不寒而慄(bùhánérér)
不 do not [bù] | 寒 cold [hán] | 而 but [ér] | 慄 shiver [ér] |
Shiver up and down your spine
Yi Zong was a severe bureaucrat who lived during the Western Han Dynasty (B.C. 206 - A.D. 24) in China.
During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, Yi was assigned to be a county magistrate after a referral from emperor`s mother. Yi did an excellent job in managing his position - he was both courageous and determined in handling each case - he rewarded and punished according to the law, so everyone said he was fair and impartial.
Later on, Yi was transferred to another prefecture where he accused Prince Xiu Cheng (the emperor`s nephew) who broke the law. Once again, he won his peoples` approval and even the emperor was so proud of him.
As time went by, Yi was promoted to serve as a prefecture chief in Ding Xiang Prefecture, the district that was in a state of chaos. Yi understood that he would have to be more cautious when managing the prefecture. Therefore, as soon as he took office, Yi executed over 400 convicts in a day without thorough investigation. For him, these criminals all deserved being put to death.
From that day on, whoever heard the name Yi would tremble with fear... they would shiver all over, though not cold.
不寒而慄(불한이율)
No comments:
Post a Comment