Lord Ye Fond of Dragons - Chinese 4-Character Sayings

This is another popular four-character idiom, or 成语 叶公好龙 means Lord Ye who was fond of dragons Is this something that can be used in conversation? Yes it is. Let me explain So, in China's spring and autumn period, well over 2000 years ago there was this guy, this Lord Ye Now this guy loved dragons, or at least he thought he did Now this guy had dragon designs stitched on his clothes, on his accessories He had dragons painted on his walls and the pillars in his house And one day, a real dragon up in heaven hears about this guy and thinks Okay, so he's into us dragons Let me go down to the human world and check out this Lord Ye So this dragon goes down to the human world and he arrives at Lord Ye's mansion He curls his tail around the house and peeks in through the window Now Lord Ye hears a noise and he goes to check it out When he sees the real dragon he gets so scared that he turns white and runs for his life And thus the four-character saying 叶公好龙 or Lord Ye fond of dragons came to be Now you can use this whenever someone is always going on about something that they supposedly like but when they actually encounter this thing or get the chance to do that thing for real they freak out and get scared Check it out You know, Chris, my kung fu has been getting really good I know Wing Chun, I know the Tiger and Crane style, the Praying Mantis I think I could take on anyone, you know, like Bruce Lee Hey, you know, Ben, there's that new cage fighting club that just opened up Five dollars, you can take on anyone, no holds barred 叶公好龙 You know, Chris, I've been watching these really cool extreme sports videos on YouTube You've got ski jumping, bungee jumping, wingsuit flying, base jumping I think I could do all of it, man, it looks easy Well, hey, you know, I got two tickets to go base jumping off the Empire State Building You want to come? 叶公好龙 You know what, Chris, I am such a ladies' man You know that guy Casanova? He's got nothing on me That guy Romeo? Small time compared to me Watch out, ladies Well, you know, Ben, I happen to know this girl I thought you two might be a good match, I could set you up on a blind date 叶公好龙 So there you have it 叶公好龙 Don't be like Lord Yeah and say that you like things when they actually scare the pants off you And a big thanks to my buddy Chris Make sure you check out his show, China Uncensored, for a comical look at Chinese current affairs You know, Chris, I've been watching these really cool whitewater rafting videos on YouTube Hey, you know, I've got two tickets to go whitewater rafting for real