赶尽杀绝 Gǎn jìn shā jué drive to the end, kill all

Explanation

指彻底消灭，不留余地。形容残忍狠毒。

To completely exterminate without leaving any room. Describes cruelty and viciousness.

Origin Story

话说东汉末年，群雄逐鹿，天下大乱。曹操率领大军南下，一路势如破竹，所到之处，尸横遍野。他为了巩固自己的统治，对任何反抗势力都采取赶尽杀绝的策略。一次，曹操攻打一个名为“宛城”的城市，城内守军拼死抵抗，战斗异常惨烈。最终，曹操攻破宛城，他下令将所有抵抗的士兵全部杀害，连妇孺老幼也不放过。宛城成为一座死城，空气中弥漫着血腥味。 曹操的残暴行为激起了民怨，许多百姓开始反抗。但曹操的军队纪律严明，战斗力强大，任何反抗都被残酷镇压。曹操为了防止后患，甚至将一些投降的士兵也杀害，以绝后患。 曹操的赶尽杀绝策略，虽然在短时间内巩固了他的统治，但也为他埋下了巨大的隐患。他的残暴统治，使得民心尽失，最终导致了魏国的衰落。这个故事也警示我们，任何统治者都应该以民为本，不能为了自己的利益而赶尽杀绝，否则必将自食其果。

huà shuō dōng hàn mò nián, qún xióng zhú lù, tiān xià dà luàn. cáo cāo shuài lǐng dà jūn nán xià, yī lù shì rú pò zhú, suǒ dào zhī chù, shī héng biàn yě. tā wèi le gǒng gù zì jǐ de tǒng zhì, duì rènhé fǎn kàng shì lì dōu cǎi qǔ gǎn jìn shā jué de cè lǜ. yī cì, cáo cāo gōng dǎ yī gè míng wéi“wǎn chéng”de chéng shì, chéng nèi shǒu jūn pīn sǐ dǐ kàng, zhàn dòu yì cháng cǎn liè. zuì zhōng, cáo cāo gōng pò wǎn chéng, tā xià lìng jiāng suǒ yǒu dǐ kàng de bīng shì quán bù shā hài, lián fù rú lǎo yòu yě bù guò fàng. wǎn chéng chéng wéi yī zuò sǐ chéng, kōng qì zhōng mí màn zhe xuè xīng wèi.

During the Three Kingdoms period of late Han Dynasty, the warlords were fighting for power. Cao Cao led his army southward, and he was victorious in every battle. In order to consolidate his power, he adopted a policy of eliminating any opposition forces. In one campaign, Cao Cao attacked a city named Wancheng. The defenders fought bravely, but eventually Wancheng was captured. Cao Cao ordered the killing of all the soldiers who fought against him, including women, children, and elderly people. Wancheng became a dead city, filled with the smell of blood. Cao Cao's cruelty angered the people, and many started to rebel against him. However, Cao Cao's army was well-disciplined and powerful, and any rebellion was ruthlessly suppressed. To prevent any future troubles, he even killed some of the surrendered soldiers. Although Cao Cao's ruthless tactics helped him to consolidate his power in a short time, they also planted the seeds of his own destruction. His cruel rule alienated the people, and eventually led to the decline of the Wei kingdom. This story serves as a warning that any ruler should put the people first, and never resort to the elimination of opposition without any consideration for human life.

Usage

常用来形容残忍狠毒，不留余地地消灭敌人或对手。

cháng yòng lái xíngróng cán rěn hěn dú, bù liú yú dì de mièxiāo dírén huò duì shǒu

Often used to describe the ruthless and merciless elimination of enemies or opponents.

Examples

• 他做事从不留余地，总是赶尽杀绝。

  tā zuò shì cóng bù liú yú dì, zǒng shì gǎn jìn shā jué

  He never leaves any room, always going for the kill.

• 这种赶尽杀绝的做法，只会激化矛盾。

  zhè zhǒng gǎn jìn shā jué de zuò fǎ, zhǐ huì jī huà máo dùn

  This kind of approach, to eliminate everything, will only exacerbate the conflict.

• 这场战争，他们赶尽杀绝，不留活口。

  zhè chǎng zhàn zhēng, tāmen gǎn jìn shā jué, bù liú huó kǒu

  In this war, they completely exterminated everyone, leaving no survivors

Related Idioms

• 斩尽杀绝

• 灭绝人性

• 穷追猛打

Opposite Idioms

• 慈悲为怀

• 宽大为怀