left her seat and replied, "I heard that oranges grow in the south of Huaihe River, and oranges grow in the north of Huaihe River, but the leaves are similar, but the fruits taste different. What is the reason? Water and soil are different. People grew up in Qi State and didn't steal anything, but when they arrived in Chu State, did the soil and water in Chu State make people good at stealing things? " The king of Chu said with a smile, "A saint can't joke with him, but I am bored myself.
Having said that, let's appreciate and comment on this article together:
1. The whole story is an idiom: bring disgrace to oneself. This idiom first appeared in The Analects of Confucius. Zi Gong asked how to make friends. Confucius said, "Good advice leads to good advice. If he doesn't listen, forget it. Don't bring disgrace to oneself. " But most descendants' understanding of this idiom comes from this passage. The king of Chu tried to insult Yan Zi three times, but the result was not only easily solved by Yan Zi, but also insulted by Yan Zi at last. This idiom means that you are insulted and embarrassed because of yourself.
2. In the face of the second insult of the King of Chu, Yan Zi responded to the King of Chu like this: "What is this? Linzi, the capital of China, is full of people. Everyone pulls their sleeves, which is a cloud; Everyone was sweating, it was a shower; Pedestrians in the street jostled shoulder to shoulder, toes touching heels. How did the king say that there was no one in Qi? " There are three idioms derived from this passage of Yan Zi: one is to raise a cloud; The second is sweating into rain: with a wave of his hand, it disappears; The sweat on everyone's hands is like rain, which describes many people. Of course, this idiom later described sweating a lot, but it was not originally intended. The third is grinding shoulders: grinding, and; Grind shoulders, shoulder to shoulder; Heel, heel; One by one, toes touch heels. Side by side, feet next to feet, describe crowding. This idiom is also written as "shoulder to shoulder". )
3. When the King of Chu laughed at Qi people for stealing, Yan Zi stood up and said, "Why didn't your majesty know?" ? Citrus in Huainan is big and sweet. And a citrus species in Huaibei can only produce small and bitter oranges. Isn't it because the water and soil are different? By the same token, the people of Qi lived and worked in peace and contentment in Qi, and became thieves in Chu. Maybe the water and soil in the two countries are different. "This passage contains an idiom: southern oranges and northern oranges. Fructus Aurantii: Deciduous shrub, bitter and sour, spherical. Also called orange. Oranges in the south will become bitter oranges when transplanted to the north of Huaihe River. Metaphor means that the same species varies due to different environmental conditions. Later generations used "orange in the south and orange in the north" to describe the influence of environment on people. In modern Chinese, it seems to be used in a slightly derogatory place to describe something "alienated" or "deteriorated" because of the change of environment.
Duke Jing of Jin realized that the strength of Qi alone could not compete with the powerful State of Jin, so he turned his attention to the southern State of Chu, determined to mend fences with Chu and fight against the State of Jin together. In this case, Yan Zi visited Chu as a special envoy. At this time, Chu was ruled by King Chu Ling, who was arrogant and planned to humiliate the envoys of Qi, so there was a story of "Yan Zi Li Chu".
This story frustrated the story that the King of Chu sent Yan Zi to Chu to accuse Qi people of being thieves, and showed Yan Zi's wit and eloquence as well as the demeanor of a politician and diplomat. It means that people who insult others will be humiliated in the end.
Diplomacy is no small matter, especially involving national dignity, which is absolutely inviolable. Yan Zi defended his national dignity and personal dignity by "pointing the needle at wheat". Yan Ying is smart, witty, eloquent and fearless.
Yan Zi was able to win this diplomatic victory, not only because his words were supercilious, polite and restrained, but also because he was supported by a powerful country behind him.
Finally, I would like to briefly introduce the author here:
Liu Xiang (77 years ago -6 years ago), whose real name is Gengsheng, was born in Pengcheng, early Han Dynasty. He worked in Chang 'an, the capital of Han Dynasty, and his ancestral home was Fengyi in Pei County (now Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province). Born in Yuanfeng, Emperor Zhao of Han Dynasty (77 years before), he died in Jianping, Emperor Ai of Han Dynasty (6 years before). Liu Bang's half-brother Liu Jiao is a descendant and Liu Xin's father. I was ordered to lead the school secretary and wrote Bielu, the earliest book classification catalogue in China. Three articles, most of which are lost. Today, there are books such as New Preface, Shuoyuan, Biography of Lienv, Warring States Policy, Biography of Liexian, etc. His book The Five Classics and Yi Tong was compiled by Ma Guohan of A Qing Dynasty. The Songs of Chu was compiled by Liu Xiang, and The Classic of Mountains and Seas was compiled by Liu Xiang and his son Liu Xin.