The phrase caught my ear, so I researched it a bit in Chinese, thus committing it to memory. About an hour later, I was talking with my wife about how tired I've been feeling recently (we have a 6 week old to ensure that we have full cases of sleep deprivation). She encouraged me to take the following day off, because as she said, "We don't want you dying."
Putting on my most solemn expression, I said in Chinese, "生未必乐，死未必苦"
Of course, she rolled her eyes.
It's not often that I can come up with the perfect Chinese expression to fit a situation (whether I'm being serious or joking). But this time, the stars aligned.
In any case, there are tons of Chinese expressions and idioms that make perfect sense when translated into English, and can be great fodder for NPC dialogue in roleplaying games, especially those with wuxia themes. Here are just a few that come to mind:
明枪易躲暗箭难防 - "It is easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to avoid a stab in the dark" - It is easy to avoid open attacks, but harder to guard against hidden ones, such as conspiracies.
一言既出驷马难追 - "A word once spoken cannot be taken back even by a team of four horses" - What has said cannot be unsaid, a promise must be kept.
君子报仇只待三年，小人报仇只在眼前 - "A gentleman will wait three years to get his revenge, while a petty person will try immediately" - I think this one is obvious.
Incidentally, the movie is Heaven Sword, Dragon Sabre, check it out here if you're interested. It's a great movie adaptation of the classic Jin Yong wuxia novel of the same name.
If you have any questions or comments about this topic, or anything else, please reach out to me via the social media links on my website!
明枪易躲暗箭难防 - "It is easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to avoid a stab in the dark" - It is easy to avoid open attacks, but harder to guard against hidden ones, such as conspiracies.
一言既出驷马难追 - "A word once spoken cannot be taken back even by a team of four horses" - What has said cannot be unsaid, a promise must be kept.
君子报仇只待三年，小人报仇只在眼前 - "A gentleman will wait three years to get his revenge, while a petty person will try immediately" - I think this one is obvious.
Incidentally, the movie is Heaven Sword, Dragon Sabre, check it out here if you're interested. It's a great movie adaptation of the classic Jin Yong wuxia novel of the same name.
If you have any questions or comments about this topic, or anything else, please reach out to me via the social media links on my website!
