Idioms in idiom stories

Don't pay attention to facts based on people's casual views on things.

Once upon a time, a countryman lost an axe. He thought it was a neighbor's son who stole it, so he paid attention to what the man said and did everywhere. The more he looked at it, the more he felt that he looked like a thief stealing an axe. Later, the man who lost the axe found it. It turned out that he accidentally lost his way in the valley when he went up the mountain to cut wood the other day. After finding the axe, he met his neighbor's son again. Look at him again. He doesn't look like a thief.

Suspecting neighbors and stealing axes: not paying attention to facts, being suspicious of people and things.

Try to pull up to help the buds grow-rushing will make things worse.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a farmer in Song State. He always thinks that the crops in the field grow too slowly. He went to see them today and tomorrow and felt that the seedlings never seemed to grow taller. He thought to himself: Is there any way to make them grow taller and faster?

One day, he came to the field and pulled up the seedlings one by one. It took a lot of effort to pull up a large number of seedlings one by one. When he finished pulling out the seedlings, he was exhausted, but he was happy. When I got home, I boasted, "I'm exhausted today." I helped Miao Miao grow several inches! " "Hearing this, his son hurried to the field and found that all the seedlings in the field were dead.

riding the winds and breaking the waves

In the ancient Southern and Northern Dynasties, there was a general named Zong Qiming in Song State. He was brave and ambitious since he was a child. One day, Zong Yi's uncle asked him what his ambition was, and Zong Yi replied, "I would like to ride the wind and waves." I must break through all obstacles, go forward bravely and make a difference. After studying hard and working hard, Zong Yi finally became a general who can be good at fighting.

Later, people used "braving the wind and waves" to describe the spirit of facing difficulties.

All the clothes carry water.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the Northern Zhou Dynasty in the north and the State of Chen in the south were bounded by the Yangtze River.

Emperor Wendi of Sui Dynasty, Prime Minister of Northern Zhou Dynasty, abolished Emperor Jingdi of Zhou Dynasty, established Sui Dynasty on his own.

Determined to destroy the State of Chen, he once said, "I am the parents of the whole country. Is it because there is a Yangtze River as narrow as a belt that I watch the people in the south suffer and don't save them? "

Later, people used "only a strip of water" to describe that the two places are very close, with only a narrow water area.

High mountains and Running water

During the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a man named Yu Boya, who was proficient in temperament and superb in piano skills. He was a famous pianist at that time. When Yu Boya was young, he was smart and eager to learn. He has learned from others and his piano skills have reached the level. But he always feels that he can't express his feelings about all kinds of things in a superb way. Boya's teacher knew his idea and took him to Penglai Island in the East China Sea by boat, so that he could enjoy the natural scenery and listen to the waves of the sea. Boya looked up and saw the waves surging and splashing; Seabirds are roaring and singing; The lush trees in the forest are like entering a fairyland. A wonderful feeling arises spontaneously, as if the harmonious and beautiful music of nature is playing in the ear. He couldn't help playing the piano, his voice turned at will, and the beauty of nature was integrated into the sound of the piano. Boya experienced an unprecedented realm. The teacher told him, "You have learned."

One night boating in Boya. Facing the cool breeze and bright moon, he was full of thoughts, so he played the piano again, and the sound of the piano was melodious and getting better. Suddenly I heard someone screaming on the shore. When Boya heard the sound, he got out of the boat and saw a woodcutter standing on the shore. Knowing that the man was a bosom friend, he immediately invited the woodcutter aboard and played for him with great interest. Boya played a tune praising the mountains, and the woodcutter said, "How wonderful! Majestic and solemn, such as Mount Tai towering into the clouds! " When he played the surging waves, the woodcutter said, "How wonderful! Vast and boundless, it seems to see rolling water and boundless sea! " Boya was excited and said excitedly, "bosom friend!" You are really my bosom friend. "This woodcutter is Zhong Ziqi. Since then, the two have become very good friends.

This story comes from Liezi Tang Wen. The idiom "high mountains and flowing water" is a metaphor for bosom friends and wonderful music.

A person's single correction teacher

Refers to a teacher who corrects a very key word in an article.

This language comes from Tao Yue's Supplement to the History of the Five Dynasties in the Song Dynasty.

The Tang Dynasty was a very prosperous period in the development of feudal society in China, and literature and art were also very developed, among which poetry was the most representative. At that time, there were not only many poets but also many poems, and the level of art and content was very high.

Among many poets at that time, there was a poet named Miracle. One winter, in vilen after the heavy snow, he saw the plum blossoms proudly blooming, so he wrote a poem "Early Plum" to recite the plum blossoms in full bloom in early winter. There are two lines in this poem: In the former village of Zita Law, several branches opened last night. He felt very satisfied after writing it.

A man named Zheng Gu, after reading this poem written by Miracle, thinks that the meaning of this poem is not exhausted. So, after repeated thinking and deliberation, he changed these two poems into: In the old village of Zita Law, he opened a branch last night. Because he thinks that since there are several plum blossoms, it can't be considered as early plum blossoms.

Zheng Gu's changes, although only changed the number into a word, only changed a word, but it made the theme of Morning Plum more appropriate and the artistic conception of the poem more perfect. Qi was very appreciative of this change in Zheng Gu. At that time, he called Zheng Gu his own lyricist.

Concentrate on

Once upon a time, there was a chess player named Qiu. His chess skills are superb.

Qiu has two students studying chess with him. A student is very absorbed in learning from the teacher. The other one didn't. He thinks it's easy to learn chess, so there's no need to be serious. When the teacher explained, although he sat there, his eyes seemed to be looking at the chess pieces, but he was thinking in his heart: "If I kill a swan in the wild now, it will be a delicious meal." Because he is always daydreaming and absent-minded, the teacher doesn't listen at all.

As a result, although both students are famous teachers, one has made rapid progress and become a famous chess player, while the other has not learned any skills.

Interviewee: _ Wen _ Wen _- Trainee magician level 2-25 13:29

Look at the picture and find a good horse-follow the clue to find something

Sun Yang had a son who read the "Xiangma Jing" written by his father. He thought it was easy to kiss up to horses, so he took this book and looked for good horses everywhere. He followed the pattern drawn in the book and found nothing. I searched according to the characteristics written in the book, and finally found a toad with characteristics very similar to those written in the book. I happily took toad home and said to my father, "Dad, I found a swift horse, but the hoof was almost the same." Father couldn't help laughing when he saw it. He didn't expect his son to be so stupid, so he said humorously, "It's a pity that Matthew likes to jump and can't be used to pull a cart." Then he sighed: "Follow the map."

Golden Millet Dream―sheer daydream

Idiom to dispel doubts: describe a big dream, or compare it with an empty joy.

Idiom origin: Tang ligong wrote biography of Conan satrap.

Idiom story: Chunyuba came from the Tang Dynasty. Once, because he was drunk, he couldn't help resting under the locust tree in the yard. I didn't expect him to fall asleep In his dream, he saw King Huai 'an send someone to take him to Huai 'an, and then he married his beloved princess and appointed him as the magistrate of Conan County.

During this period, Chunyuba managed Conan very well, and the king appreciated him very much. His five sons were knighted and his two daughters were married to the prince, so his position in Huai 'an was very high.

Later, Chunyu Kun's army was defeated when he attacked the county, and then his wife became seriously ill. All these misfortunes made Chun Yuba not want to stay in the county, so he returned to Beijing. However, in Beijing, someone spoke ill of Chunyuba in front of the king, and the king did not verify it, so he arrested his children and sent them back to his hometown. As soon as I left Huai 'an, Chunyuba woke up and realized that it was a dream.

Soon, Chunyuba found an ant hole under the locust tree in the courtyard, and there was a palace made of mud in the hole, and so on. It suddenly dawned on him that the Huai he saw in his dream should be this ant hole. The highest branch of Sophora japonica may be Conan County, where he is the magistrate.

Chun Yu remembered everything about Conan in his dream and felt that things were impermanent. The so-called wealth and fame really disappeared easily, so he finally retired to the door.

The story comes from Yang Shen's "Yilin Felling Mountain" in the Ming Dynasty. The idiom "from the book" means to do things mechanically in the old way and not know how to be flexible; It is also a metaphor to look for things according to certain clues.

To teach fish to swim

Quarrying a pile of soil by the river, Li Bai is famous for ages;

There are poems coming and going, making a big axe in front of Lu Ban.

This is the name of Li Bais Tomb written by a poet in the Ming Dynasty. Li Bai was a world-famous poet in the Tang Dynasty, and his fame spread through the ages after his death. How many literati pass by Li Bai's tomb and miss stopping for a minute to express their inner feelings by chanting poems. And their behavior can only be arty, "playing tricks in front of Lu Ban", which is too much.

Lu Ban was a native of Lu during the Warring States Period. He is an expert in making exquisite instruments. People call him an "able man", and people always regard him as the ancestor of carpenters. Who dares to show off his axe skills in front of Lu Ban, that is to say, to show off his skills in front of experts? This ridiculous behavior of being too modest is referred to as "playing axe in front of Lu Ban" or "playing axe in front of Lu Ban". This is similar to the saying of "playing broadsword in front of Guan Gong".

In fact, the idiom "teaching people to use an axe" took shape as early as the Tang Dynasty. Writer Liu Zongyuan has such a sentence in a preface: "Fuck the axe at the door of the class, Yaner!" It means too thick-skinned to show off the skills of using an axe in front of Lu Ban and Ren Ying (also skilled axe hands).

This idiom is sometimes used as a word of self-modesty, which means that you dare not show off your skills in front of experts.

Panic about the shadow of the bow in the cup-fear of the shadow

One day, Le Guang invited his friends to drink in the hall at home. When that friend was drinking, he suddenly saw the shadow of a small snake shaking in his glass. He was disgusted, but he drank the wine anyway. I feel uncomfortable and uneasy after drinking it. I got sick when I got home.

A few days later, Le Guang heard the news that his friend was ill and knew the reason why he was ill. Le Guang thought, "There will never be a snake in the glass!" So he ran to the place where he was drinking that day. It turns out that there is a colorful bow on the wall of the hall. The shadow of the bow happened to fall where his friend put down his glass, so Yue Guang ran to his friend and explained the reason. After the man understood the reason, he immediately recovered.

Later, people used the metaphor of "a cup bow and a snake shadow" to be suspicious and ask for trouble.

Bole comments on horses-praising people who are good at discovering talents

Legend has it that the fairy who manages horses in the sky is called Bole. In the world, people call people who are good at distinguishing the good from the bad horses Bole.

The first person is Bole, whose real name is Sun Yang, and he was born in the Spring and Autumn Period. Because of his excellent research on horses, people forgot his original name and have simply called him Bole until now.

On one occasion, Bole was entrusted by the King of Chu to buy a good horse that could walk thousands of miles every day. Bole explained to the king of Chu that swift horses are rare and hard to find. He needs to travel around the country. Please rest assured that the king of Chu will try his best to get things done.

Bole traveled to several countries and carefully inspected Zhao Yan, which is rich in famous horses. It's hard, but I still haven't found a good horse I like. One day, Bole came back from Qi. On the way, he saw a horse pulling a salt cart and struggling on a steep slope. This horse is tired and it is difficult to take every step. Bole has always been close to horses and walked towards him involuntarily. When the horse saw Bole approaching, it suddenly raised its head, widened its eyes and screamed loudly, as if to tell Bole something. Bole immediately judged from his voice that this was a rare good horse.

It's hard to get

At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a famous man named Mi Fei, who was outstanding in talent. At that time, Kong Rong, a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine, especially appreciated him and recommended him to Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty. He wrote: "The emperor's room and royal residence must store extraordinary treasures. If it is equal, it is rare. "

Xian Di didn't dare to decide, so he handed Kong Rong's recommendation form to Cao Cao. Cao Cao loves talents, so he summoned Mi Heng. I didn't know that Mi Heng looked down on Cao Cao and was rude to him. Cao Cao appointed Mi Fei as the drummer and ordered him to play drums to entertain guests at the banquet. Who knows that Miheng beat the drums and cursed Cao Cao, which made Cao Cao very embarrassed. Cao Cao sent Miheng to Jingzhou to surrender Liu Biao, trying to kill him by Liu Biao's hand. Unexpectedly, Liu Biao regarded Mi Fei as a guest of honor, and every time he discussed or issued a proclamation, Mi Fei made a statement. Later, Mi Heng was disrespectful to Liu Biao. Liu Biao sent him to Huang Zu's department as a secretary. Miheng is arrogant and domineering. Finally, he was killed by Howie.

The idiom "rarity" comes from this and describes it as very rare and rare. Mostly used to praise talented people.

Desperate

There was a nobleman named KATTO in the Zhou Dynasty. KATTO is not only talented in poetry, but also good at managing state affairs. Later, he was by Zhou Liwang's side to help handle state affairs. However, Zhou Liwang is arrogant and misinterprets the law. Treacherous court officials try their best to please. KATTO bluntly advised him and listed the disadvantages of state affairs, but the treacherous court official spoke ill of him in Zhou Liwang's ear. Zhou Liwang is very tired of KATTO. Since then, treacherous court officials have gone in and out, ignoring KATTO. KATTO was very angry and wrote a poem, which was later included in The Book of Songs. In the poem, he attacked the traitor and said, "There is no cure for evil!"

"incorrigible": terminally ill, medicine can't save it. The latter metaphor is that things are hopelessly bad.

Ignorance and incompetence

During the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, General Huo Guang was an important official of the imperial court and won the trust of Emperor Wu. On his deathbed, Emperor Wu entrusted his youngest son, Liu Fuling (Emperor Zhao), to Huo Guang for assistance. After the death of Emperor Zhao, Huo Guangli made Liu Xun Emperor (Xuan Di). Huo Guang was in power for more than forty years, which made great contributions to the Western Han Dynasty.

After Liu Xun succeeded to the throne, she made Xu Fei queen. Huo Guang's wife Huo Xian is a greedy woman. She wanted to marry her little daughter Cheng Jun to be a queen, so she took advantage of Xu Niangniang's illness to bribe a female doctor to poison Xu Niangniang. The poisonous trick was exposed and the female doctor was jailed. Huo Guang knew nothing about this beforehand, but when it came out, Huo told him. Huo Guang was very scared and accused his wife of not doing such a thing. He also wanted to report it, but he couldn't bear to have his wife convicted. After careful consideration, he concealed this heinous thing. After Huo Guang's death, someone reported the case to Xuan Di, and Xuan Di sent someone to investigate and deal with it. Huo Guang's wife heard about it, discussed countermeasures with her family and cronies, and decided to gather people to plan a rebellion. She didn't want to reveal the secret, so Xuan Di sent troops to surround her family.

Ban Gu, a historian of the Eastern Han Dynasty, commented on Huo Guang's merits and demerits in The Biography of Han Huo Guang, saying that he was "ignorant and dark in Dali", which meant that Huo Guang didn't study and had no knowledge, so he didn't know the truth of the overall situation. The idiom "no learning and no skill" means no learning and no skill.

Be endowed with great/extraordinary talents

Xie Lingyun in the Southern Dynasties was a writer who wrote a lot of landscape poems. He is smart and studious, has read many books, and has been deeply loved by his grandfather Xie Xuan since he was a child.

He was born into a noble family in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and the world called him "Xie" because he attacked the title of Gong. As a duke, he had no real power and was sent to Yongjia as a satrap. Xie Lingyun lamented his lack of talent, often leaving his official duties to go sightseeing. Later, he resigned and moved to Huiji, often drinking and having fun with friends. The local satrap sent someone to persuade him to restrain himself, but he scolded him. However, the landscape poems written by Xie Lingyun are deeply loved by people. Every time he wrote a new poem, he was immediately copied and spread quickly.

After Song Wendi ascended the throne, he was recalled to Beijing as an official and praised his poetry and calligraphy as "two treasures". Xie Lingyun is even more proud. He said, "There is only one stone in the world, and Cao Zijian has eight buckets. I have to fight, and the world is divided into one battle. "

Every bush and every tree seems to be enemies-in a state of extreme panic.

This idiom means treating all plants as enemy soldiers. Describe extreme doubt and panic.

This idiom comes from the Book of Jin. Fu Jian's notes show that soldiers are elite when they climb the city and look at Julian Waghann. Looking north, the vegetation on Bagong Mountain is all human.

In 383 AD, Fu Jian, the former Qin emperor in the north, was basically unified and led 900,000 soldiers and horses to attack the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The Eastern Jin Dynasty appointed Xie Shi as the general, Xie Xuan as the pioneer, and led 80,000 soldiers to war.

After Qin Jun striker Fu Rong captured Shouyang (now Shouxian County, Anhui Province), Fu Shu personally led 8,000 cavalry into the city. He listened to Fu Rong's judgment and thought that the nomads from the army were vulnerable. As long as his follow-up troops arrive, they will surely win a great victory. So he sent a man named Zhu Xu to surrender to Xie Shi.

Zhu Xu was an official in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. After seeing Xie Shi, he reported the protection of Qin Jun, and suggested that 8 Jin Army attack Luo Jian (now Dongluo River in Huainan, Anhui) before the follow-up troops of the former Qin Dynasty arrived. Xie Shi took his advice and sent troops to attack Qin Jun's camp. The result was a great victory. Jin Jin occupied Shouyang.

Fu Jian learned that Luo Jian was defeated, and the Jin army was heading for Shouyang. In utter amazement, he immediately boarded Shouyang Chengtou with Fu Rong and personally observed the movement of 8 Jin J across the water. It was the middle of winter and the weather was gloomy. Seen from a distance, the sky above the water is gray. A closer look shows that there are many masts and warships, and the nomads from the army are armed with swords and halberds. The lineup is very neat. He couldn't help secretly praising the nomads from being well-protected and well-trained.

Then, Fu Jian looked north again. Opposite is Bagong Mountain, where there are eight rolling peaks. The terrain is very dangerous. Kim's stronghold is at the foot of Bagong Mountain. A northwest wind roared by, and the swaying vegetation on the mountain was like countless soldiers moving. Fu Jian suddenly turned pale and said to Fu Rong in horror, "Nomads from the Golden Army are formidable enemies. How can it be said that it is a weak soldier? "

Soon, Fu Jian was tricked by Xie Xuan and ordered the army to retreat a little, so that the nomads from the army could survive the battle at the water. As a result, when Qin Jun retreated, he trampled on himself, fled and was defeated.

This war is a famous underwater battle in history. It is a famous war example in history.

Imitate others and lose your personality.

According to legend, two thousand years ago, there was a young man in Shouling, Yan State. He was well-fed and medium-looking, but he lacked self-confidence. He often felt that nothing was like others for no reason-his clothes were good, his food was delicious, and he was elegant when he stood and sat. He learns what he sees and loses what he learns. Although he has a new look, he still can't do one thing well. He doesn't know what he should look like.

His family advised him to change this problem, which he thought was because his family took care of too much. Relatives and neighbors said he was a bear breaking a stick, but he didn't listen at all. Over time, he doubted whether he should walk like this, and the more he looked at it, the more he felt that his walking posture was too stupid and ugly.

One day, he met several people talking and laughing on the road, only to hear someone say that Handan people walk beautifully. Hearing this, he hurried forward to find out. Unexpectedly, the men saw him and walked away with a smile.

How beautiful is the walking posture of Handan people? He can't imagine, this has become his heart disease. Finally, one day, he went to Handan, a distant place, to learn to walk without telling his family.

When I arrived in Handan, I felt fresh and dazzling everywhere. Seeing children walking, he feels lively, beautiful and academic; Seeing the old man walking, he felt steady and learned; Watch women walk, sway and learn. In this way, after only half a month, he couldn't even walk, and his travel expenses were spent, so he had to climb back.

The story comes from Zhuangzi Autumn Water. The idiom "Handan toddler" means to imitate others mechanically. Instead of learning from others' strengths, you will lose your own strengths and skills.

Calling a deer a horse-deliberate misinterpretation

Qin Ershi's prime minister, Zhao Gao, is ambitious, planning to usurp the throne all day long. However, he doesn't know how many people can be at his mercy and how many people are against him. So he thought of a way to test his prestige and find out who dared to oppose him.

One day, Zhao Gao brought a deer into the palace and said to Qin Ershi with a big smile, "Your Majesty, I will give you a good horse." Qin Ershi looked at it and thought: This is not a horse, this is obviously a deer! He smiled and said to Zhao Gao, "The Prime Minister has made a mistake. There is a deer here. How can you say it's a horse? " Zhao Gao said with a straight face: "Please see clearly, this is indeed a swift horse." Qin Ershi looked at the deer again and said incredulously, "Why does a horse have horns on its head?" Zhao Gao turned around, pointed to the ministers and said loudly, "Your Majesty can ask the ministers if you don't believe me."

Ministers were all at a loss by Zhao Gao's nonsense, and whispered privately: What is this Zhao Gao doing? It's obviously a deer or a horse! Ministers see Zhao Gao sinister smile on his face, eyes staring at Zhao Gao in turn, eyes staring at everyone in turn, suddenly understand Zhao Gao's intention.

Some timid people with a sense of justice bow their heads and dare not speak, because telling lies is sorry for their conscience, and telling the truth is afraid of being hurt by Zhao Gao in the future. Some honest people insist that it is manual rather than horse. There are also some adulterers who usually follow Zhao Gao closely and immediately support Zhao Gao's statement and say to the emperor, "This is indeed a swift horse!"

Afterwards, Zhao Gao punished those honest ministers who did not obey him by various means, and even copied them.

Get out of the way, tuēbēsān shě

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Jin Xiangong listened to rumors, killed Prince Shen Sheng, and sent someone to arrest Shen Sheng's younger brother Zhong Er. When Zhong Er heard the news, he fled the State of Jin and forgot about it for more than ten years.

After many hardships, Zhong Er came to the State of Chu. King Chu Cheng thought that Zhong Er would make great achievements in the future, so he greeted him with state gifts and regarded him as a distinguished guest.

One day, the King of Chu gave a banquet in honor of Zhong Er, and the two chatted, and the atmosphere was very harmonious. Suddenly, the king of Chu asked Zhong Er, "If one day you return to the State of Jin and become a monarch, how can you repay me?" Zhong Er thought for a moment and said, "Beautiful women are waiting for you, precious silk, and you have a lot of rare bird feathers, ivory leather, and even more in Chu. What rare items does Jin Wang have? " The king of Chu said, "Your son is too modest. Having said that, you should show me something? " Zhong Er replied with a smile, "Thanks to you. If I can really return to China to be in power, I would like to get along well with your country. If one day, Jin Chu goes to war, I will definitely order the troops to retreat first (one house equals thirty miles). If I can't get your forgiveness, I will fight you again. "

Four years later, Zhong Er really returned to the State of Jin and became a monarch. This is the famous Jin Wengong in history. The state of Jin became stronger and stronger under his rule.

In 633 BC, the two armies of Chu and Jin fought. In order to fulfill his promise, Jin Wengong ordered the troops to retreat 90 miles and stay in Chengpu. When Chu Jun saw that 8 Jin J was retreating, he thought the other side was afraid and immediately pursued it. The Jin army took advantage of the weakness of the Chu army's pride in underestimating the enemy, concentrated its forces and defeated the Chu army greatly, and won the battle of Chengpu.

The story comes from Zuo Zhuan Xi Gong Twenty-two Years. This idiom means not arguing with others or making concessions on your own initiative.

Quench thirst by thinking of plum-masturbating with illusory hope

One summer, Cao Cao led his army to crusade against Zhang Xiu. The weather is unusually hot, the sun is like fire, and there is not a cloud in the sky. The troops walked on the winding mountain road, and the dense trees and rocks scorched by the sun on both sides made people breathless. By noon, the soldiers' clothes were soaked, the marching speed slowed down, and several weak soldiers fainted on the side of the road.

Cao Cao was worried that the marching speed was getting slower and slower, and that the fighter plane would be delayed. However, at present, tens of thousands of people can't even drink water. How can we speed up? He immediately called the guide and asked him quietly, "Is there a water source near here?" The guide shook his head and said, "The spring is on the other side of the valley. It's a long detour. " Cao Cao thought for a moment and said, "No, it's too late." He looked at the forest in front of him, thought for a moment, and said to the guide, "Don't say anything, I'll think of something." He knew that even if he ordered the troops to speed up at the moment, it would not help. A brainwave, the solution came. He grabbed the horse by the stomach and quickly rushed to the front of the team. Pointing at the front with a whip, he said, "Soldiers, I know there is a large area of Merlin in front, where the plums are big and delicious. Let's hurry around this hill and get to Meilin! " Hearing this, the soldiers seemed to eat it in their mouths, and their spirits were greatly boosted, and their pace could not help but accelerate a lot.

The story comes from a false prophecy in Shi Shuo Xin Yu. The idiom "looking at plum to quench thirst" is to comfort yourself or others with fantasy.