The phrase we’ll learn today is used to describe a situation when someone tries so hard to hide or deny something that they basically point a giant arrow at it.
从前，有一个人叫张三。他辛辛苦苦攒了三百两银子，高兴得不得了。可是问题来了——银子放在哪里才安全呢？
他想来想去，最后决定把银子埋在自己家的后院里。他挖了一个坑，把银子放进去，然后填上土。
可是埋好以后，他还是不放心。他心想：万一有人路过，看见这块土是新的，猜到下面埋着东西，那怎么办？
于是他想出了一个”好办法”。他找来一块木板，在上面写了七个大字：
“此地无银三百两”
然后把木板插在土上，这才安心地回家睡觉去了。
那天晚上，隔壁的邻居王二正好路过。他看见木板，看见上面的字，愣了一下，然后忍不住笑了起来。
他二话不说，拿起铁锹，把银子全部挖了出来，带回了自己家。
可是王二挖完以后，也开始担心：万一张三发现银子不见了，第一个怀疑的就是我，那怎么办？
于是，王二也想出了一个”好办法”。他也找来一块木板，在上面写道：
“隔壁王二不曾偷”
写完以后，他把木板插在坑边，心满意足地回家了。
这个故事告诉我们：有些人想隐瞒一件事，结果因为做得太过头，反而把真相暴露了出来。
Hover a word for its pinyin & meaning; click to pin it.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 辛辛苦苦 | xīn xīn kǔ kǔ | with great effort; toiling hard |
| 攒 | zǎn | to save up; to accumulate |
| 埋 | mái | to bury |
| 不放心 | bù fàng xīn | to feel uneasy; to worry |
| 万一 | wàn yī | in case; what if |
| 路过 | lù guò | to pass by (on the road) |
| 二话不说 | èr huà bù shuō | without saying a word; without hesitation |
| 怀疑 | huái yí | to suspect; to doubt |
| 隐瞒 | yǐn mán | to conceal; to hide (the truth) |
| 暴露 | bào lù | to expose; to reveal |
| 从前 | cóng qián | previously; formerly; once upon a time |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 一个人 | yī gè rén | by oneself (without assistance); alone (without company) |
| 叫 | jiào | to shout; to call; to order; to ask; to be called; by (indicates agent in the passive mood); variant of 叫[jiao4] |
| 张三 | Zhāng Sān | Zhang San, name for an unspecified person, first of a series of three: 張三|张三[Zhang1 San1], 李四[Li3 Si4], 王五[Wang2 Wu3] Tom, Dick and Harry; (dialect) wolf |
| 他 | tā | (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his; (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日[ta1 ri4] and 他人[ta1 ren2]) |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (bound form) clear in one's mind; to understand clearly |
| 三 | Sān | surname San |
| 百 | Bǎi | surname Bai |
| 两 | liǎng | two; both; some; a few; tael, unit of weight equal to 50 grams (modern) or 1⁄16 of a catty 斤[jin1] (old) |
| 银子 | yín zi | money; silver |
| 高兴 | gāo xìng | happy; glad; willing (to do sth); in a cheerful mood |
| 得 | dé | to obtain; to get; to gain; to catch (a disease); proper; suitable; proud; contented; to allow; to permit; ready; finished |
| 不得了 | bù dé liǎo | desperately serious; disastrous; extremely; exceedingly |
| 可是 | kě shì | but; however; (used for emphasis) indeed |
| 问题 | wèn tí | question; problem; issue; topic; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 来 | lái | to come; (used as a substitute for a more specific verb); hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来[hui2 lai5]); ever since (as in 自古以來|自古以来[zi4 gu3… |
| 放 | fàng | to put; to place; to release; to free; to let go; to let out; to set off (fireworks) |
| 在 | zài | to exist; to be alive; (of sb or sth) to be (located) at; (used before a verb to indicate an action in progress) |
| 哪 | nǎ | how; which |
| 里 | lǐ | variant of 裡|里[li3]; lining; interior; inside; internal; also written 裏|里[li3]; surname Li |
| 才 | cái | ability; talent; sb of a certain type; a capable individual; then and only then; just now; (before an expression of quantity) only; (emphatic, esp. in contrast or correction) reall…; (variant of 才[cai2]) just now; (variant of 才[cai2]) (before an expression of quantity) only |
| 安全 | ān quán | safe; secure; safety; security |
| 呢 | ne | (sentence-final particle) used in questions to link back to prior discourse or context ("what about...?", "and...?"); (sentence-final particle) indicating that a state or situation… |
| 想 | xiǎng | to think (about); to think of; to devise; to think (that); to believe (that); to desire; to want (to); to miss (feel wistful about the absence of) |
| 去 | qù | to go; to go to (a place); (of a time etc) last; just passed; to send; to remove; to get rid of; to reduce; to be apart from in space or time; to die (euphemism); to play (a part);… |
| 最 | zuì | variant of 最[zui4]; old variant of 最[zui4]; (before an adjective or verb) to the highest degree; (the) most ...; -est; (after 之[zhi1]) best or most extreme example (e.g. 世界之最[shi4 jie4 zhi1 zui4] "the greatest in the world") |
| 后 | Hòu | surname Hou; back; behind; rear; afterwards; after; later; post- |
| 决定 | jué dìng | to decide; to determine; to make up one's mind; decision (CL:個|个[ge4],項|项[xiang4]) |
| 把 | bǎ | to hold; to grasp; to hold a baby in position to help it urinate or defecate; handlebar; classifier: handful, bundle, bunch; classifier for things with handles; (used to put the ob… |
| 自己 | zì jǐ | oneself; (attributive) one's own |
| 家的 | jiā de | (old) wife |
| 院 | yuàn | courtyard; institution; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 挖 | wa | to dig; to scoop out |
| 一个 | yī ge | a; an; one; the whole (afternoon, summer vacation etc) |
| 坑 | keng | pit; hollow; depression; (literary) to bury alive |
| 放进 | fàng jìn | to put into |
| 然 | rán | correct; right; so; thus; like this; -ly |
| 填 | tiān | to fill or stuff |
| 上 | shǎng | used in 上聲|上声[shang3 sheng1] |
| 土 | Tǔ | surname Tu; Tu ethnic group |
| 好 | hǎo | good; appropriate; proper; all right!; (before a verb) easy to; (before a verb) good to; (before an adjective for exclamatory effect) so; (verb complement indicating completion); (… |
| 以 | yǐ | old variant of 以[yi3]; abbr. for Israel 以色列[Yi3 se4 lie4] |
| 还是 | hái shi | still (as before); had better; unexpectedly; or |
| 心想 | xīn xiǎng | to think to oneself; to think |
| 有人 | yǒu rén | someone; people; anyone; there is someone there; occupied (as in restroom) |
| 看见 | kàn jiàn | to see; to catch sight of |
| 这 | zhè | (pronoun) this; these; (bound form) this; the (followed by a noun); (bound form) this; these (followed by a classifier) (in this sense, commonly pr. [zhei4], esp. in Beijing) |
| 块 | kuài | lump; chunk; piece; classifier for pieces of cloth, cake, soap etc; (coll.) classifier for money and currency units |
| 是 | shì | to be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true; (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well; (adverb for emphatic assertion); variant of 是[shi4] |
| 新 | Xīn | abbr. for Xinjiang 新疆[Xin1 jiang1]; abbr. for Singapore 新加坡[Xin1 jia1 po1]; surname Xin |
| 的 | de | of; ~'s (possessive particle); (used after an attribute when it modifies a noun); (used at the end of a declarative sentence for emphasis); (used after a noun, verb or adjective to… |
| 猜 | cāi | to guess |
| 到 | dào | to reach; to arrive; to leave for; to go to; to (a place); until (a time); up to (a point); (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point); considerate; thoug… |
| 下面 | xià miàn | below; under; next; the following; also pr. [xia4 mian5] |
| 着 | zhāo | variant of 著|着[zhao1]; a move in chess (Taiwan pr. [zhuo2]); trick; tactic; (dialect) okay; all right; (dialect) to put in; to add |
| 东 | Dōng | surname Dong |
| 西 | Xī | the West; abbr. for Spain 西班牙[Xi1 ban1 ya2]; Spanish |
| 那 | Nā | surname Na |
| 怎 | zěn | how |
| 么 | má | exclamatory final particle; variant of 麼|么[me5] |
| 办 | bàn | to take care of (a matter); to deal with (a task, procedure etc); to organize (an event); to establish; to set up; to manage; to run (an enterprise); (law) to handle; to investigat… |
| 于是 | yú shì | thereupon; as a result; consequently; thus; hence |
| 想出 | xiǎng chū | to figure out; to work out (a solution etc); to think up; to come up with (an idea etc) |
| 好办 | hǎo bàn | easy to do; easy to manage |
| 法 | fǎ | variant of 法[fa3]; France; French; abbr. for 法國|法国[Fa3 guo2]; Taiwan pr. [Fa4]; old variant of 法[fa3]; law |
| 找 | zhǎo | to try to find; to look for; to call on sb; to find; to seek; to return; to give change |
| 一块 | yī kuài | a piece; a chunk; (fig.) (coll.) (typically preceded by a specifier such as 這|这[zhe4]) aspect; area; dimension (Example: 情感這一塊|情感这一块[qing2 gan3 zhe4 yi1 kuai4] "the emotional aspec… |
| 木板 | mù bǎn | slab; board; plank; CL:張|张[zhang1],塊|块[kuai4] |
| 上面 | shàng miàn | on top of; above-mentioned; also pr. [shang4 mian5] |
| 写 | xiě | to write |
| 七 | qī | seven; 7 |
| 个 | gě | used in 自個兒|自个儿[zi4 ge3 r5]; variant of 個|个[ge4] |
| 大 | dà | big; large; great; older (than another person); eldest (as in 大姐[da4 jie3]); greatly; freely; fully; (dialect) father; (dialect) uncle (father's brother) |
| 字 | zì | letter; symbol; character; word; CL:個|个[ge4]; courtesy or style name traditionally given to males aged 20 in dynastic China |
| 此地 | cǐ dì | here; this place |
| 无 | mó | used in 南無|南无[na1 mo2] |
| 银 | yín | silver; silver-colored; relating to money or currency |
| 插 | chā | to insert; stick in; pierce; to take part in; to interfere; to interpose; old variant of 插[cha1] |
| 安心 | ān xīn | at ease; to feel relieved; to set one's mind at rest; to keep one's mind on sth |
| 地 | de | -ly; structural particle: used before a verb or adjective, linking it to preceding modifying adverbial adjunct |
| 回家 | huí jiā | to return home |
| 睡觉 | shuì jiào | to go to bed; to sleep |
| 那天 | nà tiān | that day; the other day |
| 晚上 | wǎn shang | evening; night; CL:個|个[ge4]; in the evening |
| 隔 | gé | to separate; to partition; to stand or lie between; at a distance from; after or at an interval of |
| 壁 | bǐ | wall |
| 邻居 | lín jū | neighbor |
| 王 | Wáng | surname Wang |
| 二 | èr | two; 2; (Beijing dialect) stupid |
| 正好 | zhèng hǎo | just (in time); just right; just enough; to happen to; to chance to; by chance; it just so happens that |
| 愣 | lěng | to look distracted; distracted; (coll.) unexpectedly; rashly |
| 一下 | yī xià | (after a verb) a bit; a little (indicating brief duration, or softening the tone, or suggesting giving sth a try); all at once; suddenly |
| 忍 | rén | to bear; to tolerate |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- |
| 住 | zhù | to live; to reside; to stay; to stop; to cease; (result complement indicating firmness or a stable achieved state) |
| 笑 | xiào | old variant of 笑[xiao4]; to laugh; to smile; to laugh at |
| 起 | qǐ | to rise; to raise; to get up; to set out; to start; to appear; to launch; to initiate (action); to draft; to establish; to get (from a depot or counter); verb suffix, to start; sta… |
| 拿起 | ná qǐ | to pick up |
| 铁 | Tiě | surname Tie |
| 锹 | ||
| 全部 | quán bù | whole; all |
| 出 | chū | to go out; to come out; to arise; to occur; to produce; to yield; to go beyond; to exceed; (used after a verb to indicate an outward direction or a positive result); classifier for…; variant of 出[chu1] (classifier for plays or chapters of classical novels) |
| 带回 | dài huí | to bring back; to take back with one |
| 家 | jiā | used in 傢伙|家伙[jia1 huo5] and 傢俱|家俱[jia1 ju4]; home; family; (polite) my (sister, uncle etc); classifier for families or businesses; refers to the philosophical schools of pre-Han China; noun suffix for a specialist in some act… |
| 完 | wán | to finish; to be over; whole; complete; entire |
| 也 | Yě | surname Ye |
| 开始 | kāi shǐ | to begin; to start; beginning; start |
| 担 | dan | to undertake; to shoulder |
| 心 | xīn | heart; mind; intention; center; core; CL:顆|颗[ke1],個|个[ge4] |
| 发现 | fā xiàn | to notice; to become aware of; to discover; to find; to detect; a discovery |
| 不见了 | bù jiàn le | to have disappeared; to be missing; nowhere to be found |
| 第 | dì | (prefix indicating ordinal number, as in 第六[di4 liu4] "sixth"); (literary) grades in which successful candidates in the imperial examinations were placed; (old) residence of a high… |
| 就是 | jìu shì | exactly; precisely; only; simply; just; (used correlatively with 也[ye3]) even; even if |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my |
| 写道 | xiě dào | to write (used before or after a quoted passage) |
| 不曾 | bù céng | hasn't yet; hasn't ever |
| 偷 | tou | to steal; to snatch; stealthily |
| 写完 | xiě wán | to finish writing |
| 边 | biān | side; edge; margin; border; boundary; CL:個|个[ge4]; simultaneously |
| 满 | Mǎn | Manchu ethnic group |
| 意 | yì | (bound form) idea; thought; meaning; sense; (bound form) intention; feeling; inclination; state of mind; (bound form) Italy (abbr. for 意大利[Yi4 da4 li4]) |
| 足 | jù | excessive |
| 这个 | zhè ge | (pronoun) this; (adjective) this |
| 故事 | gù shì | old practice |
| 告 | gào | (bound form) to say; to tell; to announce; to report; to denounce; to file a lawsuit; to sue |
| 诉 | sù | variant of 訴|诉[su4]; to complain; to sue; to tell |
| 们 | men | plural marker for pronouns, and nouns referring to individuals |
| 有些人 | yǒu xiē rén | some people |
| 一 | yī | one; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1); also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out … |
| 件 | jiàn | item; component; classifier for events, things, clothes etc |
| 事 | shì | matter; thing; item; work; affair; CL:件[jian4],樁|桩[zhuang1],回[hui2] |
| 结 | jiē | (of a plant) to produce (fruit or seeds); Taiwan pr. [jie2] |
| 果 | guǒ | fruit; result; resolute; indeed; if really |
| 因为 | yīn wèi | because; owing to; on account of |
| 做 | zuò | to make; to produce; to write; to compose; to do; to engage in; to hold (a party etc); (of a person) to be (an intermediary, a good student etc); to become (husband and wife, frien… |
| 太过 | tài guò | excessively; too |
| 头 | tóu | head; hair style; the top; end; beginning or end; a stub; remnant; chief; boss; side; aspect; first; leading; classifier for pigs or livestock; CL:個|个[ge4] |
| 反而 | fǎn ér | on the contrary; instead |
| 真相 | zhēn xiàng | the truth about sth; the actual facts |
Once upon a time, there was a man named Zhang San. He worked hard and saved up 300 taels of silver, and he was overjoyed. But then a problem arose—where could he put the silver to keep it safe?
He thought it over and over, and finally decided to bury the silver in his own backyard. He dug a hole, put the silver inside, and then filled it back up with dirt.
But even after burying it, he still felt uneasy. He thought to himself: What if someone passes by, sees that this patch of dirt is fresh, guesses there’s something buried underneath—then what?
So he came up with a ‘great idea.’ He found a wooden board and wrote seven large characters on it:
‘No 300 taels of silver buried here.’
Then he stuck the board into the dirt, and only then did he go home to sleep with peace of mind.
That night, his next-door neighbor Wang Er happened to pass by. He saw the board, saw the words on it, was stunned for a moment, and then couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
Without saying a word, he picked up a shovel, dug out all the silver, and took it back to his own home.
But after Wang Er finished digging, he too began to worry: What if Zhang San discovers the silver is missing, and the first person he suspects is me—then what?
So Wang Er also came up with a ‘great idea.’ He too found a wooden board and wrote on it:
‘Your neighbor Wang Er did not steal it.’
After writing it, he stuck the board beside the hole and went home fully satisfied.
This story teaches us: Some people want to hide something, but because they overdo it, they end up exposing the truth instead.