In the spring and autumn period, Yangchufu, a senior official in Jin country served as an envoy in Wei. When he was back, he stayed at a hotel. The owner of the hotel saw Yangchufu was out of the ordinary conversation. He whispered to his wife, " I wanted to seek shelter from a noble man. Now I think Yangchufu is great. I decided to follow him."
一路上,阳处父同店主东拉西扯,店主一边走,一边听。刚刚走出县城,店主便改变了主意,和阳处父分手了。
On the way, Yangchufu talked about all sorts of irrelevant matters with the hotel owner. The hotel owner was walking and listening to him. Just after they walked out of the county, the hotel owner changed his mind, and parted Yangchufu.
The wife of the hotel owner saw her husband was back. She was surprised and asked," It took you very long to find a noble man. Didn't you want to follow him? Why you came back?" The hotel owner answered, " I saw he had great looks and thought he was a noble man. However, he is an awful speaker and is not capable. Therefore, I came back."
词语注释:
出使:(chūshǐ) v. to serve as an envoy abroad
谈吐不凡:(tántǔbùfán) adj. out of the ordinary conversation
投奔:( tóubèn) v. to seek shelter
东拉西扯:(dōnglāxīchě) v. drag in all sorts of irrelevant matters
"华而不实" "华"means flowers, and "实"means fruits. It means a tree produces beautiful flowers but bears no fruits. It is used metaphorically for something flashy without substance. It can also used to refer someone with good looks but no real talents.
例句:
1、这篇文章写得华而不实,没有什么实际内容。 This article is flashy but has no real contents.
2、这个计划华而不实,没有可行性。 The plan is flashy without substance. It is not feasible.