庚癸之呼 — “To make a "Geng-Gui call”

庚癸之呼 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to make a "Geng-Gui call”. " which originally referred to a coded request for military provisions and later evolved to mean subtly asking or begging for money due to financial difficulties.

Frequency

庚癸之呼 Pronunciation and Pinyin

庚癸之呼 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
庚	gēng	8	seventh heavenly stem or age
癸	guǐ	9	tenth Heavenly Stem
之	zhī	4	possessive or connective particle
呼	hū	8	call out, exhale, whoosh

Example Sentence with 庚癸之呼

他最近手头有点紧，只好向朋友发出庚癸之呼，希望能渡过难关。

He's been a bit tight on money recently, so he had to make a 'Geng-Gui call' to his friends, hoping to get through the difficult period.

Origin and Story of 庚癸之呼

During the Spring and Autumn Period, King Fuchai of Wu allied with the states of Jin and Lu. Shen Shuyi, a high-ranking official from Wu, needed to borrow military provisions from Gongsun Youshan, an official from Lu.

Since they couldn't speak directly about such sensitive matters, they resorted to using code words.

Gongsun You of Lu understood the situation and replied, "The fine millet is all gone, but we still have some coarse grain. When the time comes, climb the mountain and shout loudly: 'Geng Gui hu!' and we will know to deliver the provisions."