After getting the land of Long, he hopes to get the land of Shu. It is a metaphor for people’s greed.
Idiom Pronunciation:
得陇望蜀
dé Lǒng wàng Shǔ
Origin book:
《东观汉记·隗嚣传》：“西城若下，便可见兵，南击蜀虏。人苦不知足。既平陇，重望蜀。每一发兵，头鬓为白。”
Origin Story:
During the Three Kingdoms period, Zhang Lu, the governor of Hanzhong, wanted to make himself the “King of Hanning”. When Cao Cao, the king of Wei Wu, found out about this, he was furious and went to conquer the king with more than 400,000 troops. Cao Cao had countless strategists and famous generals under his command, so he was able to reach Hanzhong without any trouble. The city was about to be taken, but the generals in the city were united and the attack lasted for a long time, but it was still ineffective.
Xun You, the chief historian, offered a plan: “There is a corrupt official under Zhang Lu named Yang Song, if you give him some gold and silver and let him be the inside man, you will definitely be able to take the city.” Cao Cao followed the plan and really defeated Zhang Lu.
After the victory, the generals were very happy, and Sima Yi, the chief bookkeeper, offered a plan: “Your Majesty, now that Hanzhong has been pacified, but there are still Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang living in the two rivers, if they lead their troops to attack, my situation will be in danger. Now my army is united, the spirit is winning, why not take advantage of the two rivers people’s hearts are not stable, lead my victorious troops to discuss, a move can also be fixed. This is a very good plan, only the king can see it.”
Cao Cao said, “People are always ungrateful. I have got this piece of land in Long, and now I am coveting Shu!”
Similar Idioms:
- 得寸进尺
- 贪得无厌
- 欲壑难填
