📖 Meaning
This idiom metaphorically describes visiting a friend but failing to meet them, leaving a written message on the door instead. It refers to a fruitless journey made when the host is absent.
📜 Origin Story
From the 'Shìshuō Xīnyǔ' (A New Account of Tales of the World) compiled by Liu Yiqing of the Southern Dynasties (Liu Song). The scholar Ji Kang and his friend Lü An were so close that whenever they longed for each other, one would travel a thousand li to call. Once Lü An arrived only to find Ji Kang away; Ji Kang's brother Ji Xi came out to invite him in, but Lü An would not enter. He instead wrote the character '凤' (phoenix) on the door and departed—because 凤 can be split into 几 (almost) and 鸟 (bird), wryly implying Ji Xi was merely 'almost a worthy man,' an indirect slight.
💡 Example Usage
我远道来访，恰逢君不在，竟成吕安题凤之憾。
I traveled from afar to call on you, only to find you away—becoming, regrettably, like Lü An who left the phoenix character.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 吕安题凤
- Pinyin: lǚ ān tí fèng
- Literal Translation: Lü An, write, phoenix
- Category: Action
- Characters: 4