弄巧成拙 — “To make cleverness turn into clumsiness”

During the Northern Song Dynasty, there lived a renowned painter named Sun Zhiwei, who excelled in figure painting. One day, Shouning Temple in Chengdu commissioned him to paint "The Nine Luminaries Star Lords." Sun Zhiwei meticulously outlined the entire painting; the figures were lifelike, their robes flowing as if celestial beings, with only the coloring left to do.

At that moment, a friend invited him for drinks. He put down his brush, admiring the painting for a while, feeling satisfied. He then instructed his disciples, "I have completed all the lines for this painting; only the coloring remains. Be careful not to use the wrong colors. I'll be at a friend's house; I hope you finish it by the time I return."

After Sun Zhiwei left, the disciples gathered around the painting, meticulously examining their master's brushwork and the brilliant overall composition, sharing their insights. One disciple remarked, "Look at the Water Warmer Star Lord's expression, so real and imposing with his flowing beard, powerful without anger." Another added, "The auspicious clouds beneath the Bodhisattva's feet truly embody a divine and immortal presence, inspiring reverence."

Among them was a disciple named Tong Renyi, who was always eager to show off his minor cleverness and seek attention. He alone remained silent, feigning deep thought. Someone asked him, "Why aren't you speaking? Is there something missing from this painting?"

Tong Renyi, in a profound tone, replied, "The boy next to the Water Warmer Star Lord has a very expressive look, but the crystal vase in his hand seems incomplete." The other disciples said, "We don't see anything missing."

Tong Renyi explained, "Master always draws a fresh flower in a vase, but this time it's absent. Perhaps he was in a hurry to leave and didn't have time to finish it. We should add it before coloring." With that, Tong Renyi carefully drew a vibrant red lotus flower in the mouth of the vase.

When Sun Zhiwei returned from his friend's house, he saw the lotus flower sprouting from the vase in the boy's hand. He was both furious and amused. He exclaimed, "Who did this foolish thing? If it were merely 'adding feet to a snake,' that would be one thing, but this is truly a case of 'making cleverness turn into clumsiness' (弄巧成拙)! The vase in the boy's hand is the Water Warmer Star Lord's monster-subduing bottle, used to control water monsters. By adding a lotus flower, you've transformed a sacred treasure into a common flower vase. Isn't that an enormous joke?"

Saying this, he tore the painting to shreds. The disciples looked at Tong Renyi, silently hanging their heads.