Like Fish in Water
| Characters: |
 |
Pronunciation:
ru(2)
yu(2) de(2) shui(3)
Explanation:
A metaphor to describe someone is in a very
suitable position or has a very important
assistant
Tone: neutral
The Story: At the end of the East
Han Dynasty, Liu Bei was in a bad position.
He often failed in battles, and his army was
weary as well.
He was in his fifties, and he was longing
for getting some talented people that could
help him to set up his own country. He then
heard there was a man named Zhuge Liang, who
lived in a poor village but he was very capable
and ambitious. Then Liu Bei decided to invite
Zhuge the be his assistant.
They talked a lot and Zhuge gave him valuable
analyses on the political situations of the
time. The two men became good friends.
One day, Liu's sworn brothers Zhang Fei and
Guang Yu showed their dissatisfaction. Liu
explained, "I have Zhuge, just as fish
has water, so please do not complain any more."
Zhang Fei and Guang Yu were both ashamed of
this and they kept silent.
Usage Example (Pinyin): Ta(1) zai(4)
zhe(4) ge gong(1) si(1) shi(4) ru(2) yu(2)
de shui(3).
Usage Example (English translation): He
is like fish in water in this company.
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.
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