To spread groundless slander or false accusations; to make up defamatory stories out of thin air.
Era:
Ancient
Frequency:
Story:
During the Han Dynasty, there lived a handsome man named Zhi Buyi.
After his elder brother passed away from illness, Zhi Buyi lived with his sister-in-law.
This arrangement unfortunately attracted the gossip of busybodies, who maliciously claimed he was having an affair with his sister-in-law.
Zhi Buyi, hearing these groundless rumors, found it impossible to defend himself or clarify the situation, so he simply chose to ignore them.
However, people misinterpreted his silence as an admission of guilt, and from then on, the anecdote of 'wú xiōng dào sǎo' (no brother, stole sister-in-law), referring to fabricated slander, began to circulate.