The origin of the three-legged cat?

Three-legged cat ",Wuxi people often refer to people who are not proficient in certain knowledge and technology, and also refer to superficial, imperfect and useless people."

According to legend, during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, a boat was moored at the South Wharf of Shanghai Beach. The owner of the ship is an old man, strong and strong, and he always practices martial arts in the dock every day. He has all kinds of weapons. He can even lift two three-legged iron anchors weighing 30 kilograms with both hands and dance like a fly. The old ferryman is famous in Shanghai, and many martial arts lovers come to worship him as their teacher. The old ferryman readily accepted. Later, the old ferryman left, but many of his apprentices still danced with three-legged iron anchors on the dock open space, but none of them reached the level of perfection of the old ferryman. Therefore, people jokingly call a person who knows a certain skill but is not proficient as a "three-legged iron anchor", hereinafter referred to as "three-legged anchor". "anchor" and "cat" are homophonic. After a long time, "three-legged anchor" was mistakenly passed on as "three-legged cat".

There is a saying that "no coincidence is a book." The proverb "three-legged cat" was recorded as early as the Song Dynasty. "Treasures" said: "Lost marks are called three-legged cats." Tao wrote in the record of dropping out of farming in Nancun at the end of Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of Ming Dynasty: "When referring to Narcissus in Beiyue House, it says: ... Speaking of heroes, who is the hero? Five-eyed chicken, Qishan Mingfeng; Two-headed snake, Wolong, Nanyang; A three-legged cat, Lishui is not a bear (can't fly). " It can be seen that the "three-legged cat" is an animal. Lang Ying, a scholar in the Ming Dynasty, said in the "Seven Amendments to the Contract": "During the Jiajing period, the God of Nanjing was optimistic that there was a cat with three legs, which was good at catching mice but could not walk." This "three-legged cat" may be a disabled cat. People regard "three-legged cat" as a synonym for unskilled. For example, Lang Ying said, "Those who are not good are called three-legged cats."

The so-called "three-legged cat" refers to those who know a little about everything but are not proficient in any business.

The proverb "three-legged cat" was recorded as early as the Song Dynasty. "Treasures" said: "Lost marks are called three-legged cats." Tao in Ming Dynasty quoted the satirical poem "The Record of Dropping out of Farming in Nancun": "Say hero, who is the hero! Five-eyed chicken, Qishan Mingfeng; Two-headed snake, Wolong, Nanyang; A cat with three legs means that water is not a bear. " The "five-eyed chicken" here refers to Zhou Wenwang, the "two-headed snake" refers to Zhuge Liang, and the "three-legged cat" refers to Jiang Taigong. These criticisms are nothing more than exposing their shortcomings and speaking ill of them. Among these slanders, the only thing left is the phrase "three-legged cat", which has been used by people ever since.

In the past, rats in Hangzhou were quite serious, so many people had the habit of keeping cats, although some cats were not very beautiful and even crossed their legs. However, no matter how big and cruel the mouse is, as long as it hears the cry of "meow, meow", it will be frightened, run away and disappear. Therefore, a three-legged cat is not a bad cat. On the contrary, it has the reputation of the king of cats, but its image is not good.

Most people who are now called "three-legged cats" have neither academic qualifications nor outstanding talents. With their cleverness and mastery of many crafts, they can dabble everywhere and make a fortune by hard work. Such a "three-legged cat" is still quite popular, and it is very popular with the people.