Harboring Evil Designs

Characters:

Pronunciation: Xin(1) Huai(2) Po(3) Ce(4)

Explanation: Said of someone with unpredictable evil intentions

The Story: At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, before Cao Cao started an expedition against the south, he feared that Ma Teng, governor of Liangzhou, might attack his capital Luoyang during his absence. His advisor Xun You suggested placing the title of General of the Southern Expedition on Ma Teng with the intention of luring him into the capital and then killing him.

Cao Cao then did so. When Ma Teng received the edict, he discussed with his son and nephew whether he should go to the capital or not. His son Ma Chao said that he should go while his nephew Ma Tai advised against it. Ma Tai said: "Cao Cao is a treacherous fellow who harbours evil designs. If you go, you will probably meet death at his hands." Unheeding Ma Tai's warning, Ma Teng led five thousand soldiers and went to the capital where he was indeed murdered by Cao Cao.

Usage Example (Pinyin): Qian(1) wan(4) bu(4) yao(4) he zhe(4) yang(4) xin(1) huai(2) po(3) ce(4) de ren jiao(1) peng(2) you(3)

Usage Example (English translation): Never make friends with such a "harbouring evil designs" person.

Note: The spoken Chinese Mandarin language has 4 spoken tones. We have attempted to re-create those above where after each syllable we tell you (1), (2), (3), or (4) as they correspond to each of the 4 tones. We encourage you to complement your Xianzai.com Chinese Idioms newsletter with a good offline study program.