老生常谈
意思是书生常讲的话，没有新的意思。比喻听惯听厌的话。
三国时候，有个名叫管辂的人，从小勤奋好学、才思敏捷，光其喜爱天文。十五岁时，已熟读《周易》，通晓占卜术，渐渐有了小名气。 日子一久，传到吏部尚书何晏、侍中尚书邓飓耳里。这天，正好是农历十二月二十八日，这两个大官吃饱喝足后，闹着无聊，便派人 把管辂召来替他们占卜。管辂早就听说这两人是曹操侄孙曹爽的心腹，倚仗权势，胡作 非为，名声很不好。
他考虑了一会几，想趁这个机会好好教训他们一顿，灭灭他们的威风。 何虽一见管辂，就大声嚷道：”听说你的占卜很灵验，快替我算一卦，看我能不能再有机会升官发财。另外，这几天晚上我还梦见苍 蝇总是叮在鼻子上，这是什么预兆?” 管辂想了一想，说：“从前周公忠厚正直，辅助周成王建国立业，国泰民安；现在你的职位比周公还高，可感恩你的人很少，惧伯你的人却很多，这恐怕不是好预 兆。你的梦按照卜术来测，也是个凶相 阿!” 管辂接着又说：“要想逢凶化吉，消灾避难，只有多效仿周公等 大圣贤们，发善心，行善事。” 邓飓一旁听了，很不以为然，连连摇头说：“这都是些老生常谈， 没什么意思。” 何宴脸上铁青，一语不发。
管辂见了，哈哈一笑：“虽说是老生常谈的话，却不能加以轻视 啊！” 不久，新年到了，传来消息说何宴、邓辂与曹爽一起因谋反而遭 诛杀。管辂知道后，连声说：“老生常谈的话，他们却置之不理，所以难怪有如此下场啊！”
Sunday-school truth
Today we’ll learn a new phrase that means “Sunday-school truth.” It reads “Lao Sheng Chang Tan,” literally meaning “an old scholar’s platitudes.” Here is the story behind it.
In the Three Kingdoms Period in ancient China, there was a man called Guan Lu. He was fascinated by astronomy when he was a young boy. So although his parents strongly opposed him engaging in this field, he studied astronomy when he grew up. By doing this, Guan Lu learned how to tell the future, and became very good at it.
One day, a high-ranking official, He Yan, invited Guan Lu to his house. With them was a colleague of He Yan. The official asked Guan Lu to look into the future and see if he, He Yan, would be promoted to a more important position. He Yan told Guan, “I dreamed that dozens of black flies were biting my nose, but I couldn’t drive them away. What’s the meaning of this dream?”
Guan Lu thought for a while, then answered, “You now wield much power and influence, but few people feel grateful to you. Many people respect your power, but they do not respect you. This is, of course, not a good thing. And your dream indicates that you’re in a dangerous situation; you should pay attention to this.” Then Guan Lu suggested that He Yan follow Confucius’ instructions on how to be a good official. And, he warned, only by so doing could He Yan escape bad fortune.
But He Yan’s colleague laughed at Guan Lu’s advice. He said, “Your words are like the platitudes of an old scholar, and nothing new. People are tired of such words.” Unfortunately, the high-ranking official He Yan agreed with his colleague, and didn’t take up Guan Lu’s suggestion. In the end, both of them were sentenced to death because they kept doing bad things.
From this story, people drew the idiom “Lao Sheng Chang Tan” which literally means “an old scholar’s platitudes.” We’ve all met people of whom we can say, “Lao Sheng Chang Tan.” Oh dear, I hope you don’t say it behind my back! OK, we’d better wind up this edition of Idioms and Their Stories. I’m WJ, don’t forget to join me again next week in Listeners’ Garden.
Of course, the younger brother wouldn’t listen to this. So Zi Yue grew up safe and sound. But the elder brother still thought that it was not a good thing having Zi Yue around. So before his death, he called the whole clan to his bedside and said: “In the future, if Zi Yue becomes an official, all of you should leave Chu as soon as possible in order to avoid trouble.”
Years later, the two brothers’ sons both became officials of Chu. But the rank of the elder brother’s son, Zi Yang子扬, was a little bit higher than that of Zi Yue. So Zi Yue had his cousin Zi Yang murdered and took Zi Yang’s place.
In the autumn of the same year, Zi Yue led a rebellion against the king of Chu, but was finally defeated.
From Zi Yue’s behavior and what his uncle said about him, people drew the idiom Lang Zi Ye Xin, and use it for people who have vicious ambitions. If you want to say someone is evil and over-ambitious, you can use the idiom Lang Zi Ye Xin which is spelt L-A-N-G, Z-I, Y-E, X-I-N. The tone pattern is second, third, third, first.
(Source:english.cri.cn)
