Chinese Idioms 中國成語故事 (1)

The old frontiersman loses his horse
塞翁失馬
塞翁失马

The Story:
Once upon a time, there lived an old man on the northern frontiers of China. One day, his horse disappeared. His neighbors came to comfort him. But the old man was not at all upset. He said his loss might turn out to be a good thing. And he was right. A few months later, not only did his horse find its way back, it also brought with it another horse, one that was even better. His neighbors came around again, this time to congratulate him on his gain. But again, the old man viewed the situation differently, and said that this "good luck" might bring about misfortune in the end. Strangely, he was right again. A few days later, his son fell from the new horse and broke his leg. However, as a result of the accident, his lame son was not conscripted to fight in the war and remained with his family.

Explanation:
Nowadays, people refer to the idiom when comforting someone who has experienced ill fortune. However, although it does imply that bad luck can sometimes transform into good luck, the reverse is also true; good luck can sometimes give rise to bad.

Do not do something unnecessary
畫蛇添足
画蛇添足

The Story:
In ancient China, there were several people who competed drawing snake. But one of them finished early, and added feet to the snake. So another one said:"snake doesn't have feet from birth, but why do you add them to it."

Explanation:
you must work according to the fact, and do not ruin the effect by adding something superfluous.

Trust to chance and luck in one's actions; hope for gains without pains
守株待兔

The Story:
One day, a farmer worked in his field. Suddenly, he sawa hare running toward and hit on a tree, died. He said happily:"Great! I will have a delicious dinner."From that day, he sit under the tree to wait hares hitting on the tree. But until the field was waste, there were no fares coming. The story tells us that you must work, then you can gain something.

Explanation:
stand by a stump waiting for more hares to come and clash themselves against it--trust to chance and windfalls