Chinese Fable

负荆请罪🔊

Fù Jīng Qǐng Zuì
📚 Fables⏱ 3 min read🎧 Audio

This fable tells of sincerely apologizing by carrying thorns on ones back.

The Story 🔊

Lìn Xiàngrú lì le dàgōng zhíwèi bǐ Lián Pō hái gāo
蔺相如Lìn Xiàngrú🔊立了lì le🔊大功dàgōng🔊职位zhíwèi🔊🔊廉颇Lián Pō🔊还高hái gāo🔊
Lián Pō hěn bù fúqì xiǎng zhǎo jīhuì xiūrǔ Lìn Xiàngrú
廉颇Lián Pō🔊很不服气hěn bù fúqì🔊xiǎng🔊找机会zhǎo jīhuì🔊羞辱xiūrǔ🔊蔺相如Lìn Xiàngrú🔊
Lìn Xiàngrú chùchù huíbì Lián Pō yīnwèi guójiā lìyì gèng zhòngyào
蔺相如Lìn Xiàngrú🔊处处chùchù🔊回避huíbì🔊廉颇Lián Pō🔊因为yīnwèi🔊国家guójiā🔊利益lìyì🔊更重要gèng zhòngyào🔊
Lián Pō zhīdào hòu fēicháng cánkuì jiù bēizhe jīngtiáo qù qǐngzuì
廉颇Lián Pō🔊知道后zhīdào hòu🔊非常fēicháng🔊惭愧cánkuì🔊jiù🔊背着bēizhe🔊荆条jīngtiáo🔊🔊请罪qǐngzuì🔊
Cóngcǐ liǎng rén chéngwéi hǎo péngyǒu gòngtóng bǎowèi Zhàoguó
从此Cóngcǐ🔊两人liǎng rén🔊成为chéngwéi🔊好朋友hǎo péngyǒu🔊共同gòngtóng🔊保卫bǎowèi🔊赵国Zhàoguó🔊
English Translation:
Lin Xiangru achieved great merit, and his position was higher than Lian Po. Lian Po was very unhappy and wanted to humiliate Lin Xiangru. Lin Xiangru avoided Lian Po everywhere, because national interests were more important. When Lian Po learned this, he was very ashamed and carried thorny branches on his back to apologize. From then on, the two became good friends and defended Zhao together.

Key Vocabulary

负荆请罪
fù jīng qǐng zuì
carry thorns to apologize
荆条
jīngtiáo
thorny branches
惭愧
cánkuì
ashamed
羞辱
xiūrǔ
humiliate
回避
huíbì
avoid
请罪
qǐngzuì
beg forgiveness

The Moral

Admitting faults shows true strength! This idiom means making a sincere apology for ones wrongs.

Cultural Insight

负荆请罪 comes from the story of Lian Po and Lin Xiangru in "Records of the Grand Historian" (史记).