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参见 cān jiàn to refer to / see also / compare (cf.) / to pay respect to
神探 shén tàn master sleuth / lit. miraculous detective / cf Sherlock Holmes 福爾摩斯|福尔摩斯[Fu2 er3 mo2 si1] or Di Renjie 狄仁傑|狄仁杰[Di2 Ren2 jie2]
banner / flag / (in Qing times) Manchu (cf. 八旗[Ba1 qi2]) / administrative subdivision in inner Mongolia equivalent to 縣|县[xian4] county / CL:面[mian4]
江湖 jiāng rivers and lakes / all corners of the country / remote areas to which hermits retreat / section of society operating independently of mainstream society, out of reach of the law / the milieu in which wuxia tales play out (cf. 武俠|武侠[wu3 xia2]) / (in late imperial times) world of traveling merchants, itinerant doctors, fortune tellers etc / demimonde / (in modern times) triads / secret gangster societies / underworld
任重道远 rèn zhòng dào yuǎn a heavy load and a long road / fig. to bear heavy responsibilities through a long struggle (cf Confucian Analects, 8.7)
五四 fourth of May, cf 五四運動|五四运动, national renewal movement that started with 4th May 1919 protest against the Treaty of Versailles
吹箫 chuī xiāo to play the xiao 簫|箫[xiao1] (mouth organ) / to beg while playing pipes; cf politician Wu Zixu 伍子胥[Wu3 Zi3 xu1], c. 520 BC destitute refugee in Wu town, 吳市吹簫|吴市吹箫[Wu2 shi4 chui1 xiao1] / to busk / virtuoso piper wins a beauty, cf 玉人吹簫|玉人吹箫[yu4 ren2 chui1 xiao1] / (slang) fellatio / blowjob
造字 zào to create Chinese characters / cf Six Methods of forming Chinese characters 六書|六书[liu4 shu1]
kūn large bird, possibly related to crane or swan (archaic) / mythical monstrous bird, cf Sinbad's roc
辛亥 xīn hài forty-eighth year H12 of the 60 year cycle, e.g. 1971 or 2031 / cf 辛亥革命[Xin1 hai4 Ge2 ming4], Xinhai Revolution of 1911
圣祖 Shèng Shengzu, temple name of the second Qing emperor, known as the Kangxi Emperor (1654-1722) / cf. 康熙[Kang1 xi1]
杏林 xìng lín forest of apricot trees / (fig.) honorific term for fine doctor (cf Dr Dong Feng 董奉[Dong3 Feng4], 3rd century AD, asked his patients to plant apricot trees instead of paying fees)
绞痛 jiǎo tòng sharp pain / cramp / griping pain / colic / angina, cf 心絞痛|心绞痛
辛丑 xīn chǒu thirty-eighth year H2 of the 60 year cycle, e.g. 1961 or 2021 / cf 辛丑條約|辛丑条约, Protocol of Beijing of 1901 ending the 8-nation intervention after the Boxer uprising
纸上谈兵 zhǐ shàng tán bīng lit. military tactics on paper (idiom) / fig. theoretical discussion that is worse than useless in practice / armchair strategist / idle theorizing / cf Zhao Kuo 趙括|赵括[Zhao4 Kuo4] leading an army of 400,000 to total annihilation at battle of Changping 長平之戰|长平之战[Chang2 ping2 zhi1 Zhan4] in 260 BC
整风 zhěng fēng Rectification or Rectifying incorrect work styles, Maoist slogan / cf Rectification campaign 整風運動|整风运动, army purge of 1942-44 and anti-rightist purge of 1957
苦口 kǒu lit. bitter taste (cf good medicine tastes bitter 良藥苦口|良药苦口) / fig. earnestly (of warning, advice)
漏电 lòu diàn to leak electricity / (fig.) (coll.) to unintentionally arouse romantic interest (by being solicitous etc) / cf. 放電|放电[fang4 dian4]
未然 wèi rán in advance / before it happens (cf preventative measures) / forestalling
小灶 xiǎo zào mess hall for high-ranking cadres / (fig.) special treatment / cf. 大灶[da4 zao4]
过街老鼠 guò jiē lǎo shǔ sb or sth detested by all / target of scorn / anathema / cf. 老鼠過街,人人喊打|老鼠过街,人人喊打[lao3 shu3 guo4 jie1 , ren2 ren2 han3 da3]
倒打一耙 dào lit. to strike with a muckrake (idiom), cf Pigsy 豬八戒|猪八戒 in Journey to the West 西遊記|西游记; fig. to counterattack / to make bogus accusations (against one's victim)
失道寡助 shī dào guǎ zhù an unjust cause finds little support (idiom, from Mencius) / cf 得道多助[de2 dao4 duo1 zhu4] a just cause attracts much support
礼崩乐坏 bēng yuè huài rites and music are in ruins (idiom); fig. society in total disarray / cf. 禮樂|礼乐[li3 yue4]
探花 tàn huā candidate who came third in the Hanlin examination (cf. 狀元|状元[zhuang4yuan2]) / (slang) to secretly film sex with a prostitute to share on the Internet


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