埋轮破柱 — “To be unyielding and incorruptible, not fearing powerful officials”

Q: What is the Chinese definition of 埋轮破柱?

比喻刚正不阿，不畏权贵。

埋轮破柱 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to be unyielding and incorruptible, not fearing powerful officials”. To stand firm for justice despite intimidation. Literally, “Bury the wheel, break the pillar”.

Frequency

埋轮破柱 Pronunciation and Pinyin

埋轮破柱 Character Breakdown

Stroke Order

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
埋	mái	10	bury, hide, complain
轮	lún	8	wheel, rotate, take turns
破	pò	10	break, destroy, or defeat
柱	zhù	9	pillar, column, mainstay

Example Sentence with 埋轮破柱

面对不公正的待遇，他选择埋轮破柱，坚决捍卫自己的原则。

Facing unfair treatment, he chose to stand firm and upright, resolutely defending his principles.

Origin and Story of 埋轮破柱

During the early Eastern Han Dynasty, Liang Ji held dictatorial power and disrupted the government. Zhang Gang, a high-ranking official (Guanglu Daifu), was ordered to punish corrupt officials. Upon leaving the capital Luoyang, he immediately buried his own carriage, signifying his refusal to comply with superficial orders, and instead returned to Luoyang to impeach Liang Ji.

Separately, Li Ying, in a resolute display of integrity, broke a pillar while searching for Zhang Rang's younger brother, Zhang Shuo, vowing to uphold the imperial court's discipline and law.