Proverb Interpretation:
Metaphorically speaking, doing something is interfered by other people and unexpectedly met with failure.
origin:
At the end of the Sui Dynasty, the emperor was in a state of mediocrity, and there were wars all over the country. There is a robber called You Junda, want to rob the emperor bar, the emperor bar is the tribute to the emperor’s silver. You want to find a few strong martial arts as a helper, so he asked around, and learnt that there is a man called Cheng Bite Jin has some skills.
When You Jun Da found Cheng Bite Jin, he was selling firewood. Every day, he went up the mountain to cut firewood and sold it down the mountain to earn some money to support his old mother. Knowing that Cheng Bite Jin was a filial son, You Jun Da offered to help support Cheng Bite Jin’s mother, but Cheng Bite Jin had to go with him to rob the royal bar. Cheng Bite Jin agreed to You Jun Da. Although Cheng Bite Jin was very strong, he had not learnt martial arts systematically. You Jun Da taught Cheng Bite Jin how to use an axe, but Cheng Bite Jin could not learn it. Once, Cheng Bite Jin had a dream while he was sleeping, in which there was an old man who taught him how to use the axe one move at a time.
Cheng Bite Jin said to the old man in his dream, “Old man, I was born with a stupid brain, I can’t remember these moves, do you have any good ideas?” The old man said, “I’ll teach you a few moves, if you follow what I say, you’ll surely be able to remember them. The first move: split the head, use the axe to chop from top to bottom; the second move, the kid picks his teeth, when the other person blocks the first move, take the axe back and attack the other person’s face; the third move, pull out the ears, use the axe to sweep the other person across the face. If that doesn’t work, use the third move again and sweep the opponent from the opposite direction. This is considered half a move.”
Cheng Biaojin listened to the old man’s vivid explanation, and surprisingly memorised all three and a half moves. He was about to ask the old man about other moves, but was woken up by You Jun Da, Cheng Bui Jin only remembered three and a half moves. Although Cheng Bite Jin only three and a half strokes, but in the war is very effective, almost no one can block Cheng Bite Jin’s three axes.
When You Junda went to rob the royal bar, arranged Cheng Bite Jin ambush in the middle of the road, and so on to send the royal bar of the team arrived, Cheng Bite Jin with the horses and men from the woods to kill out, the government people fled in vain. Later, people used the phrase “killing a Cheng Bite Jin in the middle of the road” as a metaphor for a thing being interfered and unexpectedly failed.
