言外之意 The meaning outside the words. A meaning that is implied but not stated clearly.
弦外之音 The sound beyond the strings. Originally the lingering sound of music. Today a meaning that comes through indirectly in what is said.
心照不宣 Hearts reflect each other, nothing is declared. Both sides understand, and there is no need to say it.
拐弯抹角 To turn bends and go around corners. To speak without coming straight to the point.
A junlingzhuang is a written pledge given on receiving an order. The signer accepts severe punishment if the task is not done. In chapter 46 of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a pledge reads: “I am willing to submit a military pledge. If it is not done in three days, I accept heavy punishment.”
A CCTV News article noted that the fight against poverty was the only task since the 18th Party Congress for which Party and government heads signed military pledges to the Center. Xi Jinping said in 2016: “A military pledge is not made lightly. What we say, we must do.”
In the Analects, Confucius says: “In attending on a gentleman, there are three errors. To speak before it is one’s turn to speak is called rashness. Not to speak when it is one’s turn is called concealment. To speak without first watching his expression is called blindness.” (侍于君子有三愆：言未及之而言谓之躁，言及之而不言谓之隐，未见颜色而言谓之瞽。)
In his memorial on setting out for war, Zhuge Liang recalled how he had served Liu Bei: “I took up my charge when the army was defeated, and I received orders in a time of danger.”
A second memorial, attributed to him, ends: “I will bend to the task and give my all until I die. Whether it succeeds or fails, goes well or badly, is beyond what my understanding can foresee.”
The opening chapter of the Book of Rites, Quli, sets out how the young speak in front of elders and teachers. “When an elder has not raised a matter, do not cut in with talk.” (长者不及，毋儳言) “Sitting with a teacher, when the teacher asks a question, answer only when he has finished.”
Meeting a teacher on the road, a student hurries forward and stands straight. “If the teacher speaks to him, he answers. If the teacher does not speak to him, he hurries away.” In front of a friend of his father, he does not answer unless he is asked.
Wei Sheng arranged to meet a woman under a bridge. She did not come. The water rose, and he did not leave. He held on to the bridge pillar and drowned. Dictionaries define Wei Sheng bao zhu, Wei Sheng holds the pillar, as keeping faith with an agreement.
In the Zhuangzi, the robber Zhi tells the story to mock such men. They are “no different from a dog torn apart or a pig swept away by the river,” he says. They valued their name, made light of death and forgot their own lives.
In the Analects, Confucius says: “In serving one’s father and mother, remonstrate gently. If they show that they will not follow the advice, remain respectful and do not oppose them. Work hard and do not complain.” (事父母几谏，见志不从，又敬不违，劳而不怨。)
The Handian dictionary defines 几谏 as “to remonstrate in a tactful, roundabout way.”
Tongrentang, the Beijing pharmacy founded in 1669, keeps an old pledge: “Though the preparation is laborious, we never dare to save labor. Though the ingredients are costly, we never dare to reduce materials.”
Article 10 of the Constitution of the Communist Party of China sets out the basic principles of democratic centralism. The first reads: “Individual Party members obey the Party organization, the minority obeys the majority, lower-level organizations obey higher-level organizations, and all organizations and all members of the Party obey the National Congress and the Central Committee of the Party.”
By September 2011, JD.com had made a firm promise in its own delivery areas, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu. Orders for goods in stock placed before 11 a.m. arrive the same day. Orders placed before 11 p.m. arrive by 3 p.m. the next day.