舉案齊眉--成語故事英文版

1、舉案齊眉Mutual respect in a marriageAbout 1,800 years ago, a very learned and noble man named Liang Hong 粱鴻 lived in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Liang didn't have the chance to become an official because he was very poor. After he came back from the capital to his home town in what is today's Shaan

2、xi province, quite a few people offered to betroth their daughters to him. However Liang Hong politely declined every offer.In his county, there was a girl named Meng Guang 孟光.The sturdy and plain girl had turned down many offers and remained unmarried until she was 30 years old.Her mom asked her, “

3、You are no longer a young lady, and many girls of your age have married. Your father and I worry about you so much. Tell me, who is in your heart that you want to marry?"1Meng Guang said, “Mom, I totally understand your concern. But I want to marry a man as virtuous as Liang Hong."Later, L

4、iang Hong learned about Meng Guang*s determination. He expressed his willingness to marry her.The newlyweds moved to Baling Mountains and lived there in seclusion, engaged in farming and weaving, while in their spare time, amusing themselves with poetry and music.Once Liang Hong went out on business

5、 and passed Luoyang. While staying in the capital city, he wrote a poem in which he ridiculed the feudal rulers who lived lavish lives. This enraged the royalty. An order was issued to arrest him.Liang Hong ran back home and told his wifer "Dear, we have to leave. I*ve offended the officials. W

6、e need to hide somewhere safe.1'His wife Meng Guang said nothing, but packed up to go with him. To escape, Liang Hong changed his name and fled with his wife to present day Shandong. Later they moved to Jiangsu province where they stayed in a small room under a corridor of a well-to-do family. T

7、hey survived by husking rice for others with mortar and pestle.Every day when Liang Hong came back from the tiring work, his wife Meng Guang would bring him the food she had prepared for him, raising the tray as high as her eyebrows, while keeping her eyes cast down. In ancient times, this showed a

8、wife's deep respect for her husband. At the same time, Liang Hong also loved his wife and respected her very much.Once, their landlord Gao Botong 皋伯通 happened to see this and was surprised by Meng Guang's behavior. He thought Liang Hong was no ordinary man and immediately invited the couple

9、to live in his main house. And there, Liang Hong concentrated on writing. He accomplished more than ten good essays which unfortunately were lost long ago. But the couple's story remains till today.From the manner in which Meng Guang served dinner to her husband comes the idiom ju an qi mei 舉案齊眉.jCi is to raise something. an is the tray, and qf means as high as. mei is the eyebrow. It vividly shows her respect for her husband. But the phrase is used to describe mutual respect between a married couple. So we can translate the id