养虎为患 raising a tiger to become a threat
Explanation
比喻包庇坏人，留下隐患，最终给自己带来灾祸。
The metaphor is to condone the bad guys, leaving hidden dangers, and ultimately causing disaster for oneself.
Origin Story
从前，在一个偏僻的山村里，住着一位善良的老农。他勤劳肯干，日子过得也算平静。 一天，一位猎人送给他一只受伤的小虎崽。老农见它可怜，便收留了它，精心照料。小虎崽渐渐长大，变得强壮有力。老农依然把它当作宠物，好吃好喝地供着。 有一天，小虎崽突然发狂，咬伤了老农的家人。老农这才意识到，自己养虎为患，酿成了大祸。他后悔莫及，却已无力挽回。 从此以后，这个山村便流传着老农养虎为患的故事，警示人们不能纵容恶人，以免给自己带来灾难。
Once upon a time, in a remote mountain village, there lived a kind old farmer. He was diligent and hardworking, and his life was relatively peaceful. One day, a hunter gave him a wounded tiger cub. The old farmer, seeing its pitiful state, took it in and carefully looked after it. The cub gradually grew up and became strong and powerful. The old farmer still treated it as a pet, providing it with good food and drink. One day, the tiger cub suddenly went wild and injured the farmer's family members. The old farmer then realized that he had raised a tiger to become a threat, causing great misfortune. He deeply regretted his actions but was powerless to undo the damage. From then on, the story of the old farmer raising a tiger to become a threat spread throughout the mountain village, warning people not to indulge evil people, lest they bring disaster upon themselves.
Usage
形容纵容坏人会给自己带来灾祸。
Describes how tolerating bad people can bring misfortune to oneself.
Examples
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他处处讨好上司，结果上司却借故刁难他，真是养虎为患！
ta chu chu tao hao shangsi, jieguo shangsi que jie gu diaonan ta, zhen shi yang hu wei huan! guojia qingxin diren, zhongyu daozhi zhanluan, zhe ke wei shi yang hu wei huan de dianxing lizi.
He flattered his superiors everywhere, but in the end, his superiors made things difficult for him on flimsy pretexts; this is really an example of the idiom "raising a tiger to become a threat".
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国家轻信敌人，最终导致战乱，这可谓是养虎为患的典型例子。
The state trusted its enemies, which eventually led to war; this can be seen as a typical example of the idiom "raising a tiger to become a threat".