吃一堑，长一智 Fall into a ditch once, gain a measure of wisdom. A setback is a lesson. The Handian dictionary traces the saying to a letter by the Ming thinker Wang Yangming: “Each stumble adds to one’s wisdom. Today’s loss may yet become tomorrow’s gain.”
Create the Conditions
“If there are conditions, go ahead. If there are none, create the conditions and go ahead.” People’s Daily attributes the line to Wang Jinxi, the “Iron Man” of the Daqing oilfield.
In 1960, Wang led Drilling Team 1205 from Yumen in Gansu to Daqing. There was no housing. Some slept in cattle sheds, others on canvas on the ground. Grain was short, and people picked up frozen cabbage leaves. “The drilling rig has arrived. What if there is no crane? Pull it by hand and carry it on our shoulders!”
Red-Hat Enterprises
A private firm in China that registered as a collective or state enterprise was said to wear a hong maozi, a “red hat.” In a common form, the owner attached the firm to some unit or enterprise, took out a collective business license and paid a management fee. That unit did not touch the money or the running of the business.
In 2005, Dai Yuanchen wrote in the journal Southern Economy that the red hat was a countermeasure “forced by discrimination by ownership.” With it, a firm had political protection, found it easier to get things done and could enjoy certain advantages.
The Sina Model
In 2000, the internet portal Sina listed its shares in the United States. Its control over the business in China rested on contracts, not on ownership. Chinese lawyers call such a structure xieyi kongzhi, “control by agreement,” or the “Sina model.” The other name, VIE, for variable interest entity, comes from American accounting rules.
The law firm Zhonglun explains why it spread. China restricted or banned foreign investment in fields such as the internet, the news media and education. The American SEC and the Hong Kong exchange accepted the structure, so it became an important route for Chinese companies to list abroad.
The Leader’s Intent
In August 2015, the website of the National Development and Reform Commission published “Five Steps for Writing Official Documents,” by an official of a county Party organization department in Yunnan. The writer, it says, must “learn the leader’s intentions in detail” and the requirements for the document, and leave out personal likes and dislikes.
The writer should then “take the leader’s point of view” to understand the situation, analyze problems and propose measures.
The Vocabulary of Meetings
定调子 To fix the key. Originally, to set the pitch of a piece of music. Figuratively, to fix the basic direction of an activity or a piece of work before it begins.
表态 To show one’s attitude. To state one’s opinion or position in public.
汇报 To report. To gather material and report it to a superior, or to the masses, as in 汇报工作, to report on one’s work.
Words for One’s Own People
家丑不可外扬 Family shame must not be spread outside. The private failings of a family are not to be made known to outsiders. The Handian dictionary cites an earlier form, 家丑不外扬, from the Song dynasty Compendium of Five Lamps (五灯会元).
一家人不说两家话 One family does not speak the words of two families. Among one’s own people, there is no need for polite formulas.
体己话 Intimate words. The private talk between people who are close. The Handian dictionary takes its example from Dream of the Red Chamber.
知根知底 To know the root and the bottom. To know someone well. The dictionary’s example reads: “We are old friends. We know each other through and through.”
Repeatedly Defeated, Repeatedly Fighting
A well-known story tells of a report to the throne from the army of Zeng Guofan. It said: “Your servant’s army fought repeatedly and was repeatedly defeated” (屡战屡北). The words were turned around to read “repeatedly defeated, repeatedly fighting” (屡北屡战). The facts stayed the same, but they now read as persistence.
The story exists in several versions. Tradition credits the change to Zeng’s secretary, Ma Jiading. Other accounts say the report was by another commander, or that Zeng made the change himself. The article that records these versions gives no primary source.
The Vocabulary of Covering Up
粉饰太平 To paint over and present peace. To hide disorder and show a picture of peace and prosperity.
捂盖子 To hold the lid down. To hide a problem and keep the truth from coming out.
遮丑 To cover the ugly. To hide a shortcoming, a mistake or something shameful with words or actions.
瞒上不瞒下 To hide things from those above but not from those below. Also, to act together so that superiors do not find out.
A Gate as Deep as the Sea
In chapter 6 of Dream of the Red Chamber, the poor country woman Liu Laolao hopes for help from the great Jia household. “The gate of a noble house is as deep as the sea,” she says. “Nobody there knows me.” Her son-in-law has a plan. She should first find Zhou Rui, a servant of the lady of the house. “This Zhou Rui once did a piece of business with my father. We were on very good terms.”
At the side gate, the doormen ignore her and tell her to wait by the wall. She finds Zhou Rui’s wife instead. Years before, Gou’er had helped Zhou Rui a great deal in a dispute over buying land, so his wife finds it hard to refuse. She takes Liu Laolao first to Pinger, the trusted maid of Wang Xifeng. Only then is Liu Laolao led in.