亡羊补牢，犹为未晚

[ 2006-6-11 9:54:00 | By: 吴星华 ]
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Today‘s idiom is亡羊补牢，犹为未晚, meaning it‘s not too late to
mend the fold even after some of the sheep have been lost.
 
During the Warring States Period, from to 221 BC, the State of
Chu was not very powerful. The king and important court officials
were corrupt and incompetent. They unceasingly indulged in
luxury and excessive pleasure.
Zhuang Xin was one of the few ministers to foresee that the
country was in danger. One day he remonstrated with the king:
"Your Majesty, wherever you go, you‘re always surrounded by
people who flatter your every whim. They try everything to make
you happy so that you might forget to tend to your state affairs. If
you carry on like this, there is no doubt that the country will
perish sooner or later."
The king of Chu flew into a rage.
"How dare you! How dare you use such vicious words to curse
my country and to arouse resentment among my people."
Zhuang Xin explained.
"I dare not curse the State of Chu. But I really have the
premonition that Chu is facing great danger."
Seeing that the king was especially fond of his most corrupt
officials and trusted them in every matter, the minister considered that Chu was destined for extinction. Accordingly, he
asked the king for leave, saying that he wanted to spend some
time in the State of Zhao.
The king granted his request.
Five months later, the King of Qin sent his troops to invade Chu
and occupied a large swathe of its territory. The king of Chu
himself fled into exile.
Only then did he recall Zhuang Xin‘s words, and subsequently
sent his men to fetch him. When the king saw Zhuang Xin again,
he asked him what could be done at this late juncture.
Zhuang Xin replied that it was not too late to mend a sheepfold
even when you found that some of the sheep were already
missing. He then proceeded to make some good suggestions for
the rehabilitation of the state and recovery of lost territory. The
king was greatly pleased.
译后语： An interesting story, and a nice clear message with the
idiom亡羊补牢，犹为未晚, it‘s not too late to mend a fold even
after some sheep have disappeared
Today we use this metaphor when someone has made a mistake
and suffered losses,  to tell them that they can still remedy the
ituation by drawing lessons from past mistakes.