项庄舞剑，志在沛公 — “To have an ulterior motive”

项庄舞剑，志在沛公 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to have an ulterior motive”. To do something with a hidden agenda, where the true intention is different from what is expressed or appears. Literally, “Xiang Zhuang performs a sword dance, his intention is Liu Bang”.

Frequency

项庄舞剑，志在沛公 Pronunciation and Pinyin

项庄舞剑，志在沛公 Character Breakdown

Character	Pinyin	Strokes	Meaning
项	xiàng	9	item, term, or neck
庄	zhuāng	6	village; farm; manor
舞	wǔ	14	to dance
剑	jiàn	9	ancient long-bladed weapon
，	，	—
志	zhì	7	will, aspiration, ambition
在	zài	6	to be at or in
沛	pèi	7	abundant, rushing, vigorous
公	gōng	4	public, common, impartial

Example Sentence with 项庄舞剑，志在沛公

他表面上说要帮助我们项目，但实际上项庄舞剑，志在沛公，他是想通过我们获取核心技术。

He outwardly claimed to help with our project, but in reality, his actions were like Xiang Zhuang's sword dance, with an ulterior motive to gain access to our core technology.

Origin and Story of 项庄舞剑，志在沛公

In 208 BC, Xiang Yu led an army of 400,000 troops towards Xianyang, but was blocked by Liu Bang's defending forces. Xiang Bo, Xiang Yu's uncle, then invited Liu Bang to a banquet at Hong Gate.

During the feast, Xiang Yu arranged for Xiang Zhuang to perform a sword dance as entertainment, secretly intending for Xiang Zhuang to use the opportunity to assassinate Liu Bang. Realizing the danger, Xiang Bo also joined the sword dance, subtly positioning himself to protect Liu Bang.

Later, Liu Bang's loyal general, Fan Kuai, bravely burst into the camp to protect his lord. Seizing this chaotic moment, Liu Bang managed to escape the banquet.